ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports that according to a 1998 survey by the Calorie Control Council, 144 million American adults regularly consume low-calorie, sugar-free products such as artificially sweetened sodas and desserts (http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/fdsugar.html). If you suffer from frequent headaches, digestive problems, muscle and/or joint pain, or other chronic health conditions and your doctor can’t find anything wrong with you, you may be sensitive to the effects of artificial sweeteners. Aspartame (“the blue stuff”), saccharine (“the pink stuff”) and sucralose (“the yellow stuff”) are all chemical food additives that can have various negative health effects on some people.

Aspartame, sold as NutraSweet®, Equal®, and other brand names, was discovered by accident by a chemist for G.D. Searle Co. in 1965. It is made up of 3 chemicals (aspartic acid, phenylalanine and methanol) and according to Wikipedia, a public online encyclopedia, the FDA receives more complaints related to aspartame than any other food additive (www.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspartame). Some of the documented reactions to this chemical include headaches, migraines, dizziness, nausea, muscle spasms, weight gain, depression, dizziness, fatigue, heart palpitations, memory loss, and more. An article in the August, 2003 edition of Natural Health Magazine reports that headache sufferers who give up aspartame experience relief in just 5 to 7 days. The FDA reports that aspartame can cause brain damage in certain individuals who have a disease called phenylketonuria. The aspartic acid in aspartame also has the potential to cause brain damage at very high doses. The FDA report also mentions that aspartame ingestion results in the production of methanol, formaldehyde and formate--substances that could be considered toxic at high doses. A study done in 1993 by researchers at the Department of Psychiatry, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine concluded that individuals with mood disorders are particularly sensitive to this artificial sweetener and its use in this population should be discouraged (http://www.mindfully.org/Health/Aspartame-Adverse-Reactions-1993.htm). Finally, an editorial in the February 21, 2006 edition of the New York Times reported that a highly credible study in Italy should cause the FDA to take another look at aspartame’s safety. The study found a “statistically significant increase in lymphomas, leukemias, and other cancers in rats that were fed aspartame for a lifetime and compared with rats that were not. Excess cancers were found even in rats fed doses equal to 20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight, well below the 50-milligram level currently deemed acceptable for humans in the United States” (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/21/opinion/21tues4.html?ex=1298178000&en=9f451174adaa957b&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss).

Saccharine, the “pink stuff,” is a petroleum-based compound that is three to five hundred times sweeter than sugar. The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) cautions against the use of saccharine. They report the following: “Many studies on animals have shown that saccharin can cause cancer of the urinary bladder. In other rodent studies, saccharin has caused cancer of the uterus, ovaries, skin, blood vessels, and other organs. Other studies have shown that saccharin increases the potency of other cancer-causing chemicals. And the best epidemiology study (done by the National Cancer Institute) found that the use of artificial sweeteners (saccharin and cyclamate) was associated with a higher incidence of bladder cancer” (http://www.cspinet.org/reports/chemcuisine.htm#Alphabetical). Unfortunately, bowing to pressure from the food products industry, Congress passed a law in 2000 that allowed the removal of cancer-related warning labels from saccharine products.

Sucralose is the newest synthetic sweetener on the market and is sold under the brand name Splenda®. It is produced by chlorinating sugar and substituting three chlorine atoms for three hydroxyl groups. The marketing campaign for Splenda® has effectively convinced consumers that because it’s made from sugar it must be natural and safe. Chlorine, however, is a known carcinogen, according to Dr. Janet Starr Hull, a PhD in Nutrition, toxicologist and ecologist. In fact, the manufacturer of Splenda® is being accused in a lawsuit of deceptive advertising because they lead many consumers to believe that it is a natural sugar product. A survey conducted by CSPI found that 47 percent of consumers who use Splenda® think it is natural but chemically, it is an artificial sweetener. Very few human studies have been done on sucralose, but animal research shows the following: shrunken thymus glands, enlarged liver & kidneys, decreased red blood cell count, reduced growth rate, diarrhea and more. Industrial chemist Ron Martini, who specializes in insect control and lectures on public health, has said the bottom line is that chlorine is deadly. There have been no human studies on the effects of sucralose that have lasted longer than 6 months, which should give rise to caution.

Artificial sweeteners have not been proved to be beneficial and in fact, could be dangerous. A recent study in the International Journal of obesity shows that they may actually interfere with our bodies’ natural ability to count calories, making us more susceptible to weight gain. If sweetness is important to you and you’re watching your calorie count, try using one of the several safe natural sweeteners that are available (see box).

Debbie Markel, Certified Herbalist and Certified Natural Health Professional, is the proprietor of Apothecarian Herbals, LLC in Powhatan.

NATURAL LOW-CALORIE SWEETENERS

Stevia: Stevia is one of the most health restoring plants on earth. Native to Paraguay, it is a small green plant bearing leaves which have a delicious and refreshing taste that can be 30 times sweeter than sugar. Besides the intensely sweet glycosides (steviosides, rebaudiosides and a dulcoside), various studies have found the leaf to contain proteins, fiber, carbohydrates, iron, phosphorus, calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, zinc, rutin (a flavonoid), true vitamin A, Vitamin C and an oil which contains 53 other constituents.

Lo Han Fruit: Luo han guo is a very sweet fruit found in China now being marketed as a sweetener. Lo han is the fruit of Momordica grosvenori, a plant cultivated in the mountains of southern China. Mogrosides, which are water extracted from the Lo Han fruit, offer a pleasant, sweet taste without elevating blood sugar. Lo Han Kuo Mogrosides are up to 200 times sweeter than sugar.

Xylitol: Pure xylitol is a white crystalline substance that looks and tastes like sugar. It can be found in berries, fruit, vegetables and mushrooms. Xylitol has been used in foods since the 1960's. It is a popular sweetener for the diabetic diet in some countries. In the U.S., xylitol is approved as a food additive in unlimited quantity for foods with special dietary purposes. Xylitol bakes well. The only side effect is that too much xylitol can result in mild diarrhea in some people. Xylitol use reduces tooth decay rates both in high-risk groups and in low risk groups. Sugar-free chewing gums and candies made with xylitol as the principal sweetener have already received official endorsements from six national dental associations. Other studies have shown that regular use of xylitol gum can reduce childrens' ear infections.