If you are diabetic or trying to lose your weight or both then you must have heard about Artificial Sweeteners. Artificial Sweeteners are a substitute of sugar but with no calories. Therefore millions of people purchase these artificial sweeteners to fool their bodies. These sweeteners satisfy their urge to eat something sweet but with no calories. Most of us don't know that these artificial sweeteners are actually degrading your health. But how ? The answer might surprise you. Betterhealthfacts.com has collected some facts about the disadvantages of artificial sweeteners. After reading these facts a health conscious person will never use them.
What are Artificial Sweeteners ?
Artificial Sweeteners are chemical compounds than are edible and give a false feeling of sweetness on your tastebuds. They have no nutritional value, thus no calories. Diabetic people use them to keep having the taste of sugar. Even some health conscious people, who count every calorie they eat, use them to stay away from calories. Some artificial sweeteners are 20000 times sweeter than sugar, i.e. one table spoon of such artificial sweetener can sweeten 20000 cups of tea / coffee.
Where are these Artificial Sweeteners used?
Artificial sweeteners are used in food industry where large scale production is done. Several bakery chains use them. Using these artificial sweeteners not only reduces the cost of production, but people using them also feel that they are eating something healthy (while they are not). Non nutritive artificial sweeteners approved by FDA are
- Saccharin: 700 times sweeter than sugar.
- Acesulfame potassium (Ace-K): 200 times sweeter than sugar
- Sucralose: 600 times sweeter than sugar
- Neotame: 13000 times sweeter than sugar
- Advantame: 20000 times sweeter than sugar
- Steviol glycosides: 400 times sweeter than sugar. It is a low calorie sugar.
How does Artificial Sweeteners harm diabetic people ?
While eating Artificial Sweeteners we think that we have fooled our body as it is sweet but with no calories. In reality we fool ourselves. We will tell you how ! There are two ways in which they cn harm you.
- After regularly having artificial sweeteners, diabetic people often find an excuse to eat unhealthy food sometimes thinking that they have already saved many calories and eating a pizza won't harm them. Such psychology is found in most people and in long run it leads to more weight gain compared to those who don't have artificial sweeteners.
- When we eat anything with artificial sweeteners, our body think that it is sugar and releases insulin in high amount to utilize the calories. Over amount of insulin turns on the fat storage mode of our body and as we consume any diet most of the calories are turned into fat, making us more obese.
Health Hazards due to Artificial Sweeteners
- Harms taste buds: Artificial Sweeteners are much more sweeter than normal sugar and it harms our taste buds. It leads to a situation where we can't find any taste in fruits and vegetables.
- Lack of nutrition: As we find find nutritious items less tasty, we avoid eating them automatically and it leads to lack of nutrition. Apart from it, artificial sweeteners are themselves non-nutritive.
- Addictive: Researches have proved that Artificial Sweeteners are addictive and those who eat them crave for more.
- Over usage: FDA and different health agencies have set some standard usage quantity for these artificial sweeteners, which is usually not followed by consumers as they treat them totally unharmful due to their zero calories.
- Headaches: Some studies have found that some people reported headaches like migraine after consuming drinks with artificial sweeteners.
- Increases Obesity: Artificial Sweeteners make our body release more insulin than a normal person and it turns our body into a fat storage machine.
- May cause Diabetes: Obesity is a leading factor for Diabetes Type 2. Apart from that, a research done in Israel found that artificial sweeteners can cause Glucose Intolerance which is connected to Insulin Resistance, a leading cause of Diabetes.
Transfat: The artificial fat is another gift of chemistry to our kitchen to degrade our health.
Instead of eating artificial foods items prepared in a laboratory, its better to stay natural. Its better to restrict yourself from unhealthy lifestyle / food and motivate yourself for healthy lifestyle and food. Its better to enjoy the sweetness of fruits rather than destroying your taste buds with artificial sweeteners.
Post a Comment
Post a Comment