What's Their Real Value? Sugar Substitutes
Sugar Substitutes: What's Their Real Value?
About 15 percent of Americans use sugar substitutes to cut calories, control diabetes, or prevent cavities. Yet just how much is safe to consume?
Sugar-free foods and drinks are lower in calories than their full sugar alternatives, but are they good options for weight loss? While sugar substitutes are generally safe, the debate about how they should be used continues.
Sugar Substitutes: A Short and Sweet History
The first sugar substitute, saccharin, was discovered in the late 1800s and gained prominence in manufacturing during the World Wars, when sugar was rationed. The business of sugar-free foods and drinks began to boom in the 1960s when clinicians realized the importance of controlling weight gain in the management of diabetes.
Since then, as people became more health-conscious and wanted to shun sugar, manufacturers responded with a host of sugar substitutes. They are:
Aspartame, approved in 1981 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and now in more than 6,000 foods and drinks
Acesulfame-K, FDA-approved in 1988
Sucralose (Splenda, SucraPlus), approved in 1998 for limited use and in 1999 for general use
Neotame, approved in 2002
Other sugar substitutes are being developed, and many products contain a mix of sugar substitutes to enhance flavor. Each sugar substitute is several thousand times sweeter than sugar, but has a slightly different flavor. Whether you reach for the pink, blue, or yellow packet to sweeten your coffee is a matter of personal taste. Sugar substitutes are now so common that many people use them without consciously considering their use as a weight-loss strategy.
Sugar Substitutes: How Much Can You Have?
A big question surrounding sugar substitutes is how much diet soda is safe to drink. Though you might never consider consuming this much in a day, the FDA says these are the maximum amounts allowable for daily consumption, listed by type of sugar substitute:
Aspartame: 18 to 19 cans of diet soda
Saccharin: 9 to 12 packets
Acesulfame-K: 30 to 32 cans of diet soda
Sucralose: 6 cans of diet soda
More in the reply...........
About 15 percent of Americans use sugar substitutes to cut calories, control diabetes, or prevent cavities. Yet just how much is safe to consume?
Sugar-free foods and drinks are lower in calories than their full sugar alternatives, but are they good options for weight loss? While sugar substitutes are generally safe, the debate about how they should be used continues.
Sugar Substitutes: A Short and Sweet History
The first sugar substitute, saccharin, was discovered in the late 1800s and gained prominence in manufacturing during the World Wars, when sugar was rationed. The business of sugar-free foods and drinks began to boom in the 1960s when clinicians realized the importance of controlling weight gain in the management of diabetes.
Since then, as people became more health-conscious and wanted to shun sugar, manufacturers responded with a host of sugar substitutes. They are:
Aspartame, approved in 1981 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and now in more than 6,000 foods and drinks
Acesulfame-K, FDA-approved in 1988
Sucralose (Splenda, SucraPlus), approved in 1998 for limited use and in 1999 for general use
Neotame, approved in 2002
Other sugar substitutes are being developed, and many products contain a mix of sugar substitutes to enhance flavor. Each sugar substitute is several thousand times sweeter than sugar, but has a slightly different flavor. Whether you reach for the pink, blue, or yellow packet to sweeten your coffee is a matter of personal taste. Sugar substitutes are now so common that many people use them without consciously considering their use as a weight-loss strategy.
Sugar Substitutes: How Much Can You Have?
A big question surrounding sugar substitutes is how much diet soda is safe to drink. Though you might never consider consuming this much in a day, the FDA says these are the maximum amounts allowable for daily consumption, listed by type of sugar substitute:
Aspartame: 18 to 19 cans of diet soda
Saccharin: 9 to 12 packets
Acesulfame-K: 30 to 32 cans of diet soda
Sucralose: 6 cans of diet soda
More in the reply...........
