Micah Stanley
Whether sugar or artificial sweeteners – both are equally harmful to the organism and can make you overweight and contribute to the development of diabetes.
Sweeteners or sugar: Both make you sick!
Anyone who consumes a lot of sugar – often unintentionally through convenience products – promotes obesity, can become diabetic more easily, and has an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. So many people resort to artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, acesulfame-K, and saccharin & Co.
Many beverages, ready-made products, and snacks have long been sweetened with sweeteners by the food industry and are therefore enticingly advertised as having a low-calorie count. Yes, sweeteners are among the most commonly used food additives and make consumers believe every day that they can enjoy sweets with a clear conscience.
However, more and more studies show that sweeteners are by no means a healthy alternative to sugar. Because they also lead to obesity and metabolic disorders such as diabetes. Even the risk of dementia increases if you regularly use artificial sweeteners.
Obesity and diabetes
At the annual Experimental Biology 2018 in San Diego (a conference where members of various scientific societies meet), Dr. Brian Hoffmann, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Marquette University and the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, presents new insights into sweeteners.
Hoffmann first explained why this topic had piqued his interest:
“Even though so many people are using these no-calorie artificial sweeteners instead of sugar, today we have extremely high levels of obesity and diabetics.”
Sweeteners, therefore, do not seem to offer a solution if you want to stay slim and healthy.
Sugar and sweeteners damage blood vessels
To date, Hoffmann’s study is the first to examine the biochemical effects of artificial sweeteners on the body with such intensity. The aim was to find out exactly how sugar (glucose and fructose) and sweeteners (aspartame and acesulfame-K) affect the blood vessel walls.
It was found that all sweeteners equally impaired the functionality of the blood vessels. However, this happened in very different ways. Hoffman said:
“In our studies, both sugar and sweeteners had negative effects that can lead to obesity and diabetes in the long term, but via very different mechanisms.”
The sweetener can accumulate in the body
Both groups of sweeteners caused changes in the blood, among other things in the fat level and also in the amino acid level. Sweeteners in particular changed the type of fat metabolism as well as the type of energy production. Sooner or later, acesulfame-K appeared to be deposited in the body and caused more damage to the blood vessel walls than the other sweeteners.
“The organism does have mechanisms for processing small amounts of sugar. However, if too much sugar is consumed over a longer period of time, these mechanisms break down,” says Hoffmann. “But if you replace the sugar with artificial sweeteners, then there are negative changes in the fat and energy metabolism.”
Just doing without sweeteners and sugar does not protect against diseases
Unfortunately, the risk of obesity and diabetes does not decrease simply by immediately eliminating artificial sweeteners or sugar from the diet. Because the two problems usually arise from a combination of several risk factors, including lack of exercise, stress, and an overall unhealthy diet.
Hoffman warns:
“However, those who consume artificial sweeteners or sugar in addition to the usual risk factors increase their risk of obesity and diabetes even further.”
Various sweeteners are available as alternatives to sugar and artificial sweeteners, but even they should only be used in moderate amounts as part of a healthy alkaline-excessive diet and preferably not on a daily basis. Interesting natural sweeteners are Stevia and Luo Han Guo. If you are overweight, think of all the things you can do to lose weight in a healthy way – and even diabetes (type 2) can be cured!
