Are zero-calorie sugar substitutes really healthy and unburdened? The World Health Organization hit them in the face!

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On May 15, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued new guidelines on non-sugar sweeteners,"WHO advises not to use non-sugar sweeteners for weight control in newly released guidelines," which states: It is recommended not to use non-sugar sweeteners to control weight or reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases.

Today, non-sugar sweeteners are part of the health food label. According to the initial marketing promotion of non-sugar sweeteners, this is a fructose substitute that allows people to eat sweet, but does not need to worry about calorie intake, so it is popular with consumers who want to eat sweet but are afraid of fat around the world. However, the WHO guidelines for non-sugar sweeteners do severely tear off the "health food" label for most non-sugar sweeteners! He says non-sugar sweeteners without nutrients (both natural and synthetic) not only fail to lose weight, but also make people more likely to be obese and increase the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

The unhealthy sugar substitutes mentioned above do not include sugar alcohols (which provide some energy). such as glucitol, xylitol, sorbitol, maltitol, erythritol, lactitol, mannitol.

So, what are the WHO non-sugar sweeteners? "Acesulfame, aspartame, edwartine, cyclamate, neotame, saccharin, sucralose (sucrose), stevia and stevia derivatives."

At present, the cost of sugar substitutes for sugar alcohols is relatively high, almost no sugar products are 100% sugar alcohols, more are cheaper non-sugar sweeteners, or non-sugar sweeteners + sugar alcohols. Long-term consumption of non-sugar sweetened products and foods is also unhealthy if it is not solely the use of sugar alcohols.

You can go around the supermarket and see many food and beverage ingredients lists with 0 sugar and 0 calories. Many of them are mixed with non-sugar sweeteners + sugar alcohols. Some will also focus on the sugar alcohols, the ingredients list is also written sucralose…For a long time, the reason why sugar substitutes are considered not easy to be obese even if they are ingested is because these sweeteners have no calories themselves, which means that the overall calories in the diet are reduced, which also means that they can create energy differences and let us slim down.

However, the WHO report found evidence from prospective observational studies and follow-up of up to 10 years that higher intake of sugar substitutes (non-sugar sweeteners) was associated with higher BMI and increased risk of obesity. Because people eat more when they eat sugar substitutes! In recent years, there have been some reports that non-sugar sweeteners may affect the regulation of energy metabolism, satiety and hunger through various mechanisms. In 2021, researchers at the University of Southern California published an experimental report on the effects of artificial sweeteners on human brain activity and appetite in JAMA Network Open: sugar substitutes make it harder for you to feel full and may eat more.

Experimental results show that artificial sweeteners can affect people's nerves and behavior, and may be more sensitive to artificial sweeteners and more likely to produce hunger. If you fail to control your appetite, it will also lead to weight gain.

The appearance of sugar substitutes is itself a means for diabetics to stabilize blood sugar, and it can also be an effective intervention in short-term weight loss…This does not mean that sugar substitutes can be ingested freely. However, many brands in the food industry are evading the importance of promoting sugar substitutes.

Of course, the WHO guidelines suggest that people eat less, not ban it. To maintain the health of the body and lose weight, the essence is to change our overall lifestyle, control the total energy of the diet, do not put hope on any single product or method ~ After all, there is no shortcut to lose weight.