The original idea for this article was to write an expose on the different alternatives to sugar that are available on the market then conclude once and for all which sweetener is healthiest choice for you. 

Sounds easy right?  Let's just say that that plan was a big mistake. 

Unfortunately the fact is the world of sweeteners isn't so sweet.  There is an enormous conjecture and vicious debate into what artificial sweetener is the best.   I discovered this the hard way when I poured through a mess of conflicting anecdotal evidence, Food and Drug Administration controversies, biased websites and articles developed by special interest groups and countless health authorities taking either side of the situation.   So as you can see, to write the original article comparing and contrasting artificial sweeteners with the purpose of finding out what sugar substitute is the healthiest could not be accomplished, but I did discover some useful facts...

Splenda, NutraSweet, Equal and Sweet'N Low are all shrouded in health related controversy. 

Why?

Equal and NutraSweet are both made from aspartame and aspartame's associated side effects are listed by the Food and Drug Administration and are as follows: Aspartame is associated with dizziness, headache, loss of balance, mood swings, nausea, memory loss, muscle weakness, blurred vision, fatigue, weakness, skin rashes, and joint and musculoskeletal pain and is associated with Neurotoxicity. (2) So what does this mean?  It means there is probably very good reason to make an effort in avoiding Equal and NutraSweet as they contain aspartame which is strongly associated many potential side-effects.

Splenda on the other hand is considered by many as the best artificial sugar alternative as it is said to be made from sugar itself.  This turns out to be highly debatable as Splenda is chemically made by adding chlorine molecules to sucrose changing the chemical structure of the sugar into a chlorocarbon called sucralose.  What is so bad it about cholocarbons you might ask? Well the good news is they won't make you fat like sugar, the bad news is that chlorocarbon's are commonly used as pesticides and have long been known for causing organ, genetic, and reproductive damage.  There also have been no studies performed as to the long-term side effects of sucralose, if there are any.  

And now for Sweet'N Low the most controversial of all the artificial sweeteners.  Sweet'N Low is made from artificial sweetener saccharin which is banned in Canada due to it being deemed potentially health dangerous.  Also, from 1977 to 2000 American Congress placed a warning on all saccharin containing food products that stated ‘This product may be carcinogenic'.  Saccharin has been shown to cause cancer in rats and even though after 23 years congress repealed their warning on saccharin, evidence is still inconclusive as to whether saccharin is potentially dangerous to your health or not.  So unfortunately for saccharin there is a lot of controversial negative evidence to warrant caution in eating products that include saccharin. 

So after trying to decide what artificial sweetener out of the above was the healthiest option, which involved comparing cancerous rats with pesticides and neurotoxicity I decided that there was no stand out recommendation.  

But thankfully there is an alternative to sugar that causes no health worries and might actually have health benefits.  They are two sweeteners that are natural, as opposed to artificial.  There is sweetener out there with no side effects at all, and is even good for you? Sounds impossible, well it's true.  The best sweetener for your health is Xylitol and it was discovered over one hundred years ago.  

Xylitol unlike the artificial sweeteners mentioned above is not chemically man-made being found naturally in strawberries and many vegetables and for most of its commercial production is sourced from corn.  Xylitol is the only sugar alternative that has zero short or long term side effects whatsoever but the really exciting news is that there is evidence showing that Xylitol is a powerful preventative of tooth decay even being used in some tooth pastes for its flavor and tooth protective properties and is even recommended by dentists! There are many positive health effects associated with Xylitol, and it is even safe for diabetics as it creates no insulin response. 

There is however one draw-back for those people who count calories, and that is unlike most artificial sweeteners Xylitol has a small amount of calories.  Though it has minimal calories, it has much less the carbohydrates than sugar and an extremely low Glycemic Index of 7.   Xylitol looks like sugar, tastes exactly like sugar and seems to affect the body exactly the opposite way sugar does (ie. no negatives).  If every American substituted sugar with Xylitol imagine what could happen to rates of diabetes and obesity that are currently in epidemic proportions. 

The good thing about Xylitol is that companies are recognizing potential to replace sugar as it is known to be health beneficial, protect the teeth, is not a potential health hazard like artificial sweeteners, it is 100percent natural.  Xylitol is readily available in pure powder form, one serve packets just like sugar, as chewing mints, gum, mouthwashes and many different products.

The other sweetener that I should give mention too is Stevia.  Stevia has only recently gained popularity and is unlike any sweetener on the market.  As Stevia is a herb, it is not artificially created Stevia is and is totally natural and whole and without any known side effects. 

The history behind Stevia starts in South America where this herb has been eaten for hundreds of years.   South Americans have labeled Stevia as the ‘Sweet leaf', and it is up to 300 times sweeter than sugar.  Apart from being used in South American cuisine for hundreds of years Stevia is also the commercial sweetener of choice in Japan and other Asian countries, making up over half of all sweetener sales in Japan.  Interestingly in Japan, Stevia is the most sweetener in the commercial soft drink industry, as Japanese people did not welcome the use of artificial sweeteners.  But above all the most exiting fact about this sweetener is that it contains no calories just like the artificial sweeteners, and is without any controversial side effects. 

The Final Word

It turns out that we can win after all, but just need to stick to the natural sugar alternatives as opposed to the artificial ones that are full of dangers. 

Photos Courtesy of Strict, Caseywest , the_machine, Navets , Daxiangstef

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