The Cultural Rise of Sweeteners

Have you ever been sitting in a restaurant and watched someone add multiple pink, blue or yellow packets to their food or drink? Whenever I see one of these “packet aficionados,” I just want to lean over and ask, “What’s wrong with good old-fashioned sugar?”

Some days I feel like I am “sweet talking” all day long. Many clients I see in my practice have come to believe that artificial sweeteners are a healthier way to satisfy their cravings for sweet. Unfortunately, they’re not.

What caused our modern obsession with the sweet taste? The answer to that question is complicated and may have been caused or increased by the 1980s fat-free diet trend. At that time, many foods removed fat because it was considered unhealthy. However, when fat was removed, flavor decreased, so manufacturers often added:

• Sugar (and a lot of it)
• Artificial sweeteners

This conditioning has led us to where we are today — wanting to satisfy our sweet tooth without ramifications. The result? More and more new sweeteners are born each decade, leading to VERY sweet foods!

Artificial Sweeteners and Sweetness Intensity

Since food manufacturers did not want to increase the caloric content of their foods, they found a way around it and substituted artificial sweeteners for fat and sugar, which increased the sweetness of many foods.

Non-nutritive sweeteners (artificial sweeteners) are extremely sweet compared with sugar. Often, they are 200-500 times sweeter than sugar while providing little or no calories as below.

• Aspartame (200x sweetener than sugar)
• Saccharin (700x sweeter than sugar)
• Sucralose (600x sweeter than sugar

Other “natural” sweeteners such as Stevia and Monk Fruit are still 300x sweeter than sugar, thus increasing cravings.

The “Fooling Your Body” Argument

Artificial sweeteners try to trick the body into thinking it is getting sugar, but the body recognizes that the calories are missing. As a result, the body may:

• keep craving sweet foods
• continue wanting extra food

What about High-Fructose Corn Syrup or Agave?

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) became common in processed foods because it is cheaper than cane sugar. This substitution is not healthful since HFCS contains about 55–60% fructose (table sugar contains 50% fructose and 50% glucose)

Similarly, Agave syrup, which is in many “natural” products contains 85–90% fructose, which is much higher than sugar.

When we consume more fructose that is processed it can result in:

• higher triglycerides
• fatty liver
• insulin resistance
• increased hunger

So, what do you do?

Instead of relying on artificial or highly processed sweeteners:

Eat more protein

Protein helps control hunger and reduce sugar cravings.

Examples of protein include:

• grass-fed meats
• organic pastured poultry
• wild fish
• organic beans
• organic nuts and seeds
• organic grass-fed yogurt

Choose fruit for sweetness

Fruit provides:

• fiber
• vitamins and nutrients
• slower sugar absorption

Avoid artificial sweeteners and HFCS/Agave

If you need sweetness use small amounts of natural sweeteners, such as:

• organic maple syrup
• raw and wild local honey

Eat regular meals

Consume a balanced meal every 4 hours to prevent hunger and cravings.

Include healthy fats such as:

• olive oil
• avocado or avocado oil
• grass-fed butter
• ghee
• nuts and seeds

Drink unsweetened beverages such as:

• water
• sparkling water
• unsweetened tea with citrus or herbs

Since modern diets have become overly dependent on artificial and highly processed sweeteners, transitioning to a different level of natural sources of sweetness is a process. Consuming balanced meals with real whole foods, protein, healthy fats, and natural sources of sweetness like fruit can be a game changer.

The process of lowering your sweet cravings could take a few days to a few weeks, but commitment to the guidelines will help your waistline and your overall health. And, what could be sweeter than that?!