If you’re gonna call something “diet,” it should have to actually help you lose weight. But like dieting itself, diet foods don’t work as well in practice as they do in theory. So put down that Coke Zero and listen up. The scientific verdict on artificial sweeteners is pretty clear.
We’ve known for a while that artificial sweeteners don’t help you
Years of research has shown little benefit to switching from the real deal to a sugar-imitator
- A meta-analysis looked at all the studies done on the topic and found no consensus
- Most of the studies were observational and some were biased
- The preponderance of evidence says no, they do not help you lose weight and don’t give you cancer
There’s a small chance that they make you gain weight
Some of the studies showed that those who ate non-nutritive sweeteners had higher BMIs and elevated risk for cardiometabolic problems.
- It is possible that people who eat artificial sweeteners tend to already have health problems.
Look, sugar is just bad for you
Sugar, especially refined sugar, boosts your insulin levels and makes you an addict in much the same way that hard drugs can
- Artificial sweeteners are no better
- When given a choice between a hit of coke and some saccharin (sweetener), cocaine-addicted lab rats chose succharin
- Humans probably can’t get addicted to sugar to quite the same extent
- But don’t let the fact that you’re not a true sugar addict lull you into complacency
