New research suggests artificial sugar substitutes may have serious health consequences.
Many foods and beverages use artificial sweeteners like Equal and Splenda to achieve the taste that consumers adore, minus the calories. If you love diet soda or you’re a sucker for packaged sweets that market themselves as diet or sugar-free, chances are you’re consuming more of these sugar substitutes than you realize. And that might be something you want to consider the next time you go grocery shopping, because a new study has found a link between artificial sweeteners and an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.
In the study, published in The BMJ, researchers took a look at results from 103,388 French adults who were a part of the NutriNet-Sante cohort. When asked, 37.1% of participants claimed they consumed food, beverages, and tabletop sweeteners that contained artificial sweeteners. On average, they were reportedly consuming 42.46 milligrams of artificial sweeteners each day, which is around the same as a packet of tabletop sweeteners. Senior author Mathilde Touvier, MD, of the Sorbonne Paris Nord University, told Medscape Cardiology, “Higher consumption in this study was a mean of 77 mg/day artificial sweetener, which is about 200 mL of soda—just a bit less than one standard can of soda.”
Researchers found that various artificial sweeteners were being consumed, but the majority appeared to be aspartame, which made up 58% of the artificial sweetener intake that was reported; acesulfame potassium, which made up 29%; and sucralose which made up 10%.
After a follow-up that occurred an average of nine years later, researchers noted that those who consumed artificial sweeteners increased their risk of cardiovascular or cerebrovascular events by 9%. Beyond that, researchers also found that aspartame was more likely to be associated with cerebrovascular events, while acesulfame potassium and sucralose were associated with a higher risk of coronary heart disease.
“This lines up with other research suggesting a higher risk of heart disease and stroke among high users of artificial sweeteners,” Samantha Cassetty, MS, RD, and co-author of Sugar Shock, tells Eat This, Not That! “While this study wasn’t designed to show cause and effect, the fact that several studies have pointed to the same health risks raises a big red flag.”
When it comes to how artificial sweeteners potentially increase the risk of heart disease and stroke, Cassetty suggests various possibilities, concluding, “Ultimately, we don’t have solid answers for why artificial sweeteners may be raising the risk of heart disease and stroke, but we have a lot of evidence suggesting they aren’t helpful and they may be harmful.”
If you want to cut back on artificial sweeteners in your diet, Cassetty has some advice. “If you drink diet sodas every day, you can start by reducing the number of them you have in a day and then go to every other day…[but] at some point, you want to be mostly drinking water.”
“You can also use a step-down approach when it comes to your coffee or tea,” Cassetty says. “Start by reducing the number of packets you put in your drink and then try to get to the point where you’re not using any sweeteners.”
Important Notice: This article was originally published at www.eatthis.com bwhere all credits are due. Fact checked by Justine Goodman.
Disclaimer
The watching, interacting, and participation of any kind with anything on this page does not constitute or initiate a doctor-patient relationship with Dr. Farrah™. None of the statements here have been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The products of Dr. Farrah™ are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. The information being provided should only be considered for education and entertainment purposes only. If you feel that anything you see or hear may be of value to you on this page or on any other medium of any kind associated with, showing, or quoting anything relating to Dr. Farrah™ in any way at any time, you are encouraged to and agree to consult with a licensed healthcare professional in your area to discuss it. If you feel that you’re having a healthcare emergency, seek medical attention immediately. The views expressed here are simply either the views and opinions of Dr. Farrah™ or others appearing and are protected under the first amendment.
Dr. Farrah™ is a highly experienced Licensed Medical Doctor certified in evidence-based clinical nutrition, not some enthusiast, formulator, or medium promoting the wild and unrestrained use of nutrition products for health issues without clinical experience and scientific evidence of therapeutic benefit. Dr. Farrah™ has personally and keenly studied everything she recommends, and more importantly, she’s closely observed the reactions and results in a clinical setting countless times over the course of her career involving the treatment of over 150,000 patients.
Dr. Farrah™ promotes evidence-based natural approaches to health, which means integrating her individual scientific and clinical expertise with the best available external clinical evidence from systematic research. By individual clinical expertise, I refer to the proficiency and judgment that individual clinicians acquire through clinical experience and clinical practice.
Dr. Farrah™ does not make any representation or warranties with respect to the accuracy, applicability, fitness, or completeness of any multimedia content provided. Dr. Farrah™ does not warrant the performance, effectiveness, or applicability of any sites listed, linked, or referenced to, in, or by any multimedia content.
To be clear, the multimedia content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health providers with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read or seen in any website, video, image, or media of any kind. Dr. Farrah™ hereby disclaims any and all liability to any party for any direct, indirect, implied, punitive, special, incidental, or other consequential damages arising directly or indirectly from any use of the content, which is provided as is, and without warranties.
