Artificial Sweeteners – Better than Sugar?
Artificial sweeteners are not a great alternative to refined sugar. Overwhelming evidence points to their contribution to obesity, hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disease, metabolic syndrome, depression, chronic headaches, and cancer.
These sweeteners include:
- Aspartame (Equal®, NutraSweet®)
- Splenda (sucralose)
- AminoSweet
- High fructose corn syrup
- Advantame
- Sweet ‘n’ Low (saccharin)
- Truvia
Natural sugar sources like honey, maple syrup, fruits, and molasses add nutrients as well as sweetness. Relatively low on the glycemic index as compared with refined sugars, they are not only safe to use but promote wellness.
Additionally, because of their nutrition, they are more satisfying than refined sugars to fulfill the desire for a sweet taste, preventing over-consumption:
- Honey (raw and unpasteurized) – a superfood that is anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antibacterial, and packed with nutrients and antioxidants.
- Maple syrup – kills cancer cells; rich in minerals, anti-inflammatories, antioxidants, and unique phytochemicals that benefit human health.
- Molasses – mineral-rich, including calcium, iron, potassium, selenium, and magnesium.
- Fruit juice (real juice from fruit without added sugar) – high in natural sugars but contains lots of vitamins and minerals.
Click here for a short guide on sweeteners, natural and otherwise.
How to Recover from Sugar Addiction
If you’re addicted to sugar, there are ways to wean yourself from it. You’ll notice the difference in how you feel pretty quickly.
Depending on how much added/artificial sugar you’re used to consuming in a day and how long you’ve done so, you may actually experience withdrawal symptoms. (20) Like any other addiction, your body will respond to the absence of sugar:
- Anger/irritability
- Anxiety/depression
- Changes in appetite/food cravings
- Dizziness
- Fatigue
- Headaches
- Impulsive behaviors
- Insomnia
- Shakes
- Weight loss
You can end your over-consumption of sugar cold turkey or more slowly, making conscious dietary choices to cut out the bad stuff. Stopping abruptly is more likely to result in noticeable symptoms of withdrawal. It can take anywhere from a few days to a month to pass through the withdrawal period. (21)
To ease the discomfort of withdrawal, you can try:
- Increasing your activity level will burn sugar before it has a chance to forever store on your hips.
- Eat a handful of nuts or other protein sources (e.g., beans) with anything sweet to slow digestion and the body’s sugar absorption rate.
- Drinking green tea with lemon will help you to eliminate sugar from your bloodstream faster and keep it from sticking around in your kidneys and liver.
- Eating a protein-rich, low carbohydrate breakfast will kick-start your metabolism for the day. Protein in the first meal of the day promotes the burning of sugars to get you going before the protein kicks in to provide the morning’s energy.
- Drink a smoothie that’s primarily made of vegetables (low in sugar) with a little fruit to provide the sweetness you crave. It’s filling, satisfying, and nutritious without a crash later. (22)
SEE ALSO: How to use peppermint oil to beat sugar addiction