Artificial sweetener linked to weight gain.....in rats.

NoExcuses · #1 02-11-2008, 04:19 PM

Scientists at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, studied rats that were fed food with the artificial sweetener saccharin and rats fed food with glucose.

I haven't been able to find the actual study (data results) in a journal yet, but I saw this story on msn.com. It sounded interesting and I just thought that I'd throw it out there.

"The data clearly indicate that consuming a food sweetened with no-calorie saccharin can lead to greater body-weight gain and adiposity than would consuming the same food sweetened with high-calorie sugar," Purdue researchers Susan Swithers and Terry Davidson wrote in the journal Behavioral Neuroscience, published by the American Psychological Association.

"Such an outcome may seem counterintuitive, if not an anathema, to human clinical researchers and health care practitioners who have long recommended the use of low- and no-calorie sweeteners as a means of weight control."

Other artificial sweeteners such as aspartame that also taste sweet but do not lead to the delivery of calories may have similar effects, the researchers said.

"Animals may use sweet taste to predict the caloric contents of food. Eating sweet noncaloric substances may degrade this predictive relationship," the researchers wrote.

I think this is important. The rats most likely were unable to correctly guage their meal due to the srtifical sweeteners.

In my opinion, I just don't mess with either (or try not to). Although sugars have there place (post workout, etc.)

Cited Article:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23097135...5773?GT1=10856

majinbijiita · #2 02-11-2008, 04:32 PM

I remember reading about this like two years ago.

That's why I drink water and not diet coke anymore.

joneser3eb · #3 02-11-2008, 07:18 PM

I saw this on CNN. I dont really like the artificial sweetner. I just am very strict with my sugar content. I dont sugar really unless its PWO or very little here and there. But I dont really think that even low calorie tht Sugar subs are really that good for you either so I just dont use them.