July 15, 2021

Artificial Sweeteners: Are They Safe?

Articles by Dr. Erdman are for informational purposes, and are not to be taken as specific medical advice.

 

Artificial sweeteners have become as common as sugar was 50 years ago. In today’s world of overweight people, some are constantly looking to reduce calorie intake. In a previous article a while back, I detailed how these sweeteners actually cause your body to crave more sugar and more food because they do not satisfy the body’s insulin receptors. This can lead to actual weight gain instead of the intended weight loss.

Artificial sweeteners like Splenda may lower your good gut bacteria, increase your intestinal pH and accumulate in fat cells. It is linked to leukemia. Aspartame (Nutrasweet) is linked to insulin intolerance, leading to diabetic issues.

Now, scientists agree that three of the most popular artificial sweeteners, sucralose (Splenda), aspartame (Nutrasweet, Equal and Sugar Twin) and saccharin (Sweet-n-low, NectaSweet and Sweet Twin) have a pathogenic effect on at least two types of gut bacteria.

Research was just published in “The International Journal of Molecular Sciences” which demonstrates that these sweeteners can trigger good gut bacteria to become disease producing causes of serious health conditions.

The two bacteria studied are normal gut flora E.coli and E.faecalis. When these sweeteners are consumed, these bacteria become weaponized against your own gut wall lining. They cause more biofilms to form which increase adhesion and invasion of other bacteria into human gut cells. These changes can lead to our own gut bacteria invading and causing damage to our intestinal wall, which can be linked to infection, sepsis and multiple organ failure.

A paper published by “Physiology and Behavior” showed three mechanisms by which artificial sweeteners promote metabolic dysfunction. First, they interfere with learned responses that contribute to glucose control and energy homeostasis (normalcy). Secondly, they destroy gut bacteria and induce glucose intolerance leading to diabetes. Third, they interact with sweet taste receptors that controls insulin release into the blood stream, causing erratic blood sugar levels and insulin resistance.

Of course, soft drinks are the most consumed artificial sweetener laden food in which people partake. These zero calorie drinks are terrible for your diet and your health.  We must limit exposure to these sources of ill health.

A study of over 450,000 people showed both artificially sweetened and sugar sweetened soda were associated with increased all cause deaths. This means the push to lower calorie intake by use of artificial sweeteners has been a failure. Neither should be consumed regularly.

There are several plant-based sugar substitutes like stevia, Lo Han Kuo and allulose. Stevia is a sweet herb, Lo Han Kuo is similar to stevia but more expensive, and allulose is found in some fruits, like figs, kiwi and jack fruit, all have effectively zero energy value and can be used for weight reduction when substituted for sugar calories.

Allulose is an interesting, emerging no calorie sweetener. We will discuss that in the next article.

 

UPDATE: Last week, VAERS reported there were 2,043 deaths from COVID vaccines in the USA.  These are verified deaths reported by the government!(But likely not every death that occurred)  Also last week, the government reported 1505 deaths due to COVID itself!  So, there are now more deaths weekly from vaccines than the actual disease itself!  There are now, at a minimum, a total of 9,195 deaths in the USA from these jabs this year alone! Likely there are many more unreported! There are also 411,931 adverse reactions reported from these jabs!  Again, likely many more.  Please do some research and avoid this deadly jab at all costs!