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Something is about to change when the World Health Organization (WHO) publishes its recommendations on the use of food sweeteners later this year. These products are experiencing a period of economic prosperity, mainly because children who consume them have tripled in the last two decades (US data), according to evidence linking sugar to overweight, to Obesity, Metabolic Disease and from there to Type 2 Diabetes and Cardiovascular Risk. There are very good reasons to reduce sugar consumption, which triggered the sale of foods and non-alcoholic beverages containing saccharin, aspartame, stevia, advantamo or any other artificial sweetener listed in the catalog. The zero or zero zero soft drinks that substitute sugar for a combination of sweeteners that have barely calories, are living their golden age in Western countries. However, things may change in 12 months, when the WHO will decide, as you can read The material.
For the moment, WHO has commissioned a group of scientists to compile a comprehensive review of the 56 surveys on the effects of sweeteners on health, sometimes compared to sugar, others to placebo. And the effects are very modest. It is true that there is a small reduction in weight, a little more than an average kilo, probably related to the abandonment of sugar, although it does not it is not even clear that this thinning is stable in the long term. There is also a slight reduction in blood pressure, although in overweight adults. Manufacturers of sweeteners have quickly emphasized these effects. But the key issues – blood sugar, tooth decay, cancer, liver disease, eating behavior – do not have a significant impact when sugar is replaced by sweeteners. With these factors, it seems unlikely that WHO recommends the use of these products. The experts point out, however, that more studies are needed before a final opinion is delivered.
This does not mean that you have to go back to sugar. The recommendation to reduce sugar intake is based on very solid data. What happens is that replacing it with sweeteners, as in soft drinks, does not seem like a big deal. The best substitute for sugary soft drinks is water.
The result of these surveys is somewhat surprising. While sweeteners apparently have no negative health effects, the mere reduction in sugar consumption associated with their use should certainly have a markedly positive effect. But this is not the case and this may be due to various factors. Microbes that live in the intestine, for example, change their relative percentage in response to diet, and perhaps sweeteners affect the intestinal flora to compensate for the beneficial effects of calorie reduction. The brain may also contain a key because sweeteners and sugar do not have the same effect on brain regions that manage pleasure, reward, and energy demand.
We will see at the end of the year. In the meantime, drink some water.
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