The Lowdown on Low-Cal Sweeteners and Beverages

“We are all trying to manager our weight. My patients often forget that beverages play a very important part of your success in managing your body weight. Lower and no-calorie beverages are a good way to conveniently lower calorie intake without feeling deprived. A balanced diet, including portion control, beverage awareness and exercise are the best ways to help you keep a healthy body and healthy weight.” --Dr. John Foreyt, Director, Behavioral Medicine Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston

In 2004, the American Dietetic Association concluded that low-calorie sugar alternatives can help make your diet healthier by improving the flavor of foods and beverages that are low in calories. They can also improve the taste of nutritious foods and beverages that might otherwise be consumed in lesser amounts.

In addition to concluding that low-calorie sweeteners can help reduce calorie intake, the ADA stated that “nonnutritive sweeteners have potential to promote weight loss in overweight and obese individuals…Replacing intake of added sugars with nonnutritive sweeteners could result in a deficit of 380 calories per day or pound of weight loss in 9 to 10 days, if intake was 95g (24tsp) daily. The energy [i.e., calorie] savings could be substantial for those who consume higher levels of total energy [i.e., calories] from added sugars.”

Reducing calories as a part of an overall diet and exercise plan is a great reason to look for light, low-calorie and no-calorie versions of your favorite food and beverages.

All low-cal and no-cal sweeteners found in American foods and beverages have been extensively tested and approved safe by the Food and Drug Administration. And that means they are safe for consumption by adults and kids, alike. Not only are non-caloric and low-calorie sweeteners safe for children, but says Steve Abrams, M.D., Professor of Pediatrics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, “AS a pediatrician, I consider the use of non-nutritive sweeteners to be a way that children can help control their calorie intake and maintain a healthy body weight.” Let your children enjoy a variety of beverages, and be confident that the low-cal versions are safe for them.

This is extremely interesting. I have several friends who swear that they're incredibly unhealthy - but, I've often thought "which is worse?"

Thanks for this post.

Usually the ones who say they are unhealthy are the ones who have read a site with no scientific backing and/or the ones who's body has an adverse reaction not because of the low cal/no cal sweetener but because of their own body.

OK, in Weight Watchers magazine Sept/Oct 05, page 12, there's a blurb about people who routinely drink diet soft drinks have a higher risk of obesity than those who drank regular soda. For each can of diet sodas that participants drink a day, thei risk of obesity increases 41%.

My personal philosophy is that if I'm drinking a coke with zero calories, it's zero calories...what's bad about that.

What am I missing?

What they didn't put based on the research is many people eat more when they drink diet sodas or basically are unaware of how much more they eat because they know the soda is 0 calories. This is what causes the increase in risk of obesity.

For those following a weight loss program and watching both caloric intake from all foods and drinks this is not a problem.

Very interesting and very reassuring! I drink a minimum of 2 liters of water a day! BUT all the water in the world doesn't fix my need for my CodeRedMountainDew! I have this bargain with myself! Drink all of your water and you may have a can of soda! WhooHoo! I only drink the dietCodeRed....... and I usually limit my intake to one can (I purchase it this way so that my portions are "done" for me!) per day! I realize caffine and sodium will be the next topics.... but, a gal's gotta do what a gal's gotta do!

What amazes me is the people who go to some fast food place and order some gigantic burger with a gigantic order of fries and then order a diet soda! There are a ton of those people! Perhaps WW included those "hardcore dieters" (???NOT!!!) in their study regarding the 41% increase in the risk of being obese! I have a friend who in her words "doesn't drink water". She also is one who eats what she wants without thought and washes it all down with diet soda!

I noticed all of your losses in your signatures! Keep up the excellent work!
Kel, how long have you been "at it"?

Robyn

I agree, I drink diet cokes to accompany my diet foods, not so I can have liberty to eat a whole chocolate cake! I'd just as soon pick up a diet coke than almost anything else, but I do make myself eat healthy and get my veggies & water every day. so i figure a diet coke isn't that bad.

Joanna

If you read the real article of the research, that study is a correlational one not a causal one. So they only noted that a lot of obese people drink diet drinks, or that a lot of diet drinker are obese. One did not cause the other one. To me it would make sense that obese people who are often trying to lose weight will be the first ones to turn to diet drinks!

It reminds me of a correlation a teacher once mentionned to us and it stayed with me. Cities with more churches have a higher crime rate... But the many churches are not responsible for the crimes, nor is there more churches that appeared because there was a lot of crime around... The numerous churches and higher crime rate are actually only related because both are linked with a bigger city!