{"id":561202,"date":"2026-07-27T02:54:30","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T02:54:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/561202\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T02:54:30","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T02:54:30","slug":"how-to-navigate-the-confusing-world-of-artificial-sweeteners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/561202\/","title":{"rendered":"How to navigate the confusing world of artificial sweeteners"},"content":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve probably seen it listed in the ingredients in your favorite zero-calorie drink<\/a> or on the labels of some of the popular desserts and sugar-free products in your local grocery store. <\/p>\n

But the wide array of sweeteners<\/a> available on the market can be confusing, and not all are equally healthy. So, we asked the experts: Is sucralose actually bad for your health?<\/p>\n

What is sucralose?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Sucralose is an artificial, calorie-free sweetener<\/a>, often labeled as Splenda. Due to the chemical process in its manufacturing, it\u2019s much sweeter than sugar. In addition to being found in sugar-free candies, sodas and dairy products, it can also be used in baked goods as a sugar substitute.<\/p>\n

\u201cSucralose is 600 times sweeter than sugar,\u201d says Katie Whitson,<\/a> registered dietitian at Health Loft <\/a>in Denver. \u201cIt was discovered in 1976 and is derived from sucrose \u2013 table sugar. What makes this a zero-calorie sweetener is the structural change to the molecule, causing it to be poorly absorbed and metabolized in humans.\u201d<\/p>\n

People often find sucralose a helpful alternative to sugar without giving up sweets completely. For people with diabetes, it can also provide a sweet flavor without significantly raising blood sugar levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pros are that it is not adding any additional calories or sugar to your diet, which can make it helpful for cases of weight management, when used to replace sugary products and diabetes management,\u201d says Whitson. Additionally, she says because of how sweet sucralose is, you generally don\u2019t have to use lots of it in your food.<\/p>\n

Sucralose potential concerns<\/p>\n

While initial research suggested its safety, since the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 1998<\/a> greenlit it as an approved sweetener, additional research has noted potential impacts on the gut microbiome<\/a>, metabolic health<\/a> and insulin response.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe studies cited for these concerns, however, are animal-based,\u201d explains Whitson. \u201cThe human studies appear to be short, use different doses and have inconsistent findings, which does make creating firm conclusions challenging.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whitson says it\u2019s important to keep in mind that most animal-based studies do use doses that are higher than the amount that humans consume on average, so results are mixed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are multiple areas of future research regarding this sweetener,\u201d says Whitson. \u201cThe consensus as of right now shows that it is generally recognized as safe for use by the Food and Drug Administration and there is no reason to eliminate it from your intake if you find it helpful to limit your intake of added sugar.\u201d<\/p>\n

The truth about stevia … and if it’s actually healthy<\/a><\/p>\n

Still unsure about sucralose?<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re still not sure sucralose is the best fit for your diet, Whitson says you can easily swap it for other products, like Stevia or Monk fruit.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey provide a similar amount of sweetness and are derived from plants,\u201d she says. \u201cThere is no one non-nutritive sweetener that is particularly better than others, though, when looking at the research. Literature usually recommends choosing the product that makes you feel most comfortable and can tolerate.\u201d<\/p>\n

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How to navigate the confusing world of artificial sweeteners<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"You\u2019ve probably seen it listed in the ingredients in your favorite zero-calorie drink or on the labels of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":228579,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[163,85,46,543],"class_list":["post-561202","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nutrition","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-nutrition"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561202","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=561202"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561202\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228579"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=561202"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=561202"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=561202"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}