There were some articles recently that stated that diet drinks would make you hungry. However, they lacked proper controls. For this reason the gastroenterologist, Dr. Khursheed Jeejeebhoy, from the University of Toronto/Ontario designed a well controlled 10 week trial where several parameters were measured while patients were either snacking on diet drinks or on sugar containing soft drinks on top of their regular food intake, which was also closely monitored. The only requirement in the beginning of the study was that the subjects had to be overweight (body mass index of 27 to 28). Participants of the study were then divided randomly into subjects drinking soft drinks with either sugar or sugar substitutes. The drinks were blindly given, but meticulous records were kept of what was consumed. In addition the subjects were allowed to eat as many snacks as they liked with either sugar in it or sugar substitutes. Below is a tabular summary of the findings.
The surprising findings were that the sugar group had an increased appetite and wanted to eat more and more. Sugar also raised the blood pressure significantly.
Diet Drinks Make You More Hungry
The result was a significant weight gain during the 10 weeks of the trial while the other group (AS) had lost a significant amount of weight without any hunger pangs. The researchers also measured body fat versus muscle mass and found that the sugar group (SG) had gained fat mass without changing the muscle mass. On the other hand the atrtificail sweetener group (AG) had lost only fat mass, not muscle mass.
Dr. Jeejeebhoy concluded according to the article in The Medical Post (Jan.14, 2003 edition, page 27) that sugar in snacks and drinks should be kept to a minimum to prevent obesity from developing or getting worse. Patients with high blood pressure should avoid sugar as much as possible and stick to a low glycemic-index diet. Drinks should be diet drinks or fluids without sugar content. Do diet drinks make you more hungry? The answer is: “NO!”
| Artificial Sweeteners And Weight Loss(10-Week Study) | ||
| Findings: | Comments: |
|
| Additional Calories from drinks per day: |
AS: 250 Cal. | SG: 870 Cal. |
| total caloric intake over the 10 weeks: | AS:decreasing steadily |
SG:increasing steadily |
| appetite sensation: | AS:no appetite complaints |
SG:sugar stimulated appetite |
| weight gain or loss: | AS:significant weight loss | SG:significant weight gain |
| activity level(exercise) | no change in either groups (AS or SG) | |
| blood pressure |
AS:no change |
SG:sugar increased blood pressure significantly |
| AS=Artificial sweetener group | SG=Sugar group |
Comment: Not every diet drink is medically safe. Aspartame and Sodium cyclamate are brain excitotoxins. One of the safest alternatives to sugar is Stevia. Read this review about sugar alternatives.
Last edited December 10, 2012
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