Artificial sweeteners and their safety

Artificial Sweeteners

Artificial sweeteners: safe or unsafe?

Artificial sweeteners or intense sweeteners are sugar substitutes that are used as an alternative to table sugar. They are many times sweeter than natural sugar and as they contain no calories, they may be used to control weight and obesity. Extensive scientific research has demonstrated the safety of the six low-calorie sweeteners currently approved for use in foods in the U.S. and Europe (ste...

The potential toxicity of artificial sweeteners.

Since their discovery, the safety of artificial sweeteners has been controversial. Artificial sweeteners provide the sweetness of sugar without the calories. As public health attention has turned to reversing the obesity epidemic in the United States, more individuals of all ages are choosing to use these products. These choices may be beneficial for those who cannot tolerate sugar in their die...

Colorimetric detection and identification of natural and artificial sweeteners.

A disposable, low-cost colorimetric sensor array has been created by pin-printing onto a hydrophilic membrane 16 chemically responsive nanoporous pigments that are comprised of indicators immobilized in an organically modified silane (ormosil). The array has been used to detect and identify 14 different natural and artificial sweeteners at millimolar concentrations, as well as commonly used ind...

Non-caloric artificial sweeteners and the microbiome: findings and challenges.

Non-caloric artificial sweeteners (NAS) are common food supplements consumed by millions worldwide as means of combating weight gain and diabetes, by retaining sweet taste without increasing caloric intake. While they are considered safe, there is increasing controversy regarding their potential ability to promote metabolic derangements in some humans. We recently demonstrated that NAS consumpt...