Body not fooled by fake sweeteners

In the 2007 film “Bee Movie,” Barry B. Benson, a bee, discovers that humans actually steal bees’ honey. He befriends a florist, Vanessa, to whom he reveals he can talk, but he and Vanessa’s boyfriend, Ken, don’t get along. In one scene, Ken yells at Vanessa and then turns to Barry: “For your information, I prefer sugar- free, artificial sweeteners ... MADE BY MAN!” and storms away.

Not only does Ken need anger management lessons, he also needs a lesson in sweeteners. His choice of artificial sweeteners is an unhealthy one. One megastudy in CMAJ last year found that “consumption of non-nutritive sweeteners was associated with increases in weight and waist circumference, and higher incidence of obesity, hypertension, metabolic syndrome, Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular events.” Whew!

Now, a study of sucralose, a common sweetener in diet sodas, shows how. Researchers from George Washington University analyzed fat samples from 18 obese and healthy- weight participants and found that those who reported eating more sucralose had greater expressions of genes related to fat creation. In other words, their metabolism was altered, increasing their risk of metabolic syndrome, heart attack and stroke. Sucralose consumption also was linked to higher lousy LDL cholesterol levels.

So if you’re a diet soda fan, it’s time to rethink the way you drink. If you need sweet, try adding a squeeze of orange to water and work on phasing out all added sugars -- real and fake ( although stevia leaf looks like it may be different, but we need more data) -- from your diet.