9 Sugar Substitutes for Type 2 Diabetes

When it comes to blood sugar and weight management, not all sugar substitutes are created equal. Find out which option is the best fit for your health goals.

By Sheryl Huggins SalomonMedically Reviewed by Kelly Kennedy, RDN

Reviewed: August 21, 2019

Medically Reviewed

Sugar alternatives can satisfy your craving for something sweet without destabilizing your blood sugar levels.

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Taming a sweet tooth can be a challenge for anyone, but for people with type 2 diabetes, it’s necessary to keep how much you consume in carbohydrates, including sugar, under control.

Sugar substitutes offer sweetness while making it easier to control carbohydrate intake and blood glucose (sugar). There are many sugar substitutes to choose from, but they’re not all calorie-free, and they vary in terms of their impact on blood sugar.

When you’re deciding which sugar substitutes to use, consider that they come in two varieties, noted an article published in the journal Diabetes Spectrum:

• Nutritive These provide calories and can affect your blood sugar.
• Nonnutritive These provide little to no calories and, per a review published in May 2018 in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, will not raise your blood sugar. They can be several hundred to several thousand times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar), according to the aforementioned article in Diabetes Spectrum.

But even if you choose a calorie-free sweetener, enjoy the sweet stuff in moderation. According to a study published in the journal Physiology & Behavior, artificial sweeteners can alter your brain’s response to sweetness and affect your ability to feel satisfied when you eat sweet-tasting food or drink, putting you at risk for consuming too much of it. In fact, the American Diabetes Association recommends that in the case of beverages, it’s best not to rely on zero- or low-calorie options as a replacement for ones that contain sugar beyond the short term; but instead, to consume as little of any type of sweetener as you can, and simply drink more water.

RELATED: How to Stabilize Your Blood Sugar

With that in mind, here are nine low- or no-calorie options to consider:

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Sucralose (Splenda), the Most Popular Sugar Substitute

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This sweetener is excellent for people with type 2 diabetes. That’s because Splenda is 600 times sweeter than sugar, yet those little yellow packets have no effect on blood sugar, says Keri Glassman, RD, CDN, of Nutritious Life, a nutrition practice based in New York City.

In addition, Splenda passes through the body with minimal absorption. These attributes have helped it become the most commonly used artificial sweetener worldwide, according to an article published in October 2016 in Physiology & Behavior.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has approved sucralose, recommends an acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 5 milligrams (mg) or less of sucralose per kilogram (kg) of body weight per day. A 132-pound (lb) individual would need to consume 23 tabletop packets of the artificial sweetener per day to reach that limit.

RELATED: 10 Healthy and Delicious Recipes for People With Diabetes

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Saccharin (Sweet ‘N Low), the Oldest Artificial Sweetener

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Saccharin, the sweetener sold in pink packets under the brand name Sweet ‘N Low, is calorie-free and is about 300 to 500 times sweeter than sugar, per the Sweet ‘N Low website. It was the first artificial sweetener, with chemists discovering it as a derivative of coal tar by mistake in 1879, according to Encyclopedia Britannica.

If you’ve been using artificial sweeteners since the 1970s, you may remember a previous warning label that warned of saccharin increasing the risk for cancer. But rest assured it’s safe. The research that prompted the label was done on animals, and further studies by the National Toxicology Program of the National Institutes of Health concluded that saccharin shouldn’t be on the list of potential carcinogens. Saccharin is currently FDA-approved.

A 132-lb individual would need to consume 45 tabletop packets of the artificial sweetener per day to reach the ADI of 15 mg of saccharin per kg of body weight per day, according to the FDA.

RELATED: 8 Mouthwatering Brownie Recipes for People With Diabetes

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Aspartame, a Low-Calorie Sweetener yet Not Okay for People With PKU

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Aspartame, sold in blue packets under the brand names Equal and NutraSweet, is a nonnutritive artificial sweetener that is 200 times sweeter than sugar, according to the FDA. While not zero-calorie like some other artificial sweeteners, aspartame is still very low in calories.

While the FDA has reviewed the scientific research and found aspartame safe to eat, Glassman notes there have also been some conflicting study results on this sweetener’s safety. “Although its low-calorie reputation is appealing for most weight-conscious individuals, it has been linked to many negative side effects,” Glassman says. Some animal research, including a study published in December 2014 in the journal Cytotechnology, has shown linkage to leukemia, lymphoma, and breast cancer. “Other research shows a [possible] linkage to migraines.”

Yet the American Cancer Society notes that U.S. and European regulatory agencies have, respectively, concluded that aspartame is “safe” and that research doesn’t indicate an increased risk of cancer in humans.

Nevertheless, people with phenylketonuria (PKU), a rare condition in which they are unable to metabolize phenylalanine (a key component of aspartame), should not consume this sugar substitute, notes the NHS. If you don’t have PKU, aspartame is safe to consume.

A 132-lb individual would need to consume a whopping 75 tabletop packets of the artificial sweetener per day to reach the ADI of 50 mg of aspartame per kg of body weight per day, notes the FDA.

RELATED: No- and Low-Calorie Sweeteners May Not Help With Weight Loss

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Stevia (Truvia or Pure Via), a Natural Sweetener Option

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Steviol glycosides are sweeteners derived from the leaf of the stevia plant, which is native to Central and South America. Truvia and Pure Via, both brands of stevia-based sweetener, are calorie-free, and stevia is often used as a sweetener in foods and beverages. According to the 2019 Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes, published in January 2019 in Diabetes Care, nonnutritive sweeteners, including stevia, have little to no impact on blood sugar. The FDA has approved the use of certain stevia extracts, which it has generally recognized as safe (a term that is applied to food additives that qualified experts deem as safe, and therefore not subject to the usual premarket review and approval process).

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center notes that people have reported side effects, like gastrointestinal symptoms, after eating high amounts of stevia. But to date, there is no solid scientific research to prove these claims.

The FDA recommends an ADI of 4 mg or less of Truvia per kilogram of body weight per day. A 132-lb individual would need to consume nine tabletop packets of the artificial sweetener per day to reach that limit.

RELATED: The Best and Worst Sweeteners for Weight Loss

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Sugar Alcohols, a Low-Calorie Option for Sweetening Your Fare

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Sugar alcohols, or polyols, are derived from the natural fibers in fruits and vegetables, according to the Joslin Diabetes Center. Per the International Food Information Council Foundation, commonly used sugar alcohol sweeteners in many so-called “sugar-free” desserts, candies and gums include:

• Xylitol
• Sorbitol
• Mannitol
• Isomalt

Though sugar alcohols are relatively low in calories and more blood sugar–friendly than carbohydrates, they may have a laxative effect and cause indigestion, bloating, and diarrhea in some people, the FDA points out. Products containing sorbitol and mannitol must bear a label warning that excess consumption can cause a laxative effect, per the FDA.

The gastrointestinal symptoms arise because sugar alcohols are not completely absorbed in the digestive tract, says Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDE, a medical reviewer for Everyday Health who’s based in Prescott, Arizona. She explains that unabsorbed carbohydrates from these sweeteners pass into the large intestine, where they are fermented by gut bacteria to produce gas. See how you respond to a small amount before incorporating them into your daily diet.

Also, keep in mind that sugar alcohols do contain some carbohydrates and are nutritive sweeteners, so they can affect blood sugar levels.

“It’s important for people with diabetes to read the nutrition facts label for total carbohydrate content and plan accordingly,” says Grieger. “Remember that the information in a nutrition facts label is based on one serving, and it’s easy to eat more than one serving of foods that contain sugar alcohols, which can increase the total carbohydrate consumed.” If you count carbs to manage diabetes, a common rule of thumb is to subtract half the amount of the sugar alcohol carbs listed on the nutrition label from the total carbs listed, according to the University of California in San Francisco.

RELATED: 7 Reduced-Carb Waffle Recipes for People With Diabetes

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Erythritol, a Sugar Alcohol With Fewer Side Effects Than Other Options

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Erythritol is also a sugar alcohol sweetener, but unlike the others just mentioned, it has less than 1 calorie per gram, notes the International Food Information Council Foundation, and doesn’t have a big effect on blood sugar levels, per the American Diabetes Association. It’s an ingredient in the stevia-derived sweetener Truvia and is marketed under the brand-name Swerve. Swerve measures cup-for-cup like sugar, and you can use it like table sugar, or in cooking and baking recipes that call for sugar.

If other sugar alcohol sweeteners give you tummy trouble, this may be a better option for you. It is less likely to produce the gas, bloating, and diarrhea that happen from fermentation by gut bacteria because only about 10 percent of the erythritol you consume enters the colon, per past research. The rest leaves the body through your urine.

There’s no ADI for erythritol, but the FDA hasn’t questioned notices submitted by erythritol makers that the sweetener is “generally recognized as safe.”

RELATED: The Best and Worst Foods to Eat if You’re Managing Type 2 Diabetes

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Monk Fruit Sweetener, Another Natural Option for Sweetening Your Foods

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Also known by the names Luo Han Guo fruit extract and Siraitia grosvenorii Swingle fruit extract, this nonnutritive sweetener comes from a plant native to southern China. The extract contains 0 calories per serving, per the International Food Information Council Foundation, and per the FDA, is 150 to 200 times sweeter than sugar. Popular brands include Monk Fruit in the Raw and Lakanto. The FDA has not questioned notices submitted by monk fruit sweetener makers that the extract is “generally recognized as safe.” The agency doesn’t specify an ADI for monk fruit sweetener.

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Acesulfame Potassium, a Popular Sugar Substitute in Diet Soda

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Also known as Ace-K, this nonnutritive sweetener is FDA-approved and about 200 times sweeter than sugar. Often manufacturers combine it with other sweeteners, though it is also sold for tabletop use under the brand name Sweet One. You will also find it in some of your favorite diet soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and Diet Mountain Dew. The FDA recommends an ADI of 15 mg or less of Ace-K per kilogram of body weight per day.

A 132-pound individual would need to consume 23 tabletop packets of the artificial sweetener per day to reach that limit.

RELATED: The 8 Best Fruits for a Diabetes-Friendly Diet

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Allulose (Dolcia Prima), a New Artificial Sweetener That’s No Longer Considered an Added Sugar

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Allulose (also known as D-allulose or D-psicose, per the U.S. National Library of Medicine) is an extremely low-calorie sweetener that occurs naturally in small amounts in wheat, raisins, dried figs, brown sugar, and molasses, according to the FDA. Marketed under the brand name Dolcia Prima (which Tate & Lyle, Splenda’s manufacturer, makes), it has 90 percent fewer calories than sucrose, while being 70 percent as sweet.

You can find Dolcia Prima in Magic Spoon Cereal, which is sold online; and expect to see it soon in beverages, desserts, candy, yogurt, and other treats. That’s because allulose got a big boost from the FDA in April 2019, when the agency declared it can be excluded from the total and added sugars listed on nutrition labels going forward.

“The latest data suggests that allulose is different from other sugars in that it is not metabolized by the human body in the same way as table sugar,” says Susan Mayne, PhD, director of FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “It has fewer calories, produces only negligible increases in blood glucose or insulin levels, and does not promote dental decay.”

Under the revised guidance, manufacturers can use a caloric value of 0.4 calories per gram to calculate the total number of calories per serving of allulose, instead of the previous 4 calories per gram. The sweetener still must be included in the total carbohydrates listed, though. While allulose isn’t on the list of FDA-approved sweeteners, the agency hasn’t questioned notices submitted by manufacturers that the sweetener is “generally recognized as safe.”

But the European Union has yet to approve allulose, according to an article published in April 2019 in Food Manufacture, nor has Canada added it to their list of permitted sweeteners. Furthermore, research into its effectiveness for controlling blood sugar is limited to small studies, such as a small randomized, double-blinded trial published in June 2018 in the journal Nutrients, which was funded by Tate & Lyle. The authors observed that small doses of allulose (5 or 10 g) did not have a significant effect on blood glucose levels when taken with a standard glucose tolerance test, but they recommended larger sample sizes for future studies.

RELATED: The Next Generation of Food Sweeteners

One Last Thing About Using Sugar Substitutes When Managing Type 2 Diabetes

As you can see, there are many artificial sweeteners to help you reach your blood sugar goals. Just remember that maintaining them will be easier if you practice moderation and don’t allow sweet-tasting food and beverages to lead you to overconsume them. “A major goal should be to reduce all types of sweeteners in your diet, including sugar substitutes, so that you become accustomed to the naturally sweet taste of food,” says Grieger. Then trust your body to tell you when enough is enough.

Additional reporting by Margaret O’Malley.

Sucralose and Diabetes: Know the Facts

If you have diabetes, you know why it’s important to limit the amount of sugar you eat or drink.

It’s generally easy to spot natural sugars in your drinks and food. Processed sugars can be a bit more challenging to pinpoint.

Keep reading to learn more about the processed sweetener sucralose and how it can affect your blood sugar levels.

Sucralose, or Splenda, is an artificial sweetener often used in place of sugar.

One of the major benefits of sucralose is that it has zero calories (1). You may find this helpful if you’re trying to manage your daily calorie intake or dieting.

Sucralose is sweeter than sugar (1), leading many people to favor the substitute over the original. Because of this, you need only a small amount of sucralose to get a very sweet taste in your food or beverage.

Substituting sucralose for sugar may help you lose weight.

A review of randomized controlled trials found that artificial sweeteners like sucralose can reduce body weight by about 1.7 pounds on average (2).

Unlike some other sweeteners, sucralose does not promote tooth decay (3).

Sucralose may affect your gut health.

The friendly bacteria in your gut are extremely important for your overall health, benefiting your immune system, heart, weight and other health aspects.

Rodent studies indicate that sucralose can modify intestinal microbiota and may eliminate some of this good bacteria, leading to inflammation of internal organs, like the liver (4).

In vivo studies show that sucralose may alter hormone levels in your digestive tract, leading to abnormalities that may contribute to metabolic disorders like obesity or even type 2 diabetes (5).

Research also shows that metabolic alterations caused by sucralose can lead to glucose intolerance, which increases your risk for diabetes (6).

More research is necessary to fully understand the link between sucralose and gut health, including more human studies.

But it is not entirely harmless.

Cooking with sucralose may also be dangerous.

In high temperatures — such as during cooking or baking — sucralose can disintegrate, forming potentially toxic chlorinated compounds (7).

Based on the available data, potential health risks associated with cooking with sucralose are not fully understood. You may want to think twice before cooking with sucralose.

Artificial sweeteners like sucralose are marketed as sugar substitutes that don’t raise blood sugar levels, making them a safer choice for diabetics.

While these claims seem promising, they have yet to be confirmed by multiple large studies (8).

Previous studies have found sucralose to have little to no effects on blood sugar levels in individuals of average weight who regularly used sucralose (9).

But more recent research suggests that it can cause blood sugar levels to spike in other populations.

A small study found that sucralose elevated blood sugar levels by 14% and insulin levels by 20% in 17 people with severe obesity who didn’t regularly consume artificial sweeteners (10).

These results indicate that sucralose may elevate blood sugar levels in new users but have little effect on regular consumers.

For individuals with diabetes who do not produce insulin or do not respond to the hormone properly, a spike in blood sugar levels could cause serious health problems.

If you have diabetes, you may want to limit your sucralose intake.

You may not realize it, but sucralose is likely a part of your diet already. If you like to drink low-calorie soft drinks and juices, eat diet snacks, or chew gum, sucralose is likely the sweetener you taste.

Whether you already consume sucralose or are thinking about adding it to your diet, talk to your doctor to see if substituting sucralose for sugar in your diet is the right move for you.

If your doctor approves, you should first consider everything that you’re currently drinking and eating and look for areas to substitute sugar with sucralose.

For example, if you take sugar in your coffee, you may gradually replace the sugar with sucralose.

You may notice that you don’t need as much sucralose as you did sugar.

Once you get used to the taste of sucralose, you may want to incorporate it into larger recipes — but be mindful that cooking with sucralose may be unsafe.

According to the FDA, the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) level for sucralose in the United States is 5 milligrams (mg) per kilogram (kg) of body weight per day (11).

For a person who weighs 150 pounds, that comes out to roughly 28 packets of Splenda a day.

That doesn’t mean you necessarily should consume that much Splenda.

You may want to practice moderation, especially if you have diabetes.

Sucralose may be a zero-calorie sugar substitute that can help you lose weight, but it may raise blood sugar levels and affect your gut health.

This can lead to health consequences, especially if you have diabetes.

Before adding sucralose to your diet, check with your doctor to make sure they believe it’s the right choice for you and your diabetes management.

If you do decide to use sucralose, you may want to practice moderation and monitor your blood sugar levels after consumption.

You can purchase sucralose by its brand name, Splenda, at your local grocery store.

Sugar substitutes for diabetes | What is the best sweetener for type 2 diabetes:

The sweet habit is strong in modern people, and even type 1 and type 2 diabetes cannot force you to completely abandon it. Sweeteners help out – low-calorie substances that do not increase glucose levels.

Natural and artificial sweeteners

Sugar substitutes allow diabetics to experience the familiar sweet taste of food without suffering the ill effects. With their help, you do not need to radically change the usual diet, it only needs to be slightly adjusted. Sweeteners for type 2 diabetes, as well as type 1, fall into two categories: natural and artificial (synthetic). Products of the first variety are extracted from natural products. Surrogates are made artificially from chemical compounds.

Can a natural sweetener be used in diabetes?

Natural substitutes do not contain artificial compounds, are easily absorbed by the body and excreted naturally. They do not cause an increased release of insulin. However, even with the seeming absence of harm, you should not exceed the daily dose (it is 35-50 grams). Excess is fraught with undesirable consequences.

Natural sweeteners are used in various dishes such as pastries, desserts and are also sold separately. The main types of these substances are as follows:

• Fructose. This substance is extracted from the fruits of plants. In terms of calories, it coincides with ordinary sugar, but the taste of fructose is more pronounced. Fructose has a beneficial effect on hepatic glycogen, which has a positive effect on the state of the body in diabetes of any type. However, there are also dangerous moments: fruit sugar is absorbed longer, so the feeling of fullness does not come immediately. A person with diabetes, with unlimited consumption of fructose, may experience prolonged, insatiable hunger. To protect yourself from the negative effects of fructose consumption, you should not exceed its daily volume of 30 grams. If the dose is exceeded, there is a risk of obesity, because in excess, the body converts fructose into fat.
• Xylitol. Compared to sugar, this sweetener contains 40% fewer calories. Thanks to this factor and the low glycemic index, xylitol can be used for obesity and diabetes. This product instead of sugar in diabetes mellitus dissolves well in water and has a cooling effect, gives a feeling of freshness in the oral cavity.
• Stevia. This perennial herb from South America is a good sugar substitute for type 2 diabetes. Its composition is rich in useful substances: fiber, vitamins, fatty and organic acids, micro and macro elements. Those who choose stevia experience an overall beneficial effect on the body. The substance is suitable for use as a prevention of diabetes mellitus in healthy people. The substance has a pronounced taste and low calorie content, normalizes metabolic processes. In some cases, allergic reactions to stevia are possible in the form of rashes on the body, nausea, and gastrointestinal disorders.
• Sorbitol. This substance is obtained by processing corn, wheat and potato starch. The sweetener is completely absorbed by the digestive system. It is highly nutritious and has a strong laxative effect. With uncontrolled use, nausea, diarrhea, pain in the lower abdomen are possible.

Can artificial sweetener be used in diabetes?

Synthetic sweeteners are not digestible, but only add the usual sweet taste to dishes. They do not provide any energy value, so they “deceive” the body and do not give it the expected carbohydrates. There is a desire to eat more, which negatively affects weight. When choosing which sugar substitute can be used for diabetes, you need to familiarize yourself with the characteristics of such artificial sweeteners:

• Saccharin. The substance is several hundred times sweeter than ordinary sugar, but gives an unpleasant taste of metal. The sweetener contains no carbohydrates and does not damage teeth. The maximum daily dose is 11 tablets.
• Aspartame. Long-term consumption causes headaches, insomnia and allergies. When heated, the substance decomposes into phenylalanine and methanol, which then converts to formaldehyde, which is a strong carcinogen.
• Cyclamate. The sweetener is added to juices, compotes and confectionery. In the stomach, it is broken down and converted into the substance cyclohexylamine, which has not yet been fully studied. Cyclamate is banned in the US and France.
• Acesulfame. 200 times sweeter than regular sugar. The composition of the substance includes aspartic acid, which has a negative effect on the nervous system. The sweetener is banned in the US.
• Mannitol. Sweetener should not be used more than 50 gr. Per day. Excess leads to diarrhea with dehydration and other problems with the gastrointestinal tract.
• Dulcin. This substance is a derivative of urea. It causes cirrhosis of the liver, growth retardation, anemia. This sweetener is not recommended for diabetics.

Which sweetener is best for diabetes?

It is recommended to choose the right sweetener together with your doctor, because every substance, even natural ones, has its drawbacks and side effects. The doctor takes into account the patient’s history, the state of his liver, kidneys and other organs. You should not choose a sweetener on your own, based on the material you read and your own preferences. Negligent attitude to one’s health leads to big problems.

Despite the dangers of artificial sweeteners, manufacturers continue to use them for the following reasons:

• they are cheaper than natural ones;
• are excellent preservatives;
• they increase appetite, which leads to an increase in food sales.

Proximity to nature and natural products is beneficial for the body. A safe and healthy sugar substitute is honey, as are dried apricots, raisins, figs, and dates. These are the best sugar substitutes for diabetes. If we compare natural and artificial sweeteners, those that are extracted from the fruits of plants do less harm. However, here we should not forget about the limit of consumption.

Which sweetener should I choose?

05/11/2018

As you know, sugar can “deprive” a beautiful figure, and also become the main cause of some diseases, among which obesity and diabetes are especially distinguished. In order to limit sugar consumption, scientists began to look for a less harmful “sweetener”. Saccharin was officially the first sugar substitute. It was “invented” in Germany by a native of Russia Konstantin Fahlberg in 1879.

Sugar substitutes are divided into two types:

The first group includes: honey, fructose, sorbitol, xylitol, stevia and others. Natural sweeteners do not contain fewer calories than sugar, but are healthier.

Synthetic sweeteners are produced artificially. They are low in calories, but can increase appetite. The most famous of them are saccharin, cyclamate, aspartame, sucralose and others.

Now, so that you can choose the best sweetener for yourself, let’s take a closer look at their beneficial and harmful properties.

Fructose or fruit sugar

In nature, it is found in almost all fruits, honey, nectar. It is obtained by enzymatic or acidic hydrolysis of fructosans or sugar. Fructose is 1.3-1.8 times sweeter than sugar. Easily and completely soluble in water.

Fructose is classified as a carbohydrate, which means that it does not raise blood sugar levels. It is excreted from the body without complications.

With proper consumption (30-40 grams per 1 kg of weight), fructose protects children from the formation of caries and diathesis, improves the immune system, increases tone and mental activity.

It has been established that excessive consumption of fructose leads to obesity and heart disease, since it serves as the basis for fat cells in the body.

Xylitol (E967) or “wood sugar”

It is found in fruits and vegetables, chewing gum, lozenges, and medicines. Produced from corn cobs or wood waste.

Xylitol is good for teeth, it protects against caries, prevents the formation of plaque and strengthens tooth enamel. Allows you to speed up the metabolism in the body. Scientists have found that xylitol helps with ear diseases, osteoporosis, in the fight against the Candida fungus. The sweetener xylitol does not contain carbohydrates, its calorie content is lower than that of sugar (10 percent) and it is sweeter.

Exceeding the daily allowance of xylitol (40 grams per 1 kg of body weight) can cause diarrhea.

Sorbitol (E420) or sorbitol

In its natural state, it is found in mountain ash, grapes, apples, hawthorn and apricots. It is obtained through the oxidation of glucose. Used in cooking for salads, pastries, ice cream, etc.

Sorbitol improves the secretion of gastric juice and bile in the body. Helps with liver diseases, as it stimulates the outflow of bile. Sorbitol effectively takes water between cells, therefore it is used to treat glaucoma. Helps protect teeth from caries. It has a laxative effect, optimizes bowel function and copes with constipation.

Sorbitol is one of the most harmless sweeteners for diabetics.

Exceeding the daily allowance of sorbitol (40 grams per 1 kg of body weight) can cause diarrhea and weight gain.

Stevia or honey grass

This sweetener is produced from a herbaceous perennial plant that is grown in Japan, Asia, Ukraine, the USA, Korea and other countries. The daily norm is 35 grams per 1 kg of weight.

Stevia is the sweetest natural sweetener on the planet, 300 times sweeter than sugar. It contains a whole complex of vitamins and minerals, so that it strengthens the immune system, protects teeth from caries, and is recommended for diabetes.

Contraindicated in pregnant women and nursing mothers. Sometimes there is a personal intolerance to the product.

Saccharin (E954) or sodium saccharin

It is the world’s first artificial sweetener and is a crystalline sodium salt. It is used in various industries: food, pharmaceutical, etc. It is 300-400 times sweeter than sugar. It dissolves well in water, resistant to temperatures.

The main feature of saccharin is caloric content – it is equal to zero. Saccharin is not metabolized and, as a result, is excreted from the body almost unchanged. It also does not affect blood glucose and insulin levels.

Saccharin sodium is allowed worldwide as it is considered safe for health.

Sodium cyclamate (E952)

Calorie-free synthetic sweetener. 30 times sweeter than sugar. It is used together with aspartame, saccharin and acesulfame. The recommended daily allowance is 10 mg per 1 kg of body weight.

Sodium cyclamate is heat stable and does not lose its sweet taste in baked goods or other cooked desserts.

Sodium cyclamate does not have a glycemic index, does not increase blood glucose levels, and therefore is suitable for people suffering from both types of diabetes. It is safe for health if the daily norm is observed, it is excreted from the body unchanged. It is contraindicated in renal failure.

Aspartame (E951)

The most popular and inexpensive sugar substitute. It is 200 times sweeter than sugar and has a low calorie content. The allowed daily allowance is 50 mg per 1 kg of body weight. Aspartame is almost completely absorbed by humans.

As a result of many experiments, it was found that with prolonged use, this sweetener causes indigestion, nausea, dizziness, heart palpitations, headaches, and allergies.

Sucralose (E955)

It is the most popular and safe analogue of sugar. 600 times sweeter than sugar, zero calories. It does not have any foreign smell and has no aftertaste. The optimal consumption rate is 4 mg per 1 kg of body weight.