How to Be a Conscious Eater

INGREDIENTS TO AVOID FROM THE CENTER FOR SCIENCE

IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST:

aspartame (Equal/NutraSweet)

acesulfame potassium (Ace-K)

luo han guo (also called monk fruit) extracts

saccharin (Sweet’N Low)

steviol glycosides

sucralose (Splenda)

As you can see, the only ingredients the CSPI allows are

advantame and neotame. On its website, the National Cancer

Institute concludes that the studies for aspartame, saccharin,

and sucralose do not present enough evidence to associate

them with cancer risk. (Separately, there are also some ques-

tions about the safety of artificial sweeteners for pregnant

women, and sucralose has been suspected as potentially

degrading the health of the gut microbiome.)

What to make of it all? With so much up in the air about artificial

sweeteners, I say better the devil you know. Keep added sugar

to a minimum and check the ingredients list to be sure you

spot all the sources. Many products labeled as having no sugar

added may instead have sugar alcohols or artificial sweeteners.

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