Artificial Sweeteners

As the palette of artificial sweeteners has grown and manufacturers have honed the skill with which they blend them to mimic sugar taste, debate has swirled around whether these sensory stand-ins really help people consume fewer calories and avoid weight gain. New research adds another dimension to the uncertainty: It suggests that even when artificial sweeteners fool the taste buds, they still don't fool the ultimate arbiter of our appetites -- our subconscious brains. The latest evidence for this comes from a brain scanning study performed in the Netherlands.

Casting doubt on the benefit of low-calorie sweeteners, research released Sunday reported that rats on diets containing saccharin gained more weight than rats given sugary food. The study in the journal Behavioral Neuroscience found that the calorie-free artificial sweetener appeared to break the physiological connection between sweet tastes and calories, driving the rats to overeat. Lyn M.

The maker of Splenda settled a lawsuit over its disputed advertising slogan -- "Made from sugar so it tastes like sugar" -- after a jury reached a verdict against the market-leading artificial sweetener. Terms weren't disclosed. Merisant Co., which makes rival Equal, had accused the maker of Splenda of confusing consumers into thinking its product was more healthful and natural than other artificial sweeteners.

Placido Osuna points to a crudely stitched scar on his belly and thanks God for the little green herb that his sons encouraged him to grow instead of tobacco and cotton. "Stevia saved my life," says the 68-year-old farmer, dressed in flip-flops and an open shirt, with a machete tucked into his belt.

What is it about artificial sweeteners? As never before, they pervade the American diet -- in pink, yellow and blue packets on diner counters, in sugar-free cookies and diet juices, in sodas and smoothies and low-calorie yogurt and boxes of powder for baking. And, as ever, many Americans view them with suspicion. Every few years, a study links one to cancer. People get scared. Follow-up research finds nothing to worry about. Decades may pass, but sooner or later another scary study comes along.

Midway through the afternoon, when the belly yearns for snacks, three NutraSweet executives are going wild: cola, orange drink, citrus punch, chocolate milk, more cola, pound cake and crispy squares of coconut pie -- all test-kitchen concoctions made with artificial sweeteners. They consume two servings of everything. In quick succession. They wax exuberant about one of the pound cakes -- moist, crumbly and nicely browned.

After 40 years, science has yet to resolve one of America's biggest dietary dilemmas -- finding an alternative to sugar. It's not for lack of trying or lack of a market. Some 30% of Americans are obese, a national weight problem expected to fuel an increased demand for substitute sweeteners that began when the first diet products appeared in the 1960s. The U.S.

Americans love artificial sweeteners. We stir saccharin into our coffee, drink cola sweetened with aspartame, and chew gum flavored with sorbitol -- all in an attempt to enjoy the sweet taste we crave without the calories we're trying to avoid. One thing we haven't been able to do, however, is to bake successfully with artificial sweeteners. Replace the sugar in a cake recipe with an artificial sweetener, and you're likely to bake a pale, off-tasting cake.