Here are nine low or not calories sugar substitutes to consider when you suffer from type 2 diabetes:
1. Sucralose (Splenda), the most popular sugar substitute
This sweetener is excellent for people with type 2 diabetes. Splenda is about 600 times sweeter than sugar, but that does not affect your blood sugar, explains Keri Glassman, DR, CDN, Nutritious Life, a nutritional practice based in New York. (Sucralose is also to be the most popular sweetener on the market.)
This does not mean that you can eat an infinite quantity, however: the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has approved success, fixes the recommended limit for supralosis at 23 packages per day.
2. Saccharine (Sweet’n Low), the oldest artificial sweetener
Saccharine, the sweetener sold in pink packets under the Sweet’n Low brand, is calories and about 200 to 700 times sweeter than sugar. Although it has only been used as a food additive since 1977, it was discovered for the first time in 1879.
If you have used artificial sweeteners since the 1970s, you may remember a previous warning label concerning saccharin increasing the risk of bladder cancer. But rest assured, that’s for sure. The research that prompted the label has been carried out on animals, and other studies of the national toxicology program of the National Institutes of Health have concluded that saccharin should not appear on the list of potential carcinogens. The saccharin is approved by the FDA.
The FDA fixes the recommended limit for saccharin at 45 packets per day.
3. Aspartame, a low -calorie sweetener that is not going for people with PKU
Aspartame, sold in blue packets under Equal and Nutrasweet brand names, is an unattractive artificial sweetener which is about 200 times softer than sugar, according to the FDA. Although it is not zero calories like some other artificial sweeteners, aspartame is still very low in calories.
While the FDA examined scientific research and determined that aspartame is sure to eat, Glassman notes that there have been contradictory study results concerning the security of this sweetener. The International Agency for Research on Cancer, for example, has labeled aspartame as “perhaps carcinogenic for humans”, but other scientific agencies, such as Health Canada and the European Food Security Authority, consider that it is sure when it is consumed at the recommended levels.
Nevertheless, people with phenylcetonuria (PKU), a rare condition in which they are unable to metabolize phenylalanin (a key component of aspartame), should not consume this sugar substitute. If you don’t have a PKU, Aspartame is sure to consume in moderation.
The FDA defines the recommended limit for aspartame at 75 packets per day.
4. Stvia (found or pure), natural sweetener option
Steviol glycosides are sweeteners derived from the Stevia plant sheet, originally from South America. Truvia and Pure via, the two stevia sweetening brands are calories and stevia is often used as sweetening in food and drinks.
Like other non -nutritious sweeteners, stevia has little or no impact on blood sugar. The FDA approved the use of certain extracts from Stevia, which it has generally recognized as safe (a term which is applied to food additives that qualified experts consider safe, which are therefore not subject to the process of revision and approval of the usual pre-market).
People have reported side effects, including gastrointestinal symptoms, after eating high quantities of stevia. But to date, there is no solid scientific research to prove these claims.
The FDA recommends limit your contribution in stevia to 27 packages per day.
5. Sugar alcohols, a low calorie option to soften your price
Sugar alcohols, or polyols, are derived from natural fibers of fruits and vegetables. Sugar sweeteners commonly used in many desserts, candies and supposedly “sugar-free” gums include:
Xylitol
Sorbitol
Mannitol
Isomal
Lactitol
Although sugar alcohols are relatively low in calories and more blood sugar than carbohydrates than carbohydrates, they can have a laxative effect and cause indigestion, bloating and diarrhea in some people. Products containing sorbitol and mannitol must bear a label warning that excessive consumption can have a laxative effect.
Gastrointestinal symptoms occur because sugar alcohols are not completely absorbed in the digestive tract, explains Lynn Grieger, RDN, CDCE, a medical critic for everyday health based in Prescott, in Arizona. She explains that the unexpected carbohydrates of these sweeteners pass into the large intestine, where they are fermented by intestinal bacteria to produce gas. See how you react to a small amount before incorporating them into your daily diet.
Also keep in mind that sugar alcohols contain carbohydrates and are nutritious sweeteners, so that they can affect blood sugar.
“It is important for people with diabetes to read the nutritional fact label for the total carbohydrate content and to plan accordingly,” explains Grieger. “Remember that information in a label of nutritional facts is based on a portion, and it is easy to eat more than one portion of foods that contain sugar alcohols, which can increase the total of the carbohydrates consumed.”
6. Erythritol, a sugar alcohol with fewer side effects than other options
Erythritol is also a sugar alcohol, but unlike some of the other options, it does not contain calories and does not seem to affect blood sugar or insulin levels. It is an ingredient in the sweetener derived from stevia, and it is marketed under the name of the Swerve brand.
If other sweeteners in sugar alcohol causes you stomach problems, it may be a better option for you. It is less likely to produce gas, bloating and diarrhea which occur by fermentation by intestinal bacteria, because only a small amount of erythritol that you consume enters the colon.
There is no recommended limit for erythritol, but the FDA has not questioned the opinions submitted by the manufacturers of Erythritol that the sweetener is “generally recognized as safe”. However, show caution when considering erythritol. Recent studies have found an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. Research indicates that long -term studies are necessary.
7. Watching monk fruit, another natural option to soften your food
The extract of monk fruit is a natural and zero-calorie sweetener derived from the fruit of the plant The thickness of the thicknessOriginally from southern China. It is 150 to 200 times sweeter than sugar.
Popular brands include monk fruit in RAW and Lakanto. The FDA did not question the opinions submitted by the manufacturers of monk sweeteners that the extract is “generally recognized as safe”. The agency does not specify a recommended limit for the sweetener of monk fruit.
8. Acesulfame potassium, a substitute for popular sugar in food soda
Also known as ACE-K, this non-nutritious sweetener is a sweetener approved by the FDA which is about 200 times softer than sugar. Often, manufacturers combine it with other sweeteners, although they are also sold for use on the table under the Sweet One brand. You will also find it in popular carbonated drinks.
Certain research involving mice has suggested possible problems with ACE-K, including a study that concluded that ACE-K consumption has led to a flora imbalance in the intestinal microbiome. Another study – it focused on humans – theorized that large quantities in pregnant women can lead to early childbirth.
The FDA recommends limiting your use of potassium of aceulfame to 23 packages per day.
9. Allulose (Dolcia prima), a new artificial sweetener which is no longer considered an added sugar
ALLULOSE (also known as d-allulosis or d-psicosis) is a low-calorie sweetener that naturally occurs in small amounts of wheat and fruit and is marketed under the Dolcia brand.
It has 90% less calories than sucrose but is around 70% as sweet. In addition, this does not affect your blood sugar or your insulin rate.
Although allulosis is not on the list of sweeteners approved by the FDA, the agency did not question the opinions submitted by manufacturers that the sweetener is “generally recognized as safe”. However, it is not approved for use in Canada or Europe.
One last thing about the use of sugar substitutes when managing type 2 diabetes
Even if you choose an sweetener without calories, you should always take advantage of sugar substitutes in moderation. It is believed that sugar sweeteners can encourage our body to want more candies later, which could cause weight gain. In addition, some research has revealed that sugar substitutes has been linked to higher rates of heart disease and suggest that the best idea is to try to reduce our consumption of all sugars, including sugar substitutes.
Do not forget: water is always the healthiest drink. “A major objective should be to reduce all types of sweeteners in your diet, including sugar substitutes, so that you are used to a naturally sweet taste of food,” explains Grieger. Then trust your body to tell you when just enough.
The point to take away
Sugar alternatives can satisfy your desire for something sweet without destabilizing your blood sugar.
Sugar substitutes include nutritious (caloric) and non -nutritious (non -caloric) sweeteners.
Some popular sugar substitutes include aspartame, saccharin, success and stevia.