So, years ago you switched from Coke to Diet Coke or from Pepsi to Diet Pepsi. We recall a story from a mother’s friend who was a hair dresser and consumed copious amounts of Dr. Pepper every day (four to six cans!). She switched from regular Dr. Pepper to Diet Dr. Pepper and lost about 20 pounds in a month. But, within six months, she was back to her original weight even though she stayed with her new "diet." So, why did this happen? It isn’t the first time nutritionists and dieticians have seen this and it was no surprise to some who looked at the underlying effects of artificial sweeteners.
The theory basically comes down to this. Sugar substitutes and artificial sweeteners are likely impeding our brains ability to naturaly recognize and measure the amount of calories we intake. Thus, we feel the need to intake more calories and have a tendency to overeat.
A recent study done by neuroscientists and psychologists and published in the medical journal Behavioral Neuroscience points to evidence as such. Granted, it was performed on rats, but much of our initial testing that leads to successful products for our health comes from our little furry friends. Back on topic. The rats were either given artificially sweetened yogurt or standard sugar-powered yogurt as well as their standard rat food. The rats that ate the artificially sweetened yogurt gained more weight, and they also appeared to lose their innate ability to keep track of extra calories and eat smaller amounts later on.
Why you may ask? Well, the theory continues. One of the authors of the paper, DR. Terry Davidson, a neuroscientist at Purdue University explains it thusly. “Animals learn to use taste to predict caloric consequences, and in nature, sweetness is almost always an indicator of calories.” So, when rats or humans experience a sweet sensation when tasting something, yet there is a greatly reduced or zero count caloric intake, it muddles our ability to calibrate our intake.
Now the somewhat alarming aspect of this study. Repetitive intake and experiences with artificial sweeteners and sugar substitutes may actually permanently affect our ability to count calories for good. In the rats, effects were seen in as few as 10 days!
Of course, this study was done on rats and they have a much more limited diet than us humans, but still, the evidence is compelling and a little alarming. Obviously, more study is needed, but this is definitely something to think about that next time you are reaching for a Coke Zero.
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