Artificial sweeteners have been on my mind lately. The other day on the news I saw a report on why doctors are saying that artificial sweeteners may inhibit people’s ability to lose weight. It spoke about how most people turn to artificial sweeteners when they want to cut calories, but that this hurts the body’s ability to metabolize sugar, so that the next time they are eaten, the body processes them at a slower rate, causing weight gain. The logic behind this made perfect sense to me, and ever since I heard the report, I have been trying to get a grasp on how artificial sweeteners might be contributing to our obesity problem. I also think that artificial sweeteners allow us to not be accountable for everything we put into our bodies, and thus we lose our grasp on moderation. I think that it must be true that people have a harder time processing sugar if they deprive their bodies of it, but I also know that most people probably eat too much sugar in the first place, making the middle ground somewhat inconceivable.
You might have seen the Splenda commercial that is aired on the television about a mom facing a “sugar situation” in the morning. Her eyes dart around the room while she is preparing breakfast, and spots all of the foods she will feed her family, and how all of them need sugar: the grapefruit, the cereal, and the coffee. I was horrified by this ad, because I think it sends so many wrong messages to people who might be truly concerned about the health of their family. First of all, let me say that grapefruits do not need sugar. I peel mine and eat it like an orange. If you find it too pungent, then put a dab of honey (a dab). I have also heard of people mellowing their flavor with olive oil (again, only a dab). Secondly, most cereals are overly sweetened already, and do not require additional sugar. Instead of feeding children sugary cereals, or topping them with artificial sweeteners, we should be feeding them natural products, like oatmeal, and sweetening them ourselves with honey, agave nectar, or organic cane sugar. More importantly, we should be getting them used to enjoying foods that are not sweet in the first place.
Sugar is like an addiction. The sweeter things are, the more we like them, the sweeter we want them. I see this with myself all of the time. If anyone has issues with sweeteners it is I, which is why I am so interested in this topic. I have been using Stevia as a sweetener for about a year now, in addition to organic cane sugar. Stevia is a no-calorie sweetener from South America, which has been derived from herbs for a very long time. Even though I am content with my all-natural sweetener, in the end my downward spiral into sweetness is the same. The more I get used to sweetening my food, the sweeter I want it, the sweeter I make it. The only thing that I see being a solution for this dilemma that we all face is getting used to not eating such sweet foods all of the time. Once I got used to eating grapefruits without sugar on top, I realized that I truly loved all of the aspects of their flavor – the tanginess, the sourness, the sweetness. When I was topping them with sugar, I was only letting myself enjoy the sweet. I mentioned oatmeal earlier. When I started eating oatmeal for breakfast, I would barely sweeten it. That way, I was able to get to know the real flavor of oatmeal, and the subtle flavors that are found in the grain. Nowadays, I add blueberries and a little agave nectar, but when I add too much sugar, I know that I am missing out on the real flavor of the oats.
By using artificial sweeteners, we are allowing ourselves to overly indulge in sweetness. We are taking the accountability away from our eating and our moderation. If you think you are eating something without calories, you think that you are safe, and that you are free to do it as much as you want. While in fact, we should be accountable for everything that eat. Only then will we be able to respect our bodies and lose weight.
Because losing weight is not about eating more of something, it is about learning moderation and balance. There is nothing wrong with having a decadent piece of chocolate cake or putting a teaspoon of honey into your tea. But if you are going to do it, do it right, with real ingredients, not artificial ones, and enjoy it for what it is worth. And the rest of the time, enjoy foods that are not sweet, because it makes you appreciate them more. We can wean ourselves off of sugar, and we must do it.