Sugar and Sugar substitutes.

What has made the world turn to so many artificial sweetners in recent years?

"The molecular structures of artificial sweeteners are not known in nature. The blue packet contains aspartame and the pink packet contains saccharin. And the yellow packet sweetener? You know the one. The sweetener that claims to be made from sugar is not all-natural. You may find this surprising: it contains sucralose which is made from chlorine." - The Sugar Association

A teaspoon of sugar has only 15 calories, and can easily be part of a healthy active lifestyle. The sucrose in sugar is the exact same molecule found in fresh fruit.

People used to put lead on articles of clothing such as hats to increase the lustre of velvet and other textiles, and to impart water-proofing characteristics, but we now know that lead is a neurotoxin, and toxic at any levels to human life.

We used to put asbestos in buildings to increase the building's fire resistance, we now know that it's a carcinogen when particles and dust are inhaled.

I often wonder if we won't look back on these artificial sweetners in years to come, shake our heads and wonder just what we were thinking.

I see it like this: we can support a farmer or we can support a big industry chemical lab. Go natural with your foods, use sugar. Sugar subsititues were first intended for those with special diet needs such as Diabetics. I believe that they serve a good purpose, but are now too widely consumed. Be careful what chemicals you ingest. The substitute industry promotes their products as more healthful alternatives, but... are they?

Ever need a pick me up but don't want the massive amount of sugar in soda? Try an unsweetened bottle of iced tea, and add a small amount of sugar yourself, controlling the amount.

Image by Lauri Andler, GNUFDL.