No-calorie and low-calorie sweeteners might not affect hunger and weight gain

See Stick to science. A letter to the editor in The San Antonio Express-News, 7-27-11.

"Re: “Break these fat-creating bad habits” (Claudia Zapata's column, Taste, July 17):

Low-calorie sweeteners have been studied more extensively than many of the medicines we take so trustingly today and are safe to consume. As a registered dietitian and consultant to the food and beverage industry, including Coca-Cola, I want to clarify a few points in Zapata's article.

I've read the science on no-calorie and low-calorie sweeteners in order to provide the best counsel to my clients. While older studies suggest that this so-called sweetener “paradox” (which Zapata references in her piece) may exist, newer research has failed to confirm that no-calorie and low-calorie sweeteners affect hunger and weight gain. According to a recent scientific review published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, a person's hunger after drinking low-calorie beverages is actually no different than water.

So it's tough to trust the University of Texas Health Science Center study, which was not published in a peer-reviewed journal. In fact, the study didn't take into account other important lifestyle factors that can lead to waistline increase, such as lack of physical activity.

As health professionals, let's turn to the real science — more than 200 FDA-reviewed studies reinforcing the safety of low-calorie sweeteners.

Jan Tilley, MS RD LD"