Artificial sweetener

Artificial sweeteners (aspartame, sucralose, saccharin, and others) taste sweet without sugar calories. Metabolic and gut effects are debated; they do not replace sugar's fuel role under stress.

Practice

Prefer sugar when energy is the goal. See Sugar, Stevia, Glucose, Diabetes.

Sucralose

Sucralose is a chlorinated sucrose derivative. Heat stability makes it common in processed foods. Same preference hierarchy applies: real sugar for fuel, novelty sweeteners optional. Gut and metabolic data are mixed across studies.

Xylitol

Xylitol is a sugar alcohol. It has dental benefits in some studies and GI side effects in excess. Not a whole-food sugar; GI distress and metabolic ambiguity make fruit sugar, sucrose, and honey cleaner defaults when calories from carbs are the goal.

Aspartame

Aspartame breaks down to phenylalanine, aspartate, and methanol in small amounts. Prefer sugar from fruit, sucrose, and honey when calories and metabolic support are the goal; diet soda habits can maintain sweet preference without fueling oxidation.

See also

• Sugar
• Stevia
• Diabetes
• Excitotoxicity