Artificial Sweeteners for Diabetics

If you are diabetic or on a diet but have a sweet tooth then you will be pleased to know that the food industry has finally invented a solution for you. The answer lies in artificial sweeteners.

Artificial sweeteners are used in many products and can either be 100% synthetic or derived fro a real sugar plant. Saccharin, aspartame, sucralose, acesulfame potassium are the four types of artificial sweeteners. You will find these types of sweeteners being sold from a variety of companies under different product names. Just looking at the ingredients list will tell you what sort of artificial sweetener is contained in the product.

Some sweeteners are available in liquid form, others in powdered form. These are generally used in baking. Aspartame is normally only found in pre-packaged foods.

It is common for diabetics to think that it is ok to substitute sugar for honey; however honey actually has similar carbohydrate content to sugar and is similar in many other ways. Therefore it has a similar effect on your blood glucose levels. This means that you can enjoy honey but only in moderate amounts and diabetics should not use honey in the same quantity that people generally use sugar.

Sweeteners of the artificial type are also commonly used in chewing gum, baking and coffee sweeteners. This means that diabetics can enjoy sugar free chewing gum without risking their health. You will now find many brands of sugar free chewing gum on the market, mainly due to the detrimental effect of sugar on the teeth; so as a diabetic this benefits you two fold.

You should talk to your doctor any risks involved in using artificial sweeteners in your diet. He or she will also be able to advise you of the benefits of it and if it will cause any complications for your health. After all, we are all individuals and what is good for one person may not work so well in someone else.

Artificial sweeteners are generally safe for diabetics to use as they don’t rase blood sugar levels. Of course, you must still follow a diabetic diet however artificial sweeteners can add that extra taste to your food and drinks to make up for the sugar you are missing out on.