Which are the "best" sweeteners?

What's the story with noncaloric sweeteners? Do they affect blood sugar and insulin, or can they be part of a healthy way of eating? A new study helps us better understand the effects on blood sugar. Plus we review the best sweeteners and how they can fit into your healthy way of eating.
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[@ElleCoyote]

Very important video for me. I was using Sucralose every day and finally looked at the ingredients. Dextrose was the first ingredient, then maltodextrin, another form of sugar, and finally sucralose! I threw out the remaining packets and I am using liquid stevia (which has no dextrose or maltodextrin) in my hot tea. I was surprised how much I like the taste. A lot of people say they dislike the aftertaste of stevia, but I like the sort of caramel odor and I don't notice an aftertaste. Quitting fake food like "keto" ice cream bars was difficult, indicating that eating them was an addictive behavior. Keeping sweeteners only to liquids helps me. Thanks!

[@paulpladin9590]

The "Stevia in the Raw" packets have the same problem.

[@ElleCoyote]

@@paulpladin9590 Yes. Sweetleaf packets contain no sugars or other non-nutritive sweeteners.

[@Nephilimator]

Yup, stick to the liquid forms to avoid the insulin spiking binding agents.

[@Zephyion]

I can answer that for you, the best sweetener is none at all! :D Keep up the good work, great content.

[@azca.]

Agreed 👍 No sweetener is ideal but sugar can be fine in moderation

[@Marcus-kz7rw]

True that!

[@dietdoctor]

Here's our sweetener guide which goes into more detail! www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/sweeteners

[@cw9007]

@@azca. Not if you're on a keto diet

[@christydyson4516]

Thank YOU for this video! Im total carnivore OMAD now after 7 years keto. I cant kick the diet coke yet, but I absolutely never think about having something sweet. It gets me thru a tough hour or so. I know its not ideal, but its better than giving up and going back to SAD. Hopefully after a few more months OMAD I can kick this stuff, but I found this video very helpful Thank you!!

[@joelonsdale]

I must admit, I rely on sweeteners to jazz up my herbal tea that ensures I drink enough each day. I always question if I should quit it, but I only use it once or twice a day.

[@greco37]

I’ve been using one packet of Truvia each morning in my coffee so far so good, I haven’t had any cravings beyond that.

[@paulpladin9590]

I can't believe you missed this: This study used "Sweetener Sachets" Granulated Packaged sweetener. Check the ingredients for the bulking agents they use. Dextrose, Maltodextrin and IMO. These are highly glycemic and prebiotic. Any findings on blood glucose level and "micro biome" effects from this study are hopelessly confounded. Many of these sweeteners are so sweet, 95% of these "Sachets" are NOT the sweetener being tested.

[@cps_Zen_Run]

Paul, your observations are correct. I warn others to avoid those small packets of pink, blue, yellow, green, etc. Bring your own liquid (after carefully reading the ingredients.

[@paulpladin9590]

@@cps_Zen_Run As do I. The granulated stuff for baking as well. I am a T1DM and coach other Type 1s. But a bigger issue is that this one overlooked fact makes this "research Study" completely bogus. I do not believe they did not know what they were doing. I wonder who funded the study. The sugar council?

[@OPPAWONTMARRYYOU]

Plus the microbiome changes as you change your diet, it's not only with artificial sweeteners so I don't see why the conclusion would have to be a "bad" outcome in the first place

[@adorableadornments1101]

I agree, I make my own liquid sucralose with pure powdered sucralose with no maltodextrin in it at all.

[@Spicydoc1]

Any thoughts on allulose, monkfruit?

[@donaldduck4342]

My favorite sweetner is L-Gycine.

[@keywestfan2503]

A lot of the artificial sweeteners that come in packets have dextrose and maltodextrin as fillers, which certainly can raise glucose. I use liquid Stevia drops which are basically just water and Stevia. I found that this doesn’t raise my blood glucose a single point when I drink these in my coffee

[@greco37]

Stevia drops? hmmm i gotta try it!

[@davidelliott9590]

@@greco37 I get a bottle with a dropper from "Sprouts Farmers Market", and it lasts me for months. Just Stevia and water.

[@alphacause]

While this is purely anecdotal, I have noticed that the people who tend to stay most compliant with the low carb diet, for the long run, are those that do *not* use these non-nutritive sweeteners. So I agree with Dr. Sher's assessment that for those who have carb cravings, this may just amplify those cravings.

[@dietdoctor]

This varies greatly. Some people find that they do not have increased cravings and that being able to have a low carb dessert or treat every so often helps with long term compliance. This is one reason we offer dessert recipes on our website, but they are not included in our meal plans.

[@kimberlycooper4170]

I use liquid stevia because it has nothing but stevia. Almost all sachets have dextrose and/or maltodextrin added. Always read the ingredients.

[@markiangooley]

I’ve been a type 1 diabetic for decades so I don’t have to worry about triggering an insulin response. I use a 25% solution of sucralose though I sometimes also have diet drinks with the usual mix of aspartame and acesulfame K. Probably I’m just encouraging my sweet tooth. I’ve had various products containing allulose and they seem to cause me no problems. Maltitol definitely can spike my blood glucose almost as much as sucrose does. Probably I’d be better off without sweeteners but I do depend on sweet low-calorie drinks to distract me from snacking. Sometimes that works.

[@WWarthog798]

I use a mixture of monk fruit and allulose...tastes just like sugar.

[@Nicole-xd1uj]

I wouldn't have been able to stay keto, lose 35kilos or reverse my metabolic disorder without artificial sweeteners. I'll try different ones based on what the science might say but I'm going to keep using them.

[@jwenting]

for me almost all of them cause severe diarrhea in even small amounts. Stevia is the exception, but it tastes bitter to me instead of sweet and is often sold mixed with other sweeteners which do. I'd rather VERY OCCASIONALLY use some real sugar, e.g. every few weeks I may buy me a small package of cookies or some ice cream. And that's it.

[@randallhesse5011]

I find that I like sweetness in my tea, or oatmeal. I found that coconut sugar makes them taste kind of funky. I don't like that. I've tried dried plums or dates. Their fine for my oatmeal because I can chew them up, in bits and pieces as I eat. As for my tea, they don't dissolve, and it's too much trouble to grind them up first, so I use other sweeteners for my tea. I am planning to use D-Ribose to sweeten my tea, I hope it will be yummy. I have no idea. But it would be good for me.

[@boxerfencer]

My diabetic dad went on and on about how great stevia is. I noticed he'd bought a large box of stevia packets, so I grabbed one to see what's listed in the ingredients. One of the main ingredients is sucrose, essentially tooth rotting table sugar, with some stevia thrown in. Man, I don't know how they get away with advertising a product as something or another, only to fill it with the same crap unsuspecting consumers, such as diabetics, have to avoid for health reasons. It's a bait and switch con.

[@zamfirtoth6441]

The FDA is purposely set up to allow the maximum amount of deception in every way possible.

[@paulpladin9590]

By law, any "serving" with less than 5 calories can be called "Zero Calorie". By that logic, any sweetener in a 1 gram packet (including table sugar) is zero calorie since all carbs are less than 5 calories per gram. "Calorie" is such a stupid measure.

[@boxerfencer]

@@paulpladin9590 if it's an issue of manufactures getting around labelling laws, which I think you've accurately assessed, I don't see how you draw the conclusion that calories are useless. Logic dictates it's the labelling laws that are useless.

[@japanlove8249]

I use glycine and stevia

[@nairmiller2658]

Very informative and helpful, especially the fact that using sweeteners will encourage the craving. I think that strict use of sugar, the natural sources, is what I am going to do. Artificial sweeteners are expensive and I have lost trust in the science.

[@barbsdee3831]

When I first started keto erythritol propped me up but I noticed I was using more and more in my 2 mugs of coffee a day. So now I only have it in the late morning coffee and intend to cut that out too but it certainly helps satisfy my sweet tooth………or is it sustaining my craving mmmm interesting!

[@bushputz]

What do you think of using glycine as a sweetener?

[@lily5952]

Whats weird is that I used to be able to tolerate erythritol well. Now that ive been doing low carb/low sugar diet for a couple years, I found that I cannot drink erythritol sweetened bevs without my tummy rumbling. Its not painful, but its still disconcerting. Erythritol is supposedly the best tolerated sugar alcohol so thats quite curious. My partner cannot do any sugar alcohols in any dose without gastro issues. He uses date syrup and honey as his sweeteners (SO is not low carb).

[@incog99skd11]

I use stevia but I am careful about what fillers are used. The fillers can be just as bad for you as the sugar.

[@DarthNoshitam]

I drink probably 3-6 cans of Zevia everyday. I think I'd probably be better off drinking sparkling water, but I enjoy it so much and I think the negatives are probably pretty marginal and it's certainly better than most diet sodas!

[@thebigmann81]

I use monk fruit stevia erythritol blend

[@navy80to04]

I gave up ALL sweeteners! in a week, I don't miss it, feel better. I use redmond salt. That's my treat.

[@steph6197]

Non nutritive sweeteners, artificial sweeteners, just makes me crave more.

[@thomasgronek6469]

Do a large portion of people have an insulin increase as a result of cephalic response ?

[@blondsinger38]

If you are gluten sensitive it's also intelligent to analyze the fact that products like Maltitol and even erythritol can be derived from corn and even wheat. No a good idea if your are Celiac or gluten sensitive in my opinion.

[@lily5952]

I've only ever seen corn-derived erythritol in my neck of the woods (sometimes non gmo). What are your sources for these sweeteners being wheat derived? And furthermore, where did you get your info on wheat derived sweetener (provided they exist) being harmful for celiac patients? It is my understanding that as long as gluten is removed from the product, it would be safe. That's why a lot of gluten-free products that contain wheat starch are safe for celiacs provided the gluten has been removed to below 20 ppm. Correct me if I'm wrong.

[@lily5952]

The way you worded your comment seems to say that corn and corn derived products are somehow problemic for gluten sensitive or celiac folks? It's not. Corn doesn't contain gluten...

[@cps_Zen_Run]

I typically find the quality of the research lacking. Outrageous doses, short adaptation period. Sugar damage is like the iceberg hitting the Titanic. Artificial sweeteners for me, worse case, a leaky faucet. They keep me away from the icebergs LOL.

[@wocket42]

We shouldn't say "this food changes the microbiom" as if this is a bad thing. We should say "the biome will adapt to the food you're eating". We know hunter/gatherers change their gut biome completely several times a year with seasons.

[@SonnyDarvishzadeh]

No more of these for me. For 1 year I wonder why keto isn't working for me, until I found the Effervescent Tablets I was taking had Sorbitol, etc. that were raising and keeping my insulin high all the time! Now I can eat a low to moderate carb, sleep more, exercise and still lose weight. I no longer want to eat packaged foods with hundreds of ingredients in them

[@Casmige]

But micro biome changes with regards to glycemic reactions through & due to fecal transplants have been also demonstrated in humans.

[@scotmcpherson]

My opinion? Just get over the sweetener addition. After you have kicked the sweetener addiction, non-sweetened food become SO MUCH MORE delicious.

[@dasbof]

Best thing I did was to steer my palete, my preferred tastes, away from all sweet things. I really would just rather have savory things. If I want a dessert I have a piece of bacon, salami, pepperoni, etc. Seriously!! Yum.

[@agr8h2o]

I don't follow my sweeteners with a giant load of glucose to do a "glucose tolerance test" and I'm pretty certain no one else trying to get fit and lose weight would, so I fail to see how this test was relevant to life in any way. Also, they were not using pure no calorie sweeteners, the were using the kind with the sugar bulking agents. FAIL.

[@shermdog6969]

I never use any artificial suger no matter how much they say they are fine. It's in the name "artificial".

[@boxerfencer]

Cyanide isn't artificial; it's natural. Would you put it your coffee if it was sweet?

[@dietdoctor]

Several of the sweeteners on the market today are natural and safe for blood sugar control, such as stevia, monk fruit, erythritol and xylitol. You can read more in our guide to sweeteners. www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/keto/sweeteners

[@TerriblePerfection]

I don't understand why anyone would use them. To me it's like eating Beyond Beef instead of a nice, one-ingredient hamburger. Why encourage a sweet tooth? It's hard enough to beat.

[@djdadbod]

I just do t add sweetener to anything and don’t have to worry about it, it’s all about choices, I choose to not use at all

[@nahidhkurdi6740]

Unfortunately this kind of studies seem to be made for academic promotion purposes only. Otherwise, what conclusions could be drawn from 14 days exposure on such a small cohort? Besides, the use of commercial forms of the sweeteners got the highly confusing effect of the bulking agents into the scene.

[@christopherellis2663]

No sweatner is good

[@VoiceoverMomentum]

I’d say get used to the sweetness of foods, themselves.

[@seanfrank4158]

Well poop.....I use Splenda all the time. I think I've always kinda known I need to kick the Splenda habit but its tough ya know....

[@paeade]

This is actually funny to me. I’ve drank 2 to 3 cups of coffee daily for at least 55 YEARS with Sweet & Low, half a pack per 12 oz cup plus a teaspoon of half and half. I am 72 and in good health, 5’9” 185 and need to lose 20 lbs, but that’s been off and on all my life. Of all the sweeteners it taste best to me. It’s not caused me any issues over all those years. I’ll just continue with it. I’d be dead already had it been an issue. I do watch how much sugar I actually use daily and most days none as I eat pretty clean most days. But a lack of sweet in the diet can get my blood sugar too low, so I try to keep a balance on both intake of sugar including what is in food. I rarely eat food from a box, mostly fresh veggies and small amounts of fruit and moderate animal protein. I love breads but try to minimize them. But I’ll continue with the S & L at a pack a day.

[@mbrochh82]

I tried all of the artificial sweeteners. They all suck. All of them. It's pointless to try to create fake muffins and all that nonsense when doing keto. Just do keto and create the best food you can with keto friendly ingredients. In no time, you'll have zero interest in sweet things in the first place.

[@btudrus]

The best sweetener is NO sweetener. Who needs these, anyway?

[@azca.]

What do you guys think about Monk fruit? Edit: 6:29 nevermind lol

[@ActualHumanPerson]

Gonna answer you anyway. It's delicious.

[@saltrock9642]

I don’t use them, at all.

[@karahamil3657]

Xylitol killdeer dogs and cats ... don’t even have it in your house

[@Stuart.Branson.]

No sythesised chemicals are fit for human consumption

[@rickjean63]

Skip them all, no one "need" sweetener !

[@salimvirjee302]

COME TO THE POINT AND DONT GO MERRY GO AROUND.

[@pepper419]

NONE!

[@skinnydee1886]

Which are the best sweeteners? NONE!!!! I don't use sugar, honey or any type of sweeteners!