Nutritive and Non-Nutritive Sweeteners

NNNS: Weight (2006)

• Intervention
  In adults, does using foods or beverages with non-nutritive sweeteners (saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose, neotame) in a calorie-restricted or ad libitum diet affect energy balance?

  • Conclusion

    Using non-nutritive sweeteners in either a calorie restricted or ad libitum diet will affect overall energy balance only if the non-nutritive sweeteners are substituted for higher calorie food or beverages.

     

  • Grade: II
    • Grade I means there is Good/Strong evidence supporting the statement;
    • Grade II is Fair;
    • Grade III is Limited/Weak;
    • Grade IV is Expert Opinion Only;
    • Grade V is Not Assignable.
    • High (A) means we are very confident that the true effect lies close to that of the estimate of the effect;
    • Moderate (B) means we are moderately confident in the effect estimate;
    • Low (C) means our confidence in the effect estimate is limited;
    • Very Low (D) means we have very little confidence in the effect estimate.
    • Ungraded means a grade is not assignable.
  • Evidence Summary: In adults, does using foods or beverages with non-nutritive sweeteners (saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose, neotame) in a calorie-restricted or ad libitum diet affect energy balance?
    • Detail
    • Quality Rating Summary
      For a summary of the Quality Rating results, click here.
    • Worksheets
      • Appleton KM and Conner MT. Body weight, body-weight concerns and eating styles in habitual heavy users and non-users of artificially sweetened beverages. Appetite. (2001) 37, 225-230.
      • Bellisle F, Altenburg de Assis MA, Fieux B, Preziosi P, Galan P, Guy-Grand B, Hercberg S. Use of 'light' foods and drinks in French adults: biological, anthropometric and nutritional correlates. J Hum Nutr Diet. 2001 Jun; 14 (3): 191-206.
      • Benton D, Can artificial sweeteners help control body weight and prevent obesity? Nutrition Research Reviews, 2005; 18:63-76.
      • Blackburn GL et al, The effect of aspartame as part of a multidisciplinary weight-control program on short- and long-term control of body weight, Am J Clin Nutr. 1997:65:409-18.
      • Blackburn GL, Sweeteners and Weight Control, World Review of Nutrition and Diet. 1999, Vol. 85, pg. 77-87.
      • Butchko H et al, Aspartame: review of safety. Regul Toxicol Pharmacol. 2002 Apr; 35 (2 Pt. 2): S1-93. Evaluation of appetite, food intake, and usefulness of aspartame in weight control (S83-87).
      • Drewnowski A. Intense sweeteners and the control of appetite. Nutrition Reviews. 1995, vol. 53, no. 1; 1-7.
      • Drewnowski A, Intense sweetners and energy density of foods: implications for weight control European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1999, 53: 757-763.
      • Kanders BS et al, An evaluation of the effect of aspartame on Weight Loss. Appetite, 1988; 11, supplement 73-84.
      • Mela DJ. Fat and sugar substitutes: implications for dietary intakes and energy balance. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 1997: 56, 827-840.
      • Parker DR, Gonzalez S, Derby CA, Gans KM, Lasater TM, Carleton RA. Dietary factors in relation to weight change among men and women from two southeastern New England communities. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 1997 Feb;21(2):103-9.
      • Raben A, Vasilaras TH, Moller AC, A Astrup. Sucrose compared with artificial sweeteners: different effects on ad libitum food intake and body weight after 10 wk of supplementation in overweight subjects. Am J Clin Nutr. 2002;76:721-9.
      • Renwick AG. Intense Sweeteners, Food Intake, and the weight of a body of Evidence. Physiology and Behavior, 1994, vol. 55, p. 139-143.
      • Rolls BJ. Effects of intense sweeteners on hunger, food intake, and body weight: a review. Am J Clin Nutr. 1991: 53: 872-878.
      • St. Onge Marie-Pierre, Heymsfield SB. Usefulness of artificial sweeteners for body weight control. Nutrition Reviews, 2003 Jun; 61 (6 Pt 1): 219-21.
      • Stellman SD, Garfinkel L, Artificial sweetener use and one-year weight change among women. Prev Med. 1986 Mar;15(2):195-202.
      • Stellman SD, Garfinkel L. Patterns of artificial sweetener use and weight change in an American Cancer Society prospective study. Appetite. 1988;11 Suppl 1:85-91.
      • Tordoff MG, Alleva AM, Effect of drinking soda sweetened with aspartame or high-fructose corn syrup on food intake and body weight. Am J Clin Nutr 1990; 51:963-9.
      • Van Itallie TB, Yang M, KP Poirikos. Use of aspartame to test the "body weight set point" hypothesis. Appetite, 1988; 11, supplement, 68-72.
      • Vermunt SHF et al, Effects of sugar intake on body weight: a review. Obesity Reviews, 2003: 4, 91-99.
  In children, does using beverages with non-nutritive sweeteners (saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose, neotame) in a calorie-restricted or ad libitum diet affect energy balance?

  • Conclusion

    Studies do not support that the use of non-nutritive sweeteners causes weight gain among children and adolescents. If non-caloric beverages, incuding NNS, are substituted for sugar-sweetened beverages, there is a potential for energy savings in adolescents.

     

  • Grade: III
    • Grade I means there is Good/Strong evidence supporting the statement;
    • Grade II is Fair;
    • Grade III is Limited/Weak;
    • Grade IV is Expert Opinion Only;
    • Grade V is Not Assignable.
    • High (A) means we are very confident that the true effect lies close to that of the estimate of the effect;
    • Moderate (B) means we are moderately confident in the effect estimate;
    • Low (C) means our confidence in the effect estimate is limited;
    • Very Low (D) means we have very little confidence in the effect estimate.
    • Ungraded means a grade is not assignable.
  • Evidence Summary: In children, does using beverages with non-nutritive sweeteners (saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, sucralose, neotame) in a calorie-restricted or ad libitum diet affect energy balance?
    • Detail
    • Quality Rating Summary
      For a summary of the Quality Rating results, click here.
    • Worksheets
      • Berkey CS, Rockett HRH, Field AE, Gillman MW, Colditz GA. Sugar-added beverages and adolescent weight change. Obes Res. 2004;12:778-788.
      • Blum JW, Jacobsen DJ, Donnelly JE. Beverage consumption patterns in elementary school aged children across a two-year period. J Am Coll Nutr. 2005 Apr;24(2):93-8.
      • Ebbeling CB, Feldman HA, Osganian S, Chomitz VR, Ellenbogen SJ, Ludwig DS. Effects of decreasing sugar sweetened beverage consumption on body weight in adolescents: a randomized controlled pilot study. Pediatrics, March 2006 vol. 117 no. 3; 673-680.
      • Ludwig DS, Peterson KE, Gortmaker SL. Relation between consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks and childhood obesity. Lancet 2001;357:505-8.
      • Newby PK, Peterson KE, Berkey CS, Leppert J, Willett WC, Colditz GA. Beverage consumption is not associated with changes in weight and body mass index among low-income preschool children in North Dakota. J Am Diet Assoc. 2004; 104: 1,086-1,094.
      • Striegel-Moore RH, Thompson D, Affenito SG, Franko DL, Obarzanek E, Barton BA, Schreiber GB, Daniels SR, Schmidt M, Crawford PB. Correlates of beverage intake in adolescent girls: the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Growth and Health Study. J Pediatr. 2006 Feb; 148 (2): 183-187.