The Bitter Truth About Sweeteners and Anxiety
Artificial sweeteners are popular and widely used. While only around 3% of US adults drank diet beverages in 1965, nearly 20% were drinking them in 2010. And even though artificial sweeteners may allow us to indulge in a sweet treat without the calories, the sad truth is, many have been linked to mental health disorders, including anxiety.
Aspartame is one of the most widely used artificial sweeteners and is found in many diet sodas, sugar-free foods, and the popular tabletop sweetener Equal. It’s a dipeptide–or compound derived from 2 amino acids–containing aspartic acid and phenylalanine. While aspartame is not calorie-free, it’s about 200 times sweeter than table sugar and is, therefore, able to be used in very small amounts.
Research has linked ingestion of aspartame with increased stress hormones and anxiety in rats. In humans, it has been shown to cause cognitive impairment as well as anxiety-producing neurochemical imbalances. Interestingly, humans who already struggle with mental disorders may be the most vulnerable to the harmful effects of aspartame. One study found such an extreme impact of aspartame on the mood of patients with a history of depression, that it was terminated prematurely by the Institutional Review Board.
While aspartame is the most studied artificial sweetener, others have also been linked to mental health issues as well. Sucralose, such as in the “yellow-packet” sweetener Splenda, and other products has been shown to alter the gut microbiome and increase inflammation, both of which are linked to anxiety. Saccharin, the chemical sweetener in Sweet’N Low, or the “pink packet,” was found to cause neurobehavioral impairment in rats and their offspring. More large-scale studies are needed to explore the array of artificial sweeteners and their associations to health and mental health disorders.
Avoid the Sugar Rush
The answer is not to simply switch back to ordinary table sugar and non-diet soft drinks. In fact, just like its artificial counterpart, sugar intake has been linked to negative impacts on psychological health.
Have you ever eaten a sugary snack and had a sudden burst of jittery energy only to feel a crash about half an hour later? This is where the phrase “sugar rush” comes from.
Once you start eating sugar it can be very hard to stop. Sugar is known to be addictive and can lead to an insatiable drive for reward. While some research has linked sugar consumption to a decreased stress response, it has also highlighted the connection between sugar withdrawal and anxiety.
Diets high in saturated fats and added sugars were specifically shown to cause an increase in anxiety among older adults. And, the commonly added sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, provoked anxiety-like behaviors in rats.
In addition to concerns for your mental health, sugar consumption is known to cause many negative impacts on your health overall.
Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth with Natural Alternatives
When you feel compelled to satisfy your craving for something sweet, there are a few natural options that you can experiment with that don’t seem to have such anxiety-producing effects.
Stevia
While more research is needed, stevia may be considered a natural and safe alternative. Stevia is a non-caloric sweetener that comes from the leaves of the Stevia Rebudiana plant. It has been used for hundreds of years as a sugar alternative.
Today, the powders and liquids that you can buy at the grocery store are made from a purified component of the plant called rebaudioside A, which is around 200 times sweeter than sugar.
Research on stevia is limited and mixed. For example, one study reported that stevia manages hunger and satiety while another found that it caused people to compensate by eating more later. While no research has explicitly explored the link between stevia and anxiety, stevia has been shown to alter the gut microbiome in rats.
Some stevia products like Truvia and Sweetleaf are made of blends of rebaudioside A and other sweetening agents. Always look at the ingredients to know what you are consuming.
Monk fruit
Monk fruit, or lo han guo, gets its name from the Buddhist monks who first cultivated this small melon centuries ago in China. It is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine for a variety of maladies.
Zero-calorie monk fruit sweetener is up to 250 times sweeter than table sugar and is derived from an antioxidant in the fruit called mogroside , which has been shown to reduce oxidative stress.
While oxidative stress is linked to anxiety, it is unclear how and if monk fruit has a good or bad impact on anxiety. There are no current studies exploring the effects of monk fruit consumption and anxiety.
Despite its great potential as a healthy sweetener when consumed in moderation, monk fruit is expensive. It’s a finicky crop with additional costs associated with processing and exportation. For these reasons, monk fruit can be hard to find in your local grocery store or even health food store.
Erythritol
Not exactly natural, erythritol is a sugar alcohol and low-calorie sweetener that’s about 70% as sweet as table sugar with less than one-tenth of the calories. Sugar alcohols are found in nature–in fruits and vegetables–and erythritol is processed by fermenting glucose from corn or wheat starch.
While known to be safe, erythritol may cause stomach upset which is a common feature of most sugar alcohols. Unable to be digested, these sugars tend to ferment in the colon causing gas, bloating, and stomach upset.
Yet, because the majority of erythritol gets absorbed into the bloodstream and is excreted through the urine, only about 10% of it enters the colon. It also appears that it is resistant to fermentation by gut bacteria.
Human studies have shown erythritol to be well-tolerated at 1g per kg of body weight. There is no known research that directly explores the connection between erythritol and anxiety or other mental health issues. As with the other sweeteners listed in this article, more research is needed.
Honey
Unlike the sweeteners listed above, honey is far from calorie-free. However, when it comes to the link between sweeteners and anxiety, honey is a promising alternative.
Honey is not shown to have the same deleterious impact on the gut microbiome as table sugar and has a lower glycemic index.
In a study comparing honey- and sugar-fed rats, the honey cohort displayed significantly fewer anxiety symptoms. Another study showed that Chrysin, a powerful antioxidant and flavonoid in honey, has the potential to reduce anxiety and offer a neuroprotective function.
While honey might be a better option than table sugar and many artificial sweeteners, it is not a panacea. Calorie-dense and carbohydrate-rich with a high proportion of fructose, use it sparingly and mindfully.
Conclusions
Overall, stay away from artificial sweeteners and pick some of the safer alternatives such as small quantities of honey, stevia or monk fruit sweetener to protect from anxiety and other mental health issues.
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