Description

• The Mayo Clinic describes sugar substitutes as "chemicals or natural compounds that offer the sweetness of sugar without as many calories."

Types

• There are six different types of sugar substitutes. They are aspartame, saccharin, neotame, stevia, sucralose and acesulfame potassium.

Side Effects

• Also, according to an article by Karen Hanrahan called "Say NO to Sugar Substitutes," women who consumed a high amount of aspartame complained of worse premenstrual syndrome symptoms. There has been no proof that using a sugar substitute can help with weight loss if the same amount of sugar is consumed.

Sweetness

• Sugar substitutes are anywhere from 200 to 600 times sweeter than sugar. For that reason, less is used than sugar when baking or on food.

Warning

• Sugar substitutes can cause people to over indulge because they think they are not consuming as many calories. This idea may make you think you can eat more. To lose weight, substituting these artificial sweeteners for sugar is not enough. You will need to exercise and control your calorie intake.