The Truth About Artificial Sweeteners

It's very likely that you consume the #1 metabolism killing food daily.

But we can avoid it with some education.

The #1 metabolism killer that keeps you from losing weight is artificial sweeteners.

Who knew?

There are three different artificial sweeteners to keep on the look out for and avoid them as much as possible.

1. Aspartame

2. Sucralose

3. Saccharin

So what's the big deal about these artificial sweeteners, how are they killing my metabolism and keeping me from losing weight?

Artificial sweeteners are associated with changing your gut bacteria.

Now bacteria sounds like a 'bad' thing, but we need certain bacteria in our gut to be healthy. An unhealthy gut environment is a recipe for all manners of ill health.

Ingestion of NAS's increases the inability to process glucose properly, leading to insulin resistance and potentially diabetes.

Many symptoms of insulin resistance are confused with those of menopause such as:

excess abdominal fat
brain fog
bloating
sleepiness
difficulty losing weight
depression/mood swings
apple shaped belly (visceral fat storage)
increased appetite/hunger
high blood pressure

There have been many studies involving NAS's (non caloric artificial sweeteners) and there's been found an association between self-reported NAS consumption and glucose intolerance and also differences in gut microbiome profiles between those consuming lots of NAS and those that did not consume them.

The following are symptoms to be aware of that may be evidence of insulin resistance and metabolic dysfunction.

constipation and/or diarrhea
loss of muscle tone
low immune system prolonged colds and flu
re-flux or heartburn
irregular menstrual cycles
anxiety and depression
Oedema (fluid retention in calves/ankles)

Another issue with use of NAS's is that they can be up to 20,000 times sweeter than natural sugars. This changes our palate such that it's difficult to enjoy 'real food'. If we stop using NAS's we need to re-train our palate to taste natural sugar again

The good news is that you can rebuild your metabolism after using artificial sweeteners.

1. Eat whole foods - Getting the proper amounts of macro-nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants will help prevent added stress to the body. Think of lean meats, wild caught fish, green leafy vegetables, fresh and preferably organic fruits and vegetables, healthy fats like raw nuts and seeds, avocado, olive oil, butter.

2. Get enough sleep - Growth hormone is released during sleep and is also necessary for the body's tissue to be repaired.

3. Keep stress levels manageable - Breathing techniques. Take deep breaths through the nostrils down through the diaphragm, hold for 3 seconds, then slowly out your mouth. Repeating 3-5 times should calm you. Give yourself daily downtime. Even if its only 15 minutes of reading, catching up on a favorite program, journalling, or driving without ANY noise (music, news, podcasts or phone calls).

4. Avoid yo-yo dieting - These are not sustainable, only temporary. This does a number on your metabolism, making it MORE difficult to lose weight in the future. Eating well-balanced meals, with small snacks in between, is the BEST way to sustain energy and keep a steady metabolism.

5. Increase protein intake - Protein keeps you satisfied. It also nourishes and feeds our muscles. Lean protein is essential in promoting overall health. Made up of amino acids, our body uses amino acids to form proteins for muscle maintenance and biological function. Our body can create 11 of these amino acids (call nonessential amino acids) but must get the other 9 from food. Animal proteins typically provide both non-essential and essential amino acid.

6. Avoid processed food - These artificial sweeteners are in many things, from ketchup to yogurt, sports drinks, and even drinks for toddlers. Boxed food, canned soups, puddings, frozen dinners, cereals, and much more.

Read the ingredients to avoid artificial sugars. You will be saving your metabolism.

If you've eaten a lifetime of artificial sweeteners that have wreaked havoc on your metabolism, it's not too late; you can still rebuild your metabolism.

.

Here's to our Journey,