Originally Posted by
equusmtn
To me, the bottom line is this: artificial sweeteners (aspartame, sucralose, saccharin, etc.) do not exist in nature but rather are created through chemical processes. (Although aspartame, at least, is composed of 2 amino acids that you get in many natural proteins anyway.) I'm not excessively concerned about them because I have some, but not total, faith in the scientific studies clearing them for human consumption. However, with people guzzling tons of diet drinks, etc., that are sweetened with these artificial sweeteners, it may yet come out that they have long-term ill effects. Therefore my preferred sweetener is stevia. It is NOT an artificial sweetener. It's extracted from a plant rather than being synthesized using inorganic chemicals. People have been consuming it for centuries. So to me it's clearly the least of all evils, and I wish it was more widely used and easier to purchase in drink flavorings.
That's my 2 cents.
It may not be as widely used as the others, but I see many cans and bottles of stevia sweetened drinks in one of my local grocery stores.
I went through 60 days of Whole30 to "tame the sugar dragon". I've lost 20 pounds by avoiding sugar, and artificial sweeteners seem to stimulate that craving. So I avoid them. I miss sugar. But I don't miss weighing 20 pounds more. I just got a replacement knee 18 days ago and I'm back on my feet and almost performing normally. The key, according to my orthopedist, is maintaining a healthy weight. My observation, from sitting for hours in his waiting room, is that most of his other patients do not. And many of them are drinking diet sodas while they sit there.