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Aspartame and Other Non-Nutritive (Low Calorie) Sweeteners

Low-calorie sweeteners give foods and beverages a sweet taste without the calories. Many consumers use low-calorie sweeteners to enhance the taste of food and drinks, or they purchase products prepared with low-calorie sweeteners. Low-calorie sweeteners offer consumers options to help them with their lifestyle-whether to maintain weight, help manage diabetes or simply retain sweet taste without adding calories. In fact, a 2004 consumer survey showed that 63 percent of consumers of low-calorie products are not on a diet. Staying in better overall health is rated as the number one reason for using low-calorie foods and beverages.

In Canada, food additives such as artificial sweeteners are subject to rigorous controls under the Food and Drugs Act and Regulations. New food additives (or new uses of permitted food additives) are only permitted once a safety assessment has been conducted and regulatory amendments have been enacted.

History

Low-calorie sweeteners, also known as sugar substitutes, surfaced more than a century ago with saccharin, the first sugar substitute, appearing in 1879. Saccharin was discovered at Johns Hopkins University and provided an alternative for those with diabetes, allowing them to sweeten their foods and beverages without additional calories or the glucose load associated with sugar or other sweeteners.

World War II provided a growth opportunity for sugar substitutes because of sugar rationing. Saccharin stepped in to fill the sugar needs and its popularity continued to grow well after the war, into the 1960s. From that point, consumer interest in weight control blossomed and companies began exploring other sweetener options.

Ingredients

Several artificial sweeteners have been approved for use in Canada. These include acesulfame-potassium, polydextrose, sucralose, thaumatin, saccharin, aspartame, sucralose, neotame and sugar alcohols (polyols) like sorbitol, isomalt, lactitol, maltitol, mannitol and xylitol. Neotame is rarely used, but the others are used frequently. With virtually no calories, these ingredients provide 180 to 13,000 times the sweetness of sucrose, otherwise known as table sugar.

Diet and low-calorie soft drinks are typically made using one or more of these common low-calorie sweeteners. Manufacturers choose among the sweeteners and often blend them to better match beverage formulations and appeal to consumer tastes and preferences. 

The scientific community, along with FDA and Health Canada, has conducted hundreds of studies on the safety of acesulfame potassium (ace-K), saccharin, aspartame, sucralose and neotame. Consumption of these sweeteners is well within designated "acceptable daily intake (ADI) levels, or levels that can be consumed safely every day over a lifetime."

Facts on Low-Calorie Sweeteners

Role in a Balanced Diet

Calorie reduction and sensible eating habits, in addition to regular physical activity, are essential to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Products containing low-calorie sweeteners have enabled millions of people with diabetes or people who are managing their weight to enjoy their favorite foods and beverages.

The American Diabetes Association says sugar substitutes help people who are overweight or have diabetes to reduce calories and stick to a healthy meal plan. Furthermore, the American Dietetic Association says "Non-nutritive sweeteners added to the diet have been shown to promote modest loss of weight and, within a multidisciplinary weight-control program, may facilitate long-term maintenance of reduction in body weight."

Calories

Depending on the specific sweetener, low-calorie sweeteners have zero or very few calories.