- There's a new artificial sweetener on the block and it
is already in a wide range of products, some even sold in health food stores
and manufactured by nutritionally-oriented companies. But is it proven
safe? Does it provide any benefit to the public? Does it help with weight
loss? Are there any long term human studies? Has it been shown to be safe
for the environment? The answer to all of these questions is unfortunately
a resounding NO.
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- The artificial sweetener sucralose, which is sold under
the name Splenda, is one of the up-and-coming "next generation"
of high-intensity sugar substitutes. It is non-caloric and about 600 times
sweeter than sucrose (white table sugar), although it can vary from 320
tp 1,000 times sweeter, depending on the food application. The white crystalline
powder tastes like a lot like sugar, but is more intense in its sweetness.
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- How it is Manufactured
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- Sucralose is produced by chlorinating sugar (sucrose).
This involves chemically changing the structure of the sugar molecules
by substituting three chlorine atoms for three hydroxyl groups.
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- History
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- Sucralose was discovered in 1976 by researchers working
under the auspices of Tate & Lyle Ltd., a large British sugar refiner.
In 1980, Tate & Lyle arranged with Johnson & Johnson, the world's
largest health care company, to develop sucralose. Johnson & Johnson
formed McNeil Speciality Products Company in 1980 to commercialize sucralose.
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- In 1991, Canada became the first nation to approve the
use of sucralose.
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- In April, 1998 the US Food and Drug Administration granted
approval for sucralose to be used in a variety of food products (CLICK
HERE for complete list of products using sucralose). Diet RC cola was the
first US product with sucralose, introduced in May 1998.
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- Sucralose is not yet approved for use in most European
countries, where it is still under review.
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- Safety Concerns
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- Few human studies of safety have been published on sucralose.
One small study of diabetic patients using the sweetener showed a statistically
significant increase in glycosylated hemoglobin (Hba1C), which is a marker
of long-term blood glucose levels and is used to assess glycemic control
in diabetic patients. According to the FDA, "increases in glycosolation
in hemoglobin imply lessening of control of diabetes.
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- Research in animals has shown sucralose can cause many
problems in rats, mice, and rabbits, such as:
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- * Shrunken thymus glands (up to 40% shrinkage)
- * Enlarged liver and kidneys.
- * Atrophy of lymph follicles in the spleen and thymus
- * Increased cecal weight
- * Reduced growth rate
- * Decreased red blood cell count
- * Hyperplasia of the pelvis
- * Extension of the pregnancy period
- * Aborted pregnancy
- * Decreased fetal body weights and placental weights
- * Diarrhea
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- According to one source (Sucralose Toxicity Information
Center), concerning the significant reduction in size of the thymus gland,
"the manufacturer claimed that the sucralose was unpleasant for the
rodents to eat in large doses and that starvation caused the shruken thymus
glands.
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- [Toxicologist Judith] Bellin reviewed studies on rats
starved under experimental conditions, and concluded that their growth
rate could be reduced by as much as a third without the thymus losing a
significant amount of weight (less than 7 percent). The changes were much
more marked in rats fed on sucralose. While the animals' growth rate was
reduced by between 7 and 20 percent, their thymuses shrank by as much as
40 percent. (New Scientist 23 Nov 1991, pg 13)"
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- A compound chemically related to sucrose, 6-chloro-deoxyglucose,
is known to have anti-fertility and neurotoxic effects, although animal
studies of sucralose have not shown these effects.
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- According to the FDA's "Final Rule" report,
"Sucralose was weakly mutagenic in a mouse lymphoma mutation assay".
The FDA aslo reported many other tests as having "inconclusive"
results.
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- Just how few studies currently exist on sucralose is
an issue. Endurance News provides the following table illustrating this
fact:
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- Sweetener # of Studies*
- Saccharin 2374
- Aspartame 598
- Cyclamates 459
- Acesulfame-K 28
- Sucralose 19
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- *Number of studies determined by MEDLINE search.
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- In terms of safety, it is not just the original substance
(sucralose) that one needs to worry about. As the FDA notes, "Because
sucralose may hydrolyze in some food products...the resulting hydrolysis
products may also be ingested by the consumer".
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- Is There Any Long-Term Human Research?
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- None. According to the Medical Letter on Drugs &
Therapeutics, "Its long-term safety is unknown". According to
the Sucralose Toxicity Information Center, the "Manufacturer's '100's
of studies' (some of which show hazards) were clearly inadequate and do
not demonstrate safety in long-term use".
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- Is Sucralose Absorbed or Metabolized?
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- Despite the manufacturer's claims to the contrary, sucralose
is significantly absorbed and metabolized by the body. According to the
FDA's "Final Rule" report, 11% to 27% of sucralose is absorbed
in humans, and the rest is excreted unchanged in feces. According to the
Japanese Food Sanitation Council, as much as 40% of ingested sucralose
is absorbed.
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- Plasma sucralose has been reported to have a half-life
of anywhere from 2 to 5 hours in most studies, although the half-life in
rabbits was found to be much longer at about 36 hours.
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- About 20% to 30% of absorbed sucralose is metabolized.
Both the metabolites and unchanged absorbed sucralose are excreted in urine.
The absorbed sucralose has been found to concentrate in the liver, kidney,
and gastrointestinal tract. According to The Sucralose Toxicity Information
Center, sucralose is broken down "into small amounts of 1,6-dichlorofructose,
a chemical which has not been adequtely tested in humans".
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- Chlorinated Pesticides
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- According to Consumers Research Magazine "Some concern
was raised about sucralose being a chlorinated molecule. Some chlorinated
molecules serve as the basis for pesticides such as D.D.T., and accumulate
in body fat. However, Johnson & Johnson emphasized that sucralose passes
through the body unabsorbed".
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- Of course, this assertion about not being absorbed is
complete nonsense. As shown above, a substantial amount of sucralose is
absorbed, so the argument is not valid.
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- According to the HAD, "The manufacturer claims that
the chlorine added to sucralose is similar to the chlorine atom in the
salt (NaCl) molecule. That is not the case. Sucralose may be more like
ingesting tiny amounts of chlorinated pesticides, but we will never know
without long-term, independent human research".
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- Contaminants
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- The FDA acknowledges that sucralose "is produced
at an approximate purity of 98%". While that may sound pretty pure,
just what is in that other 2%? It turns out that the final sucralose product
contains small amounts of potentially dangerous substances such as:
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- * Heavy Metals (e.g., Lead)
- * Arsenic
- * Triphenilphosphine Oxide
- * Methanol
- * Chlorinated Disaccharides
- * Chlorinated Monosaccharide
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- Although manufacturing guidelines do specify limits on
these substances there is no guarantee that such limits will always be
met.
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- Environmental Concerns
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- Despite the fact that a portion of sucralose is metabolized
into some chemicals of questionable safety, a majory of the consumed sucralose
is excreted unchanged in the feces and urine. While that may be good for
the person using the product, it may not be so great for the environment.
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- Although sucralose is being flushed down toilets wherever
sucralose is approved for sale, what happens to it next is simply a matter
for speculation. I know of no studies showing what happens to the chemical
when the raw sewage is treated and then released back into the environment.
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- * Does it remain stabile or react with other substances
to form new compounds?
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- * Is the sucralose or any resulting chemicals safe for
the environment?
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- * How will this chemical affect aquatic life such as
fish, as well as other animals?
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- * Will sucralose begin to appear in our water supplies,
just as some drugs are beginning to be found.
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- Of course, we will likely not know the answers to these
questions for many years, if at all. One of the main reasons for this is
that the FDA did not require an Environmental Impact Statement for sucralose,
because in their words, "the action will not have a significant impact
on the human environment".
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- One study did find that sucralose is metabolized by microrganisms
in both the water and soil (Labare 94). However, the ecological impact
of this new chemical being introduced into the environment is unknown.
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- Is There a Benefit for Consumers?
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- According to Consumers' Research Magazine, sucralose
provides some benefits for the corporations making and using it, but not
for consumers. They state:
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- But are such foods truly beneficial and desirable? Diabetics,
weight watchers, and the general public might make better food choices
by selecting basic, rather than highly processed foods; for example, apples,
rather than turnovers; or plain, rather than sweetened, dairy foods.
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- They note that non-caloric artificial sweeteners are
not replacing, but rather supplementing conventional sweeteners. They note
that as of 1990 Americans were consuming an average of 20 pounds (sugar
sweetness equivalency) of artificial sweeteners, and as consumption of
sugar-substitutes has risen so too has consumption of sugar.
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- ************
- Article location:
- http://creativehealth.netfirms.com/ -
42k
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- Should you wish to read more on Splenda go to http://www.wnho.net
and click on aspartame.
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- Dr. Betty Martini, Founder, Mission Possible International,
9270 River Club Parkway, Duluth, Georgia 30097 770 242-2599 http://www.dorway.com
and http://www.wnho.net Movie on Aspartame: Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World
(contact cori@soundandfuryproductions.com)
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