Sugar or sweeteners: Which is better for weight loss?
Once you embark on a weight loss battle, you also start skipping foods from your diet and start consuming healthy foods to maintain your good looks. One food that many give up immediately is sugar.
Sugar is known to increase the size of your waistline, lead to skin problems and cause other problems such as tooth decay. However, sugar also comes with its own set of benefits such as boosting metabolism. This is not the refined and processed sugar you find in desserts and drinks, but rather the natural sugars you get from sugar cane, date palm, honey and fruit.
Quality sugar is the trick, not harmful white sugar .
Many experts believe that completely eliminating sugar can lead to rapid weight loss , better skin and improved health parameters. This may be true in most cases, but sticking to sweeteners is not the answer for those with a sweet tooth. For weight loss, sweeteners are often prescribed by experts so that tea or coffee addicts are not deprived of their favorite drinks.
But do sweeteners help you lose weight ? The answer is both yes and no.
There are two types of sweeteners – natural and artificial. Natural sweeteners include stevia and date sugar , while artificial sweeteners are commercial products that contain aspartame and sucralose. Synthetic sweeteners also fall under the umbrella of artificial sweeteners. Sweeteners have fewer calories and are healthy substitutes for white sugar.
Do sweeteners help with weight loss?
According to experts, weight loss is entirely dependent on how you design your diet and exercise. Just sticking to sweeteners for weight loss may not be helpful. Consuming sweeteners should not be considered an alternative to a healthy diet or exercise. They certainly contain fewer calories, but long-term use can be detrimental to your health, especially if you consume artificial sweeteners that contain aspartame.
Weight loss is a combination of diet and exercise in the right proportion. Relying only on sweeteners is not a good option because it in no way guarantees that you will lose weight. You may not be eating a lot of calories and this may result in weight loss during this time, but once you return to your normal foods, this means you will gain back all the pounds you lost.
Read the label carefully!
Stevia is a plant-based sweetener and is therefore not harmful. However, if you buy a processed sweetener that contains stevia, it can be harmful. There are many studies on how the consumption of sweeteners led to an increase in appetite or how the taste buds were disrupted due to the constant intake of sweeteners. That being said, research is still being conducted, and for now, limiting your consumption of sweeteners is ideal.
When consuming a sweetener, it is recommended that you read the label carefully. Consideration should be given to whether the product contains trans fat, saturated fat, sodium, cholesterol and/or a foreign word you do not understand. Only then will you be able to make an informed decision.