Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/5/84; site aecom.UUCP Path: utzoo!decvax!linus!philabs!aecom!werner From: werner@aecom.UUCP (Craig Werner) Newsgroups: net.med Subject: Sweet Cheat Sweetener. Message-ID: <1799@aecom.UUCP> Date: Tue, 16-Jul-85 20:46:52 EDT Article-I.D.: aecom.1799 Posted: Tue Jul 16 20:46:52 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 17-Jul-85 12:55:59 EDT Distribution: na Organization: Albert Einstein Coll. of Med., NY Lines: 38 This has nothing to do with the harmful effects of any sweetener. It is a questioning of the rationale behind using any kind of sweetener. Several years back, some scientists let some laboratory rats have all the water or sugar-sweetened water they wanted. They all chose the sugar water. (Most humans would, too.) Given a choice between sugar water and sacharine water, they consumed them equally, which showed that rats, unlike certain humans (myself included) couldn't taste the difference between the two. Then they divided the rats into three groups: Water, Sugar-water, and sacharrine water. As it turned, they first two groups stayed a normal weight, while the rats on sacharrine all gained weight -- quite a lot of weight. The question arose: Why should rats drinking saccharine-water, which contains almost no calories, gain weight? What is going on? The answer was as follows: the saccharine was fooling the body. The mouth tasted 'Sweet.' and sent a message to the gut via the brain that food was coming. Insulin poured out, lowering the blood sugar, in anticipation of more to come. With sugar water, it did. With sacharrine water, the expected calories never came. The blood sugar stayed low. The brain, in response, generated a hunger reflex, and the rats ate more. (The rats who drank sugar-water ate less then the ones who drank just water, which is exactly what would be expected.) A similar phenemonon was demonstrated in humans, who in addition, have the added reasoning ability to rationalize, "Well, I guess I can have one more piece of cake since it's a Tab and not a Coke, etc." One conclusion that could be drawn from this study is that there is no reason ever to drink diet soda, especially in the context of a diet. (Inspired by an old article in _Harvard Magazine_'s Science Watch section entitled "Sweet Cheat Saccharin.) -- Craig Werner !philabs!aecom!werner "The world is just a straight man for you sometimes"