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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"