Make good use of sugar substitutes to help lose weight. Save 100 calories a day and enjoy slimmer skin.

Many people try their best to lose weight, but to no avail. Even if they succeed in losing weight, they are likely to gain weight again. So what are some good ways to lose weight? Experts point out that no matter which method is adopted, the best and most effective method is "small behavioral changes". Without deliberately restricting the amount of food, replace table sugar with sugar substitutes, reduce the total calorie intake by about 100 calories per day, and combine it with moderate exercise to promote a balance between eating and moving. "Enjoying weight loss" can also be very simple. (Video/Photographer Yang Bokang)

The number of obese people is increasing year by year, and the risk of health hazards is high

The number of obese people in Taiwan is increasing year by year. Data shows that in 2012, the obesity rate among adult males was 1/2, among females 1/3, and among children 1/4 were overweight or obese.

Professor John Foreyt, director of the Center for Behavioral Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, who specializes in behavioral weight loss research, pointed out that for overweight or obese people, for every 5 kg increase in weight, the risk of coronary heart disease increases by 14%, and the risk of ischemic stroke increases by 16%. Other health hazards may also occur, including diabetes, metabolic syndrome, dyslipidemia, dyspnea, sleep apnea, etc. Obesity has become an important health issue for modern people.

The key to losing fat and not gaining weight again is to reduce 100 calories a day

In order to reduce the health risks brought by obesity, many people adopt low-fat, high-protein, low-starch, single food, dieting or fasting weight loss methods. The short-term results seem good, but up to 2/3 of people will gain weight again within a year, and almost everyone will gain weight again within 5 years.

John Forrett pointed out that many studies have shown that no matter which nutrient combination is used, the key to successful weight loss is to reduce the total calorie intake. However, for most people, it is difficult to implement diet and calorie calculations every day for a long time. In fact, as long as 100 calories are reduced every day, such as through small changes in eating behavior, replacing sugar with sweeteners, or walking for 20 to 30 minutes every day, the goal of weight control can be achieved. For example, replacing refined sugar with sugar substitutes when drinking coffee, or replacing sugary drinks with low-calorie or zero-calorie drinks, can not only reduce calorie intake but also prevent obesity and related health risks.

Modern people's health helper sugar substitutes meet the needs of sweetness and weight loss

Xie Mingzhe, professor at the Department of Health and Nutrition at Taipei Medical University, said that sugar substitutes are a type of artificial sweetener and a synthetic product that is easily mistaken by the public as being harmful to the human body. However, the acceptable daily intake of the four most common sweeteners, aspartame, potassium acesulfame, sucralose, and steviol glycosides, has been rigorously reviewed and formulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) through experiments, and there are recommendations for safe use for pregnant women and children.

All approved sugar substitutes have undergone rigorous research and review by governments and academic institutions, and health organizations around the world also have strict controls on sugar substitutes. John Foret takes aspartame, which is widely used in food and beverages, as an example. The Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) set by the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the World Health Organization is generally a conservative estimate of 100 times the amount that would not cause adverse reactions.

Taking a 60 kg adult as an example, the acceptable daily intake for each person is 40 mg/kg. Even if you drink 24 cans of 330 ml low-calorie soda or eat 100 packets of sweetener every day, there will be no problem in consuming this amount every day for a lifetime. But for most people, this lifestyle is not common.

Domestic scholars also agree with the above-mentioned sugar substitute method of weight loss. Professor Xie Mingzhe said that "sugar" is one of the necessary sources of daily calorie intake, accounting for about 1/10 of the total calories. If sugar substitutes are used to replace ordinary sugar, in addition to satisfying human's taste and psychological needs for sweetness, it can also help control weight. In addition, for diabetic patients with poor sugar metabolism, they can satisfy their sugar cravings through a sugar substitute diet, maintain the balance of insulin secretion, and avoid rising blood sugar levels. Therefore, sugar substitutes are known as "crutches for diabetic patients."

Aspartame tastes like sucrose, so there is no need to worry about the compensatory effect. It becomes sweeter the more you eat it.

Professor Xie Mingzhe further pointed out that aspartame, a sugar substitute, is mainly composed of amino acids, which can provide nutrition to the human body. It tastes similar to sucrose, but its sweetness is 160 to 200 times that of sucrose. It can be used alone and will not make people want more sweetness the more they eat. It is generally well accepted by the public and is more suitable as a reference for weight loss diets. However, the sweetness of aspartame will disappear under high temperatures, so it cannot be used in baked goods. It is recommended that when cooking desserts such as red bean soup and mung bean soup, just add sugar substitute after cooking.

However, sugar substitutes also have their limitations. Take aspartame for example. Patients with the rare disease "phenylketonuria" (PKU) should avoid consuming aspartame due to their congenital amino acid metabolism defects to prevent diseases such as cataracts and central nervous system abnormalities.

Professor Xie Mingzhe emphasized that the use of sugar substitutes has been strictly controlled and is safe for the general public to use. It is a good helper for weight control and health management. For modern people who pay attention to diet and body shape, to maintain their body shape, in addition to making small changes in behavior, they also need to combine it with appropriate exercise. "Balance between eating and exercise" is the key to a healthy life for modern people.