Do low-calorie sweeteners affect appetite?
Low-calorie sweeteners do not stimulate appetite or hunger. Numerous studies have shown that replacing sugar with low-calorie sweeteners leads to a decreased or unchanged sensation of hunger in the short-term. Short-term hunger is most strongly affected by volume and fiber: drinking non-caloric or reduced-calorie liquids and eating high-fiber foods is the best way to reduce hunger between meals. Although low-calorie sweeteners are not appetite suppressants, their ability to increase the palatability of low-calorie foods may actually promote a person’s ability to stick to a low-calorie diet. In fact, most evidence shows that the calories saved by using low-calorie sweeteners at one meal are not made up for at the next meal by eating more.
