Ask the Diabetes Educator Archive

Q:
Have commercial sweeteners such as Equal been found to cause serious health problems? My grandfather has type 2 diabetes and uses Equal everyday in his coffee and tea. Should we be worried? Is there any SAFE sugar substitute on the market? He refuses to use Sweet 'N Low as there is Saccharin in it (causes cancer in lab rats). I hope you can be of some help.

A:
There are other sweeteners: Sunette and Stevia are two that do well with most people. Some people are sensitive to the aspartame in Equal; this is a substance that breaks down to methanol in the brain--an alcohol byproduct. Moderation is still a good idea with most things.