Sugar substitutes may actually cause the people who consume them to gain weight, which is clearly the opposite result intended. I read this "news" and had to check the date to make sure media outlets hadn't accidentally posted this old story or that my time machine hadn't suddenly shown progress and transported me back to 2007. Surprisingly (and somewhat disappointingly I might add), neither of these scenarios was the case.

Behavioral Neuroscience has recently published a new report confirming what many experts have been saying for awhile now. Scientists from Purdue University fed some rats yogurt containing artificial sweetener and other rats glucose-flavored yogurt. The rats who ate the artificially-flavored food ate more than those who ate the higher calorie versions. Susan Swithers, one of the study co-authors, believes that artificial sweeteners make it difficult for the body to regulate incoming calories. Meaning your body may not be as easily fooled as you hope with you grab that can of Diet Coke to curb a craving.

This all sounds like regurgitated information that Leafy Green wrote about back in November. So is this actually new or is Leafy just psychic and saw this coming well in advance? Well our offices are pretty close and I'm reluctant to believe he has any significant supernatural ability, so it must be the former rather than the latter. What it does mean is that research into this is ongoing and the more tests that are completed, the more concrete the findings seem to become.

However, don't assume this gives you the green light to load up on lots of sugar. Excessive amounts can still lead to problems such as obesity and diabetes. However if you swear by Splenda, occasionally swapping it for the "real deal" may not be as detrimental to your dieting efforts as you once thought.

» Time