Artificial sweeteners during pregnancy, is it safe to eat?

As you already know, pregnant women should not be careless in consuming food. What's more, if the pregnant woman is overweight or has complications, such as gestational diabetes. An unhealthy diet can make blood sugar or mother gain weight. This condition is likely to make pregnant women choose to consume artificial sweeteners as a substitute for sugar. However, are artificial sweeteners safe for consumption during pregnancy?

How artificial sweeteners can control blood sugar levels

By now, it may be very easy for you to find artificial sweeteners as a substitute for your sugar. This artificial sweetener offers zero calories so it won't increase your blood sugar level and doesn't increase your weight. As a result, this artificial sweetener is safe to use for diabetics or people who are maintaining their weight.

What is the reason? Artificial sweeteners in general have a very high level of sweetness (even hundreds of times sweeter) than regular sugar. So, using even a small amount of artificial sweeteners can make your food or drink sweet without adding more calories. The zero calorie content of this artificial sweetener will not affect your blood sugar levels.

What artificial sweeteners are safe for consumption during pregnancy?

There have been many artificial sweeteners with various types available on the market. But, be careful when choosing it. Maybe not all types of artificial sweeteners are safe for pregnant women. One type of artificial sweetener that is safe for pregnant women to consume is stevia.

Why stevia? Stevia is a type of artificial sweetener made from stevia leaves. This artificial sweetener has a sweetness level of 200 times sweeter than regular sugar in the same amount. Stevia in a very pure form is generally safe for use by everyone, including pregnant women. This has also been recognized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the United States Food and Drug Administration.

Other types of artificial sweeteners that are also safe for pregnant women are aspartame and sucralose. Aspartame and sucralose have been approved to be safe for use by the FDA and BPOM RI within certain usage limits. Both stevia, aspartame, and sucralose are ingredients that you can find in various artificial sweetener brands available in the market, for example Tropicana Slim.

The safe limit for using aspartame in a day is 50 mg / kg body weight. Meanwhile, for sucralose, the safe limit for use is 10-15 mg / kg body weight. However, the use of aspartame seems to add calories to your body, albeit very little, only 0.4 kcal / gram.

Who should not consume aspartame type sweetener?

For the record, pregnant women who have phenylketonuria genetic disease (PKU) should avoid aspartame. This genetic disease makes the body of pregnant women unable to digest the amino acid phenylalanine contained in aspartame. As a result, phenylalanine levels accumulate in the body of pregnant women and can cause birth defects.