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ZERO CALORIE SWEETENER

On my quest to discover all zero-calorie sweeteners in stores across the United States, I found hundreds of options. I’ve sorted them to bring you this ultimate guide. Here, you’ll find every zero-calorie sweetener divided into two easy-to-navigate groups: natural and artificial. 

WHAT DOES "ZERO-CALORIE" MEAN?

By law, a sweetener may be labeled calorie-free, no-calorie, or zero-calorie if it provides less than 5 calories per serving. One serving is usually the amount of product (teaspoon, drops, squeezes, packets) with sweetness equivalent to 1 or 2 teaspoons of table sugar.

Zero Calorie Sweeteners are available to you in various forms — granulated, powdered, sachet, cube, tablet, liquid, and syrup. The color code for them tends to be:

 

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WHAT'S A HIGH INTENSITY SWEETENER?

Most zero-calorie sugar substitutes you find in stores contain High-Intensity Sweeteners (HIS) as the sole ingredients OR as the last ingredient. When pure, they deliver intense sweetness with no calories, and no nutritional benefits. Being several hundred times sweeter than table sugar, they are used in a fraction of the weight of any caloric sweetener.

Because they're used in such small amounts, they don't affect volume or mouthfeel. They won't thicken, bind, or make your recipe viscous. As a result, high-intensity sweeteners are often blended with bulk sweeteners which give them an overall resemblance to table sugar, making them spoonable & pourable, and masking their off-flavors.​
 

As opposed to table sugar, they are used mainly for sweetening purposes and no other culinary role. Pure high-intensity sweeteners (without any additives or fillers) work best in foods that do not require sugars for texture, shelf life, moisture retention, color, and aroma.​

 

Not all zero-calorie sweeteners are high-intensity.
 

For instance, erythritol and allulose can be labeled as zero-calorie, but they're not high-intensity. In fact, both are less sweet than table sugar. In addition, they are NOT completely free of calories as high-intensity sweeteners. They provide about 1 to 1.5 calories per teaspoon or 40 to 70 calories per cup. Learn more about erythritol HERE and about allulose HERE.​

FDA-APPROVED HIGH-INTENSITY SWEETENERS

Nine high-intensity sweeteners (HIS) are permitted for use in food in the US. When artificial, they're regulated as a food additive. When natural, they have their use as a sweetener generally recognized as safe (GRAS). The difference is that food additives undergo premarket review and approval by the FDA. GRAS substances have their safety evaluated by experts qualified by scientific training and experience, not by the FDA.​


Natural options include Stevia,  monk fruit, and thaumatin. Six artificial sweeteners have been approved: saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame potassium (ace-K), sucralose, neotame, and advantame.​

Among all, aspartame and thaumatin are the only two approved as nutritive sweeteners because they provide 4 cal per gram — chemically speaking, both are proteins. However, being super sweet, they're used in such small amounts that make them effectively non-nutritive. Aspartame is 100 to 400 times sweeter than sugar, and thaumatin is 2000 to 5000. Stevia, monk fruit, sucralose, saccharin, acesulfame K, and neotame are non-nutritive sweeteners (0 cal/gram).​

As I write this, stevia (leaf extract) carries the medal of the most popular high-intensity sweetener, with almost 200 products sold in stores. You can see the complete list here. They contain a variety of stevia leaf extracts such as reb A, reb D, reb M, or stevioside. ​​

NATURAL & ZERO-CALORIE

WHAT'S A NATURAL SWEETENER?

Sugar substitutes labeled as "natural" and "zero-calories" contain sweeteners obtained from a plant. Stevia, monk fruit, thaumatin, erythritol, and allulose are FDA-approved. As said before, they have GRAS status and so they are not food additives.

Based on their sweetness level compared to sugar, these sugar alternatives fit into one of two groups: high-intensity or mildly-sweet.​

 

  1. High-intensity sweeteners are over 100 times sweeter than table sugar. The natural ones include:
    • Stevia (the term used to refer to steviol glycosides = refined extracts from the leaves of the stevia plant)
    • Monk fruit (the term used to refer to mogrosides or luo han guo = refined extracts from the monk fruit)
    • Thaumatin (approved in 2020, proteins isolated from the fruit of West African Katemfe fruit).
     

  2. Mildly-sweet carbohydrates labeled as "zero calories" are less sweet than table sugar and include:
    • Erythritol (a sugar alcohol obtained from corn)
    • Allulose (a rare sugar obtained from corn)


​Miracle fruit extract (miraculin) is not an FDA-approved ingredient so you're not going to find it as a sugar substitute. It's not an actual sweetener but can enhance the sweetness of acidic foods up to 800 times. You can buy the fruit itself or the extract in tablet form. Read all about it HERE.​

Find out if a sweetener claimed as "natural" meets your expectations by reading two of my blog posts:​

ARTIFICIAL & ZERO-CALORIE

WHAT'S AN ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER?

Artificial sweeteners are not found in nature. Even if produced from a source material found in nature OR if their component parts are common in nature, it does not make them a natural sweetener.​ For instance, sucralose is made from table sugar. Aspartame is split in our bodies into 3 components widely found in foods such as meats, fish, dairy products, eggs, nuts, fruits, and vegetables.
 

I wrote a comprehensive blog post defining and comparing natural, minimally processed, refined, synthetic, and artificial sweeteners.

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Six artificial sweeteners are approved as ingredients in sugar substitutes — saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame potassium (ace-K), sucralose, neotame, and advantame. As mentioned earlier, unlike the "natural" options above, all artificial sweeteners are regulated as food additives.

Saccharin-based products were the first available in stores; the Sweet'N Low brand name has been the most popular. Aspartame–acesulfame K blends were popular for some time but were surpassed by sucralose, which is the most used of all six.​ Explore artificial products by clicking below:

ARE SWEETENERS SAFE?

Are sweeteners worse than sugar? What's the safest sweetener to use? These are questions that come up often—and for good reason with the sea of information out there. So here's what you need to know.

 

By law, all sweeteners sold in stores must be safe for consumption. You can read how the FDA assesses their safety HERE.

 

All nine FDA-approved high-intensity sweeteners (HIS) are over a hundred times sweeter than table sugar, so we consume them in tiny amounts. 
 

Based on scientific evidence, they're considered safe for the general population when consumed as intended. The FDA has determined that the estimated daily intake of HIS remains within safe limits, even for heavy users.

 

High-intensity sweeteners are non-cariogenic and do not cause cancer at the levels we consume. They are safe for people with diabetes, children, and pregnant or breastfeeding women.  

Three areas need more research:

  1. There's lack of evidence showing high-intensity sweeteners are effective in helping people lose weight in the LONG TERM (over 6 to 18 months), even though studies have shown small weight loss in the short term (3 months or less). You can read the position of World Health Organization and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans on that.

  2. Research on their impact on the gut microbiome is still ongoing. 

  3. It's controversial whether consuming something sweet without calories may trick the brain, increasing blood sugar levels, enhancing appetite, and food cravings.

How Not to Use Sweeteners

Wondering if there’s one rule for eating sweeteners safely? Curious about the “wrong” way to use sweeteners? I’m talking about consuming any sweetener—whether it’s zero-calorie or regular sugar.

 

The wrong way is pairing sweeteners with foods that don’t promote satiety—those that don’t keep you full and make hunger return quickly. These are foods that don’t ‘stick with you’ for long.
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For example, the most common "wrong" way of having sweeteners is between meals in liquid form—such as sodas, energy drinks, sports drinks, black coffee, and tea. 
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So, here's the one rule for eating sweeteners: No matter the type—sugars or alternatives—always pair sweeteners with satiating foods. Choose real, nutrient-dense options that include protein, fat, or fiber-rich components like fruits, vegetables, cream, milk, and whole grains.

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Avoid consuming sweeteners in liquid form between meals. This means no sodas, energy drinks, or sports drinks—whether diet or regular. It also includes sweetened black coffee throughout the day, unless you add cream or milk to make it more satiating.

Aspartame Under the Microscope

Aspartame is one of the most studied food additives in the human food supply, yet it remains the most controversial sweetener. Approved in more than 90 countries, Americans have been sweetening with it for nearly 50 years.

The latest controversy arose in July 2023, when the World Health Organization (WHO) released a risk assessment of aspartame and cancer. They classified it as a "possible carcinogen," meaning aspartame is a Group 2B carcinogen, and there's “limited evidence” for cancer in humans, specifically liver cancer.

 

However, the FDA's strongly disagrees with IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer, which is part of WHO) with this conclusion. In their response, they stated: "The FDA disagrees with IARC’s conclusion that the studies support classifying aspartame as a possible carcinogen to humans. FDA scientists reviewed the scientific information included in IARC’s review in 2021 when it was first made available and identified significant shortcomings in the studies on which IARC relied."

 

The FDA emphasizes that the WHO did not raise safety concerns for aspartame at the current levels of use. In addition, WHO did not change the prior Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) of aspartame of 40 mg/kg of body. WHO affirmed that an intake within this range is safe for a lifetime of daily use.

 

Wondering what exactly is the ADI? An ADI is the amount of a substance considered safe to consume EACH DAY over the course of A PERSON'S LIFETIME. To understand what this limit means for aspartame, a 150-pound (68 kg) person would need to consume a total of 75 packets per day of Equal, EVERY SINGLE DAY OF THEIR LIFE.

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If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the sea of information about sweeteners safety, I’ve created a resource to help you make sense of it all. [Access it here.]

EXPLORE ZERO-CALORIE SWEETENERS

There are A LOT of options. So, make your choice below: 

Click the   TRY IT    button of each sweetener to be linked to Amazon

where you can read reviews, labels, Q&As, and prices.

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