One of the beneficial properties of cyclamate is that it is a low-calorie artificial sweetener. Ah, that’s good. So if you are on the keto diet, you may be asking whether or not cyclamate is keto friendly.
Cyclamate may help you reduce your calories and protect your teeth, especially if you consume a lot of sugar. But on keto, will cyclamate help you stay in ketosis?
This article provides an overview of the health benefits and side effects of cyclamate, and more.
What Is Cyclamate?
Sodium cyclamate is a crystalline, colorless, odorless powder with a sugary sweet taste. Many people consider foods mixed with this substance to be rather unpleasant to the taste.
It’s 30–50 times sweeter than sucrose (regular sugar), making it the least potent of the commercially used artificial sweeteners [*].
The sugar substitute sodium cyclamate, or E952, was discovered in 1937. The letter “E” in front of the numbers means that the substance is produced in Europe.
This discovery belongs to graduate student Michael Swede, who, while working on the synthesis of an antipyretic agent, accidentally dipped a cigarette into the medicine and, when he took it back into his mouth, felt a sweet aftertaste.
From the very beginning of the invention of cyclamate, it was sold as a drug to mask the bitterness. And in 1958, the United States recognized it as a safe and healthy food supplement.
Further studies in rats showed that cyclamate does more harm than good: small mammals develop bladder cancer. Scientists have shown that gut bacteria break down cyclamate to form the toxic cyclohexylamine, after which the food supplement was banned in the United States.
However, disputes about the benefits of chemically produced flavor enhancers, sugar substitutes, food colors are still ongoing.
It is believed that sodium cyclamate is a calorie-free substance since so little is required to obtain the necessary taste of products that this does not in any way affect their energy value.
Also, this sweetener does not have a glycemic index, which means it does not affect blood glucose levels in any way. It is this property that makes it possible for diabetics to use this sweetener.
Many diets or light products including candies, soft drinks, dairy and baked goods are sweetened with cyclamate.
How many calories does cyclamate have?
Cyclamate is free of calories, making it a beneficial sweetener for people trying to reduce the sugar or calories they consume in their diet. But when it comes to the keto diet, is cyclamate keto friendly?
Safety
Cyclamates are approved for use in over 55 countries, including Canada, but banned, for example, in the United States in 1970.
Why is sodium cyclamate not approved for use in the United States?
The Food and Drug Administration banned cyclamate in 1970 after a high-dose rat study linked it to bladder cancer. Subsequent studies failed to verify that link and in 1984, after reviewing the extensive research on cyclamate, the FDA’s Cancer Assessment Committee concluded that cyclamate is not Carcinogenic. The FDA has received a petition to reapprove cyclamate in the United States.
Sodium cyclamate is a potent sweetening agent. It has been subjected to numerous safety and Carcinogenicity studies.
The animal data led to warnings of excessive and indiscriminate use of cyclamate, which led WHO in 1967 to adopt a safety limit of 50 mg/kg.
However, in 1982 a joint FAO/WHO expert committee on food additives revised this recommendation to allow for a maximum daily intake of up to 11 mg/kg of Sodium or Calcium cyclamate (as cyclamic acid).
On the other hand, other studies support cyclamate as safe and not carcinogenic.
Areas of application of the additive E952
E952 is widely used in pharmaceuticals. It contains well-known sweeteners for diabetics. Lozenges and cough tablets also contain a certain amount of sugar substitute.
This sweetener is also used in pastry shops for making buns, cakes, and carbonated drinks. Also, it can be found in low-alcohol drinks, ice cream, and ready-made desserts. The content of cyclamate is high in sweetened or sweet products, where sugar can be used in a ratio of 1:10. Candy, marmalade, marshmallows, and chewing gums usually contain cyclamate.
Despite some of the harms listed below, E952 is added in cosmetics to lipsticks, lip glosses.
The benefits and harms of sodium cyclamate
You should not expect huge benefits and positives from taking such a substance. The main positive property of such a food additive and its direct purpose is to replace sugar for those people who, for one reason or another, are prohibited from eating simple carbohydrates. It is unlikely that any super-positive health effects are to be expected from sodium cyclamate. However, you should not completely throw it out of sight, because it also has some useful properties:
- The most basic is zero calories. Since this substance is not absorbed by the human body at all, no extra pounds will be added during its use.
- With such a substance, the process of preparing sweet dishes and desserts becomes much easier and easier, because it requires fifty times less than sugar.
- The fast solubility of sodium cyclamate is also of great importance. It can be added without fear to both hot drinks – tea, coffee, and cold – milk, juices, water.
Of course, cyclamate is beneficial for people with diabetes, as well as those prone to gaining excess weight or obesity. But if you are a person who follows a certain diet (such as keto), you may want to know if sodium cyclamate is keto friendly or not.
Is sodium cyclamate harmful?
The answer to this question is obvious because such a food additive is allowed for sale only in some countries. It has been impossible to buy it in the United States for a long time. But recently, the question of its resolution was raised again and it is now under consideration.
However, to defend this sweetener, it is worth noting that its potential effects have not been fully demonstrated. But sometimes there are some unpleasant consequences of its use.
In general, they can be represented as follows:
** Promotes puffiness, thereby disrupting metabolism.
** It negatively affects the work of the heart and blood vessels.
** Significantly increases the burden on the kidneys. And in some other sources, you can find an indication that this substance stimulates the development of urolithiasis.
** The most dangerous in the use of this ingredient is that it contributes to the development of cancer. Experiments carried out on rats confirmed the carcinogenic properties of the additive. It significantly increases the risk of developing bladder cancer in these rodents. However, studies have not shown a similar effect on the human body.
** When using this substance, allergic reactions associated with increased sensitivity to its components can occur, which manifest themselves in: itching, rashes, hives and eye inflammation.
Separately, it is worth noting that the use of sodium cyclamate during pregnancy is extremely undesirable since in the body of some people there are several bacteria that, reacting with this substance, cause its breakdown into conditionally teratogenic metabolites, which negatively affect the development of the fetus. The risk of having a child with disabilities, in this case, is very high. The first two to three weeks of pregnancy are especially scary.
Is Cyclamate Keto Friendly?
Before answering whether or not the sodium cyclamate sweetener is keto friendly.
Know that the main goal of the ketogenic diet is to reduce the amount of insulin the body generates by reducing the intake of carbohydrates. Body fat, both stored and eaten, will then be the primary source of energy (the keto diet is for stimulating ketosis).
Ketosis is a natural metabolic process that provides many health benefits to the human body.
Studies have found ketosis-promoting diets like the ketogenic diet extremely beneficial for weight loss, partly due to their appetite-killing effects.
Quick answer … is cyclamate keto friendly?
Artificial sweeteners allow you to lower the sugar in your diet, including cyclamate, but if you are on the keto diet you should eat them in moderation, especially if you want to stay in ketosis.
You should know that although some artificial sweeteners are low in calories, such as cyclamate, this does not mean that they can be 100% keto friendly. So pay attention to this carefully and always try a blood test to see how cyclamate sweetener affects ketosis.
If you prefer a natural keto-friendly sweetener as an alternative to cyclamate, consider stevia or monk fruit instead.
Final recommendations: Is Cyclamate Keto Friendly?
Avoiding cyclamate and other artificial sweeteners is beneficial to your overall wellbeing, not just if you are interested in the keto diet.
Artificial sweeteners have both advantages and disadvantages, and whether you should eat them is a personal decision.
If you’re still using artificial sweeteners like cyclamate on keto, and you’re satisfied with your diet, there’s no compelling reason to stop.