The Dark Side of Sugar-Free Gummies: Exploring the Laxative Effect

Ғылым және технология

Sugar free gummies are delicious, low on calories, and… technically laxatives? Reactions producer Andrew dives into the science to figure out how he can make delicious sugar free gummies without the uncomfortable side effects.
#saccharin #aspartame #foodchemistry
Tiny Matters Podcast:
www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pr...
Sugar: The addiction debate and an ancient DNA mutation that’s killing us today:
www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pr...
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Credits:
Executive Producer:
Matthew Radcliff
Producers:
Elaine Seward
Andrew Sobey
Darren Weaver
Writer:
Alex Dainis
Scientific Consultants:
Dr. Peihua Jiang, Ph.D.
Michelle Boucher, Ph.D.
Leila Duman, Ph.D.
Executive in Charge for PBS: Maribel Lopez
Director of Programming for PBS: Gabrielle Ewing
Assistant Director of Programming for PBS: John Campbell
Reactions is a production of the American Chemical Society.
© 2022 American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.
Additional Sources:
docs.google.com/document/d/1R...

Пікірлер: 76

  • @ACSReactions
    @ACSReactions Жыл бұрын

    The sugar alcohol in those infamous sugar free gummy bears was maltitol. Turns out there’s pretty good evidence that if you stuck to a reasonable number of those gummy bears, you wouldn’t experience any negative side effects: www.nature.com/articles/1601516

  • @dwaynezilla

    @dwaynezilla

    Жыл бұрын

    but I don't wanna stick to a reasonable number of gummy bears :(

  • @Bludgeoned2DEATH2
    @Bludgeoned2DEATH2 Жыл бұрын

    LA Beast demonstrated this when he tried to eat an entire giant bag of sugar free gummies only to explosively eject those gummies later and yes that part is captured on video lmao.

  • @zspud21

    @zspud21

    Жыл бұрын

    LA Beast is my hero and I still watch his content

  • @Stussmeister

    @Stussmeister

    6 ай бұрын

    Indeed, and from what I remember of the video, that ejection occurred at both ends, if you take my meaning.

  • @Elmerstudd007

    @Elmerstudd007

    2 ай бұрын

    As the guy who originally challenged him to that video... I felt so bad for him because I didn't think he'd actually do it but then hundreds if not thousands of others also challenged him and it became inevitable... RIP that poor toilet...

  • @dwaynezilla
    @dwaynezilla Жыл бұрын

    "what's the flavour" "intestinal distress"

  • @clover7359
    @clover7359 Жыл бұрын

    I can't believe we didn't talk about how addictive sucralose is!

  • @lesliehyde
    @lesliehyde Жыл бұрын

    My hospital actually stocks the Haribo sugar free gummy bears in 50% more to 150% more than the serving size portions than recommended on the package for the doctors who are in the know for treating those with constipation that doesn't respond to stool softeners before turning to pharmaceutical laxatives. Also, the GI provider that I use recommends patients to consume the entire bag (the smaller but multi serving package, not the single serving mini packets) the day of drinking the foul colon prep solution as a kick start to cleaning out the colon for colonoscopies with one key instruction- DON'T eat the red ones. So many of the patients (myself included) who know about these are not entirely a fan of them but we will eat them if it means we avoid the pharmaceutical options. However, us patients of the GI provider will agree (begrudgingly though) to eat these bastards the morning of the colon prep solution day (this starts about 4pm the night before the scoping) because it pretty much means that we, typically, will only need half to three quarters the amount of the awful colon prep solution which is something that all of his patients have agreed is even more foul. Although, I personally will drink two cups of hot tea (I let it cool down first though) made with lactulose for the sweetener as an added help in cleaning the colon because I then only need a bit under half of the colon prep solution. So yeah, the Haribo sugar free gummy bears have a place in society but I don't believe it should be in the candy aisle of stores and instead either behind the pharmacy counter w/o a prescription or with the laxatives with a warning letter on the shelf next to the price tag.

  • @rfldss89
    @rfldss89 Жыл бұрын

    10:45 dont sugar alcohols also impact the osmotic pressure in your colon, leading to more water staying/getting absorbed by your bowel movements, which then leads to its laxative effect?

  • @ericvilas
    @ericvilas Жыл бұрын

    Sam!!! Good to see you again! (Also does that make me a hardcore fan?)

  • @XSpImmaLion
    @XSpImmaLion Жыл бұрын

    The most surprising thing about sweeteners was shown very well in the end of the video - opinions on how good they taste or how close to sugar they are - are all over the place. xD One thing I can totally agree with is the Stevia aftertaste... I don't completely abhor it, but it's definitely there and it's definitely very strong. While it's not gag inducing to me, the problem is that it's so strong it kinda kills the taste of anything you use it on. Perhaps not too bad if you are using it in a complex recipe, but as I mostly use sweeteners for coffee and tea, plain without milk or cream.... that just doesn't work well. As for other common sweeteners... I mostly don't feel much of a difference. I think I have a slight preference towards aspartame, but not sure if I'd be able to tell the difference in a blind taste test. But aspartame and cyclamate are the ones I drink the most... because it's what Coke Zero and Light uses, and I'm addicted to those. :P People will say some sweeteners gives them headaches, some will say they can definitely taste the difference between different types... for the most part I personally can't - again, apart from Stevia. The most common stuff you can find on supermarkets here are cyclamate, sucralose, aspartame, and Stevia... but I've also seen thaumatin, xylitol, erythritol and mixes of a couple of those. Oh, I've also been using sweeteners for most of my adult life (I'm not diabetic) and never had any problems... but I've definitely had a few cases of the laxative effect. Can't remember the exact product though, but it was very likely a similar thing to the Gummy Bear case - sugar alcohol, I ate too much of it. I had a pretty strong suspicion that it was something about the sweetener not breaking down in my body and ending up in quantities large enough in my intestines that it was causing discomfort and diarrhea, but I wasn't totally sure, so thanks for the lesson! xD It's because the other semi-related thing I have is lactose intolerance, so I know the feeling very well when things don't break down as they should and end up in the intestines fermenting and whatnot. xD

  • @Ceelvain
    @Ceelvain Жыл бұрын

    I'm so happy to see Sam again here! Someone, please say hi to her from us, hardcore fans, I guess? ^^ Also, Andrew is a very decent host, I could stand to see more videos with him. (BTW, did Alex and George eat those bad gummy bears to be unavailable as hosts? ^^)

  • @michaelgraff6978
    @michaelgraff6978 Жыл бұрын

    Around the time where mass market sugar free treats started happening, I was at a rest stop in New York, and they sold a sugar free brownie that was about 3x3x1 inches in size. It had so much sugar free (laxative) that I thought it must be a cruel joke.

  • @user-bp8yg3ko1r
    @user-bp8yg3ko1r Жыл бұрын

    Super informative and interesting, thanks!

  • @GrantSR
    @GrantSR10 ай бұрын

    I finally (at 63) weaned myself off of soda (with high-ferocious corn syrup), because it causes my muscles to tighten up and joint pain (probably inflammation). The first thing I tried had sucralose in it. I found it caused the same symptoms as high-ferocious corn syrup.

  • @user-iu1xg6jv6e
    @user-iu1xg6jv6e Жыл бұрын

    I'm interested to know how the brain would response to this artificial sweetness. does the body release Insulin? If so what happens to Insulin when no sugar is found?

  • @themanhimself3

    @themanhimself3

    Жыл бұрын

    I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure we discovered that it does produce an insulin response and could be bad with no actual sugar.

  • @jibbaspaa
    @jibbaspaa Жыл бұрын

    Very well done video , thanks

  • @BRUXXUS
    @BRUXXUS Жыл бұрын

    This was fun! Makes me want to try some of the less known sweeteners...for fun? Love the colors for those gummy bears as well as how shiny they were.

  • @pay1370
    @pay1370 Жыл бұрын

    i hate artificial sweeteners, i'm super sensitive to them so they all give me the runs even if they technically aren't laxatives. just about every soda now has them, i can't drink fanta and sprite anymore, i wish they'd get a zero and normal version like cola.

  • @KH-nw3cq

    @KH-nw3cq

    3 ай бұрын

    How long does laxative effect of gums continue? 😢 since yesterday i’ve been experiencing pain and gas in my stomach, realised the reason can be gums i chewed these days. 24 hours passed, still the same… how to stop it 😭

  • @marpsr
    @marpsr Жыл бұрын

    Just wait until you hear about THC gummies. Locally a little girl took her dad’s to elementary school and passed them out to friends. Dad got in trouble.

  • @carpo719

    @carpo719

    Жыл бұрын

    Yeah that was kind of messed up, but I'll admit it was pretty funny too. I would have loved to be a fly on the wall in that class

  • @carpo719

    @carpo719

    Жыл бұрын

    But are kids actually dying?

  • @realityChemist
    @realityChemist Жыл бұрын

    This was a really interesting video; I actually had some artificial sweeteners sitting at home (left over from getting a bunch of coffee for an event I hosted the other day), so I played along! The ones I had were aspartame, saccharine, and sucralose: I thought the saccharine was the least offensive, followed closely by aspartame (they taste pretty similar to me). Immediate "Nope!" reaction from the sucralose though, really disliked it. I'd love to try the more unusual ones you picked up for this video. I guess peoples' different reactions to the different sweeteners is the reason why cafés stock several different types through, nobody can agree on which ones are decent and which are offensive! The real winner in terms of taste, of course, was the packet of raw sugar that also came with the coffee order. Way tastier than all of the artificial sweeteners. Not really a fair comparison though, and of course it also has way more calories!

  • @lexinwonderland5741
    @lexinwonderland57417 ай бұрын

    I would love to see more Andrew content! I just subscribed, and I noticed him in a handful of videos, but I LOVE HIS DELIVERY HERE! I would absolutely love to see him alongside George and Alex host some videos!! (for any Futurama fans, I *did* get a bit of a Scruffy-the-Janitor vibe from him against our normal hosts and I 100% mean that as a compliment) CameraMan Andrew FTW!!!

  • @dhindaravrel8712
    @dhindaravrel8712 Жыл бұрын

    I use a mix of saccharin and cyclamate and it suits me fine.

  • @woopygoman
    @woopygoman Жыл бұрын

    For Stevia, Reb A is the way to go! Please make a video on allulose. Could be fun.

  • @michalchik
    @michalchik Жыл бұрын

    You missed the fact that Aspartame is a methyl Ester also and metabolizes to produce a small amount of methanol that some people seem to still be sensitive to especially if they use large amounts of aspartame

  • @Stussmeister
    @Stussmeister6 ай бұрын

    I'll admit I have a bit of a sweet tooth, and enjoy candies, ice cream, and baked goods, but I'm also one of those people who likes to drink coffee with no cream or sugar. It took a while, but now I'm accustomed to the taste.

  • @mateostenberg
    @mateostenberg Жыл бұрын

    I've been seeing the older videos of you guys' with 1-2 mil views and my god am I glad this channel went in this direction. Totally feels like all the classic PBS Digital Studios youtube shows (idea channel, eons, sound field). It's so very disappointing, though, that these get such fewer views than that quick 5 minute infographic listicle bullshit.

  • @WormBurger
    @WormBurger Жыл бұрын

    Anyway you could do a video on Monk Fruit extract. It is a more natural sugar alternative.

  • @adcaptandumvulgus4252
    @adcaptandumvulgus4252 Жыл бұрын

    monk fruit / xilotol is the best 50/50 combo imo

  • @carpo719
    @carpo719 Жыл бұрын

    This was very informative, I've switched from sugar to sucralose in hopes that it would help me consume less sugar. But sometimes I wonder whether it's the best choice

  • @dwaynezilla

    @dwaynezilla

    Жыл бұрын

    Regardless, it's better than eating the sugar. Glycation and insulin resistance are truly nasty. And since artificial sweeteners are usually much-more-potent than sugar, you end up being exposed to much less of that (orders of magnitude).

  • @ACSReactions

    @ACSReactions

    Жыл бұрын

    I would love to see a long-term, large scale study of health outcomes with a normal diet vs. an artificial sweetener diet. Even just in terms of weight control and diabetes, the results seem to be murky, at best.

  • @carpo719

    @carpo719

    Жыл бұрын

    @@dwaynezilla that's what I would assume, however we have been incorrect in the past about certain compounds. And it's hard to know which is worse. The same way people say to switch to non-dairy creamer, but that stuff's horrible as well

  • @carpo719

    @carpo719

    Жыл бұрын

    @@ACSReactions I agree

  • @zarlan_
    @zarlan_ Жыл бұрын

    I remember this. A legend named peanutbitter on the website funnyjunk bought a 5 pound bag, ate them, documented his experience and posted it on youtube. The video is unlisted but I can find it easily. That dude was a legend

  • @ronkirk5099
    @ronkirk50993 ай бұрын

    I use Stevia as a non-sugar sweetener just for that reason - the others give me 'intestinal distress'

  • @dancoroian1
    @dancoroian1 Жыл бұрын

    "...excessive dose of sucralose" Man's got bars!

  • @GrantSR
    @GrantSR10 ай бұрын

    It only took me a couple of days to get to where Stevia had no weird aftertaste. And I'm super picky about the taste of "artificial" sweeteners.

  • @douglasboyle6544
    @douglasboyle6544 Жыл бұрын

    Sam! 💜

  • @xja85mac
    @xja85mac Жыл бұрын

    I understand aspartame may give a laxative effect if you eat too much of it. I read that indication on a brand of sugar-free mints.

  • @mathewritchie
    @mathewritchie11 ай бұрын

    About ten years ago I got a pack of "sugar free"sweets at a supermarket and an hour or so later experenced the same effect,when I took a close look at the back of the pack I found it was sweetend with fructose witch is a sugar and should not be consumed in large quantities.

  • @Sourpusscandy
    @Sourpusscandy Жыл бұрын

    Velamints! I think it was the xylitol.

  • @KyrenaH

    @KyrenaH

    Жыл бұрын

    Xylitol is awful. I stopped buying gum because of that stuff. Xylitol and my gut just do not like each other.

  • @hydrocarbon8272
    @hydrocarbon8272 Жыл бұрын

    But what about...a MIX? I can't be the only person that fills his self-serve soft drink with mostly diet then gives it a few blips of regular soda or w/e fruit juice is on tap.

  • @alveolate
    @alveolate Жыл бұрын

    all i remember was taking too many strepsils and ricola and then having the runs.

  • @bigghoss762
    @bigghoss762 Жыл бұрын

    Harvey doesn't drink coffee.

  • @johncgibson4720
    @johncgibson4720 Жыл бұрын

    Avoid the blue or pink stuff. Use the yellow sucralose that is safer.

  • @thomasluggiero3413
    @thomasluggiero3413 Жыл бұрын

    At least sugar doesn't have any aftertaste

  • @ireallyreallyhategoogle
    @ireallyreallyhategoogle Жыл бұрын

    Aspartame may not be a laxative, but it is a diuretic.

  • @JessicaFEREM
    @JessicaFEREM Жыл бұрын

    This is hilarious considering I take fiber gummies which are a type of natural laxative lol

  • @morgan0
    @morgan0 Жыл бұрын

    reminds me i should get a bag of sugar alcohol that isn’t erythritol

  • @morgan0

    @morgan0

    Жыл бұрын

    since less of it makes it to your gut

  • @morgan0

    @morgan0

    Жыл бұрын

    aw they discontinued them, at least albanese still uses maltitol in their sugar free gummy bears

  • @morgan0

    @morgan0

    Жыл бұрын

    i can’t taste any aftertaste from stevia, the raw leaves taste great as well imo

  • @morgan0

    @morgan0

    Жыл бұрын

    also from what i can tell, if you eat very little sugar alcohols and other molecules that are digested similarly, you’ll be very sensitive to them, while if you slowly increase the amount and eat a higher amount more consistently you’ll be able to handle far more. so if you want to eat more sugar free gummy bears and similar products, try eating a small amount every day for a while and slowly increasing it to get your gut more used to it. same is true for beans, which contain indigestible trisaccharides, and might be digested similarly, if you rarely eat beans it’ll have much more effect on you than if you eat them regularly and give your microbiome some time to shift.

  • @Shabam.01
    @Shabam.016 ай бұрын

    2:23 did he say mommy?

  • @JPWestmas
    @JPWestmas Жыл бұрын

    Aspertame tastes bitter and awful to me.

  • @Devlin20102011
    @Devlin20102011 Жыл бұрын

    This guy looks like William osman if he had a stable career

  • @Kaneanite
    @Kaneanite Жыл бұрын

    I did like the video....until i was told to "smash like and subscribe," then i promptly removed my like

  • @ACSReactions

    @ACSReactions

    Жыл бұрын

    so you did what Andrew told you to do, then?

  • @Kaneanite

    @Kaneanite

    Жыл бұрын

    @@ACSReactions No, i have never and will never "smash" anything on KZread. Telling people to "smash buttons" is the stupidest trend on this platform and i wish it would just die.

  • @BRUXXUS

    @BRUXXUS

    Жыл бұрын

    You must be fun at parties.

  • @eatmorenachos

    @eatmorenachos

    Жыл бұрын

    @@BRUXXUS Oh come on, Kaneanite doesn't get invited to parties.

  • @AidanRatnage
    @AidanRatnage Жыл бұрын

    Just eat sugar, I've never tasted any good tasting sugar free variant of something that originally had sugar in it.

  • @darkwinter6028

    @darkwinter6028

    Жыл бұрын

    Can’t. Diabetic. ☹️

  • @kyokoyumi
    @kyokoyumi Жыл бұрын

    8:42 Try to avoid using that guy's pronounciation videos. They're legitimately bad most of the time and you can see that with how many native speakers are in his comments correcting him lol

  • @KyrenaH

    @KyrenaH

    Жыл бұрын

    This one is correct though.

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