Reacción a "Reactions: WHO advises against use of non-sweetened sweeteners for weight control"

This WHO recommendation is the logical consequence of a systematic review of the scientific literature, published in 2022, which showed that sweeteners did not clearly help to control weight in the long term, but could increase the risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and mortality. 

The WHO suggests that sweeteners should not be used to control weight or reduce the risk of non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes or cardiovascular disease. This is because the risks of sweeteners on chronic diseases are likely to outweigh their potential benefits on weight control (unproven or even contrary to expectations because in some studies they were associated with weight gain and more obesity). In practice, the WHO recommends reducing consumption or not consuming beverages (especially soft drinks) and foods (especially ultra-processed) containing sweeteners. 

More studies are needed to evaluate the effects of replacing free sugars with sweeteners. However, since it is well known that free sugars (e.g., sugar added to soft drinks and some foods, or the sugar we add to coffee before drinking it) are not healthy and, moreover, new evidence suggests that sweeteners are not good in the long term, the recommendation is to reduce the consumption of both (sugar and sweeteners); in this way, food will taste less sweet. If someone wishes to have a sweet product, he/she can consume fruits or add fruits to the food, because their sugars are not bad (especially when the fruit is taken whole, with its fiber). On the other hand, the WHO recommendation does not apply to polyols (maltitol, sorbitol) that are used to sweeten some foods. 

[The recommendation does not apply to people with diabetes] because the systematic review of the scientific literature on which the WHO recommendation is based did not include people with diabetes.