Acesulfame potassium is a calorie-free sweetener which is about 200 times more intense in sweetness compared to the normal sugar, and it has been around and in use in thousands of food products in 1988, In other words since the time, it was declared safe for the purpose of consumption.
Acesulfame potassium was first discovered in Germany by Karl Clauss and H. Jensen in the year 1967. This was when the two researchers mixed butane with Fluor sulfonyl isocyanate and licked the solution when some of it spilled. The sweet taste was what gave Clauss the idea of using it in foods, and ultimately in the year 1988, the sugar got approval for use in food products in the United States.
The process of production of Acesulfame Potassium involves the mixing of an organic compound called the acetoacetic acid for the naturally occurring form of potassium which results in the formation of a crystalline sweetener which is extremely stable. The sugar is used as a substitute for the actual kind because of its ability to sweeten the products that it is used in, which is immense and therefore required only a small quantity of the sugar. This makes Ace K a very useful substitute for those who want to consume a diet low in calories.
Even though Ace K is being used for the preparation of over 4,000 food items world-wide, within the United States, it is used to make candies, baked item, frozen desserts, tabletop sweeteners, and in beverages of different kinds. The FDA, as well as a variety of other health organizations, have found the sweetener to be safe for consumption and safe for all of the existing parts of the population.
Ace K is a very safe sugar to consume because not only has the Food and Drugs Administration declared the compound safe for consumption on eight separate occasions ever since it was approved by the administration, it is also under consumption in food and beverages in other various countries including Germany, United Kingdom, Australia, and in Canada. The fact of its use is ample to suggest that the health organizations of all of these countries have also declared the sugar safe for human consumption.
Ace K is the second most common sweetener followed only by Sucralose and it is currently being aggregated into close to 1,103 food and drink products around the world. Artificial sweeteners like Ace K are frequently being chosen by customers attributing to the perception that it has been leading to weight loss and a decline in obesity and other related problems. This is because sugar usually provides the human body with a very large quantity of carbohydrates which are very easy to absorb for the body and they resultantly cause an intake which is relatively high in energy content.
There have been a very large number of studies that have found a positive link in between the use of artificial sweeteners like Ace K and the tendency of the body to gain weight. One of these studies was that undertaken in San Antonio which examined 3,682 adults over a period of seven to eight years. This study reported that adults who were consuming more artificial sweetener were gaining weight more rapidly. The results of studies in children reported similar conclusions.
The excessive marketing campaigns which promote products with artificial sweeteners have been introducing us to false pretenses, especially when they say that these artificial sweeteners help reduce weight and thereby have reassuring impacts on obesity.
List of References
International Food Information Council Foundation. (1998, July). Everything You Need to Know About Acesulfame Potassium. Retrieved from Nutrition Express: http://www.nutritionexpress.com/article+index/vitamins+supplements+a-z/showarticle.aspx?id=120
World Food History. (2012, January 12). Discovery of Acesulfame potassium. Retrieved from Food History: http://www.world-foodhistory.com/2012/01/discovery-of-acesulfame-potassium.html
Yang, Q. (2010). Gain weight by “going diet?” Artificial sweeteners and the neurobiology of sugar cravings. Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine, 101-108.
