Sugar Substitutes: The Sweet Truth

Unlike most substitutes, this one is metabolized by the body. Equal carries 4 calories per gram, but is so intensely sweet that the calories it contributes to foods are miniscule.

Sweetening Power: 200 times sweeter than table sugar.

Precautions: Under fire from critics since it’s introduction in 1981, animal studies link this sweetener to cancer and consumers have complained of everything from headaches to depression. But the government considers it safe except for people with phenylketonuria, a rare disorder.

The Sweet Truth: Recently renamed Amino Sweet, the new moniker is unlikely to squash the long time controversy surrounding this sweetener.