So many people are using an artificial sweetener in the hope that it will help them lose weight. A recent article in the New York Times states that almost half of all American households use some kind of no-calorie sweetener. One woman interviewed described herself as a "Splenda-holic!"

And yet, the obesity epidemic is still with us—in fact, as artificial sweetener use has climbed, so has our weight!

I confess: used to drink diet soda—Tab—but I needed to spike it with a little bit of orange soda, which was sweetened with the real thing.  It tasted only little bit less terrible. I thought I was doing the right thing.

But now I know—this is probably not the best way to achieve the body and health you want.

Today, after going on multiple crazy diets and more recently earning an advanced science degree, I’m better able to tell the real from the fake.

I follow a lifestyle plan that has given me real, lasting results. It’s also working beautifully for the people I coach, who have been following the plan. The members of my current group, which meets in Washington Heights, have each lost an average of 9 inches of excess body fat in one month. And they have lost most of it where it counts most—around the middle. They are shedding mock tears because their clothes are too big.  And one of them told us how he no longer needs a set belt extension when he flies. On a recent trip to Florida, even his mother said, “You look so much better—you look great!”

Imagine how that felt.

And I know his good feeling will last because he and the others in my group have transitioned to a lifestyle plan that is based on healthy, low-glycemic eating, and fat-burning exercise--not on a fad diet or on artificial sweeteners. It’s a plan they can and will follow for life; their success and their bounding energy, glowing skin, and improved mood provide ongoing motivation. The fact that the food they eat is so satisfying means they will not be tempted to fall off the wagon.

Rather, they have changed their whole relationship to food and to sweets—they just don’t want them, and they certainly don’t crave them. They have learned that artificial sweeteners don’t help weight loss—in fact, researchers are studying whether artificial sweeteners trigger a “negative metabolic response” that actually causes people to gain weight.

The latest efforts to create and market artificial sweeteners frustrate me because these researchers are barking up the wrong tree.  Why spend money and brain power pursuing something that still poses “nagging health concerns” about possible harmful effects? Why go on inventing newer versions of fake sugar that ironically might make you gain weight?

Wouldn’t it be smarter to make the transition to a healthier lifestyle that not only helps you lose excess fat, but reduces your risk of heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis and even cancer? That increases your energy and stamina in the office, and in the bedroom?

What do you think? Are you using an artificial sweetener? Which one? Has it helped you lose weight?