According to a 2001 survey by the Calorie Control Council, well over 154 million American adults regularly consume low-calorie; sugar-free products, which utilize sugar additives such as artificially sweetened sodas and desserts. The Food and Drug Administration has approved four sugar additives— saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame-K, and sucralose— for use in a variety of foods. However, saccharin and aspartame has been the subject of an ongoing controversy that, in the case of saccharin, dates back to more than 20 years.

Aspartame has come under fire in recent years from individuals who have utilized the Internet in an attempt to link the sweetener to brain tumors and other serious disorders. However, the FDA has stood rather firmly behind its original approval of aspartame, and subsequent evaluations have shown that the product is somewhat safe although the product's continuing opposition remains just as adamant about the percentage of disparate information. Hence, a much smaller segment of the population is now considered to be highly sensitive to one of the sweetener's byproducts and should restrict intake. Still, the FDA insists that it continually monitors safety information on sugar additives such as aspartame and may indeed take action to protect public health if it receives credible scientific evidence indicating a public safety problem.

Other organizations give aspartame and the other approved sugar additives a thumbs up. For example, the American Heart Association endorses their use by diabetics and those on health-related weight-loss diets. The American Diabetes Association calls sugar additives "free foods" because they make food taste sweet, but they have essentially no calories and do not raise blood sugar levels. The granddaddy of all sugar additives is saccharin. Discovered back in 1879, it was used during both world wars to sweeten foods, helping to compensate for sugar shortages and rationing. It is 300 times sweeter than sugar.

Low-calorie sugar additives which taste exactly like sugar and could easily help control diseases like diabetes and obesity could be just around the corner, according to new study. Scientists at The University of Manchester and The University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore claim to have made a major advance in understanding what makes a substance taste sweet. The discovery could help pave the way for the development of low-calorie sweeteners that mimic natural sugar and leave no bitter aftertaste.

The competitive sugar additives industry is enjoying considerable growth above the industry average as consumers with growing health and weight concerns turn away from sugar-heavy foods and beverages to "light" versions. According to various market analysts, the sugar additives market is set to grow at around 8.3 percent per year until 2008, considerably higher than growth in the ingredients industry currently at about 3 to 4 percent.