Finally, looks like saccharin will not only cause cancer (according to high-dose rat studies), it also will make us obese. A study published in the journal Behavioral Neuroscience found that the calorie-free artificial sweeteners drove rats to overeat by breaking the physiological connection between sweet tastes and calories.
Dr. Ross pointed out that the study dealt with seventeen rats total, which is hardly a reliable test group. Also, the "sugar" group actually were fed glucose, which is not as sweet as sucrose or saccharin.
ACSH advisor Adam Drewnowski, director of the nutrition sciences program at the University of Washington says it best: "We now have studies showing that sugar calories are associated with obesity and the absence of sugar is associated with obesity. Pity those people trying to do something about obesity."