I tell you, there's no justice in this world. When you see this:

...and this:

...you might be asking yourself: "Gee, is there any sugar substitute safe from dangerous health effects?"

I am sorry to report that, no, it does not look that way:

A sugar replacement called erythritol — used to add bulk or sweeten stevia, monkfruit and keto reduced-sugar products — has been linked to blood clotting, stroke, heart attack and death, according to a study.

My ironclad, non-negotiable policy on sodas from this day onward:

Erythritol is a naturally occurring organic sweet chemical compound; it is markedly less sweet than sugar, and scientists have claimed it offers no ill health effects relative to normal sucrose. It is synthesized at industrial scale for use in food additives.

According to one food scientist, Dr. Stanley Hazen, it has become "the sweetheart of the food industry, an extremely popular additive to keto and other low-carb products and foods marketed to people with diabetes." It's in a lot of stuff, in other words.

The study found that participants already at high risk of heart disease were "twice as likely to experience a heart attack or stroke if they had the highest levels of erythritol in their blood." The substance "appeared to be causing blood platelets to clot more readily."

As Hazen put it on the newest revelations:

We never expected this. We weren't even looking for it.

What a surprise! Maybe cramming huge amounts of synthetic sweetener into countless consumer products wasn't the best idea? Maybe?

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