Sugar-Free Products and Weight Gain

I was as mystified as the rest of you when I heard that consumption of sugar-free drinks was associated with weight gain. There was a theory behind it - that the sugar-free stuff somehow made you crave actual sugary foods.

I've never liked these drinks much, but lately, I've been sick and living off Squirt and 7-Up. I decided to try some sugar-free stuff for the low-cal. I've been working on a bottle of Coke's Fresca for the last two days. It tastes great for some reason, unlike most aspartame crap.

And I've been snacking on sweets, and food in general, all day. Before I was drinking Squirt and 7-up, full of real sugar, and I wasn't craving any food, sugary or otherwise. Now I'm drinking Fresca and I can't get enough sugary foods.

Now, I usually eat sugar a couple times a day. I eat one as a reward for dessert and maybe a small other one early in the day for a treat. Never had problems with sugar cravings.

How does this work. The real sugary drink doesn't make you crave sugar, maybe because it is sugar. The fake sugar makes you crave sugar, because it tastes sweet, but somehow your body knows it's not real sugar, and the more you drink, the more you want the real thing.

I guess there is something to the theory after all.