Artificial sweeteners are chemicals designed to mimic the taste of sugar without providing the same amount of dietary calories. They can be derived from synthetic or natural sources. In the United States, four artificial sweeteners are approved for use: saccharin, aspartame, sucralose, and acesulfame-K.

The desire for sweet taste is thought to be an innate human trait. Cave paintings at Arana in Spain show a Neolithic man getting honey from a bee hive. Scientists have suggested that early humans used sweetness as a guide to foods that were safe to eat.

One drawback to foods that contain large amounts of sugar is that they are also high in calories. Artificial sweeteners were developed to provide sweetening with fewer or no calories. They also have the added benefits of improving the palatability of foul-tasting drugs, helping people who suffer from diabetes. The first artificial sweetener was saccharin...