Studies with people who drink diet sodas or eat foods with artificial sweeteners don’t show that these sweeteners change the good bacteria in your gut or how your body handles sugar, as long as you’re eating or drinking them in normal amounts.

What you eat overall—like veggies, meat, or carbs—is probably what’s really changing your gut bacteria, not the sugar-free sweeteners in your diet.

When people eat or drink things with low-calorie sweeteners like they normally do, studies show it doesn’t hurt their health.

Artificial sweeteners might mess up the good bacteria in your gut, which could mean your body makes less of a helpful substance that keeps your blood sugar in check.

Even if you have existing health issues like diabetes, studies show that drinking diet soda or eating foods with artificial sweeteners doesn’t seem to make your health worse.

Several official health groups have looked at lots of science studies over and over, and they all agree that artificial sweeteners won’t hurt you if you eat or drink them in normal amounts.