[thelazydogsback]

To me it comes down to this: sugar is bad for you in a multitude of very measurable ways, both short-term and long-term. Artificial sweeteners, at the very least, seem to be more subtle in any adverse effects. (And some which I wish got used more, like Xylitol, even have some benefits, in addition to tasting better than Sucrolose or stevia, etc.) Personally, I would rather have my son drink an occasional diet soda than one containing 40g of sugar -- his mom thinks the opposite.