The forums below range from mostly young men (e.g., Muscular Development) to mostly young women (e.g., Oxygen) and the results are fairly consistent.

If you combine the answers from question 2 and 3 (which are in essence the same question in terms of purchase decisions) you get a clear picture; the majority of people in this demographic cares much more about taste and cost ( though cost was not in the poll that was a common response on the forums themselves…) then “natural” vs. synthetics.

The poll question I asked were:

• I strictly use products with natural sweeteners/flavors
• I prefer natural to synthetic, but it’s not a deal breaker
• I don’t pay attention to how they do it, as long as it tastes good!
• I prefer protein powders with no flavors of any kind/flavor myself

Results from my BodyBuilding Revealed Forums:

I strictly use products with natural sweeteners/flavors 20.59%
I prefer natural to synthetic, but it’s not a deal breaker 50.00%
I don’t pay attention to how they do it, as long as it tastes good! 14.71%
I prefer protein powders with no flavors of any kind/flavor myself 14.71%

Results from Muscular Development Forums:

I strictly use products with natural sweeteners/flavors 8.82%
I prefer natural to synthetic, but it’s not a deal breaker 29.41%
I don’t pay attention to how they do it, as long as it tastes good! 58.82%
I prefer protein powders with no flavors of any kind/flavor myself 2.94%

Iron Magazine forums:

I strictly use products with natural sweeteners/flavors 36.36%
I prefer natural to synthetic, but it’s not a deal breaker 18.18%
I don’t pay attention to how they do it, as long as it tastes good! 45.45%
I prefer protein powders with no flavors of any kind/flavor myself 0

Siouxcountry.com

I strictly use products with natural sweeteners/flavors 5.41%
I prefer natural to synthetic, but it’s not a deal breaker 43.24%
I don’t pay attention to how they do it, as long as it tastes good! 45.95%
I prefer protein powders with no flavors of any kind/flavor myself 5.41%

Oxygen Magazine Forums:

I strictly use products with natural sweeteners/flavors 32.26%
I prefer natural to synthetic, but it’s not a deal breaker 29.03%
I don’t pay attention to how they do it, as long as it tastes good! 32.26%
I prefer protein powders with no flavors of any kind/flavor myself 6.45%

Sample sizes were not huge, but pretty consistent….

“Natural” vs. Synthetic sweeteners poll is a post from: The Final Frontier In Bodybuilding , Fat Loss, Health & Fitness