It is definitely true. I didn't realize at first because I wasn't a huge fan of artificial sweeteners. I only consumed about 3 packets of stevia a day - no other artificial stuff. I couldn't figure out why my blood sugar was out of control, until I stopped using them.

One way that they affect your body is that when you taste sweet anything your body responds by pumping out insulin. Insulin the fat storage hormone! While these sweeteners don't raise the blood glucose level in and of themselves just the sweet taste is enough to drive the insulin up and of course the BG levels down, which then makes you hungry and crave more sweet to get that BG up and stable again. I have really been working on myself to get them out of my diet. But sometimes you just want a little chocolate! So if I am going to do it I make sure I add only a small amount of the sweet thing and only with a meal. It's the only thing I have found that might mitigate the insulin spike that comes with the fake sweet.
Now that I am actively limiting my intake I am losing a bit fast and my sweet cravings are also slowly going away.