splenda sweetener

[high_jinx]

i was curious what everyone else thought of this new artificial alternative to saccharin and aspartame... i've replaced my blu packs w/ yellow ones. i also wondered if anyone knew how it stacked up to the others chemically and healthwise in terms of side effects etc.

[ShaniFaye]

the pink and blue gave me migraines, I couldnt even use half a pack of one in a cup of coffee without getting one

yellow doesnt do it....so IF Im in a position where I have to use them I dont mind using it.

[BCD]

There isn't another sugar substitute that I can tolerate except for Splenda. Everything I've had with Splenda in it tasted pretty freakin' good. My dad is pickier than I am and he carries it with him for his iced tea when he's eating out. He swears by it and claims to have lost several pounds by ditching his daily Pepsis for iced tea with Splenda.

There is a no-fat, low-carb Edy's vanilla ice cream made with Splenda that was rated best-tasting in a recent Mens Fitness magazine. I bought some to check it out, and it is very hard to taste the difference from the real thing. I'm lucky in that I don't have a real sweet tooth, but it seems like a GREAT product for a healthy eater or dieter who still craves sweets.

[SparklingDot]

I get really bad headaches when I eat or drink anything with splenda. I don't like the way it tastes either, and I can usually tell. Give me the good old fashioned stuff any day.

[Irishsean]

I don't have much of a sweet tooth lately, but when I do, I try to use splenda, you really can't tell the difference in taste unless your really looking for it, and I don't get the headaches I usually get if I use nutra-sweet.

[hannukah harry]

i like splenda, in small doses... if you eat enough of it (and i'm not talking about all that much), it can have a laxative effect. blech...

[Redlemon]

I haven't had any issues with it, and like ShaniFaye, the others all gave me headaches. Note that the Coca-cola product C2 has about 3 different artifical sweeteners in addition to the sugar, not just Splenda; the Pepsi version Edge only has Splenda and real sugar.

I initially thought that Splenda was giving me digestive issues, but it turned out it was the wheatgrass.

[ShaniFaye]

Is Pepsi the only soft drink using it? I have never been able to drink a diet version of any cola because of the headaches (and the god awful aftertaste they left) but I'd be willing to try one (besides pepsi...dont like pepsi) that used splenda only

I havent noticed any digestive problems....but then I only use it in coffee in a resturant when they only have 4 packs of real sugar on the table lol my coffee requires way more than 4 packs

[Glory's Sun]

I HATE splenda! It tastes like crap. I made a pitcher of tea with splenda and one with sugar.. there was a huge difference. Maybe I'm just overly picky but everything I've tried with splenda in it tastes so bland... no thanks..

[ShaniFaye]

of course there is a huge difference....but in my household I have a child that is diabetic and I have an allergy to the pink and the blue....while I do my best to have the best of both worlds...a tea pitcher full of sweet tea made the RIGHT way and a tea pitcher with artificial sweetner for her....she reacts wonderfully to the splenda and incase I run out of my own...I can steal hers at least long enuff to make my own and not suffer because of it.

NOTHING is ever going to taste the way it does with real sugar....but Im glad to finally see an alternative that works for both me and her

[Glory's Sun]

I can see how it is good for diabetics. My mother is a diabetic as is her father. They both use it and have adjusted to it quite well. If I end up with diabetes then I'd rather learn to like unsweet tea cuz I really can't stand the taste of splenda :P

[Redlemon]

I've heard that there is a correlation between sensitivity to aspartame and sensitivity to MSG. It is certainly true for me.

[ShaniFaye]

AMEN redlemon...it is for me too....I know around here at least there were chinese resturants that "added" msg to the food....and I'd be out of commission if I ate there....fornuately its not as common anymore....I can take it in small doses so its not as bad as the reaction to aspartame, but Im still sensitive to it.

[Val_1]

I've tried Splenda twice ... both times I felt sick to my stomach. Plus, hydrogenating sugar? Perhaps I'm paranoid, and I am, but it can't be good for you. If you're not diabetic, just go with sugar. Just do it in moderation and don't over eat.

[Shizukana]

Splenda is simply reverse engineered sugar. It is composed of the same elements in the same combinations as a typical sugar molecule, but the chemical bonds are changed so that your body passes them instead of storing them like it does typical sugar. So, as far as health benefits go... it's certainly much less dangerous than Equal or Sweet n Low (the blue and the pink, as you guys have been calling them.)

As for the taste - I prefer it to Equal and Sweet and Low, but I typically don't use sweeteners. If I'm at a restaurant that doesn't have sweet tea (a travesty), then I drink the unsweetened tea. I do put it in my coffee though occasionally.

[thingstodo]

My wife tells me Splenda, sugar, equal....pretty much all do something to yor glycema levels. The result is some protein in converted directly to fat rather than being processed by your body. I don't have any idea how much of the other stuff you have to consume for this to become an issue.

She now uses some herbal sweetener that actually has fiber but looks like a powder. I haven't tried it in anything but a touch to the tongue and it was VERY sweet. She says the first drink of her tea is like that but then it goes away.

I like a diet cola every day or so but learned to drink iced tea with no sugar years ago when all you could fnd was that terrible pink stuff!!

[hannukah harry]

Originally Posted by thingstodo

My wife tells me Splenda, sugar, equal....pretty much all do something to yor glycema levels. The result is some protein in converted directly to fat rather than being processed by your body. I don't have any idea how much of the other stuff you have to consume for this to become an issue.

pretty much everything i've read about artificial sweetners says the opposite, they have no effect on blood glucose levels. the part about protein, never heard one way or the other. (if i remember) i'll do a little searching into it and post back... if anyone else feels like doing it (in case i forget, this is really early for me), feel free.

[inharmony]

I use Splenda now, used to use Sweet n Low. Now when I use Sweet n Low it's way too noticeable to me. I only wish Diet Mt.Dew used Splenda!!

[pinkie]

Nutra Sweet (aspertame) turns to formaldehyde in your system, Splenda (surculose) doesn't.

Both, I've read, can trigger an insulin release from the brain thinking it's getting sugar, which can then trigger carbohydrate cravings. I've never heard of them being converted into gluclose, and then fat, though.

[Racer]

I've used it in several times. In some things, its ok, in others it isn't. For me, it's a lot of trial and error.

[thingstodo]

I checked with my wife. The new thing is GI, or glycemic index. It has to do with how carbs are processed.

Any food other than fruits and veggies that has a high GI will prompt more protein eaten with these foods to be processed into fat instead of going where you want. Basically, stay away from simple carbs, which means white carbs (processed) like white bread, white rice, etc. Go after wheat flower, semolina for pastas, brown rice. I was worried about potatoes, but they are complex and considered like fruits and veggies.

Splenda does have a GI index, similar to Equal.

For me, I'm just limiting my intake of sodas in general since I don't drink the sugar stuff anyway. Jack LaLane said it best... if man made it, don't eat it! He's pretty old and healthy!!