Truvia and Erythritol

catherineh1027

On MFP they're counted as 3 carbs a packet, but it's excreted primarily in urine. I was curious about this. If it still counts towards carb intake I'm going to cut them out; it's probably best to stay away from artificial sweeteners in the long run. Thoughts?

nvmomketo

I tend to count sugar alcohols since they affect my blood sugar somewhat.

Some of those carbs may be from the bulking agent, maltodextrin, which is a sugar added into sweeteners.

If you like stevia (truvia) consider trying the drops like Sweet Leaf. No fillers. It is quite strong though and doesn't take much to sweeten something. A teaspoon of sugar is equivalent to 2 or so drops, and a 1/4-1/3 cup of sugar is about the same as one dropper full of stevia.

lithezebra

I don't count erythritol, and I make sure that my erythritol doesn't contain maltodextrin. My personal feeling about sweeteners is that unless they start making me want to eat actual carbs, which they haven't, I'm happy that some of the sugar alcohols allow me to eat some real desserts.

ladipoet

Erythritol specifically is the one food item I only count net carbs for this very reason. Thankfully,I don't seem to be very sensitive to the better sugar alcohols like Erythritol and Xylitol like @mvmomketo above. I also prefer Erythritol over Xylitol for the same reason you previously mentioned. How does your body respond to this particular Sugar Alcohol? Listen to what your body is telling you and then make your decision as to whether or not to count net or gross carbs where Erythritol is concerned based on that.

catherineh1027

Will do. I appreciate the input!

Mamarose1900

Erythritol doesn't affect your body the way most sugar alcohols do. I don't count it because it doesn't raise my glucose levels or cause cravings. Stevia, in small amounts, does not affect me, either. I usually combine Swerve with a little stevia extract because Swerve doesn't have quite enough stevia in it to counteract that "cool mint" aftertaste erythritol can have.

lithezebra

I've been making my own blend of erythritol, Splenda, and inulin.

phxteach

@lithezebra - what proportions of the 3 are you using? and can you bake with it? I know you can with the first two, but inulin?? and where do you purchase inulin?

lithezebra

phxteach wrote: »

@lithezebra - what proportions of the 3 are you using? and can you bake with it? I know you can with the first two, but inulin?? and where do you purchase inulin?

I got Now inulin on Amazon. I use different proportions. Erythritol doesn't dissolve well, so I limit that to about 1/4 cup in a cheesecake recipe. For example, I made cheesecake with 1/3 cup erythritol, 1/3 cup xylitol, 1/3 cup Splenda, and 1 tablespoon of inulin, and it was just a tiny bit grainy, not annoying, but probably a little bit of erythritol that crystallized when the cheesecake cooled. I could probably get away with more Splenda. I can't taste it at all in cheesecake, so far.

In hot beverages, I don't bother with the xylitol, and just use equal parts erythritol and splenda, and a teaspoon of inulin.

*The slight bit of graininess could also be the creamed coconut that I used.

SamandaIndia

I am trying to minimise natural sugars as well as added. When I asked Dr about if I could add artificial sweeteners to anything he said No. Once my mouth tastes it the body is already firing up a response to deal with sweet. It does not care. So until I win the gut imbalance war there are no sweets, fruits, startchy veg or even artificial additions.

My sweeter treats are that I do have some (unsweetened coconut or almond milk with cinnamon and chia seeds ) or maccadamia nuts.

elize7

I use the Whole Foods brand of stevia extract powder - with no additives. I believe it does affect my rate of weight loss and does increase my sugar cravings somewhat; but when i cut it totally out of my diet i end up feeling extremely deprived and then binge on sugary foods. Using some of it daily enables me to be successful (lost 130 pounds so far) but i do have to be vigilant about managing some cravings that it triggers. I find i can do that if i know i can have my coffee how i like it, or a treat at the end of the day.