Caffiene and "sweetener"

Mikej77

No idea if this has been mentioned and I did not perform a search because I have some specifics that I wanted to talk about. I have always been a dunkin donuts addict. Before I started MFP I was getting large coffees with extra cream and extra sugar. Not really a coffee fan when it comes to taste, I just want to pick me up. I have tried all the other energy drinks out there, red bull, sugar free redbull, diet mountain dew, they all seem to be ok, but not like that coffee. I just recently picked up some monster energy rehab flavor, only 20 calaries in a can. Yet I have a feeling that some of the other chemicals are not the best. I was just wondering what everyones opinions were about artifical sweeteners as well as a way to get some caffiene. I am currently getting my coffee with splenda, the guy at work suggested that stevia or truvia. I was also told that green tea is a good option.

laddibugg

I was going to ask the same question, because the EXACT situation happened to me--was going to use Splenda, but a coworker suggested Truvia. She said the artificial sweeteners make you hungrier. I'd love to hear the community's take on this before I go to the grocery store.

holdingon2faith793

i use stevia in the raw , I think i spelled it right, currently trying to trade in the coffee with creamer and sugar for green tea with stevia.

GiveMeCoffee

I'm still a Dunkin Donut coffee addict as well as just about any coffee! I drink mass quantities black with 1 sweet n low per cup. The changes I'm making are ones I can stick with forever and because of that I won't give up my coffee

nomeejerome

No idea if this has been mentioned and I did not perform a search because I have some specifics that I wanted to talk about. I have always been a dunkin donuts addict. Before I started MFP I was getting large coffees with extra cream and extra sugar. Not really a coffee fan when it comes to taste, I just want to pick me up. I have tried all the other energy drinks out there, red bull, sugar free redbull, diet mountain dew, they all seem to be ok, but not like that coffee. I just recently picked up some monster energy rehab flavor, only 20 calaries in a can. Yet I have a feeling that some of the other chemicals are not the best. I was just wondering what everyones opinions were about artifical sweeteners as well as a way to get some caffiene. I am currently getting my coffee with splenda, the guy at work suggested that stevia or truvia. I was also told that green tea is a good option.

Or…you could make that large coffee with extra cream and extra sugar fit into your day…..

Do not get freaked out about artificial sweeteners, sugar etc. There is a brigade of people that believe "the chemicals" in artificial sweeteners are going to be the death of mankind, but in reality, everything has chemicals in it. If you enjoy the coffee, drink the coffee and make it fit into your day.

taiyola

Or…you could make that large coffee with extra cream and extra sugar fit into your day…..

Do not get freaked out about artificial sweeteners, sugar etc. There is a brigade of people that believe "the chemicals" in artificial sweeteners are going to be the death of mankind, but in reality, everything has chemicals in it. If you enjoy the coffee, drink the coffee and make it fit into your day.

I have coffee with sweeteners. I'm still alive. I'm sure most of what you eat will have some kind of chemical, bar like home grown veggies etc.

arrrrjt

Why not just a black coffee? One thing I read once - "Cancer is hard. Death is hard. Having your coffee black IS. NOT. HARD."

I've tried to cut out coffees and replace them with tea to no avail (caffeine headaches). I'm still trying to wean myself off, but in the meantime black coffees is a way to get "guilt-free" caffeine.

Green tea is high in caffeine and should work well for you. Any kind of sweetener, artificial or not, will cause your body to CRAVE that sweetness.

Acg67

No idea if this has been mentioned and I did not perform a search because I have some specifics that I wanted to talk about.

Nope this is the first I've seen on artificial sweeteners. Do you have anything stronger than a feeling as to why certain chemicals aren't the best, like actual research?

If you're that worried about certain chemicals, just pop caffeine pills, you can buy them in bulk and they come in 200mg tabs

zeebruhgirl

Starbucks has great sugar free syrups.
I love using Splenda too.


I unfortunately found out this weekend that I'm allergic to erythritol which is in some artificial sweeteners (specifically McDonald's sugar free syrup)

So now I'll have to start being more careful :[

loserbaby84

Green tea with stevia FTW

Most likely won't give you the "pick me up" feel like coffee does though, sorry!

zeebruhgirl

Starbucks has great sugar free syrups.
I love using Splenda too.


I unfortunately found out this weekend that I'm allergic to erythritol which is in some artificial sweeteners (specifically McDonald's sugar free syrup)

So now I'll have to start being more careful :[

I should have mentioned that erythritol is in Truvia! Splenda only for me now.

kikidee12

I have no problem with artificial sweetners. They give me that little taste of sweet to help my sweet tooth. But my sister has found they "set her up to eat more " because she believes they make her crave more sugar. Maybe it's an individual thing?

chani8

I quit sugar a year ago, and now a cup of coffee with cream tastes sweet, because cream has natural sugar in it. Milk is like candy to me, it has so much natural sugar.

donna710

I love coffee in the morning! so mine is usually a big cup with Vanilla Caramel creamer (30 cal/tsp) and a packet of Stevia in the Raw. Stevia is supposed to be all natural and plant-based.
I also love Celestial Seasoning Green Tea k-cup with one packet of stevia.
I don't feel either way is too bad..

Nikki31104

I have not done research on this so I am only going to tell you what my Neurologist told me...absolutely no aspartame. She said it has been linked to seizures and since I already have seizures lets not add that to it. I have no idea about any artificial sweetener that does not contain aspartame.

PJ64

I LOVE DD Coffee but wanted to cut down on the sugar, tried a bunch of different sweeteners, settled on splenda


Also, love green tea and honey for sweetness

rblee2010

Years ago I was having a lot of health problems and went back and forth to the doctor, I was check for MS and a muscle test done on the computer, where they shock and stuck me from the ankle to my neck. After all of the test and time later found out it was the sweetener that was doing all of this to me, so I will tell you to be careful when it come to sweetener. Yes they also keep me hungry.

Mr_Starr

I was going to ask the same question, because the EXACT situation happened to me--was going to use Splenda, but a coworker suggested Truvia. She said the artificial sweeteners make you hungrier. I'd love to hear the community's take on this before I go to the grocery store.

I am one of those people that find artificial sweeteners seriously make me more hungry. I was gaining weight year after year and switched to artificial sweeteners in an effort to stop gaining weight. Instead my weight started going up even faster! So during the next six months i kept track of what i ate in a log book and also noted when i was hungry (this was days before smart phones so it was much more difficult). I found during those weeks i was using artificial sweeteners I was a lot more ravenous. I snacked more and always seemed to go back for seconds.

So I just decided to quit Soda and sweet drinks altogether. In the next year after I slowly lost 20 lbs and stayed at that weight for years. Though now i am working on getting back to a more healthy weight.

The good thing is after a few months my craving for constant sweets went away.

I should have also known better. In my youth when I worked as a bartender at a Pizza place, I always thought it odd that the fat folks would always order huge pizzas with lots of toppings... with large diet sodas. And the fit folk would order smaller pizzas with fewer topping and order small sodas (with sugar).


...and in response to Nikki31104's comment.... as for aspartame I have a few friends with horror stories. Yes i had a one friend that had seizures, others had some other reactions put harder to prove, but the worse was a friend who reacted with a change to his personality. He went from a mild mannered introvert to a foul mouthed angry jerk. Luckily it was caught in time before it completely destroyed his life.

nomeejerome

I was going to ask the same question, because the EXACT situation happened to me--was going to use Splenda, but a coworker suggested Truvia. She said the artificial sweeteners make you hungrier. I'd love to hear the community's take on this before I go to the grocery store.

I am one of those people that find artificial sweeteners seriously make me more hungry. I was gaining weight year after year and switched to artificial sweeteners in an effort to stop gaining weight. Instead my weight started going up even faster! So during the next six months i kept track of what i ate in a log book and also noted when i was hungry (this was days before smart phones so it was much more difficult). I found during those weeks i was using artificial sweeteners I was a lot more ravenous. I snacked more and always seemed to go back for seconds.

So I just decided to quit Soda and sweet drinks altogether. In the next year after I slowly lost 20 lbs and stayed at that weight for years. Though now i am working on getting back to a more healthy weight.

The good thing is after a few months my craving for constant sweets went away.

I should have also known better. In my youth when I worked as a bartender at a Pizza place, I always thought it odd that the fat folks would always order huge pizzas with lots of toppings... with large diet sodas. And the fit folk would order smaller pizzas with fewer topping and order small sodas (with sugar).


...and in response to Nikki31104's comment.... as for aspartame I have a few friends with horror stories. Yes i had a one friend that had seizures, others had some other reactions put harder to prove, but the worse was a friend who reacted with a change to his personality. He went from a mild mannered introvert to a foul mouthed angry jerk. Luckily it was caught in time before it completely destroyed his life.

1. You started tracking your calories and found a calorie deficit=weight loss.
2. Your observation at the pizza place cannot be nailed down to simply aspartame. Calorie surplus=weight gain. Calorie deficit=weight loss. (Also, you knew nothing else of their habits outside of the pizza place)
3. I am willing to wager there is more to the story on the friend who did the flip change from "a mild mannered introvert to a foul mouthed angry jerk" and aspartame is not the cause.

Mikej77

I just had one of these, and to be honest, they are pretty dam good for only 20 calories. Going to try and find this at my local store http://www.monsterenergy.com/us/en/products/rehab/#!/products:protean

1shauna1

One thing I don't want to change is my morning coffee (and wine, but that's another topic! lol). I have mine two cream, one Splenda. I don't like the taste of sugar. Honestly, I doubt one or two Splendas a day will kill me, with all the other chemicals/ hazards in the world!

EDIT: to clarify, I mean sugar in coffee. I definitely like sugar in cakes/pies/chocolate/tarts......

lupinibean

I've been using Splenda with Fiber in my morning coffee since they started making it. Before that I used regular Splenda. Before that I used Equal. Before that...well, let's just say I can't remember the last time I had sugar in my coffee, unless I was at a friend's house and nothing else was available. I also drink 1 (or occasionally) 2 Coke Zeros per day. You would think I would be dead by now, but instead I'm not only alive but quite healthy. I would like to emphasize that I (knock on wood) have never had any kind of serious health concern, though. And the only thing that makes me hungrier is not eating enough food to begin with.

boatyboat

Just a thought. I use Splenda to kill fire ants in my pasture. Fortunately, my horses don't like it. I don't want them eating Splenda and dead fire ants. (If you have fire ants this really does work great!! Just don't use much, 2-3 tablespoons is enough, more than that and the ant get skeptical and won't take it back to the mound.)

Given the fact that it works as a great insecticide, I won't ingest the stuff.

harleygroomer

I was a Starbucks addict for a LONG time. a QUAD venti latte was my daily get up and go and believe with the 5 shots of expresso in my coffee I WENT!!!!!!!!!! But my trainer took them away from me and gave me B12 instead. But I still drive by and wave:drinker:

lupinibean

Just a thought. I use Splenda to kill fire ants in my pasture. Fortunately, my horses don't like it. I don't want them eating Splenda and dead fire ants. (If you have fire ants this really does work great!! Just don't use much, 2-3 tablespoons is enough, more than that and the ant get skeptical and won't take it back to the mound.)

Given the fact that it works as a great insecticide, I won't ingest the stuff.

http://www.snopes.com/humor/iftrue/antpoison.asp

I do like the part about the skeptical ants, though, LOL. I can just see them looking at each other and nodding wisely, a-ha, she's trying to trick us!

boatyboat

Origins via Snopes or not...does not matter to me. What does matter is the fact that it actually works as fire ant killer and I have no more fire ants to prove it.

Acg67

Just a thought. I use Splenda to kill fire ants in my pasture. Fortunately, my horses don't like it. I don't want them eating Splenda and dead fire ants. (If you have fire ants this really does work great!! Just don't use much, 2-3 tablespoons is enough, more than that and the ant get skeptical and won't take it back to the mound.)

Given the fact that it works as a great insecticide, I won't ingest the stuff.

Strong logic, NaCl kills slugs, guess it's best left alone

jollyjoe321

I usually use a small amount (half a sachet) to just spark up my black coffee occasionally, otherwise I don't normally.

laddibugg

Just a thought. I use Splenda to kill fire ants in my pasture. Fortunately, my horses don't like it. I don't want them eating Splenda and dead fire ants. (If you have fire ants this really does work great!! Just don't use much, 2-3 tablespoons is enough, more than that and the ant get skeptical and won't take it back to the mound.)

Given the fact that it works as a great insecticide, I won't ingest the stuff.

Strong logic, NaCl kills slugs, guess it's best left alone

Oh, no, it's natural so it must be good!