Splenda vs Sugar

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f8thwks
f8thwks Posts: 11 Member
in Food and Nutrition
:noway: I have been doing research and have not found anything concrete on the subject.... I would love to know other people take on the matter... As of right now, I am in a crossroad between using splenda and regular sugar... However, I am still counting calories so I don't use that much sugar... However, I do love to drink coffee at lease once or twice a day and I don't like to drink it black.... :drinker: I really perfer my coffee a little sweet... The bottom line is that I really want to know if there is any danger to using SPLENDA.... I personally need some concrete evidents...:noway:
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  • beduffbrickie
    beduffbrickie Posts: 642 Member
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    I gave up sugar when I was 23 (now 25) after a period of 6 months since my last check up at the dentist she told me I need 6x fillings, and was like what you been eating in them 6months..... so I gave sugar up, it was very hard as I loved a cup of tea with 2 sugars in etc. switched to splenda and after a month got used to it. and now prefer it. Plus 1 table spoon of sugar is like 30cals and splenda is like 1cals, so seen the benefit in other ways. I will never have sugar again, nearly 3 years cold turkey:laugh:
  • 42micheller42
    42micheller42 Posts: 36
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    Many years ago I felt I was sensitive to sugar some how and switched to splenda .... have used it for years. I have researched it several times because people would say .. that stuff is bad ...blah blah blah... some sweeteners are bad but I haven't read anything conclusive about splenda. There are alternatives at the healthfood stores ... I have tried stevia but didn't like the aftertaste..I have heard of Agave syrup but haven't tried it ..
    Toodles:glasses:
  • Kamalalue
    Kamalalue Posts: 87 Member
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    The difference between sugar and Splenda is a little more than taste and calories...

    http://jstevens.wordpress.com/2008/02/20/how-sucralose-aka-splenda-is-made-and-why-you-want-to-avoid-it/

    They chlorinate sugar to produce splenda. Splenda is chemically altered sugar.

    I personally view the biggest threat, as the fact that Splenda is 10 times sweeter, and it is really easy to get used to eating foods that are sweeter. Splenda may not have calories, but it still can trick your body into the highs and lows that come with sugar consumption.
  • iuew
    iuew Posts: 624 Member
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    if you want to find out about artificial sweeteners, go to pubmed instead of "natural" blogs for info. there are many peer-reviewed studies, and the general consensus is that artificial sweeteners are not harmful.

    here's a comprehensive review of studies for aspartame, a common sweetener :

    http://www.dieteticai.ufba.br/Temas/ACUCARES/ASPARTAME.pdf

    here is an overview on the safety of sucralose (splenda) :

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19464334
  • f8thwks
    f8thwks Posts: 11 Member
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    I know about the comments about how bad Splenda suppose to be, but I'm still not convince yet... :ohwell: Until I find something concrete about Splenda, I will keep using it... Plus, the calories intake is so GOOD....:bigsmile:
  • MelsFitLife
    MelsFitLife Posts: 106 Member
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    I love Splenda..use it for sweet tea, kool-aid, coffee...and even bake with it. Wouldn't change a thing !
  • SilviCor
    SilviCor Posts: 110 Member
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    I know about the comments about how bad Splenda suppose to be, but I'm still not convince yet... :ohwell: Until I find something concrete about Splenda, I will keep using it... Plus, the calories intake is so GOOD....:bigsmile:
    This is going to perhaps sound weird but, I was using Splenda for many years, and alot each day (2 packets per cup of coffee and I would drink 3 cups per day so 6 packets a day). Then I started to notice that every time I drank my coffee, I would start to wheeze (or if I drank coffee and had something else that included artifical sweetner like fat-free yogourt, diet Pepsi, etc.). I eliminated anything else that could be the culprit, until I go to the Splenda and realized that that was the thing that made me wheeze (felt like a mild asthma attack). I did some research and found that you can in fact become allergic to Splenda after years of use. Once I cut out the Splenda, the problem was gone. Weird but true for me!
  • Spinelli2288
    Spinelli2288 Posts: 188 Member
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    I switched to Stevia and I love the stuff. I get the Vanilla Bean Stevia in liquid form to add to my coffee! All natural, no chemicals.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    Nope. Despite the scary tales, I've found no concrete scientific evidence to indicate that splenda is in anyway dangerous.

    Yes, I know, I know... people will link the studies and be all OMG it's gonna kill you!

    I've never seen a really quality study to show in any way that it's really dangerous.

    And before people go saying "but it's made with chlorine!!!", let me just remind everyone: Dosage, absorption, concentration in the blood/body, metabolism, etc... all of that factors into deciding whether something is really toxic or not.

    We eat nature-made "toxins" all the time... and in many cases, we NEED compounds that can become toxic at excessively high doses.

    Concentration matters.
  • ShaneWinston58
    ShaneWinston58 Posts: 159
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    I use Splenda, because of the reduction in calories, and because it tastes good. However, I only use 1/2 of a packet, because I find that it is very sweet. That saves on the cost of the Splenda, as well.
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    I switched to Stevia and I love the stuff. I get the Vanilla Bean Stevia in liquid form to add to my coffee! All natural, no chemicals.

    Everything has chemicals in it, even Stevia. The difference is, stevia supposedly contains "all natural" chemicals instead of "man made" chemicals.

    A chemical is a chemical is a chemical as far as your body is concerned... the chemical can fit in a receptor, it can be broken down into smaller chemicals, it can be used to make bigger chemicals.... it just depends on what the chemical is and on whether our bodies recognize/need it.

    Do you know what the chemical molecule in stevia is that makes it taste sweet without the calories? I don't... but I'd be curious to know.

    Side note: I think its funny that my roommate goes out of her way to buy "all natural" dish soap. I flipped it over and looked at the ingredients- it's got the same kind of stuff that not-natural dish soap has. The difference is that the "all natural" was isolated from a plant source... The 'not-natural' stuff? Could be man-made or could be isolated from a plant source too! It depends on which is cheaper.
  • f8thwks
    f8thwks Posts: 11 Member
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    Wow... I have some very interesting comments here concerning Splenda vs Sugar... I have even viewed some of the websites that were included in some of the posts...

    :explode: Now, I am really confused... What do I do now? Do I stick with the splenda; do I try some other sweeteners; or do I just use regular sugar...

    Since I cook with the Splenda a lot, I am leaning toward the regular sugar... If there is any true factor that Splenda is bad for you and can cause harm to our bodies, the last thing I want to do is harm my family members especially my little grand babies...:happy:

    I think I will just play it safe and stick with the sugar and continue to count calories. I will also continue the amount of coffee that I drink during the day :drinker: and eventually, I will cut coffee out completely:cry: ....

    Thanks for all the comments...:bigsmile:
  • iuew
    iuew Posts: 624 Member
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    Do you know what the chemical molecule in stevia is that makes it taste sweet without the calories? I don't... but I'd be curious to know.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steviol_glycoside

    512px-Steviol_structure.svg.png
  • 42micheller42
    42micheller42 Posts: 36
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    Do you know what the chemical molecule in stevia is that makes it taste sweet without the calories? I don't... but I'd be curious to know.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steviol_glycoside

    512px-Steviol_structure.svg.png

    SMARTY PANTS!
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    Do you know what the chemical molecule in stevia is that makes it taste sweet without the calories? I don't... but I'd be curious to know.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steviol_glycoside

    Doh! I coulda wiki-ed it!

    Thanks!
  • LabRat529
    LabRat529 Posts: 1,323 Member
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    Do you know what the chemical molecule in stevia is that makes it taste sweet without the calories? I don't... but I'd be curious to know.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steviol_glycoside

    512px-Steviol_structure.svg.png

    P.S. What an interesting structure! It looks a little like a compound that can act on the androgen receptor (androgen = testosterone and DHT receptor).

    But that leads me to this question:

    Are people absolutely certain that Stevia has no biological effect other than to fool your brain into thinking it's eating "sweet".
  • AmandaBroun
    AmandaBroun Posts: 126
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    I go back and forth about whether I care more about the calories in real sugar or the chemicals in Splenda. *shrug*

    I haven't done enough my own reading to ban splenda from the house, but I do keep seeing more about it being "bad".
  • melanietimperley
    melanietimperley Posts: 4
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    Well out of all the sweeteners I've tried Splenda is the best :love: I use a half a tablet in all my drinks as opposed to 2 sugars in tea and I big sugar in coffee so too much sugar is bad for you get the point ? ! :drinker:
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    The difference between sugar and Splenda is a little more than taste and calories...

    http://jstevens.wordpress.com/2008/02/20/how-sucralose-aka-splenda-is-made-and-why-you-want-to-avoid-it/

    They chlorinate sugar to produce splenda. Splenda is chemically altered sugar.

    I personally view the biggest threat, as the fact that Splenda is 10 times sweeter, and it is really easy to get used to eating foods that are sweeter. Splenda may not have calories, but it still can trick your body into the highs and lows that come with sugar consumption.
    Yes, Splenda is chlorinated sugar. Salt happens to be chlorinated sodium. Your point? Chloride is also an essential nutrient.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
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    Wow... I have some very interesting comments here concerning Splenda vs Sugar... I have even viewed some of the websites that were included in some of the posts...

    :explode: Now, I am really confused... What do I do now? Do I stick with the splenda; do I try some other sweeteners; or do I just use regular sugar...

    Since I cook with the Splenda a lot, I am leaning toward the regular sugar... If there is any true factor that Splenda is bad for you and can cause harm to our bodies, the last thing I want to do is harm my family members especially my little grand babies...:happy:

    I think I will just play it safe and stick with the sugar and continue to count calories. I will also continue the amount of coffee that I drink during the day :drinker: and eventually, I will cut coffee out completely:cry: ....

    Thanks for all the comments...:bigsmile:
    Use which ever one you want. Neither is bad.

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