Splenda vs Sugar

f8thwks

: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:

beduffbrickie

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

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

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

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

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

I love Splenda..use it for sweet tea, kool-aid, coffee...and even bake with it. Wouldn't change a thing !

SilviCor

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

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

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

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

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

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 ....

Thanks for all the comments...:bigsmile:

iuew

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

42micheller42

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

SMARTY PANTS!

LabRat529

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

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

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

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

Well out of all the sweeteners I've tried Splenda is the best 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

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

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 ....

Thanks for all the comments...:bigsmile:

Use which ever one you want. Neither is bad.

Zekela

Have you guys tried the french vanilla spenda in the coffee isle? Awesome!! I haven't been logging it due to laziness. That is all.

Skrib69

Personally I don't like the idea of eating heavily processed foods so drink tea and coffee without sugar. In baking we use regular sugar, but stupidly I drink diet soda to preserve my teeth. Go figure!!:laugh: :noway: :embarassed: :frown:

Sabine_Stroehm

I don't add sugar, or eat foods with much added sugar. I try to avoid splenda, but will eat a few things with it.

Sugar typically causes me to have cravings, and if I eat too much, my blood sugars go all over the place. I just avoid it mostly.

kjm3579

I tried to use Splenda for a few days. I had had Splenda in coffee several times early in the day and during the day was doing a stair climbing challenge. I got very light headed and gave up the stair climbing challenge but the dizziness remained and got so bad I eventually got sick to my stomach at work. I couldn't even get out of the building and onto the bus by myself. I had to have my son come and take me home where I go sick several more times until my stomach got cleared out -- the interesting thing was that I didn't bring up anything except some fluids and several sticky white globs which I believe was the Splenda. I haven't used it since and have never had a repeat of that experience. I currently don't use any sweetener in my coffee (if I have any coffee at all) and am even drinking only decaf. to wean myself off of coffee as well.

shaneamckinney

Unrefined sugar (or honey) , always in moderation.
*** Consume appropriate for your planned activity. ***

TigerBite

Splenda tastes weird ... It has a weird chlorine-like aftertaste ... and xylitol give you a weird cooling sensation, then there's stevia, which tastes like bitter glower petals ... Nope, nope ... Thanks, but I'll just stick with the unbleached sugar (evaporated can juice), molasses, maple syrup, and honey ... they taste WAY better ...

I'd rather eat bee spittle than fake laboratory sugar ...

Sabine_Stroehm

I tried to use Splenda for a few days. I had had Splenda in coffee several times early in the day and during the day was doing a stair climbing challenge. I got very light headed and gave up the stair climbing challenge but the dizziness remained and got so bad I eventually got sick to my stomach at work. I couldn't even get out of the building and onto the bus by myself. I had to have my son come and take me home where I go sick several more times until my stomach got cleared out -- the interesting thing was that I didn't bring up anything except some fluids and several sticky white globs which I believe was the Splenda. I haven't used it since and have never had a repeat of that experience. I currently don't use any sweetener in my coffee (if I have any coffee at all) and am even drinking only decaf. to wean myself off of coffee as well.

How do you know it was splenda and not, say, a virus?

shaydenee

Hi,

Splenda is a staple in my home, I love tea or coffee with it and cannot have oatmeal unless it's sweetened. That being said, i came across an article that has made me question removing it from my diet altogether.

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2009/02/10/new-study-of-splenda-reveals-shocking-information-about-potential-harmful-effects.aspx

Apparently Spenda does the following and may have more side effects:
•Reduces the amount of good bacteria in your intestines by 50 percent
•Increases the pH level in your intestines, and
•Affects a glycoprotein in your body that can have crucial health effects, particularly if you’re on certain medications

TX_Rhon

I drink a Starbucks almost everyday - not the skinny or sugar free variety. I do not like the taste of artificial sweetners. With that said, I've still lost over 40 lbs by consuming regular sugar. The sugar debate is huge on MFP so do what works for you. :drinker:

manny1991

Splenda tastes weird ... It has a weird chlorine-like aftertaste ... and xylitol give you a weird cooling sensation, then there's stevia, which tastes like bitter glower petals ... Nope, nope ... Thanks, but I'll just stick with the unbleached sugar (evaporated can juice), molasses, maple syrup, and honey ... they taste WAY better ...

I'd rather eat bee spittle than fake laboratory sugar ...

^ this!

Beside the fact that artificial sweeteners give me headaches, I just can't get over the gross aftertaste. If real sugar wont fit into my calories, it just isn't worth it!