What's the point??

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JaceyMarieS
JaceyMarieS Posts: 692 Member
in Food and Nutrition
of the Splenda baking blends???

In comparing nutritional info, a serving is exactly 1/2 the calories/carbs etc of regular sugar or brown sugar. Sounds great until you realize that the serving size (.5 t) is also exactly 1/2 the recommended serving size (1t) of regular sugar or brown sugar. Comparing a teaspoon of Splenda blend to a teaspoon of sugar shows the exact same nutritional content.

I'm diabetic. I look for ways to reduce carbs, including sugars. I am NOT looking for a way to empty my wallet. The baking blends are 3x the price of regular sugar.

I am NOT looking for a debate about low-carb. Not looking to hear that Splenda is toxic, etc but i am wondering why anyone would use a Splenda blend if the nutritional info is the same! Am I missing something?

Replies

  • JaceyMarieS
    JaceyMarieS Posts: 692 Member
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    Meant to add that I do use stevia as a sweetener, but have been very disappointed with results in baking.

    Honey is not a option at this point, as it raises my BS more than I'd like. My BS monitor has also shown me that I should quit wasting my time with agave nectar and just pour sugar packets into my mouth... hence my seeking out the Splenda blends in the first place
  • Mnata
    Mnata Posts: 35 Member
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    If I'm remembering right, Splenda is supposed to "taste" much sweeter than sugar, so you use less. Have you looked at recipes to see the amount of sugar used vs. Splenda? If you use 1/3 less Splenda, it comes out the same price-wise.

    (I can't stand the taste, so I don't have personal experience, but this is what I've heard from others who use these things.)
  • ElementalEscapee
    ElementalEscapee Posts: 552 Member
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    BS?

    Ohh blood sugar. Never mind.
  • Mnata
    Mnata Posts: 35 Member
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    Also, sugar does a lot of things for baked goods/foods aside from sweetness. It helps food brown, helps with moisture levels, breaks up molecules, helps incorporate air, etc, etc. Other sweeteners don't have the same characteristics, so you can't just substitute without really changing things.
  • JaceyMarieS
    JaceyMarieS Posts: 692 Member
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    Also, sugar does a lot of things for baked goods/foods aside from sweetness. It helps food brown, helps with moisture levels, breaks up molecules, helps incorporate air, etc, etc. Other sweeteners don't have the same characteristics, so you can't just substitute without really changing things.

    Correct ... Which is why I haven't been happy with stevia results. The Splenda baking blends are supposedly 1:1 replacements so I was interested in trying
  • mahutch1
    mahutch1 Posts: 37 Member
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    I haven't really looked into the baking aspect with Splenda yet. Being diabetic also, I use it in my coffee, I use Mio to flavor my water on occasion and I have baked with it only once but the recipe only required 3 Tbsp of it. So, if you find out anything, let me know because I would really love to sit down with a hot homemade cookie or piece of cake.

    Oh, and I saw somewhere that you can substitute other items in recipes such as applesauce. I've done that but once again, it was before learning I was diabetic and used sugar in the recipe.

    I just treat myself to "regular" sweets but in small amounts. :flowerforyou:
  • wolfchild59
    wolfchild59 Posts: 2,608 Member
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    With the Splenda blends, you're supposed to use less than the regular amount of sugar. With straight Splenda, it's one to one.

    So if a recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar, you could use either 1 cup of Splenda or 1/2 cup of the Splenda Blend in place of the regular sugar.
  • SPNLuver83
    SPNLuver83 Posts: 2,050 Member
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    Not sure but I buy this stuff called "sugar twin" in a yellow box. comes in both white and brown sugar and is like $1.90 with 0s across the board on nutritional content. I use it for everything, especially baking. luv it!
  • wonderwomanwannaB
    wonderwomanwannaB Posts: 111
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    With the Splenda blends, you're supposed to use less than the regular amount of sugar. With straight Splenda, it's one to one.

    So if a recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar, you could use either 1 cup of Splenda or 1/2 cup of the Splenda Blend in place of the regular sugar.

    ^^^ This is pretty much the answer to your question

    probably pricey aswell, but I wonder how agave nectar would work with baking since it's supposed to be lower on thy glycemic index. hmmm....
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
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    of the Splenda baking blends???

    In comparing nutritional info, a serving is exactly 1/2 the calories/carbs etc of regular sugar or brown sugar. Sounds great until you realize that the serving size (.5 t) is also exactly 1/2 the recommended serving size (1t) of regular sugar or brown sugar. Comparing a teaspoon of Splenda blend to a teaspoon of sugar shows the exact same nutritional content.

    I'm diabetic. I look for ways to reduce carbs, including sugars. I am NOT looking for a way to empty my wallet. The baking blends are 3x the price of regular sugar.

    I am NOT looking for a debate about low-carb. Not looking to hear that Splenda is toxic, etc but i am wondering why anyone would use a Splenda blend if the nutritional info is the same! Am I missing something?
    The splenda baking blends are actually quite a bit lower calorie than regular sugar (~100 calories per cup vs. ~500), and use maltodextrin instead of sucrose, which is a lower GI sugar. It is labeled as 0 calorie due to a FDA loophole (1 tsp contains 2 calories, and anything with <5 calories per serving can be labeled as having 0 calories), and I think many people think it contains no calories, despite maltodextrin being the first ingredient.

    I hope this is helpful!
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
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    edit: double post
  • scorpiomfs
    scorpiomfs Posts: 167 Member
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    bump
  • caroleslaststand
    caroleslaststand Posts: 178 Member
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    Also diabetic here. I've given up on baked goods, because I can't trust myself to just eat a small piece and there's nobody else here to eat the rest. Then there's the diabetic issue. I've got my BS under control, so doesn't make sense to me to mess with that. It has gotten to the point where my favorite fruits raspberries and strawberries are a luxurious treat and I just have to control myself and measure them out instead of eating my way through the whole box. If I screw up, it's not as bad as eating a baked dessert. I have a horrible allergic reaction if I eat more than a bite or 2 of something with maltodextrin in it. I'm finding that I resent the deprivation less and less, because I feel so much better without sugar.
  • anitatee
    anitatee Posts: 5 Member
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    as far as baking you really can't go wrong with apple sauce. YES it won't be as sweet, but you get the moisture, browning, and texture you are looking for. Hope you find an alternative that will work for you blood sugar AND your liver! :)
  • anitatee
    anitatee Posts: 5 Member
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    there's many online resources that give instructions on how to make the substitute. I found this link for ehow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_5162415_substitute-applesauce-sugar.html
  • Doomfrog
    Doomfrog Posts: 79
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    Applsauce and pumpkin replaces fat, not sugar. As far as the caloric intake on the Splenda blends, it depends on what you use. Both the straight Splenda and the Splenda sugar blends you use less of the product than you would Sugar, so the caloric intake is lower. However, I haven't been brave enough to just do a straight swap because I haven't quite figured out the chemistry. But the Splenda website has some good recipes that spell it out for you.
  • athensguy
    athensguy Posts: 550
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    of the Splenda baking blends???

    In comparing nutritional info, a serving is exactly 1/2 the calories/carbs etc of regular sugar or brown sugar. Sounds great until you realize that the serving size (.5 t) is also exactly 1/2 the recommended serving size (1t) of regular sugar or brown sugar. Comparing a teaspoon of Splenda blend to a teaspoon of sugar shows the exact same nutritional content.

    I'm diabetic. I look for ways to reduce carbs, including sugars. I am NOT looking for a way to empty my wallet. The baking blends are 3x the price of regular sugar.

    I am NOT looking for a debate about low-carb. Not looking to hear that Splenda is toxic, etc but i am wondering why anyone would use a Splenda blend if the nutritional info is the same! Am I missing something?
    The splenda baking blends are actually quite a bit lower calorie than regular sugar (~100 calories per cup vs. ~500), and use maltodextrin instead of sucrose, which is a lower GI sugar. It is labeled as 0 calorie due to a FDA loophole (1 tsp contains 2 calories, and anything with <5 calories per serving can be labeled as having 0 calories), and I think many people think it contains no calories, despite maltodextrin being the first ingredient.

    I hope this is helpful!

    Maltodextrin has a much higher GI than sucrose.
  • wackyfunster
    wackyfunster Posts: 944 Member
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    Maltodextrin has a much higher GI than sucrose.

    I stand corrected.
  • JayByrd107
    JayByrd107 Posts: 282 Member
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    My BS monitor has also shown me that I should quit wasting my time with agave nectar and just pour sugar packets into my mouth... hence my seeking out the Splenda blends in the first place

    Agave nectar is crap. It is created through a similar process as high-fructose corn syrup, using the agave plant in the place of corn.

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