Sugar or sugar substitutes?

13

Replies

  • deviantcupcake
    deviantcupcake Posts: 136 Member
    I have no problem with using real sugar. I don't take it in hot drinks, I don't put it on cereal. I only use it in cooking, really.
    I don't drink diet drinks because they make me feel ill - I suspect that has something to do with the artificial sweeteners used.
    But really, used sensibly, I'm ok with sugar.
  • junodog1
    junodog1 Posts: 4,792 Member
    Sugar. I'm not a clean-eater, but I lean to more natural foods.

    But, when I get iced tea in a restaurant I will use equal if I am sweetening it since it mixes much better. Or half sweetand half regular tea. Us southerners love our sweet tea but some places really overdo it.

    I just bought some of Agave Nectar to see how tht compares to honey.
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    I just use sugar.

    I don't do a lot of carbs during the day as is. But when I want somethign to be sweet I'd rather consume sugar than processed substitutes.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    There's a buttload of alarmism in this thread.

    I'd urge people to re-read Ninerbuff's replies if you're concerned about low doses of aspartame.
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    There's a buttload of alarmism in this thread.

    I'd urge people to re-read Ninerbuff's replies if you're concerned about low doses of aspartame.

    People definitely overdo it with the "risks" of sweeteners.

    My thoughts are more along the lines of "why not use 15 calories of sugar and not worry about it".
  • drmerc
    drmerc Posts: 2,603 Member
    I bet being fat is more unhealthy than aspartame
  • beckajw
    beckajw Posts: 1,728 Member
    :laugh: The real issue with sugar or sugar substitutes is your metabolism! :devil: Refined sugar (table sugar) and any substitute will causes you stop loosing weight or usually gain weight sugar substitutes are the worse and cause other health issues plain and simple just stay away from sugar of any form as much as possible if you must on occasion have sugar use honey in half the amount as it is much sweeter and it is less refined but use it very sparingly on rare occasions.
    Subjective. The real issue is that people over consumed and really didn't care till they went on a weight loss program. Ask a fit person about sugar and they'll say it's fine since they don't usually have a problem with over consumption. And honey tastes like crap with natural soda. Had a friend have me try one with his home soda maker.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 28+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    ^^ This. Neither sugar nor sugar substitutes have ever caused me to stop losing weight or gain weight.

    Honey is great on some things. Not so great on others.

    People should just use what they like.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    :laugh: The real issue with sugar or sugar substitutes is your metabolism! :devil: Refined sugar (table sugar) and any substitute will causes you stop loosing weight or usually gain weight sugar substitutes are the worse and cause other health issues plain and simple just stay away from sugar of any form as much as possible if you must on occasion have sugar use honey in half the amount as it is much sweeter and it is less refined but use it very sparingly on rare occasions.

    How can something with zero calories stop you losing weight or even gain weight? For that matter, if you are at a calorific deficit, how can sugar stop you losing weight?
  • CakeFit21
    CakeFit21 Posts: 2,521 Member
    I like honey and maple syrup because they TASTE delicious!
  • Silverkittycat
    Silverkittycat Posts: 1,997 Member
    This again?
    and once again - http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/index.php/are-artificial-sweeteners-safe/

    Good stuff in those 60+ comments, especially the last one.
    # Harriet Hallon 02 Jan 2012 at 12:11 pm
    @Rich
    I read chapter 12. It was painful. Monte’s book is not a reliable source. He fails to understand some of the basic principles of science, for instance “the poison is in the dose,” “correlation doesn’t prove causation,” and “people are not giant rodents.” He engages in misrepresentation and distortion of published data, and speculation based on correlations. He doesn’t balance his cherry-picked studies with studies that contradict his beliefs. He presents no evidence that aspartame has any significant clinical adverse effects in humans at typical levels of ingestion. Nuff said.

    Edited by Silverkittycat on Tue 06/26/12 07:25 PM
  • hamncheese67
    hamncheese67 Posts: 1,715 Member
    Absolutely real sugar ...never a substitute ...gross (and I'm not on the whole stevia love train either!)

    I haven't tried it yet but how come you don't like the stevia?

    I think its a fad...I don't think actual sugar is a problem ... The problem lies in how much of it people consume. So I am happy to eat real sugar in moderation.

    Don't think stevia is a fad. The Japanese have been using it for over 40 years as a sugar substitute and it has long history to the natives of South America. There were restrictions on its usage in the US due to some studies saying it was harmful, but that could have been due to some political influences rooted by the sugar industry. As it is now, those restrictions have changed over the last 5 years or so, so that's why you see more of it.

    I use the liquid Stevia extract because it's easy (only a few drops needed to sweeten yogurt or beverage) and has no calories. It can easily get overly sweet if I overdo it, but it tastes better than artificial sweeteners IMO.

    But, I always have sugar (brown, granulated, and powdered) in the pantry for baking/cooking, as it does taste best to me. I'll use it in moderation.
  • terrappyn
    terrappyn Posts: 324 Member
    Most, if not all, sugar substitutes can eventually lead to cancer.
    Aspartame has been proven to create super tiny holes throughout your brain.
    Too much sugar can cause you to become a diabetic, though.

    I usually get all or most of my store bought foods diet.
    Like my Yoplait Light yogurt, and diet soda if I actually decided to buy soda.
    I also like to order my Starbucks drinks with sugar-free syrups...

    At home I always use regular sugar.
    If you're eating right, sugar isn't going to harm you since you wouldn't be consuming it in insane quantities.

    If you're really good with eating healthy, then I would avoid sugar substitutes as much as possible.
    I have found that I enjoy the taste of 'diet' foods/junk foods more than the 'non-diet'...
    but it really isn't very good for you.

    So how much of it is a bad amount that will lead to cancer? I've been using it for a while now lol.


    Pretty sure this hasn't been proven since the FDA would have pulled the product. Secondly, I'd like to see citations on where you got your information!
  • DesireeLovesOrganic
    DesireeLovesOrganic Posts: 456 Member
    I try to limit sweets to fruit. Sometimes I use manuka honey. If I make a "sweet treat" for my kids I use pitted dates, banana, or real maple syrup in the recipe.
  • RickBriggs
    RickBriggs Posts: 44
    Enjoy your diabetes.
  • JustJennie1
    JustJennie1 Posts: 3,749 Member
    Neither but if I have to then I use regular sugar.
  • beckajw
    beckajw Posts: 1,728 Member
    Enjoy your diabetes.

    You do realize that neither sugar nor sugar substitutes cause diabetes, right?
  • DMW914
    DMW914 Posts: 368 Member
    My preference is real sugar but since I'm hypertensive I go with Stevia. I will use splenda on occasions & they both have an aftertaste but It depends on what I'm sweetening. Basically it's to each his own. :wink:
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    Most, if not all, sugar substitutes can eventually lead to cancer.
    Aspartame has been proven to create super tiny holes throughout your brain.
    Too much sugar can cause you to become a diabetic, though.

    I usually get all or most of my store bought foods diet.
    Like my Yoplait Light yogurt, and diet soda if I actually decided to buy soda.
    I also like to order my Starbucks drinks with sugar-free syrups...

    At home I always use regular sugar.
    If you're eating right, sugar isn't going to harm you since you wouldn't be consuming it in insane quantities.

    If you're really good with eating healthy, then I would avoid sugar substitutes as much as possible.
    I have found that I enjoy the taste of 'diet' foods/junk foods more than the 'non-diet'...
    but it really isn't very good for you.

    So how much of it is a bad amount that will lead to cancer? I've been using it for a while now lol.


    Pretty sure this hasn't been proven since the FDA would have pulled the product. Secondly, I'd like to see citations on where you got your information!

    They actually *did* pull aspartame from the shelves. Don't use the FDA as your source for what's healthy and safe. You'll be sorely disappointed. :wink: :laugh:

    But honestly, you would have to ingest massive amounts of it before it will cause problems. In the lab studies, they were injecting large amounts in rats.
  • VanessaGS
    VanessaGS Posts: 514 Member
    Stevia! Natural! No cals! :)

    THIS
  • Silverkittycat
    Silverkittycat Posts: 1,997 Member
    Read the last page here - http://www.rationalskepticism.org/general-debunking/aspartame-t31565-100.html
    Re: Aspartame
    #114 by laklak » Jun 16, 2012 5:23 pm

    Ah, but it just MIGHT be harmful, if you ingest 400 cans of artificially sweetened soda, 500 "no sugar added" cupcakes and chew 14,245 sticks of aspartame laced gum a day.

    It's probably a Pleiadean plot to dry up our vital bodily fluids.
    A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way. - Mark Twain
    The sky is falling! The sky is falling! - Chicken Little
    I never go without my dinner. No one ever does, except vegetarians and people like that - Oscar Wilde
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    Enjoy your diabetes.

    had to laugh at this.


    Never take nutritional advice from people who don't eat meat.
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
    Why is Splenda bad for you? What is different about Splenda than other sugar substitutes?

    It's not that it's "bad", but just that sugar alcohols can work as a mild laxative for some people, so for people that are sensitive to that it can cause bloating and issues like that if they eat a lot of it. If this isn't an issue for you, then it's not a problem. Some people have IBS and things like that and in that case it's just very uncomfortable.
  • LordBezoar
    LordBezoar Posts: 625 Member
    Absolutely real sugar ...never a substitute ...gross (and I'm not on the whole stevia love train either!)

    I'm wondering if by "real sugar" you are referring to the super-processed white stuff?

    While I agree that Stevia isn't the answer for everything, there are times that it works perfectly. When it doesn't try Sucanat (raw cane sugar), Honey, Dates, and, very occasionally, Agave Nectar or Xylitol. All are better than the white stuff. However, even the white stuff is better than the fake sugars like Splenda, Nutrasweet, etc.
  • UrbanWild
    UrbanWild Posts: 48
    I am a sugar-holic. I used to put 1 1/2 T of sugar in a cup of coffee. I knew very few boundaries with candy. And I drank sugared sodas. Since getting on board with my new nutrition plan ( I hate the word 'diet'), I started using Stevia--cold turkey. After two days I was used to it. Now I get my sugar fix from fresh fruits (in moderation of course) and I have found that not only am I not craving sugar, my hunger cravings in general have fallen off and I am not getting the sleepies around 2 PM every day. I think Stevia is one of the more benign sweetners, though there's some that will disagree of course.
  • SouffleBoy
    SouffleBoy Posts: 65 Member
    I use Canderel(basically aspartame), I love the taste and use it for everything.
  • escape4asecond
    escape4asecond Posts: 40
    i like spender - its made from sugar, so all naural, but has almost zero carbs and calories.
    and it tastes great on homemade popcorn!!!
    It's made from sugar and chlorine, but chlorine is natural too.

    So, will my body be purified eating sugar and chlorine? ;)
  • Matt_Wild
    Matt_Wild Posts: 2,673 Member
    Most, if not all, sugar substitutes can eventually lead to cancer.
    Aspartame has been proven to create super tiny holes throughout your brain.

    No it hasn't. It doesn't cross the brain barrier. Its two amino acids. There is more of the amino acids that Aspartame is made of in a chicken breast.
  • 1shauna1
    1shauna1 Posts: 993 Member
    I always use Splenda in my coffee. It's been so many years, I don't like sugar in coffee at all. I love my morning coffee with cream & sweetner. It's an indulgence I'll always work into my calories!

    Breathing the air in a big city can give you cancer, so....whatcha gonna do? Be happy!
  • bharriscar
    bharriscar Posts: 91 Member
    bump
  • Cheryl1018
    Cheryl1018 Posts: 59
    I don't eat or drink any artificial sweeteners. Aspartame which is in Splenda and Equal can cause joint pain, headaches/migraines, stomach problems. I can always tell if I have ingested aspartame in a bottled water or yogurt. I used to have horrible IBD problems and headaches and when I cut out artificial sweeteners and high fructose corn syrup those problems went away.

Categories