Artificial Sweeteners- Vote now

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  • 1Corinthians13
    1Corinthians13 Posts: 5,296 Member
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    I work on the Neurology floor of a large hospital...so I am paranoid about artificial sweeteners...as I see lots of brain anomalies...of course I am also paranoid about salt (stroke risk)..and don't ever consume packaged tv-type dinners, and I also have an issue with pork...don't ask....
    A.

    Oye. I put salt on everything, and I like sweeteners.
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
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    Once in awhile I'll have a diet coke, I don't even finish the whole can. Other than that I don't use sugar or the fake stuff in coffee or tea, I like them plain.
    I know some people who bake with the fake stuff but I'd rather have real sugar. I try to stay away from to much processed food.

    If I need a sweetner for something I just use real sugar.

    Excellent point Debbie!! :drinker: 1 teaspoon of REGULAR SUGAR has only 15 calories!!!!:bigsmile:

    FC:heart:
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
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    Once in awhile I'll have a diet coke, I don't even finish the whole can. Other than that I don't use sugar or the fake stuff in coffee or tea, I like them plain.
    I know some people who bake with the fake stuff but I'd rather have real sugar. I try to stay away from to much processed food.
    I've never baked with fake and would prefer to use regular in recipes as well... and calculate the portion size and nutrition and eat something real to me rather than put all the fake stuff in the recipes.. I know some do and they swear by it..but it's just something about it that makes me cringe...

    That's what so great about MFP...to each his own, if it's working for you and you feel ok doing it....then I say make your own choice and go by that. In the end it's up to each of us what we put into our bodies and what we don't!:wink::bigsmile: :drinker:

    FC:heart:
  • anony999
    anony999 Posts: 112 Member
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    By coincidence, Scott Adams (of Dilbert fame) just posted his comments on a study about how blood sugar levels affect your willpower, which lends credence to the idea mentioned above. People will naturally eat more if their willpower is low, and low blood sugar (a possible side effect of consuming artificial sweeteners) could be the cause of the weakened willpower. Makes sense!

    Enjoy:
    http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/glucose_equals_free_will/
  • michaelhe
    michaelhe Posts: 81 Member
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    I swear that aspartame was a contributing factor to a bout of depression I experienced over 7 years ago. I was trying to lose weight, replaced sugared soda with diet soda among other things.

    Years later I tried diet sodas again and noticed, after a couple weeks, that I felt like I was living in a cloud, and had a very short temper. When I stopped drinking diet soda things seemed to get better.

    I try to stay away from diet sweeteners ... although HFCS sweetened soda does not really appeal to me either. I would prefer to drink soda sweetened with real sugar!!
  • ohthatbambi
    ohthatbambi Posts: 1,098 Member
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    I am all about some splenda! It is great on strawberries and in tea and in coffee and I even bake muffins with the stuff.
  • Nonibug
    Nonibug Posts: 1,214 Member
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    GUILTY as charged, your honor.

    I put equal in my coffee each morning (2 packets)

    I put sweet and low in my iced tea (2-4 packets a day total)

    I have not worried too much. I figure we breath in air that is loaded with chemicals all day long. When I moved into this neighborhood 40 :noway: years ago, there was an intersection of 4 lanes total.

    That same i/s is now 6 lanes one way and 10 lanes the other!:frown:

    There is an airport 1 mile west, train tracks 10 blocks away in both directions

    And thousands of cars passing within 2 blocks of my home.

    Am I worried about artificial sweetners, nah.
    :smokin:

    Im with ya there Jeannie!:laugh:
  • cherapple
    cherapple Posts: 670 Member
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    The only one I use is Stevia, and I'm thinking of weaning myself off that (not buying any more when it's gone). A lot of the other ones give me headaches, which I consider a blessing because it keeps me away from them! :laugh:

    Also, I know several people who use artificial sweeteners religiously, and they just keep getting bigger every year. There have been several studies done that say artificial sweeteners hinder weight loss. I prefer natural, real foods!
  • tuxedo702
    tuxedo702 Posts: 58
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    By coincidence, Scott Adams (of Dilbert fame) just posted his comments on a study about how blood sugar levels affect your willpower, which lends credence to the idea mentioned above. People will naturally eat more if their willpower is low, and low blood sugar (a possible side effect of consuming artificial sweeteners) could be the cause of the weakened willpower. Makes sense!

    Enjoy:
    http://dilbert.com/blog/entry/glucose_equals_free_will/

    I would also recommend reading "YOU on a Diet." It goes into detail (with pictures and everything for us visual learners) about the relationship between the foods you eat and cravings. I've read a gazillion books on eating behavior but this is the first one that has actually talked about the physiological reasons we crave foods and which foods to eat/avoid to minimize cravings.
  • renae77
    renae77 Posts: 3,394 Member
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    I put splenda in my coffee everyday! :)
    Me too!!! Love it!!! I even keep some at my mom's so if I get coffee there I can have it there instead of sugar....yuck!
  • lessertess
    lessertess Posts: 855 Member
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    Artificial sweeteners: Big Yes. I love Crystal Light, use it in teas, and have an occassional diet coke. I'll also use it occassionally to sweeten oatmeal. I don't like it for cooking though. If anything it helps me curb my appetite for sweets. If I'm craving sugar, most of the time a diet soda will help me curb the craving.

    There is no valid scientific evidence at all that there's any health dangers. (yes, there are some people who are allergic but there are people who are allergic to peanuts too) However, there's a world of evidence that sugar is addictive and causes everything from cavities to obesity. (recent study shows that sugar was found to be more addicitive than cocaine--I don't know if the study has been validated but it sounds reasonable to me) And although honey and some other sweeteners may be better in terms of less processing they still have calories which still contribute to obesity.
  • dothompson
    dothompson Posts: 1,184 Member
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    I'm right with you.

    I think regular soda tastes awful without the lingering nodes of the artificial sweetener aftertaste.

    I'm writing this as a joke, but I really mean it.
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
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    Artificial sweeteners: Big Yes. I love Crystal Light, use it in teas, and have an occassional diet coke. I'll also use it occassionally to sweeten oatmeal. I don't like it for cooking though. If anything it helps me curb my appetite for sweets. If I'm craving sugar, most of the time a diet soda will help me curb the craving.

    There is no valid scientific evidence at all that there's any health dangers. (yes, there are some people who are allergic but there are people who are allergic to peanuts too) However, there's a world of evidence that sugar is addictive and causes everything from cavities to obesity. (recent study shows that sugar was found to be more addicitive than cocaine--I don't know if the study has been validated but it sounds reasonable to me) And although honey and some other sweeteners may be better in terms of less processing they still have calories which still contribute to obesity.
    :huh: Actually? I believe there is.....:flowerforyou:
  • pparker2214
    pparker2214 Posts: 64 Member
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    I am only given a certain amount of calories per day and I HATE wasting them on pop. Diet soda or not! However, in the debate of artificial sweetners vs. sugar.. I have to pick sugar!

    I've heard that the body doesn't know how to break down man made artificial sweetners and that it usually stores this in the abdominal area of the body.. Also apparently when aspartame reaches room temperature, it hardens. I've heard that it causes physical and psychological health concerns like bone deterioation (sp?) and depression...

    Sugar may be linked to diabetes and obesity, but it's from nature. Overuse of it is the symptom of a different problem and it's not the cause of the aforementioned conditions.

    Now having said that.. some advances we've made to make our lives easier are great, but you must agree that some man made stuff isn't best for our bodies and we should go with what God and Nature have given us.

    JMO! :happy:
  • cherapple
    cherapple Posts: 670 Member
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    Sugar may be linked to diabetes and obesity, but it's from nature. Overuse of it is the symptom of a different problem and it's not the cause of the aforementioned conditions.

    I disagree. That's like saying cocaine is natural because it comes from the coca plant. Sugar cane may be a plant, but the way that it's heavily processed into white sugar takes away its status as natural. The end product looks nothing like the plant it comes from. A "natural" food goes through as little processing as possible.
  • isadoraworkman
    isadoraworkman Posts: 205 Member
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    I'm all about maple syrup...all you do is boil it :)

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