Artificial Sweeteners- Vote now

gnicolecan
gnicolecan Posts: 293 Member
edited September 19 in Food and Nutrition
So, I have read over and over that studies show these (delicious) chemicals can increase cravings for unhealthy foods, and are, in fact, terrible for you.

Let me take this moment to jump out of the closet and say - I love the stuff.

Splenda, Equal, etc... how I love thee, let me count the ways:

1. YOu make calorie free sodas so tasty and guiltless.
2. You make Kashi Go Lean taste like Frosty Flakes.
3. You make water + flavorings (sugar free Koolaid) delectable and keep me hydrated.
4. You jump in my coffee w/ skim milk and wake me up every day

That's all I can think of. How can something so good be soo bad?

Vote now! Is it a do or a don't?
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Replies

  • gnicolecan
    gnicolecan Posts: 293 Member
    So, I have read over and over that studies show these (delicious) chemicals can increase cravings for unhealthy foods, and are, in fact, terrible for you.

    Let me take this moment to jump out of the closet and say - I love the stuff.

    Splenda, Equal, etc... how I love thee, let me count the ways:

    1. YOu make calorie free sodas so tasty and guiltless.
    2. You make Kashi Go Lean taste like Frosty Flakes.
    3. You make water + flavorings (sugar free Koolaid) delectable and keep me hydrated.
    4. You jump in my coffee w/ skim milk and wake me up every day

    That's all I can think of. How can something so good be soo bad?

    Vote now! Is it a do or a don't?
  • renae77
    renae77 Posts: 3,394 Member
    I love love love Splenda so it's a BIG DO!!!!!
  • 3babybeans
    3babybeans Posts: 8,268 Member


    That's all I can think of. How can something so good be soo bad?


    I feel the same way about butter. :grumble:
  • kammiller
    kammiller Posts: 91
    I :drinker: love sweeteners its great to be able to drink soda and coffee without guilt, and actually I like the taste better
  • genabug
    genabug Posts: 1,820 Member


    That's all I can think of. How can something so good be soo bad?


    I feel the same way about butter. :grumble:

    I feel the same way about hamburgers, and fries!!!
  • Tiddle
    Tiddle Posts: 762 Member
    I put splenda in my coffee everyday! :)
  • janiebeth
    janiebeth Posts: 2,509 Member


    That's all I can think of. How can something so good be soo bad?


    I feel the same way about butter. :grumble:

    I feel the same way about hamburgers, and fries!!!

    and ice cream (well soy ice cream - I am lactose intolerant), and pie...

    but seriously, I think it depends on how they affect you.. I have IBS and splenda and other artificial sweeteners tend to make me feel really bloated and crampy. If it didn't affect me this way, I'd use them quite a bit more..

    jb
  • shanwow16
    shanwow16 Posts: 203 Member
    I am a big fan of the ZERO cal drinks, drinking Sprite Zero right now.
    I can only drink so much water, but I think it's the aspartame that isn't so great for us?! Not really sure why...that's just the word on the street these days.
  • iTim__
    iTim__ Posts: 6,823 Member
    The studies, which never show the cancerous results in humans, always compare it to drinking water... in reality, if it wasn't for the diet soda... I'd probably be drinking the real sodas. I think the lack of calories in the diet sodas have way more advantages than the obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc. with the chalk-full-of-sugar alternatives. But that's just my humble opinion.

    I vote Artificial Sweeteners -- Go fake sweet!
  • Wynnie
    Wynnie Posts: 225 Member
    I use Splenda for tea, sugarless fruit drinks, on my cereal and in my coffee.

    I meet with a nutritionist twice a month because I am taking a drug that requires special diet. She says that while using sugar substitutes is better than a lot of processed sugar, she says that Stevia (sp?) and honey are better still. I am trying to integrate Stevia, but to me it has a little bit of a bitter after-taste.
  • isadoraworkman
    isadoraworkman Posts: 205 Member
    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.
  • mhsrnmz
    mhsrnmz Posts: 86 Member
    I don't like them at all.
  • Hannah_Banana
    Hannah_Banana Posts: 1,242 Member
    Big don't for me. Not because of any sort of health implication... I just think its icky. :sick:

    For me, its all or nothing. If I can't have a real soda, I'll just drink water. If I ever did drink diet soda, it would all be psychological. My brain would only be happy because I would be THINKING I was drinking soda, not because it actually tasted good.

    Bring on the real stuff, baby! :bigsmile:
  • Fitness_Chick
    Fitness_Chick Posts: 6,648 Member
    So, I have read over and over that studies show these (delicious) chemicals can increase cravings for unhealthy foods, and are, in fact, terrible for you.

    Let me take this moment to jump out of the closet and say - I love the stuff.

    Splenda, Equal, etc... how I love thee, let me count the ways:

    1. YOu make calorie free sodas so tasty and guiltless.
    2. You make Kashi Go Lean taste like Frosty Flakes.
    3. You make water + flavorings (sugar free Koolaid) delectable and keep me hydrated.
    4. You jump in my coffee w/ skim milk and wake me up every day

    That's all I can think of. How can something so good be soo bad?

    Vote now! Is it a do or a don't?

    Now of course you probably already know you'll hear many thoughts on this!:laugh:

    Well I don't drink coffee so no need for fake or real sweetner.

    I like Kashi cereals with out sweetner...I usually get Autumn Harvest which is YUM and uses natural sweeteners...in fact for myself I feel most all the Kashi Cereals and bars are plenty tasty on their own without white sugar. :tongue:

    Diet Pop? EW....once in a blue moon I may drink one..but all those chemicals and all it does is make me want to drink one after another after another after another....chemicals are put in for a reason:wink::ohwell: usually to keep us buying the product and creating a feeling that our body wants/needs more of it.

    :drinker: :heart: :drinker: Water plain is the best thing ever created!!:drinker: :heart: :drinker: Unless you have stinky well water...and then you punt and figure out how else to drink water...buy bottles I guess?? I don't have stinky well water so have not had to put much thought into that.:laugh:

    Ok, covered those...:laugh: hm, thinking when I might use it....um, NEVER?:laugh: :wink: Well, I agree with lots of what I've learned as far as how it effects some people's health in a very negative way...I feel if it's doing that to some what is it doing to the rest of us we might not yet realize?

    Not being a downer for those that enjoy artifical stuff I just prefer clean eating myself...knowing what I am eating is not chemicals and is more natural....there are some great natural sweetners out there if you want to try them out...:flowerforyou:

    Ok, guess that's all from me......:bigsmile:

    FC:heart:
  • SherryRH
    SherryRH Posts: 810 Member
    I vote a big NO. Yuck. I hate the way artificial sweetners taste.

    If the studies show it increases your cravings why would you want to risk it if you are trying to lose weight? Doesn't that defeat the entire purpose of a healthy lifestyle?
  • anony999
    anony999 Posts: 112 Member
    Ugh, I can't stand any of them. Sucralose (Splenda) gives me an instant headache, the sugar alcohols (Xylitol, etc.) upset my stomach, and the others (Aspartame, etc.) are NASTY.

    I try to avoid ingesting chemicals whenever possible (though that's incredibly hard in this world!) so I am firmly against artificial sweeteners. There's no way of telling what the long term effects are in humans but I'd rather stick to tried-and-true things like sugar and honey (in moderate amounts).

    I haven't yet tried Stevia, which is natural, so I'm reserving judgment on that for now.
  • arewethereyet
    arewethereyet Posts: 18,702 Member
    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:
  • keiko
    keiko Posts: 2,919 Member
    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.
  • tuxedo702
    tuxedo702 Posts: 58
    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 don't care for any of them - they all seem to have an after taste. I should say, however, that I don't like soda and never got in the habit of putting sugar in my coffee or tea - so I'm lucky in that respect - makes it pretty easy to avoid the artifical sweetners that way. If I need a sweetner for something I just use real sugar.
  • Leigh14
    Leigh14 Posts: 871 Member
    I like Splenda. I use it in coffee and hot chocolate, but I don't have either of those on a regular basis.

    My mom says Splenda has a bitter after-taste.

    :huh:

    I say she's just a fake sweetener hater.

    :laugh:
  • 1Corinthians13
    1Corinthians13 Posts: 5,296 Member
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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
    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!
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