Halo top and erythritol
Tashlovesfood
Posts: 51 Member
Hi everyone! Halo top has come to the UK and I have fallen in love with the stuff. I feel like I can finally be satisfied with dessert rather than having a tiny tiny little piece of something. However I’ve been reading up on it and apparently the sweetener used for Halo Top is erythritol. A lot of studies are showing that it actually causes weight gain or fat gain. Is this true???? Why are they bursting my bubble! What is your take on it? Thanks
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Frankenfood (engineered foodO is never good. Stick to real stuff in appropriate portions at appropriate times.32
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There have been small studies that seem to imply certain sweeteners could mess with insulin levels, despite not being sugar. I think as with everything, moderation is key. Until there are clear large studies that show the effects of different sweeteners, it's hard to comment on it. Personally I limit sweeteners in the same way that I try to limit my chocolate intake, or saturated fats. I basically prefer a small amount of real fresh cream whipped with a bit of sugar than an artificial substitute, as in my opinion our bodies weren't designed to digest artificial products. But I don't cut it out, so I definitely don't eat clean. Again: Moderation is my friend.
Healthline.com article referring to sweeteners
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Which studies.
Are they survey/correlative or actual studies5 -
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fuzzylop72 wrote: »
That study is in reference to serum(blood) erythritol, not dietary.3 -
IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?6
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stanmann571 wrote: »fuzzylop72 wrote: »
That study is in reference to serum(blood) erythritol, not dietary.
The only interesting thing is that it seems that there is a metabolic pathway from dietary carb intake and the presence of erythritol thus it has a metabolic process that wasn't known. Considering that there was no attempt to study the caloric intake it would seem likely from the results that higher caloric intake leads to higher levels of erythritol and higher levels of fat increase. Hmm, do we prove water is wet now?2 -
IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?
There is no concrete evidence through lack of good quality study data. So I suppose it's neither bad nor good: We simply don't know enough. Because even if they don't affect blood sugar levels, we don't know if they affect other things: Organs, cells, blood, gut flora, whatever. Until we have conclusive proof through a number of larger studies, we cannot say that it isn't terrible for you.
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rianneonamission wrote: »IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?
There is no concrete evidence through lack of good quality study data. So I suppose it's neither bad nor good: We simply don't know enough. Because even if they don't affect blood sugar levels, we don't know if they affect other things: Organs, cells, blood, gut flora, whatever. Until we have conclusive proof through a number of larger studies, we cannot say that it isn't terrible for you.
True, but also, we don't have evidence that this is an issue at this time. I don't ingest this type of sweetner, that I know of, but as it is still generally regarded as safe, and has to undergo certain studies just to get to were it is, I would think that we aren't going to see a lot of evidence that it's particularly harmful. All substances cause some harm to the body so there's that as well.
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Wheelhouse15 wrote: »rianneonamission wrote: »IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?
There is no concrete evidence through lack of good quality study data. So I suppose it's neither bad nor good: We simply don't know enough. Because even if they don't affect blood sugar levels, we don't know if they affect other things: Organs, cells, blood, gut flora, whatever. Until we have conclusive proof through a number of larger studies, we cannot say that it isn't terrible for you.
True, but also, we don't have evidence that this is an issue at this time. I don't ingest this type of sweetner, that I know of, but as it is still generally regarded as safe, and has to undergo certain studies just to get to were it is, I would think that we aren't going to see a lot of evidence that it's particularly harmful. All substances cause some harm to the body so there's that as well.
Exactly. As long as you don't experience the gastric side effects in normal dosages, you should be fine.
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stanmann571 wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »rianneonamission wrote: »IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?
There is no concrete evidence through lack of good quality study data. So I suppose it's neither bad nor good: We simply don't know enough. Because even if they don't affect blood sugar levels, we don't know if they affect other things: Organs, cells, blood, gut flora, whatever. Until we have conclusive proof through a number of larger studies, we cannot say that it isn't terrible for you.
True, but also, we don't have evidence that this is an issue at this time. I don't ingest this type of sweetner, that I know of, but as it is still generally regarded as safe, and has to undergo certain studies just to get to were it is, I would think that we aren't going to see a lot of evidence that it's particularly harmful. All substances cause some harm to the body so there's that as well.
Exactly. As long as you don't experience the gastric side effects in normal dosages, you should be fine.
Well, most people do have some typical gastric side effects from sugar alcohols but I'll leave that to the imagination.
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I haven't read any long-term studies (in fairness, not sure it's possible given relative new-ness), but from personal experience erythritol is one of the few sugar alcohols that seem not to cause gas and bloating for me - a lot of lower calorie foods or those that are marketed as low carb use sugar alcohols in place of sugar to give the effect of sweetness without the calories and carbs. They're simply an alternative to the other, often maligned, low-calorie sweeteners on the market.
I love HaloTop - particularly the lemon cake flavor. Despite my love affair with ice cream, I don't consume it in vast quantities and I think moderation is the key to everything in life.
Without conflating the issues, I'm going to bring up aspartame... is it technically toxic? Sure, I think science has proven that... but despite my love of diet soda (which I don't drink anymore because the sweetness made me crave other sweets which was a definite contributor to my weight gain), there was never a day where I could have come close to consuming 20, 12-ounce cans which is the approximate amount required to put a 165 pound human over the limit. It's the same as eating something like 100 of those little aspartame packets - yikes.
Again, I think moderation is key. And if you aren't experiencing digestive upset, enjoy your HaloTop. Unless you have a medical condition, the proven cause for gaining weight in the long term is burning fewer calories than you consume.6 -
I love Halo Top! I am eating it not so much because of the calorie count as because I've successfully lowered my cholesterol by using MFP to track (and eat less) saturated fat. I agree with all of the people above who have referred to moderation being key. Plus, for me Halo Top is pricey enough that I have that added motivation to not eat too much of it!0
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I came in here thinking this was about the video game, and was excited. Now I'm dissapointed.. hah3
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jsminer827 wrote: »I haven't read any long-term studies (in fairness, not sure it's possible given relative new-ness), but from personal experience erythritol is one of the few sugar alcohols that seem not to cause gas and bloating for me - a lot of lower calorie foods or those that are marketed as low carb use sugar alcohols in place of sugar to give the effect of sweetness without the calories and carbs. They're simply an alternative to the other, often maligned, low-calorie sweeteners on the market.
I love HaloTop - particularly the lemon cake flavor. Despite my love affair with ice cream, I don't consume it in vast quantities and I think moderation is the key to everything in life.
Without conflating the issues, I'm going to bring up aspartame... is it technically toxic? Sure, I think science has proven that... but despite my love of diet soda (which I don't drink anymore because the sweetness made me crave other sweets which was a definite contributor to my weight gain), there was never a day where I could have come close to consuming 20, 12-ounce cans which is the approximate amount required to put a 165 pound human over the limit. It's the same as eating something like 100 of those little aspartame packets - yikes.
Again, I think moderation is key. And if you aren't experiencing digestive upset, enjoy your HaloTop. Unless you have a medical condition, the proven cause for gaining weight in the long term is burning fewer calories than you consume.
I think it's closer to 200 cans or about 1 lb of powder.1 -
I mean, I eat it and have lost 106 pounds, so........7
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I've been eating it regularly over a year and I haven't seen any weight gain from it. I also don't have any stomach issues with it either luckily.1
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I have lost 20 pounds since October and I have multiple pints of Halo Top a week. Sooo Idk lol2
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Erythritol is a sugar alcohol found naturally in some fruits and fermented foods. It's therefore hardly "frankenfood". Other sugar alcohols including sorbitol and xylitol, upset my digestive system and I can't eat much of them. Erythritol I can eat all day and it doesn't bother me. I use it a stevia-erythritol combo all the time - it has zero effect in me on weight loss or gain.
With all these things, you'll read articles claiming they're awful and will cause you to grow extra limbs, and others saying they're as safe as mother's milk. You have to decide for yourself if any risk involved is outweighed by the benefits, and whether a lot of the claims are simply B.S. based on limited research cited out of context. In my book, the risks of the nitrates in cured meat and eating large amounts of saturated fat are probably much higher than whatever risk I incur from using erythritol - or the risk from other dangerous substances naturally occurring in the food I eat.
I personally don't like Halo Top, but if I did, I'd eat it all the time without worrying about any risk of doing so.5 -
jsminer827 wrote: »Without conflating the issues, I'm going to bring up aspartame... is it technically toxic? Sure, I think science has proven that...
Absolutely not true. See:
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/aspartame.html'
and:
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/are-artificial-sweeteners-safe/
Don't let the fear mongers scare you.3 -
I might be the only person on the face of the planet that thinks Halo top is just plain awful. It has a very fake sweet taste, which I assume is the erythritol? I know that it is low in calories and you can devour a whole pint for the same damage as a half cup of regular old ice cream, but I will take my meager portion of butter pecan any day.5
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Wheelhouse15 wrote: »stanmann571 wrote: »Wheelhouse15 wrote: »rianneonamission wrote: »IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?
There is no concrete evidence through lack of good quality study data. So I suppose it's neither bad nor good: We simply don't know enough. Because even if they don't affect blood sugar levels, we don't know if they affect other things: Organs, cells, blood, gut flora, whatever. Until we have conclusive proof through a number of larger studies, we cannot say that it isn't terrible for you.
True, but also, we don't have evidence that this is an issue at this time. I don't ingest this type of sweetner, that I know of, but as it is still generally regarded as safe, and has to undergo certain studies just to get to were it is, I would think that we aren't going to see a lot of evidence that it's particularly harmful. All substances cause some harm to the body so there's that as well.
Exactly. As long as you don't experience the gastric side effects in normal dosages, you should be fine.
Well, most people do have some typical gastric side effects from sugar alcohols but I'll leave that to the imagination.
Yeah. This is why I stay far away from anything advertised as diet food. I don't know exactly which ingredients give me issues, and I have no interest in experimenting to find out. I'll just keep eating a little less of the food I've always eaten.1 -
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IIRC, consuming erythritol has no effect on blood sugar levels and is excreted out of the body unchanged....theoretically making it one of the few artificial sweeteners that aren't necessarily terrible for you. Is that not correct?
This is my understanding based on everything I have read about erythritol. It is not absorbed.0 -
Had a full pint last night - no stomach issues here.2
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Better living through chemistry.4
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lporter229 wrote: »I might be the only person on the face of the planet that thinks Halo top is just plain awful. It has a very fake sweet taste, which I assume is the erythritol? I know that it is low in calories and you can devour a whole pint for the same damage as a half cup of regular old ice cream, but I will take my meager portion of butter pecan any day.
you're not the only one! its HORRIBLE!2 -
I eat it sometimes, but I like the price tag on slow churn ice creams better. The calorie count per serving is pretty similar.0
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If this had an impact on blood sugar levels, diabetics would be told not to eat it, whereas the contrary is true.
There are also anecdotal theories from scaremongers that it will make you crave more sugar, again, not backed up by science.
I am.down more than 6 stone and eat/drink foods with artificial sweeteners5 -
I have been eating halo top every day for the past 6 months (i live in america) and my weight has gone down. It is my absolute go to treat meal3
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