I’ve been hearing a lot of bad buzz about Splenda.
“Many body-conscious people opt for artificial sweeteners instead of sugar when they want to satisfy their sweet tooth. Splenda is a common choice.
What is Splenda? It’s a mixture of sucralose (or E955 – named by the European Union) and filler (maltodextose and dexose). Sucralose is a disaccharide (which literally translates to “two sugars”) that is made from sucrose by replacing three hydroxyl (OH – oxygen and hydrogen) groups with chlorine (Cl). (Precision Nutrition members can read more about the various saccharides in All About Carbohydrates.)
That’s how Splenda got their original slogan, “Made from sugar so it tastes like sugar.” However, after getting some flack about misleading consumers, they changed the slogan to “Starts with sugar, tastes like sugar, but is not sugar.” Not sugar… good to know — though 47% of responders to a survey (by Johnson & Johnson, the parent company of Splenda) didn’t know Splenda wasn’t natural.” (source: Precision Nutritional.com)
For the full read and scoop, click here. You decide!
Spread the ‘educated’ word … NOT the icing,
Janice
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posted March 25, 2009 at 9:06 pm
Hi Janice — That was a tough read, but it was worth it. Now, what’s the scientific story on stevia?
posted March 26, 2009 at 3:38 pm
I agree with Amy, it was over my head. But the concluding remarks: “relatively low amounts of Splenda may cause weight gain and Splenda at moderate levels has adverse effects on your gut, affecting both levels of gut flora and proteins” helped me come to my conclusion. I too am curious about Stevia!
I did a little research on Saccharin (the pink envelopes, Sweet’n Low) and found it was discovered in 1879, so it has been studied for a long time. In the late 1970s FDA and National Toxicology Program (NCI) and other health groups, including the American Medical Association, the American Cancer Society, and the American Dietetic Association, agree that saccharin use is acceptable in moderation.
posted March 30, 2009 at 6:18 pm
That was interesting, but I lost 20 pounds despite putting Splenda in my coffee and the occasional diet soda that had Splenda in it. I would like to point out that when I drink Nutrasweet-laden sodas, I get a headache if I drink more than 8-12 oz. so I don’t think Splenda necessarily makes one gain and I plan to keep using it occasionally.
My main tools for losing the weight were writing down what I eat, watching portions and exercise (mild–mainly walking.) And I did so SLOWLY–over more than a year. And I have discovered new vegetables I enjoy–I love baby brussel sprouts!
And I don’t deprive myself. If I want some onion rings, I’ll eat onion rings–but every couple of months for something like that is different from eating calorie dense things regularly.
Thanks for the “food for thought”.
posted March 30, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Part of the reason they say Splenda, or any artificial sweetner causees you to gain weight is because some people use sweetners “It’s okay to eat a burger and fries if I drink a diet soda with it.”