Artificial sweeteners!

*Trying-again*

Plodding on til its gone
Hi all, Ive been reading a little bit about artificial sweeteners and would be interested in other peoples experiences of them.

I use splenda in tea which makes it taste disgusting but makes it syn free! WW yogurts and other brands of yogs which have artificial sweeteners in them, infact Ive got to the stage where thats the only thing i can taste in the foods that have them.

Diet coke, juices etc really taste horrible because of the aspartame etc.

Anyway Ive now decided to add a bit of sugar to tea etc, ditch the artificial tasting yogs, sugar free jelly, diet juices, cokes and splenda as i dont think its doing me any good. (not sure how just have a hunch) Im thinking of just having 2 cans a week of red full fat coke which I enjoy (not sure how many syns they are yet)

My feeling is at the end of the day artificial sweeteners maybe a syn/cal free alternative to sugar which is natural but at the end of the day it is a chemical that not only in my opinion makes things taste horrible and artificial (which it is) but unsure of the health issues it may cause.

I keep buying ww yogs etc and end up throwing them away as my brain says buy them they are low in syns etc but I find it a chore eating them and substituting them for something sweet doesnt work for me.

Perhaps something small and sweet like a meringue in nat yog for example will satisfy the sweet tooth.

Id be interested in anyone elses views/comments on artificial sweeteners. Have you had any side effects?
Tried supplementing artificial sweetener for a little real sugar? Has it affected weightloss?

I dont want to jeapodise my weightloss (which is incredibly slow as have pcos) but at the same time not sure of the affects artificial sweetener mainly aspartame is having on me. Surely eating a chemical everyday cant be doing much good?

Opinions/ experiences/ info on this subject would be appreciated.

Thank u :)
 
I gave up on Muller yogurts ages ago because I can't stand the taste.

Natural fat free or low fat yogurt with strawberries and, or raspberries is delicious and really brings out their flavor :p
 
I used to HATE diet coke with a passion, but I decided to keep on trying to "like" it rather than full fat coke, and now I have been drinking diet coke for years and love it, and HATE full fat coke now
Its like sugar in tea and coffee, I used to have one, but again I have not had sugar in tea for years and if I was to be given one by mistake with sugar in I find I cant drink it, its horrible, I have a sweetner now in coffee and like you I used to hate the things

In my case I just got used to the taste until my tastebuds got used to it
 
There has been a lot written about the effects of using artificial sweeteners. Apart from low fat yogurts :eek: I tend to avoid them, and I know if I give my little boy anything 'sugar free' (ie with asparteme in) it has a dramatic effect on his behaviour :( Makes me think they are no good at all for you
 
After what Ive read about aspartame etc recently Ive decided to avoid it as much as poss. Apparantly it can even cause depression aswell as cancers, headaches, mood swings and a whole list of other nasties. Not sure how true that is but I do suffer from depression/anxiety and by eliminating the sweetners as much as poss maybe my overall health will improve. Its easy to read and believe everything but I read the same sort of things on several websites after googling the dangers of artificial sweeteners.

I dont drink much coke now, maybe 2 cans or those small bottles a week and for the last week have had full fat coke which ive always liked especially on a hot day!

Anyway Ive rationed them now, thrown out 3 ww yogs which had both aspatame and a.k sweetner in them which is all they really tasted of just artificial! Bought some ski yogs today which have no artificial anything in them and some Tescos yeo toffee yogs not sure how many syns they are yet but as they are low fat its better than me having a choc bar or something plus they have real sugar in them which will properly cure any sugar craving i need to satisfy instead of using fake sugar which simply doesnt and has never really worked for me, its just taken a while to realise it. Ive also bought some of that natural unrefined cane sugar that someone suggested.

Cant believe kids drinks like fruit shoots have aspartame in too. They used to be my daughters favourite drinks when she was younger.
Who knows what the artificial sweetener chemicals/toxins can do to our bodies?
 
Any of the diet yogurts are far too sweet for me. I much prefer natural yogurt/fromage frais either with fruit or maybe a little honey/lemon curd to sweeten it.

The only thing I really use regularly with sweetners in is Robertsons squash but sometimes I'll dilute fruit juice with water instead of using that.

Diet fizzy stuff is too disgusting to contemplate and on the rare occasions I want a Pepsi I go for the full fat variety.
 
I love all the products with artificial sweeteners. Without them I would be at least 4 or 5 stone heavier than I am.

I don't have sugar in coffee or on cerials but the likes of yogourts, fizzy drinks, drinking choc etc I always have diet variety.

In an ideal world I would prefer to have the normal type but realistically I know I can't have them without putting weight on rapidly so I just have the diet stuff and have learnt to accept it.

Tracey
 
I still find the taste of diet coke a bit unpleasant but it's bearable with vodka ;) and I quite like a canderel in my coffee!! I'm quite happy to eat sweeteners as I don't believe the hype about them being bad for you. It's not so much about what research has been done as WHO has done it. The more hysterical factions have very distinct conflicts of interest. And i know just how easy it is to manipulate data to make it say what you like!!

The few studies I've found that seem genuinely independent haven't found any links to health problems at all. As a parent of an autistic child I've really researched into food additives and I think they are safe and don't impact behaviour at all. A lot of ppl will disagree with me (as is their right lol) but I much prefer to look into these things myself and not just wholly believe in whatever cause the Guardian is wailing about this week!!

Sent from my iPhone using MiniMins
 
i hate diet drinks, they taste foul!

i dont have that problem with yoghurts, i can only buy dairy free yoghurts.
 
I have totally given up sweeteners. I prefer no sugar on most of things anyway, and I'm using organic whole sugar for cooking. I think what we have to do is to get rid of the habit of sweet in our mouth. After this everything processed you buying tastes so sweet, it hurts.


Yes, the same thing has happened to me! I weaned myself off sweetners (I used to love diet foods like Solero lollies, skinny cow lollies, weight watcher yoghurts, diet coke). It wasn't actually that hard. After a week, you're no longer craving sugar. But you have to stay off sugar or else you're back craving it again, it's just your body craving the sugar. I really do think sugar is a drug! Natural sugars in fruit and veg etc are fine but things like honey, table sugar, sweetners etc really should be avoided imo. Oh ready meals, jars of sauces like Uncle Bens etc have tons of sugar in them too! Any chemical ending in -ose (dextrose, maltrose etc) is a sugar to name but one example.
 
When I started dieting, I increased the amount of sweeteners I consumed, as I started drinking more coffee with sweetener and cans of diet coke.

I ended up with an upset stomach everyday day. I was not sure if it was the caffine or sweetener, so now I have reduced my intake of both....
 
I think personally its good to do individual research on everything and not believe everything we hear. If we did that we wouldnt eat/drink or do anything.

Its all about choice and personal preference but at the same time if these things wern`t highlighted in the first place people wouldnt be aware of them and be spurred on to research for themselves.

Ive found alot more negative info than i have positive on the subject of artificial sweeteners so made the choice to cut it out as much as poss. Thankfully i dont feel the need to have diet yogs/ sugar free jellys/ diet drinks etc everyday I was only having them as a substitute for something sweet but it was an artificial substitute so pointless for me really. Im happy to have a quarter of a spoon of natural brown sugar in tea, one or two cans of red full fat coke a week and syn it and the odd yog if i fancy it but would rather spend the calories for that on a small bar of choc a couple times a week which is much more satisfying.

I`ll have to be careful that the cals gradually dont pile up but come to the conclusion that a little bit of what you fancy does you good. Its when that gets out of control there becomes problems.

Ive been using diet foods with artificial sweeteners for years and theyve done me no good whatsoever weightwise. Infact I was slimmer when i didnt use them and ate in moderation. Some of the studies Ive read suggest AS can even cause weightgain because of how the body processes the chemical. This may or may not be true but willing to go back to the natural way of eating in small amounts and see how it goes. Its only been a week or so since gave them up and already feel a bit better. Have more energy and no headaches etc.
 
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