Obesity Discussion Forums

[monique]

I read a book on "Carbohydrate Addiction" that said they had found some people don't react to artificial sweeteners the same as sugar and some do. They had some people whose carb cravings didn't go away until they gave up diet drinks. My aunt and uncle in France tell me that the theory there is that if you have real sugar in your system at the time you ingest the artificial sweetener your body treats it all the same and can't distinguish between them. Since he's diabetic he would never have artificial sweeteners in case they triggered an insulin response. Now he just takes insulin injections and eats whatever he wants.

The stats I've seen show that on average people who consume artificial sweeteners weight more. I don't know if that's because people try to use it as a shortcut for eating right or because of the cravings, either way I don't consider them healthy.

~Monique

[MichaelB]

So basically, the fact that I'm on the high-protein, low-carb diet might help me not have those carb cravings in response to the diet soda, but if I were simply on a balanced, low-calorie diet with moderate carbs, I might have a very different response.

Interesting.

I don't know if that's because people try to use it as a shortcut for eating right or because of the cravings

I suspect that both might be to blame.

[SheaGrl]

Originally Posted by MichaelB

I saw Truvia at my local Safeway the other night. 10 cents per packet, 40 packets at a time. Splenda was right around 3 cents a packet, 200 packets at a time.

I've actually gone the other way, in that sodas are my go to "food" if I'm craving something a little sweet.

FWIW, I probably drink 5-8 cans a day...doesn't seem to make me want to eat other carbs.

Gosh, 5-8? I would work on trying to halve that!

BTW, I BOUGHT TRUVIA TODAY! I will test it out this week and report back!!

[MichaelB]

Originally Posted by SheaGrl

Gosh, 5-8? I would work on trying to have that!

It's easy to have that. They sell it in 6-packs, 12-packs, 24-packs and 36-packs at the local grocery store.

Hey, if I wasn't drinking diet sode, how would I get my Daily Recommended Dosage of Phenylketonurics and Phenylalanine?

And 5-8 cans is a typical day, mind you. No telling how much gets consumed when it's hot out. Mid-summer, you might as well bring out an IV drip.

(I know, I know...someone needs a spanking...)

[MichaelB]

All that joking around, and I forgot to comment on this:

Originally Posted by SheaGrl

BTW, I BOUGHT TRUVIA TODAY! I will test it out this week and report back!!

Cool! Looking forward to hearing what you think of it! I was really tempted to buy some at Safeway, but I had the following internal dialog instead:

Me: "What do you use sweetener in?"
Myself: "Nothing."
Me: "Why would you buy it then?"
Myself: "Dunno. Just to try it."
Me: "Seriously?"
Myself: "Yep. I've bought plenty of things for sillier reasons."
Me: "Hopeless. Stop looking at the baking supplies and go smell the croissants again."
Myself: "Great idea!"

[SheaGrl]

Hah! Actually, after I wrote that post, I was like, "um....what can I even use it on?...cereal?"

So basically the light bulb in your head lit up in my head 12 hours after my purchase.

[MichaelB]

Ha, too funny. Yeah, cereal is exactly what I would've used it on.

I'm guessing coffee or tea would work (but I don't drink the stuff).

Maybe a half a grapefruit?

Oatmeal?

[monique]

Use it to make some lemonade! Or in iced tea?

Seriously Michael, even the makers of diet soda don't endorse drinking that much of it. I hope you don't get sick!

~Monique

[MichaelB]

I don't mean to seem flippant, but I'm really not all that concerned.

From an article on questia:

On the basis of extensive testing in animal and human subjects, the level of daily consumption that is judged to be safe by the FDA is 50 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg) of body weight per day. At this level, for example, a 150-pound (60-kilogram) person would need to consume almost 16 12-ounce cans of a beverage containing aspartame to reach this level of intake.

At 240 pounds, I'd need to consume almost 26 cans before I'd be approaching those levels.

[monique]

I guess I *was* raised by paranoid hippies in Berkeley, CA, but I would assume that the amount of a highly profitable ingredient that the FDA permits you to have per day is a hell of a lot more than is actually good for you. They weigh your health against the money "donated" and the taxes collected from global mega-corporations like Coke and Pepsi. And how much is your health worth to the FDA? Probably a lot less than you'd hope. I'm not saying you should believe all the articles about artificial sweeteners causing MS and cancer, but I wouldn't distrust them entirely, and I also wouldn't entirely trust the safety studies funded by those who stand to profit from the results. Just my two cents on the issue!

~Monique

[MichaelB]

I have to have faith in the system at some point, otherwise I'd be completely paranoid.

[monique]

Heh heh, I bet I'm coming off a little too Agent Mulder right now!

~Monique

[MichaelB]

<grin> No worries... I think I may be the opposite end of the spectrum, a little too trusting sometimes.

[FinallyReady]

I just started using Truvia. It is delicious, especially for someone who dislikes 1. regular sugar in tea, and 2. any kind of artificial sugar so far. aspartame makes me sick, sucralose makes me a little less sick, and Ace K has a nasty aftertaste.
I started a couple days ago having truvia in my green tea (which I'm trying to drink more of since cold weather + cold water doesn't work so well), and I love it.
My only question is, today I have had to practically force myself to even get the 800 calories I have so far, and I havn't been at all hungry all day. Does anyone know anything about stevia that might have something to do with this? My energy isn't particularly low, it's just that my appetite has been non-existant today.

[Jasmine130]

I haven't heard of any connection between truvia and appetite, but it may be that it satisfied a sweet tooth that may otherwise have revved up your appetite.

I use truvia in my oatmeal or buckwheat. Yum!

[basketballbelly]

When I stopped drinking regular soda, I also stopped drinking diet soda, once in a while, when there is nothing else appealing I will drink one...but I am addicted to Diet Lipton Green Tea...is it just as bad?

bbb

[sweetn_low]

I also worry about the "dangers of aspartame" but it's so hard to avoid, its in everything! The only diet soda I know of without it is diet Crush, made by the Pepsi corp. They use Splenda which I feel a lot better consuming. Diet Pepsi is loaded with aspartame I don't see why they can't use Splenda in it as well. Splenda is my staple sweetner in my home. I hope this new product works out and we start seeing it being used in more foods.

I had a chuckle when I read about everyone living in their igloos here in Canada. We might as well be today. It is very cold and we are having a bad snow storm. Its the worst when the wind chill makes the temperature feel like -30 celsus. Any type of outdoor exercise is pretty hard here in the winter so I stick to my basement aerobics I really need to get a car asap so I can actually get out when it is so cold.

[FinallyReady]

saw an ad recently for "bulk bag" of stevia crystals... stevia in the raw? made by sugar in the raw. can't seem to find it in a store, but you can order it online somewhere

[marymary_27]

It's so hard to know what to believe, because I have read in many different places that Splenda is just as bad as Aspertame is just as bad as real Sugar. I read this in the book Skinny Bitch as well as a Jillian Michaels book for sure (and I have heard through other sources I can't remember). I have not heard this about Stevia. You can buy Stevia in liquid form at the whole foods store, I use it in my tea. It comes in a glass bottle with a dropper. It's more expensive, but Truvia is too.

[basketballbelly]

Ok, I guess I've never heard anything about real sugar being bad, what is wrong with real sugar?

bbb