If you consume artificial sweeteners, you may want to read!

ama723

New Member
Hello all!
I am on a quest to get as many people to quit drinking diet soda and adding artificial sweeteners to everything as possible. This is why (no, it's not about cancer):

When you eat something sweet, your pancreas releases insulin in order to counteract what it believes is going to be an increase in your blood sugar. This still occurs when you eat artificially sweetened things. But, because your blood sugar didn't actually get higher because you didn't actually ingest sugar, your blood sugar drops-by a lot. What does your body want you to do when your blood sugar is low?!? EAT! So what do you do?!? You eat! How much do you eat? Well that depends the person, obviously. But I can tell you this-you are probably going to eat more calories that you would have originally consumed if you had just added real sugar to your tea (or what-have-you). There are only 15 calories in a teaspoon of sugar, 20 calories in a teaspoon of honey (my personal suggestion), and 143 calories in a can of regular Coke. Now, I also don't recommend you drink soda, but that is a whole other discussion. So, in short, by ingesting fake sugar, you will probably end up eating more calories than you would have if you had just eaten the real thing.

I explained this to my parents, who used to add Splenda to their coffee every morning, and (thank god!) they stopped. I spoke with them again about 2 or 3 weeks later and my dad couldn't believe it. He was seeing better, feeling better, and no longer had pain in his kidney area-he explained to me that he had felt like he had a constant kidney infection for quite some time-and his pain was gone! My mom also told me, although I didn't really want to know this, that my dad would have needed to start taking a certain blue pill, if you catch my drift, if things hadn't changed.

So I beg you, for your own health and well-being, (please please please!) stop ingesting fake sugar. Just because these things have been approved by the FDA doesn't mean they are healthy. We really do not know or understand the long term affects they may have on our bodies (cancer or otherwise), and after what my dad experienced, I will never touch this stuff again!
 
I also heard a report that sucralose (Splenda) may interfere or destroy that "good bacteria" that are in our digestive systems. This can cause so many digestive problems. I gave up adding Splenda to my Go Lean cereal and tea and have tried to cut down on "Diet" anything and have noticed a big difference! Thanks for the information!!
 
Thanks for the interesting post. My mom and I are big diet Pepsi drinkers. I was getting concerned about the amount I was drinking so I stopped totally for a week and found that I was less hungry. I then went vacation and started drinking it again and I find that I am hungrier even though I am eating the same amount (or more :(). Time to dump the Pepsi for good!

I have sent your post to my mom in the hopes she will cut down too.
 
thanks for this. i'm always hungry and never get full but i also eat lots of artificial sweetners per day so this may be the culprit. i may give this no splenda thing a go.
 
Could you please site the medical journal this study was published in? I'd love to read it. Less hunger, better vision, clears up kidney infection, and erections?? Such a deal!

Ben
 
Actually, I didn't get this from a medical journal-not to say that there isn't one out there with this information. I am a college student, biology major, and I learned about insulin and blood sugar in my anatomy and physiology class. I have also read many articles about this, although I honestly can't remember where-probably mostly health magazines, such as Women's Health. Really, what happens here as far as blood sugar goes is basic endocrine physiology.

However, I'm not trying to say that if you stop drinking diet soda you're vision is going to improve or anything else that happened to my father. I simply suggested to him that he stop drinking splenda spiked coffee for diet reasons, and he had so many other benefits that I thought I should share. :)

I found this article, written by a physician, that has a little more information if you would like to read it:
http://www.prohealth.com/library/print.cfm?libid=13986
 
Thanks for taking the time to respond back. I read the article you posted, and I have to say it is peppered with phrases like "most likely" "possibility" and the dangers of "chemicals". It makes me suspicious when anything "natural" is automatically assumed to be better. Snake bites are natural, as is poison ivy and tobacco.

I don't mean to begin an argument, and I think it's fantastic that you are trying to clean up your diet. And I don't really know why I chose to even respond to your thread. I bet there is a ton of stuff we agree on. (First of all, we are here - and that's great. I just fininshed GS legs, and my legs are wobbling as I type this). I guess I'll just leave it at that.

Good luck with college. And thanks again for writing back,
Ben
 
http://www.apa.org/releases/sweeteners0208.html
Here is a more scientific article if you would prefer-you can even read the original document as a pdf at the bottom.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2887500
Here is a much shorter article, that describes an experiment done that tested insulin levels after injecting rats with an artificial sweetener.
While both of these are experiments on rats, humans and rats have very similar digestive systems, so it can be assumed that humans would have a similar response.

I didn't realize I needed a bunch of scientific sources-this is a forum, not a scientific paper!

Also, I never said that just because something is natural that it is better for you. Most of the fruits and vegetables we eat today aren't natural at all, but rather genetic mutants that produce a better flavor, color, shape, grow where we want them to, or whatever.

If you're still having a hard time believing that any of this may be true, then I suggest not drinking diet soda for a week or two and see if you can tell a difference. Obviously, if you don't want to stop ingesting these things, that is your call. I can't make anyone do anything they do not want to do.
 
I also don't want to argue, and I think the poster who asked for back-up info really didn't want to argue. I believe it is fair to ask for studies when someone posts information for us to live by or change our lives by. There are so many people who will try to offer helpful information, only to have someone else tell you the exact opposite. And sometimes, even both sides can give you back-up studies. It can be so confusing.

I am a biological engineer, and I live with a physician, and he has really helped me understand how objective we have to be with medical information. Studies have to be double-blind and unbiased to really be useful, and we can't always rely on personal experience of someone else to tell us how we will be affected. Not that personal experience means nothing, but we just have to be objective.

Now artificial sweeteners may be the absolute devil and there may be studies out there that show such. I don't know, but I think it's fair to ask for them.

I would definitely like to try and get rid of them - I know it can't hurt!
 
reference links are nice

I thought Ben's first post where he requested sources did come across as a little snarky.

Although I suspect he meant it to be light and teasing.

I had heard a few years ago that artificial sweeteners were actually appetite stimulants, but I like knowing what the biological mechanism is that makes it do that. I think your post explains it nicely. I am grateful for the source references so that I can read more about it and learn more.

In regards to your father's experiences, even though artificial sweeteners may not have been a cause for his kidney pain or his potential for ED, eliminating them from his diet may have had a domino effect in other areas. But if he was having kidney pain, he should probably mention that to a doctor. Same with the ED, as that can be an indication of the beginnings of heart disease or hardening of the arteries. early treatment can do wonders.
 
I find it really interesting that every time someone posts a personal experience with artificial sweeteners someone will get their knickers in a twist and demand scientific evidence to prove the bad effects.

Maybe some people are glad that it is mentioned, do their own research and hey, if some of you want to keep drinking your diet sodas and keep putting artificial sweeteners in your whatever you eat, more power to you, no need to get defensive about it. No one says you can't. However, I don't think anyone is harmed by cutting out artificial sweeteners and diet soda out of their diet.

Chill, nobody takes way your diet sodas :eek:
 
Hello all!
I am on a quest to get as many people to quit drinking diet soda and adding artificial sweeteners to everything as possible. This is why (no, it's not about cancer):

When you eat something sweet, your pancreas releases insulin in order to counteract what it believes is going to be an increase in your blood sugar. This still occurs when you eat artificially sweetened things. But, because your blood sugar didn't actually get higher because you didn't actually ingest sugar, your blood sugar drops-by a lot. What does your body want you to do when your blood sugar is low?!? EAT! So what do you do?!? You eat! How much do you eat? Well that depends the person, obviously. But I can tell you this-you are probably going to eat more calories that you would have originally consumed if you had just added real sugar to your tea (or what-have-you). There are only 15 calories in a teaspoon of sugar, 20 calories in a teaspoon of honey (my personal suggestion), and 143 calories in a can of regular Coke. Now, I also don't recommend you drink soda, but that is a whole other discussion. So, in short, by ingesting fake sugar, you will probably end up eating more calories than you would have if you had just eaten the real thing.

I explained this to my parents, who used to add Splenda to their coffee every morning, and (thank god!) they stopped. I spoke with them again about 2 or 3 weeks later and my dad couldn't believe it. He was seeing better, feeling better, and no longer had pain in his kidney area-he explained to me that he had felt like he had a constant kidney infection for quite some time-and his pain was gone! My mom also told me, although I didn't really want to know this, that my dad would have needed to start taking a certain blue pill, if you catch my drift, if things hadn't changed.

So I beg you, for your own health and well-being, (please please please!) stop ingesting fake sugar. Just because these things have been approved by the FDA doesn't mean they are healthy. We really do not know or understand the long term affects they may have on our bodies (cancer or otherwise), and after what my dad experienced, I will never touch this stuff again!


I just wanted to thank you for posting this. I did a little test about a year ago on artificial sweetners in my system. I went about 9days without eating or drinking anything with artificial sweetners in it and OMG:eek: i swear i was going through withdrawls:confused: I was very emotional and moody. It was like a 9day-pms-tantrum:eek:.I started back on them(unfortunately,but my DH was relieved:rolleyes:) and i was like my old self agian.

Of course this is just my bodies response,im sure everybody would respond differently but it REALLY opened my eyes to how im addicted to the stuff. One day i will try agian and hopefully stick to it:)
 
I find it really interesting that every time someone posts a personal experience with artificial sweeteners someone will get their knickers in a twist and demand scientific evidence to prove the bad effects.

Maybe some people are glad that it is mentioned, do their own research and hey, if some of you want to keep drinking your diet sodas and keep putting artificial sweeteners in your whatever you eat, more power to you, no need to get defensive about it. No one says you can't. However, I don't think anyone is harmed by cutting out artificial sweeteners and diet soda out of their diet.

Chill, nobody takes way your diet sodas :eek:

LOL at the diet soda comment Carola. I was reminded of a famous quote just now off Braveheart...."you may take my life,but you can never take away my freedem(or diet soda's:p)"
 
I find it really interesting that every time someone posts a personal experience with artificial sweeteners someone will get their knickers in a twist and demand scientific evidence to prove the bad effects.

Maybe some people are glad that it is mentioned, do their own research and hey, if some of you want to keep drinking your diet sodas and keep putting artificial sweeteners in your whatever you eat, more power to you, no need to get defensive about it. No one says you can't. However, I don't think anyone is harmed by cutting out artificial sweeteners and diet soda out of their diet.

Chill, nobody takes way your diet sodas :eek:

ROFLMAO!!! You said it perfectly!
Amen Sist-a!!!!!! & High 5!:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool:
 
LOL at the diet soda comment Carola. I was reminded of a famous quote just now off Braveheart...."you may take my life,but you can never take away my freedem(or diet soda's:p)"

LOL! Amelia. I love that movie.
You have no idea how many diet soda debates I've had with my SIL. She drinks 2- 2 liter bottles a day.:eek:
 

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