Clean eating and sweetners.

[kraphti]

I am trying to further clean up my eating habits and I'm confused about sweetners. I want to use the healthiest option possible for
sweeting my coffee and for baking (the little bit that I do). I have been been slowly moving from grandualted sugar to splenda.

But is Splenda the healthiest option?

Does it fall under processed foods?

Would raw (unrefined) sugar be a better option? Raw sugar probably
has more calories that granualted sugar, but if is a more natural product, I would prefer it over granulated sugar or Splenda.

Any ideas on which one is actually better for clean eating?

 

[SRP]

My personal opinion is that regular sugar is more natural (i.e., clean) than the so-called healthier options. They're just another processed food. Yes, I think raw sugar would be a cleaner option, since it is closer to a natural state. You might also want to try honey, especially raw, unprocessed honey.

Another option is the plant, Stevia. I've never tried it, but I understand that the leaves are incredibly sweet. Now, you can't get any more natural than eating a raw plant leaf!

 

[Bobbi]

I use organic sugar when I use sugar and I like honey too, for tea. I have a strong distrust of artificial sweetners but my neice, who is a health nut loves Splenda so I think it's about not consuming too much. If you like it, you could use both so you don't get too much of any.

Sugar and Splenda are both processed.

Bobbi http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif "Chick's rule!"

Tell me, what it is you plan to do with your one wild and precious life? -Mary Oliver

 

[merrybaker]

For me I would say Splenda or any ARTIFICIAL sweetner is Bad bad bad for you . Plus for me it just makes me want REAL sweets so I stay away from it !!! I would just use sugar for baking once in awhile !!

 

[Kit_]

Personally use normal sugar or honey as a sweeteners. The artificial ones, are horrible for you, the pink packet you see in a restaurant, is made by a company that makes carpet, and actually has a warning about causing cancer, Splenia is actually chlorinated, so I’m not all that sure if you want to put that in your body or not.

But really if you use artificial you’ll be putting in worse crap then what you’d get from a McDonald’s big mac. Another sweetener that I can’t remember the name to, comes in the blue packet, is actually made an alcohol that is actually very poisonous to the body.

Research what their ingredients are on these things, and you'll never pick one up again, nor any type of diet soda/drink.

Kit

 

[kathryn]

Splenda doesn't seem very "natural" to me, despite the advertising hype to the contrary. Sugar + chlorine is as close to sugar, IMO, as processed soy made into PLASTIC is to soy foods.

I stick with stevia, maple syrup, raw sugar, date sugar (made from dried dates), rice syrup, etc. Natural sweeteners that people have been consuming for centuries.

I'd take sugar over Splenda anytime.

 

[pixie9]

I would extend this to flour as well. White/processed flour is bleached and stripped of it's nutrients and then enriched to try and put them back in. I stick to whole wheat flour and if that doesn't work for the recipe, I use whole wheat pastry flour. White sugar is also bleached so I would stick with the natural (brownish)/raw sugar or honey.
Carolyn