Did anyone else see this?

[Fair_Lady]

Hi everyone.

ABC had something on our local news (Knoxville TN) last night about Splenda and Low carb Diets. I was wondering if anyone else saw the same thing and what you thought of it all. It goes something like this. Evidently...

LC Diets: (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=2639611) A new study tracking more than 80,000 nurses finds that women who said they ate diets low in carbohydrates did not have greater heart disease than women who didn't eat low-carb diets. More info here (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=2639611)

Splenda: (http://wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=5651675) Some guy has written a book (Sweet Deception by Dr. Joseph Mercola) about Splenda being bad for you. Two of the 3 ingredients are derivitives of High Frustose Corn Syrup and 'Sucralose', (a chemical discovered while trying to create a new insecticide) that when ingested, the body doesn't know what sucralose is or how to count its calories, therefore the company can put low cals on it. He claims it has Chlorine in it. In a statement released by Splenda, management says "Mercola's book misinforms readers with unsubstantiated claims about surcralose, the sweetening ingredient in Splenda and purposely deceives consumers about its safety." More info here (http://wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=5651675)

[SunnyCarol]

I've seen the report about low carb and heart disease. It's a good start, but the spin doctors are having a field day with the results. Even though the nurses were basically following Atkins maintenance, they are saying they got their fat and protein from vegetable sources and not meat. As if.

Dr. Joseph Mercola is a nut case. Have you ever read some of the stuff he writes on his website? :rolleyes:

Sunny!

[Fair_Lady]

Dr. Joseph Mercola is a nut case. Have you ever read some of the stuff he writes on his website? :rolleyes:

No, I hadn't been to his website but after reading what you wrote, I did a quick search and found a few sites he was on. He seems very opinionated and pushes the organic lifestyle, which I am sure is a very good for us... IF you can afford to eat that way!

The article I read was bashing SBD - which I personally have not looked into. And he was saying about not eating fish and shellfish because of the mercury. Dang, I am not taking that off my eating list. I love the fish we get back home (Sam's Club imports that and NZ lamb) and I make my own version of fish and shrimp soup. I think if we stayed away from everything they say is "bad" for you, we'd have nothing left to eat. I can't believe the additives and preservatives that are in the foods here in America. I can't even buy whipping cream that doesn't have something in it to 'keep the peaks stiff'. I'd love to at least find organic cream.

Thanks for responding Sunny. Have a great day.

[marty12550]

Some of his stuff may be proven or just opinions, but I dont nor would I eat any sugar substitue. I can not understand eating somethig that is completely un-natural. If I need some sweetness, I use honey. There are plenty of natural sources as well.

And as far as eating organic, it does not have to be expensive. If you look into a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). You sign up at a farm and get a share of the produce all season long. Not only is it organic, but you also know EXACTLY where you're food is coming from and support a local small business in the process. One near me provides 8-12 pounds of veggies a week from early spring to late fall.

http://www.localharvest.org/
to find a farm near you

http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/csa/
much more information

[Fair_Lady]

marty12550: Thanks for the links, I appreciate the help. I checked the sites out and did a search in my area but there is nothing locally that came up. Nothing within a 45-60+ min drive. And any foods I can get that might be remotely organic ARE expensive in our area.

As for the honey, I can't have that as it affects my blood sugar and I would not be able to stay in ketosis if I ingested it.

[Analog6]

I always used honey after I found they were bleaching the sugar with caustic soda - put me right off! Now I go without because I feel uneasy with the unnaturalness of artifiical sweeteners. There is an article at the Weston-Price website - http://www.westonaprice.org/modernfood/aspartame.html - (and I do take their info with a grain of salt, but some is useful) about aspartame which mentions other artificial sweetners and the bit below may explain why for some people they are counter indicated.

------------------------------------------------

Dr. Walton, who has also studied the effects of aspartame, is emphatic when he tells me, "Probably one major contributor to obesity is the widespread use of diet products!" A chorus of non-conventional health professionals echoes his statement, which can just aswell be read as a warning. The reasons are not simple; they involve complex biochemical reactions linked to hormones and brain chemicals.

Aspartame itself doesn’t have any calories, but basically, one of its ingredients, the amino acid phenylalanine, blocks production of serotonin, a nerve chemical that, among other activities, controls food cravings. As you might well imagine, a shortage of serotonin will make your brain and body scream for the foods that create more of this brain chemical—and those are the high-calorie, carbohydrate-rich snacks that can sabotage a dieter. Obviously, the more aspartame one ingests, the more heightened the effects. Simply put, aspartame appears to muddle the brain chemistry.

Nutritionist Susan Allen, RD, CCN, at Chicago’s Northwestern Center for Integrative Medicine, suspects that something additional is going on in many of her patients who have been using aspartame and other artificial sweeteners. Allen believes that when they consume them, the sweet taste of no-calorie sweeteners triggers their bodies to release insulin, even though there is no food to feed the cells. Normally, when we eat, the sugar in that food, which is derived from carbohydrates, is broken down into simple sugars, like glucose, which then enter the blood stream (we call it "blood sugar").

[liddie01]

I have had success with stevia, which is a natural sweetner, but I also use splenda regularly.

[BlitzedAng]

I like using liquid Stevia in drinks but have had mixed results with the packets. Takes a bit of tinkering with per recipe.


Angel

[bunks]

Nutritionist Susan Allen, RD, CCN, at Chicago’s Northwestern Center for Integrative Medicine, suspects that something additional is going on in many of her patients who have been using aspartame and other artificial sweeteners. Allen believes that when they consume them, the sweet taste of no-calorie sweeteners triggers their bodies to release insulin, even though there is no food to feed the cells. Normally, when we eat, the sugar in that food, which is derived from carbohydrates, is broken down into simple sugars, like glucose, which then enter the blood stream (we call it "blood sugar").

I also believed that no-calorie sweeteners would raise my insulin levels but my brother did some online research that said they don't. He's a diabetic and gave me a glucose meter and I did a test where I got up in the morning and took a reading and then drank a diet coke and took my reading again some time later, same reading no difference. It's possible that insulin does increase but I'd do some checking online before you take that as absolute truth. It's also possible that the glucose reader doesn't indicate an insulin increase, I'm not sure exactly how it works but I'd still look into the pros and cons before eliminating the subsitute.

Mind you I've also read that sugar doesn't have any greater adverse effect on diabeties than any other food if you're diabetic. I'm thinking of other high carb foods so I guess if used in moderation maybe sugar is better than a substitute, I don't know. I think you can find pros and cons for almost anything it's confusing. I guess moderation is the key.

[Analog6]

I agree, bunks, that's why I said I do take their info with a pinch of salt. But I think the bit about chemicals sweeteners messing with body chemistry may have some truth so I avoid them.

Haven't tried stevia, just didn't want to buy the stuff if I didn't like it. Which is what I did with Splenda and I now have a big useless jar of it!

[Lessara]

Guys, I know that artificial sweateners raise my blood sugar (I test my blood regularly). I think you are right for if the insilin raises and your body makes sugar to compensate then you do have what I call an artificial Dawn experience like you have in the morning. By not using but only 1 pk of splenda and diluting my drinks 1:3 cups of water, I have taught myself not do sweetness. I now prefer food and drink not sweet and have much better blood sugar test results. I don't go up and down so much (btw I have type II diabetes and am on no meds).

[Fair_Lady]

I guess every'body' reacts differently as I have not noticed an increase in my bloods when I use Splenda. I know it say's it is a chemical, but I also know that if it hadn't been for the use of Splenda, I would not succeed in this WOL cos I wouln't be able to stay away from the sweet foods. I have not tried Stevia as yet, and will look for some when I am out next.

I have a long journey ahead of me, and at T.O.M. I need chocolate! So for now, I think I will continue to 'get by' using Splenda and wean myself off it when I can. I try to stay away from Aspertame whenever possible tho.

Maybe in time everything that has Splenda in it will be replaced with Stevia like Aspertame was slowly replaced by Splenda. But will 'they' find something wrong with that too? 'They' are finding problems with almost everything we eat! - mercury in the fish - hormones etc in the meat - pesticides in the veges... will we eventually be left to survive on pills?

I do feel that it is more costly to buy 'healthy' foods than to buy all the processed foods out there - and that is not just here in the US, but back in NZ as well. Hubby and I are not very 'well off' financially. We get by, but things feel like they have gotten tougher since I started back on Atkins/Low carb. And I know someone suggested buying from a farmers market etc, but we don't have one close to where we live. I'd cost more in gas to get there than what we'd save. So I will plod on with what I am doing and hope all ends well.