Dangers of Splenda
With the rising popularity of low carbohydrate diets, and increase in sales of sugar-free foods and drinks, is it any wonder that the market for sugar substitutes is becoming more and more competitive? Products such as NutraSweet, Equal, and Sweet’N Low have been on the shelves for years, even though it is widely known that they do pose some health risks.
Many people — American’s at the top of the list -— consume many times more sugar than recommended in their daily diets, so trying to cut down one’s sugar intake is a worthy goal. Of course, it’s common knowledge that the first step to losing weight is reduction of calories, and sugar is pure calories with no nutritional value. But sugar also acts like a drug, like an addiction, and cutting it out of one’s diet is easier said than done. Not only is there a mental dependence, but there is a physical one also. Sugar affects the body in complex ways—producing serotonin in the brain and causing the insulin spike, which is the ‘sugar rush’ that is the real craving, and the reason sugar addiction is so hard to kick.
Splenda is the newest product in a long line of sweeteners and substitutes promising the taste of sugar without the effects of sugar consumption. This can be construed as true in a literal sense. It is true that Splenda has none of the dangerous effects of sugar on the body – no calories, no insulin boost, no cravings. Unfortunately, while many hundreds of times sweeter than sugar, Splenda poses its own unique health risks and dangers, according to many experts. The fact that the FDA approves or doesn’t approve a particular product, really in no way assures it is safe. Powerful lobbies make their living pushing through products that have no business being in the marketplace, while blocking others that pose an economic threat to investment.
Splenda is different from other sweeteners in that it claims to be ‘made from sugar,’ and ‘natural,’ because Splenda is the trade name for sucralose. Sucralose is a synthetic compound, which — without going into too much scientific detail –is basically sugar modified by adding chlorine atoms. Sucralose, incidentally, was discovered in the 1970s by researchers looking to create a new pesticide. Chlorine is added to many products – drinking water, for example – and does not necessarily render the product dangerous. On the other hand, you are ingesting chlorine, which is not advised in large amounts.
The reason Splenda produces no calories, is that the majority passes through the body without being digested. Most studies show that only around 15% of Splenda is actually digested. The worrisome fact for some researchers is that people with healthier GI systems, will absorb more of the Splenda, and thus more of the dangerous chlorine.
The results of the tests done by Splenda’s manufacturers, McNeil Nutritionals, are also quite worrisome. Their studies revealed that test rodents suffered from dangerous side effects such as shrunken thymus glands, and enlarged livers and kidneys … and there were only short term studies. No long term studies were performed before Splenda was approved by the FDA. One could say that the long-term study is being conducted in households and supermarkets across America, with consumers as the test rodents.
Of course, Splenda is not likely dangerous in smaller doses, but what about larger ones in which larger quantities of chlorine are ingested? Herein lies the bigger problem. Perhaps the greatest reason for Splenda’s success in the marketplace is that, as opposed to the other sweeteners, Splenda remains stable at higher temperatures, meaning that it can be, and is, used in cooking. Many of the sugar-free, and low-calorie diet foods use Splenda in their recepies. People on diets are at greater risk, obviously, because they may consume this product many times a day without knowing it.
A small segment of the population is allergic to sucralose, and the reactions produced in this group can be everything from rashes, panic attacks, headaches, to intestinal cramping, diarrhea, muscle aches, and stomach pain. Findings for allergic reactions are well-documented, but for the rest of the population, the studies are murky, at best.
As with any nutritional supplement, caution and due diligence should be practiced. Read and learn all you can, and consult with you doctor before starting on any new diet. If you are already dieting, be sure to read the labels to see if the diet foods are using Splenda in the place of sugar, and make sure that you aren’t replacing the bad effects of sugar with the potentially dangerous side effects of Splenda.
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145 Responses to “Dangers of Splenda”
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Thankyou for your information. I have been on a diet and downing Splenda. I have been getting sicker and sicker. Stomach pain, leg cramps, nausea ext. I stopped using it for the last few days and the symptoms have stopped.
I went to look up information about splenda on a gut instinct. Thankyou.. I will be throwing all of my splenda products away.
Denise
I wonder why splenda left a pool like taste thanks for the info and where can I find stevia?
I have done a personal study and noticed I am greatly effected by sugar substitutes. Asparthamine gives me major headaches and Spleda makes me feel like i am going to crawl out of my skin. i feel liek i have to move and i just geniunely feel gross. i feel “toxic”. It is a horrible feeling. I would much rather eat sugar and maybe walk a little further than to use these artifical sweeteners.
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I have recently stopped using Splenda as I had just heard about the negative side effects. I lost about 15 lbs this past year going from about 155lbs to 140lbs. (I am 5ft 6in) This was a part of my diet and exercise plan. I would still like to loose another 10 lbs. What do you think of using pure maple syrup as a sweetner? I am much more concerned about my health than loosing the last 10 lbs I’d like to loose. Any comments as to what should be used as a sweetener or do I need to just learn to live without them to begin with.
Thanks, Janet
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I also had been having terrible stomach pain, my physician put me on an stomach acid reducing medicine but with not much help. I spoke to my sister and she told me about splenda and some of the side effects. I listened and stopped my morning latte with sugar free vanilla syrup and felt better after a few days. Well, I do so love to have a next to no calorie sweet latte so I just went back to my old habit for just two mornings and now I feel awful! I have sharp pain in the middle of my stomach with nausea. I am getting rid of all sugar free products I have!
I heard about the dangers of splenda. So I thought I would check it out.I have been using it for almost 2 years now and I have not had a problem at all.but,I am not eating it like candy either.
i used splenda for a year, i broke out in a rash the size of a nickel on my knee and one small area of my stomach my doctor didn’t know what was causing it. i stopped using splenda the rash has gone away.
About 6 weeks ago I started drinking a fruity water drink that I really enjoyed, made by NESTLE that contains SPLENDA. Since I have type II diabetes, this was the perfect drink for me. However, over the last four weeks I’ve had cramping and diarrhea on a daily basis. I will stop taking SPLENDA to see if that is what my problem is. I’m 64 years old and have never had diarrhea for more than 2 days in my life. But then I’ve never had so much SPLENDA as recently.
I’m going back to drinking good ole cool water.
A friend told me today that she read that Splenda had arsenic and was said to cause depression. She claimed that she stopped using and in 2 weeks was back to normal. Ever the skeptic I had to research it myself. Chlorine not arsenic. Cool! As we know its in our water and we stick it in our pools, bleach our whites and wear those clothes very often still smelling like bleach, when it rains the levels in our water are raised. There is not way we can get away from it, but I certainly assume that I am drinking more in my juice everyday and in my shower than the little I use in my coffee. Yeah there are way too many chemicals in our lives, but even off the grid, organic farming and removing ones self to lesser polluted air, is a bit much. WHen do we get to live life instead of running scared and spending extra for more pure which many times is not. I will enjoy my life by living as green as I can and trying to be healthy, but I will not let the conquest of it be my life.
Aside from the small population that may be allergic to sucralose, the reasoning behind people worrying about Splenda’s possible side effects is ill supported. The fact that Splenda is a chlorinated product should be no cause for concern. Did you know drinking water is chlorinated as well? In small amounts, but enough to kill microbes present in water. How would you feel about drinking a glass of water with live E.coli? The molecular composition of chlorine in Splenda cannot be broken down by the body, so it is excreted, making it non-caloric. If it can’t be broken down, it can’t be absorbed by the body. There have been tests performed where lab-animals receive the human equivalent of 5,000 packets of splenda for one month. Test results are inconclusive. Some evidence suggests possible thymus shrinkage. But who is going to consume that much Splenda? If you consumed the same equivalent of table salt you’d likely die from poisoning. Everything in moderation. Do you know what people should be more focused on? The American diet. Instead of jumping on the bandwagon of nitpicking the mystery of the “too-good-to-be-true” yellow sugar-substitute packets, why not analyze how cardiovascular health in America is the #1 cause of death and how it is directly related to our diet.
I’ve been using Splenda a lot over the past two months in baking products, coffee, and other beverages. I’ve noted a rapid increase in rash breakouts. I thought it was because of the dry winter air, and stopped using soaps with fragrances to no avail. As soon as I stopped the Splenda, it all cleared up.
I use splenda almost daily and i have yet to have any side effects at all. I’ll keep researching though. Thanks!
I disagree with the statement that splenda does not affect blood glucose levels. My fasting glucose levels when I was using splenda were never below 170. When I switched to stevia my fasting blood glucose level are in the 80’s. Splenda does have an impact on. I think splenda manufacturers would like you to beleive it the best thing for diabetics. The side effects inconjunction with blood sugar spikes should scare anyone from using splenda.
I only use stevia now. Since south american people have been ising it for 1500 years I feel perfectly safe and assured that stevia is the best product for me.
[...] types) (as it reduces calories and fits within their dietary goals), but this too has its critics: Dangers of Splenda | Splenda Side Effects Therefore, make a decision that is the best one for you among the "Bad Choice Set", that [...]
I have been using Splenda for several years, after I discovered Asparthamine was causing pain in my joints. I have had no ill effects from Splenda.
We all should realise that no matter what products we consume, each one will affect us differently. We just have to sort things out and pick the one that doesn’t affect adversely.
Thanks so much for the information on Splenda. I have been a heavy user of Splenda (Coffee, on my Oatmeal, other foods that are enhanced with “sugar”, etc.) I have never had problems with dryness of the mouth or significantly chapped lips. Even when I was in the Korean War and slept in foxholes outside where the temperature at times was 20 to 30 degrees below zero, I did not suffer from chapped lips or dryness of the mouth. Lately however, I have encountered a significant dryness of my lips (to the point of splitting and bleeding)and dryness in the front inside of my mouth. Reacting normally to the dry lips, I have tried practically every lip balm on the market; however, while I have enjoyed temporary relief at times, the dryness has returned like clock work. I have been trying to isolate foods/drinks/alcohol/etc. in my diet in an attempt to pinpoint what might be causing this dryness. I have not been able to identify what has been causing my problem. Now, after reading about Splenda (Sucralose) and reading the testimonies of others, I on this day am removing all Splenda from my diet because it is very possible that with my heavy use of Splenda, I have ingested a significant amount of chlorine. I will monitor any changes in the dryness of my mouth and the chapness of my lips and let you know if there have been any relief. Thanks so much for the information on Splenda.
I made fajitas last night and the whole wheat wraps I used contained splenda. I also made cupcakes and used reduced sugar(made with Splenday) frosting. WHAT A NIGHTMARE. I could not sleep the entire night. I was itching, restless and felt like sh*t. I’m at work now and I feel like a zombie. Thank you splenda.
To Barb on Jan. 13: Was your morning Latte decaf? I just started drinking latte with skim milk and sugar free carmel syrup and was getting stomach cramps. I switched to decaf and now I’m fine. I have not had any problems with Splenda and have been drinking it in Fuze flavored water for 3 months now. I am glad now to hear about the possible side effects and will be cutting down on the amount of Splenda I ingest.
I am a diabetic and have been using Splenda for two years. I have had panic attacks, pain in both the left side and right side of my stomach, chest pain, angina-like pain in my back and severe headaches. I thought it was my diabetes getting worse, but my glucose levels have stayed pretty normal. I couldn’t figure out why I’ve been feeling so…strange and in so much pain. Now I know. Thanks, y’all. I will not be using Slenda ever again.
I think it is great people are concerned about such things, what I don’t get is if so many people are concerned, why they cannot donate to third party research to verify testing results and safety instead of throwing out more garble that just confuses the subject. Your article was great retoric, but has no substantial value, no supporting data, no specifics indicating who or when anything was deemed safe. Componds broken down are always poisonous. Chlorine has several forms, table salt is made up of two substances that can kill you and itself is dangerous, but also required for life. Water kills more people than most substances, yet no one complains about water. I believe articles like these are the reason we live in an uneducated/mock educated society where we blindly follow sci-fi beliefs instead of seeking scientific evidence.
I recently began having migraines and feeling lethargic. Searching for the cause, I re-read (more carefully) the ‘healthy’ protein bars I recently started on and discovered they have sucralose in them!
There should be a big skull-&-crossbones ‘Sucralose Warning’ on the labels!
I have been using Splenda for over 2 years because of the weight watchers program I was on. My GERD flareups went from hardly ever to very often & within the past 6 months I have developed gastritis. I stopped the splenda for a month & used organic brown sugar, but I developed a sensitivity(lightheadedness) to anything sweet such as fruits, cereal with sugar. I stopped the brown sugar & went back to splenda & my gastritis flared up within 2 weeks. I have decided to stop splenda altogether & I need a safe sweetner I can use, or else I will have to stop using sweetening altogether. GASP!!! Any suggestions?
I never have used other sugar substitutes but I started the new year using Splenda. I was sold by the “made from sugar” marketing b.s. After a few weeks my stomach started to bloat and cramp really badly and I couldn’t figure it out. After finding blood in my bowel movements, I went to an internist. They said it sounded like I may have colon cancer and recommended a colonoscopy. It wasn’t until that came up clean that I remembered that I had started Splenda. I quit and felt much better after 2 days, completely fine after 2 weeks. The stuff is poison.
I´ve been dieting for about 3 months now. It´s hard to eat just fruits and veggies all the time. I´ve bought some candies with splenda, and confess that ate too many one day(8). It was terrible. Cramps,gases, stomach ache, and diarrea. No more splenda candies for me.
[...] searching, and it turns out that Splenda has some nasty side effects. See Splenda Side Effects, Dangers of Splenda #1, and Dangers of Splenda #2. I know I won’t be having it [...]
Thank you so much for the info on Splenda. I thought it was just me who was allergic to it. While at a friend’s house, she gave me a tall glass of ice tea, which I love. It took me awhile to figure out why I was feeling so strange. The tea had Splenda in it, which I’d never had before. My head was spinning and I literally felt like I’d been drugged. A very scary feeling, being I’m as “straight” as they get! Never again!
I am so grateful for all of you who wrote about your experiences. I rarely ever used Splenda before and had decided to stay away from almost all unnatural sweeteners a couple of years ago after I got terrible migraines several times per week from aspartame. At the time, I did some research on the Internet about aspartame and read that Splenda wasn’t that safe, either. Once I weaned myself off of aspartame, I typically only used stevia or Sweet ‘n Low. Then last year, I started drinking protein drinks with sucralose. Didn’t notice anything right away, so I chose more products with it. A couple of weeks ago, I had other food allergies re-surface and also had terrible migraines and dizziness. So I eliminated almost everything in my diet except eggs, fish, salad, and yogurt. A few days later, I woke up and — for the first time in a year or more — had no pain in my knees, lower back or muscle aches. Before that, I had been progressively feeling as if I was losing strength and would wake up every morning with neckaches, backaches, and loss of muscle strength. I thought (with great fear) that it was because I’m nearing 40. I now feel better than I have in a year. Not using Splenda recently was just part of the cleanse for my food allergies, not a conscious choice. It only dawned on me today that I may have been being poisoned by Splenda. As I said, I feel better than ever today — thank God.
I recently decided to cut sugar out of my diet to loose a few pounds – so I decided to substitute it with splenda (again) I baked with and was eating what I baked for dessert – well I could’nt believe how sick I got (by sick I mean constipated) I would’nt mind but I tried this before with the same side effect but by the way they advertise splenda I never thought it was that I will never ever stick splenda in my body. When I go to my doctor next month I going to ask him about it. (not that I don’t believe you. I’m still shocked at how dangerous splenda can be – what’s wrong with the FDA?
Me not like splenda either.I have tried to get me mum to not use too,but she seems not to worry.I tell her its not real sugar but a lab- produced chemikal concoction that is totally unnatural for the body to metabolise.It bothers me how the FDA allows special interest lobbiez to influence its approval decisions.Products are being approved with full knowledge that they are potentially dangerous by the FDA`s own scientists.
Have been using Splenda for one week and have been going crazy with headaches, sharp pains in my stomach, dizziness, severe on-edge feeling, exhaustion, tired muscles, almost passed out today – coworker said my face was pale and my eyes were dialated. Am going to stop the Splenda immediately to see if the symptoms alliviate. Will post again if the symptoms do not go away.
Update after one day of not using Splenda:
Feel 100% better! None of the symptoms that I have exhibited for the last week and a half with yesterday being the roughest day! : ) No more Splenda for this girl!
I’ve been drinking carbonated flavored water for the past few months, and i thought of it as a god send. I hated that water had no flavor, but didn’t like sports drinks because of the calories in them. This carbonated flavored water seemed perfect for staying hydrated during and after my workouts and even nice during the day. I went through maybe 3-4 of these a day for awhile till i noticed the tiny splenda sign on the bottom of the bottle. I’d been meaning to look up info on splenda because I had a gut feeling there was something was bad about it. I hope I haven’t caused to much damage to myself.
i have always used splenda. all day at work i was drinking a lot of hand-squeezed lemonade and sweetening it with splenda. Later that day i had horrible cramping. Now, if i have to have it on my grapefruit or in my homemade lemonade, I will use one packet that day.
I drank a bottle of Nestle Pure Life Water today with Splenda. Immediately after, I felt very anxious, heart starting beating too fast. I could not figure out what had happened. After researching these messages, I now know it was most likely Splenda. I will never use Splenda again. Thanks for listening.
I’ve been using splenda for years and recently over the last few weeks I’ve been getting leg cramps. I’m so glad I now realize that the splenda is most probably causing the cramps. I’m quitting this poison today! I will go by Trader Joe’s and pick up Stevia today.
Used splenda for few weeks and got rash on stomach. As soon as I stopped using it, the rash went away but left permanant mark. Switched to Stevia from last two years and is very happy with it. Stevia is natural and is very safe without any side effects. Trying Xylitol and Erythritol from last few weeks and they seem to be good. Xylitol cannot be consumed more than 6 grams per day and is very good for avoiding tooth decay(Dentists recommand it). Erythritol can consumed in larger quantities (1 gram per kg body weight).
I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes and told Splenda was the way to go for this last trimester… I do the finger pricks 4x day & have only had two really big spikes over the past 3 weeks, both coordinated with Splenda use! My Blood Glucose levels stay around 80-130 and when I used Splenda in my tea twice it has spiked to over 175! That is enough for me… I do not want to have to take injections and as long as I stay clear of the splenda the same meals stay within my limits….
Glad to see others ahve the same response
Hi, I just read Mark and Catherine’s messages above, and I had the same symptoms. I almost fainted two days ago. I had cramps/pain in different areas of my body, and had a panic spell and all towards the middle of vacation! Ugh, sadly I had some splenda this morning not thinking anything of it. I will take it out of my diet and try to remember to post what came of it. I hope my tiredness goes away as well as everything else. I use Splenda a good amount, and on that day I had probably about 10 packets of Splenda or maybe a few more. Perhaps it was the splenda with caffinated tea that did it??? I’m going to try the Stevia in a week or so and see if that does anything as well. I hope I get my energy back.
I had: dizziness, exhaustion, almost fainted, panic attacks, pain in my stomach, chest pain, pain in my back and neck, pain in my legs, and headaches.
I also had it a few days before starting in my legs, but didn’t think anything of it. Make sme wonder… I’m only 28 and fairly healthy despite the recent stuff.
Ok, here goes. Prior to Feb/08 I was a faithful consumer of Dansani flavored water. I drank one or two bottles daily and at first I never really noticed problems, or should I say I didn’t put the effects I had with the water. I guess you could say I chalked it up to getting older. Maybe about after a year and a half of consumming the water I started getting urinary tract infections. These started out one every few months and slowly progressed to every four weeks I was in the doctors office getting antibiotics. So I would say that for about four to six months I was getting these infections every four weeks. Now looking back I can see that all the other things I experienced were probably related to the water as well, such as: IBS, miagrains, hearing my pulse in my ears, dizziness while driving,hair loss, and panic attacks. Buy February after being referred to a Urologist and having my bladder scoped where he said that my bladder looked good, but since he couldn’t find the reason for my problems I must have a bladder disorder called Interstitial Cystitis, and then proceeded to tell me that I needed to take anti depressants and some other medication that would be the answer to all my problems. Needless to say I walked out of the office never to return. I then decided to try my own experiment. I gave up the Dasani water and went back to drinking plain old water. I HAVE NOT HAD A URINARY TRACT INFECTION SINCE FEBRUARY AND FELT GREAT, that is until today. Now all of the other things I had felt were gone after a while as well. So here is the rest of the story that is interesting. A couple of months ago I requested routine blood work to check my cholestol and your basic other tests. I found out that my cholestol was slightly elevated and was advised to start exercising and loose some weight. And I have been very sucessful with it, in the past two months I have lost almost 20 pounds following weight watchers and walking or riding my exercise bike. I told my husband that I had never felt better. Until last Friday when I woke up with a headache. I took some Advil and proceeded with my day. The next morning I woke up and felt the same way except I now felt nausious and weak and my leg muscles ached something awful. So for five days now I have woke up with this dull achy headache, I have a upset stomach, feelings of weakness creep up on me, my pulse is back in my ears, and my muscles ache. I realized on Monday that this was not right and something told me to look at the yogurt that I was eatting every day for breakfast and saw what the problem was. I was eatting the very thing that made me sick before and I didn’t even realize it. The last time I had the yogurt was Monday and I am still sitting here with a headache and I also have a urinary tract infection that I had to get antibiotics for this afternoon. I am assuming it takes a while to get the Splenda out of your system once you have built it up in there. I know this is rather lenghty but I do hope that it helps someone else to see that they are not just “getting old” or “hormonal”. These side effects are very real and can make your life very difficult. I realize that not everyone has problems with the Splenda and tolerates it very well. But honestly, why do we want to put chemicals like this in our bodies when we really don’t know what the long term effects of it are? We are being used as lab rats. I will wait a week to ten days and post my improvments, that I am very sure will come.
I have been addicted to splenda for the past two years. I put five to six packets in a small cup of tea and drink about 5-6 glasses a day, consuming about 30-35 packets a day. I have had severe cramping, water retention, dry and itchy skin and blurred vision for the past year on and off. After researching the side effects of Splenda and the long term dangers of it, I have switched to Stevia. I absolutely love it and the taste is so sweet that I do not have to put more than one packet in my drinks. I also feel a lot better.
Started using Splenda a few months ago, mostly with decaff ice tea. Also was drinking 2-3 cans of
Diet Rite Pure 0 cola made with Splenda. Noticed from the first week that I was having trouble with my stomach, diarrhea, cramps,& sometimes constipation. Never thought it could be the Splenda. About 3 weeks ago started having panic attacks, felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest, shaking hands, just plan lousy feeling Will stop using Spenda and see how it goes.
I used splenda to lose weight. A few months ago I was getting head and neck tremors. I also had slurred speech unvoluntary head would shake along with my hands. I had these side effects for about a week. I couldnt function I had to take a week off work . I wasnt myself for about a month after .I was in pain in my neck in back. I stopped eating splenda and it stopped. I recently started having splenda again.The symptoms started again. It can only be the splenda.No wonder its made with chlorine . I cant believe we as consumera as used as guinea pigs to see if a product may or may not have side effecs. I still have the side effects now. I had to leave work early on friday.Anyone out there eating splenda I would suggest dont eat any products with splenda at all no matter what.
I have been having Splenda in my coffee two to three times per day for the last month and a half. I have had increased anxiety, heart rate issues, sleep issues and major migraines. At church this morning, I decided I should look up the effects of Splenda and I am glad to say that I am quiting today. I know that this is the issue, because I have the same reactions with aspertame and other artificial sweeteners. Good bye Splenda.
Thank You all so much I couldn’t figure out why i have had these random symptoms.
I had my first panic attack of my life a year ago after i drank a large black tea with 2 splenda’s in it and never put the two together. I continued to use splenda and have had major anxiety, headaches, and lower back pain
I recently started dieting using food and beverages with Splenda. I have had major dizzy spells combined with ringing in my ears,migrane headaches and a sharp stabbing pain in the middle of my stomach. I had ran out of the pudding I was eating. after a couple days I was feeling better. I bought some more pudding as well as the diet rootbeer and began to be sick again. Thats when I realized it was something I was eating. After reading on this web site, I believe it must be the Splenda causing my problems.
For the last 6 months, I’ve been getting intense-flash headaches in the upper left quadrant of my head, almost like someone was putting a thumb tack in my head. Five seconds later, the pain would stop. After weeks and weeks of debating whether or not to see a doctor, I decided to stop putting Splenda in my espresso every morning. I haven’t had a headache since. I don’t think its a coincidence. I have no proof of course, but after 6 months of headaches, occuring about 5 times a day, I suddenly don’t have any.
Splenda Artificial Sweetener Shown to Contribute to Obesity and Poor Intestinal Health
A Duke University study just published in The Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health suggests that the artificial sweetener Splenda, touted by its producer, McNeil Nutritionals, as a healthy, sugar- and calorie-free alternative to table sugar, may actually cause significant health problems.
http://cherryhill.injuryboard.com/toxic-substances/splenda-artificial-sweetener-shown-to-contribute-to-obesity-and-poor-intestinal-health.aspx?googleid=248706
I have been faithfully avoiding Splenda for the last EIGHT years after quickly realizing that the no-sugar-added frozen yogurt I had for dessert two or three nights in a row was giving me severe gastro-intestinal problems. (First time I ever threw away anything containing chocolate – what a shame!)
I recently started drinking V-Fusion,100% juice, and mistakenly bought the “Light” version last week. By the time I noticed that it is only 50% juice and contains sucralose, I had already been to the doctor to check out UTI symptoms with negative results and even mixed some of that juice into the expensive unsweetened 100% cranberry juice I bought to stave off the “UTI.”
After I noticed the sucralose in the ingredients list, I googled “splenda urinary tract infection” and found this site.
So I’m not crazy! Glad I found you.
Have switched to Splenda, But no more. Couldn’t sleep at night would stay up and feel like crap. Had a bad taste in mouth. Had a very nervous feeling and my memory was terrible. Started out using alittle then began using alot on cereal like simple corn flakes and puffed rice. I thought it was eating this cereal so close to bedtime. Ran out of splenda and my restless feelings went away as did the headaches and other symptoms. Read up on Splenda and will never use it again, as I started feeling like my old self in just 2-3 days. Beware of this stuff!!!!
I just stopped using it a few days ago, and I feel like a different person. I was using it for years and had developed depression and panic attacks,besides, everyone said I wasn’t myself anymore. It is really scary, I think. Now, I feel I am finally getting back to normal. I will never take it again!!!
By the way, I used to take about 20-30 packs a day.
I was drinking coffee with splenda nearly ten times a day suddenly one day I noticed that I have tremors in my hands and one of my friend also noticed tremors in my hands while eating dinner so he advised me to get my thyroid and liver checked, I got my tests done everything was normal. When I heard about side effects of splenda I stopped taking it after few days I noticed that there were no tremors in my hands anymore .
Splenda must be the reason I am having cramps so much more. I drink iced tea all day and have noticed an increase in crampss and gas. Other side effects I am having, I am not sure of because of other problems, but I will stop the Splenda and see what transpires. I need help.
My 14 year old son did a study on aspartame and splenda in school and I was quite impressed with what he was telling me, so I decided to do some research on my own.
When I was pregnant with him, I eliminated “fake” sugars from my diet completely. When I was pregnant with my 5 year old son, my ob/gyn stated that splenda was fine, so that was the only sweetner I used. For some reason, when I got pregnant with my last child (she is now 3 years old) I went back to natural sugar and eliminated the artificial ones.
My oldest and youngest children are fine and healthy. My middle child, however, has alot of developmental delays and has EXTREME behavioral problems. We are currently in weekly counseling with him and he’s had numerous testing done, but no one has been able to definitively diagnosed what’s wrong with him.
This makes me wonder if the Splenda had something to do with his problems…
I am a retired registered nurse and have been on a diet since last March. I have lost 22 lbs. I do alot of baking this time of the year so I decided to get a bag of Splenda for a sugar substitute. In the last couple of weeks I have baked an apple pie, many batches of cookies, cakes and last Sunday I baked a cheese cake and used Splenda. Yesterday, I baked a double batch of Ranger cookies with oatmeal and with the Splenda. All week I was constipated to the point of no bowel movements and sharp stomach pains. I thought I was having a bowel obstruction. Finally, yesterday I started having bowel movements and really wasn’t eating anything. Last night I started feeling better and decided to eat 2 cookies. This morning I felt and had a cookie with my coffee and started having the cramping and bad stomach pains. I don’t ever want to feel sick like this again. I talked to a friend who said she had the same thing from using Splenda. I have been so sick all week and usually I feel really good. Well. Good bye Splenda for me and I am sharing this so other people realize it does have an affect. I really should have known as if I even eat a small piece of sugar free candy I cramp up bad with the sorbic stuff.
I use Splenda every day, in limited amounts. I can honestly say that I have never felt negative effects from this form of sugar. It simply helps make my life easier, and I feel great.
I do realize that we all have different tolerances for different foods and additives, so this is just a testament to my reaction to this substance.
I can not understand why everyone has issues with this product, I enjoy the taste and no side affects at all. like every thing over do it and you may pay a price.
Splenda has made my life a misery since using it once a day in coffee- only two tiny pellets! Cramping, constipation, gas, aches, pains, headaches,and then needing to run to bathroom.I knew I was sensitive to artificial sweetners- but tried this because of the ‘natural’ advertising blurb. I have since thrown it in the bin. One week with Splenda was enough FOREVER.
Splenda is just fine in moderation…does anyone remember moderation? If you are having any health issues see your doctor..if cant help you fire him and get a new doctor even if its a mental health professional. Stress can be attributed to many of the symptoms listed above but then again so can MS. Please see a good doctor.
I am headed to my Urologist today yet again with UTI syptoms. After reading these respones, I will mention Splenda to my doctor. It seems everytime I go with these symptoms the UA comes back clean. I’m baffled. Now I am starting to think it may very well be the Splenda. I drink it everyday (e.g. Coke Zero, Iced Tea sweetened with it).
I have been reading the horror stories about the use of Splenda. The only thing most of them have in common is that they were using it at an unhealthy consumption rate. Just like sugar/salt if you use too much, you will get sick. Nobody should consume 10 cups of coffee in a day, or two bottles of flavored water with 4-6 cans/bottles of soda. Try subbing the flavored water for plain water every other bottle. It is amazing that these people think that if they exchange one bad habit for another it is the Splenda’s fault. Eat and Drink in a healthy moderation including artificial things. Just like the Tv show 30 Days, (it was about consuming fast food every day for 30 days) how it makes you fat and sick, why would you consume that much fast food in a month? Most of these people sound like there is a one pill cure all for fitness and health, I didn’t read how they had a fitness routine. Exercise anyone? Take a class at your local college or YMCA/YWCA and get some education in health & fitness before posting BS on the web!
Our son was having severe stomach pain, severe heartburn, and also uncontrollable vomiting. For three long years we endured this on a weekly basis. He had have test and procedure in the book done to him and everything turned out normal. One day we took sucralose out of diet (not knowing anything about sucralose at the time) and BINGO, 95% of his stomach problems stopped just like that. Not even his pediatric gastroenterologist knew what was wrong with him. Every ER doctor we went to couldn’t figure out what was wrong. I am so thankful we happened to figure out what the problem was. Our entire family has taken artificial sweetners, especially sucralose, out of our diet. It isn’t easy. I recently found sucralose in the pillsbury toaster strudels I bought. Also it is in childrens tylenol and many other cough syrups on the market. There is only one sure way to not use sucralose and that is to read every label on everything we buy and to ask questions when eating out. It is like a nightmare. It’s in so much of the food we eat that isn’t labeled low calorie or diet. I can only pray that someday this stuff will be taken off the market.
I have read just about every comment on this page up to my post and have also “googled” Splenda (sucralose), watching “You Tube” videos and just can’t believe what is being said about Splenda. 3 Years ago a frind of my told me how bad Splenda was through an email that she received, but very soon afterwards telling me that the “rumors” were false and Splenda was OK. I didn’t think much of it and really didn’t set out to use it. I did use it if something said “light” or “fat free” or “sugar free”, but didn’t know what I was getting myself into. Then the summer of ‘07 my husband and I did a Low Carb diet to lose some weight and of course you need to eat everything “sugar free” so what better than to enjoy your pleasures without sugar….since you count those. So we did eat things with Splenda in them. I wouldn’t say that we over loaded, but from going to hardly ever ingesting Splenda to ingesting it daily was a change for our bodies. I soon started to get lots of head aches and I really can’t remember the other problems, I just know that I didn’t like it. So without any research, we just stopped it. I persoanlly knew that it wasn’t good and then soon started to research just being a Healthier person, by being more natural and came accross a big write up in a book about how anything man man isn’t natural no matter how it’s marketed. So I though that it makes sense. So I do my best not to by anything with splenda in it (or processed), but haven’t really paid attention to the “sucralose”. I am going to be much more careful after reading all this stuff. I didn’t set out this morning to research Splenda at all, it came up while I was googling something else and thought that I would take a “quick look” at it….2 hrs later…I just can’t believe all that I’ve read.
I do believe that you can have most things in moderation, and have read some comments on here of how some people have just been overloading there body with Splenda and understand why there symptoms would be more magnified. But to those that only have it occasionally in morning coffee or what not experiencing the same side effects just goes to show that there is a problem. Not to mention the lack of research that was done. I’ve also read how part of our population (forget the %) is allergic to it, which is why some would have more effects from having Splenda then others. Hence those that use it and feel fine so they are Ok with putting clorine in there body….crazy!! Even if your not alleric to something (Splenda) and it’s bad for you (proven) mabye you still shouldn’t have it even though it doesn’t appear to bother you. Maybe you can’t see/feel the problems yet….years down the road you might…something to think about.
I do have a comment….Christine on Dec. 17th it isn’t right of you to say that all these people are over loading there system with Splenda and that’s why they are having problems and they just need to take an fitness class or just get some education. I agree with you oon most of your points, but when Kossy on Dec. 2nd just posted how it was only used once per day and the problems that she/he had doesn’t quite flow with your comment…It’s like you didn’t read all or most of the post here to see that some have said that they hardly use it and this person did use splenda in moderation.
I just believe that if you are going to use a sweetner you should use something proven to be natural. I like Stevia, it’s been around for thousands of years and it taste good and doesn’t harm you….or just don’t sweeten anything and you will be fine!!
question,
I have had hives for over four years. I use splenda for everything. Do you think splenda has anything to do with the hives?
WOW….alot of opinions on here. Even some angry ones. Well my story is I used to consume ALOT of sugar on a daily basis, & decided to cut it out by stopping soda & sweetening my hot tea with splenda instead of sugar. I even argued w/ people who kept telling me that it was bad for me, but I have begun to experiance daily constipation and just last night I my LIVER was swollen !! I am not a drinker so I was surprised. Since splenda was the only thing that has changed in what i consume I decided to google it. After reading all of this I think I will try to find another alternative.
It’s too bad that people are having side effects from splenda. However, I am curious to know just how much splenda people are consuming. I consume 1 packet a day or less and have absolutely no effects from it. Seriously, if you are comsuming so much splenda to replace sugar in your diet, maybe you should reconsider your diet. Sugar is not evil, and if you can’t do low carb without a bunch of artificial sugar, maybe that is the wrong diet for you. Maybe you should eat less junk food instead, because just because there’s no sugar in those cookies doesn’t mean there isn’t a bunch of flower, and oil, and chocolate, etc.
Well I have been using Splenda for about 4 months, actually it is in the Aqua Fina Water Splash I drink. I drink about 2-3 bottles 5 days a week. I have felt nothing or seen nothing. No rashes nothing. But now seeing all this is making me want to go back to good old water.
I had an enlarged liver from splenda, and severe pain everytime I ate it. I was told that I was getting irritable bowel syndrome. It’s seriously bad stuff people. I’ve been using stevia for years, it’s awesome. Great video folks!
I am interested in the increased blood sugar aspect of spenda. I’ve been on a working diet and exercise program since November and have been slowly losing weight. However, for the last couple of weeks, my weight has been fluctuating a lot and my appetite has increased. I feel like I’ve completely lost control of my diet- and thought maybe it was hormones. What I realized after reading these posts is that it was about 2 weeks ago I started buying diet coke with splenda (replacing diet pepsi). On a side note I’ve noticed I’ve had more stomach problems for the last week. Although, that could be associated with quite a few things, after seeing these posts, I’m betting that’s the splenda too.
I have had hives since May 5, 2008 Rita. I also had them from late Nov 04 to Feb 15, 2005.
I thought it was my thyroid (TSH goes up & down)but even when my TSH is stable the hives persist, and I had a long break between episodes. I’ve had allergy tests – nothing. I did consume diet pop and diet iced tea with Aspartame and Splenda in them for years, including since I had the first case of hives. So, not sure they’re related to the sweeteners but I plan to give them up starting today, which will be hard. I do have Stevia so will go back to making iced tea with that. Plain water bores me. Both cases of hives started out with horrible chest pains, mainly on the right side, had throat tightening pain, stomach pain. May be from od’g on pop – then that may cause gastric trouble which gives me hives. Not sure though, need to get myself to stay off the pop for a longer time! It’s hard.
I did do an Atkins type diet for over 3 wks a yr ago (worked great) and still felt like crap.
I do notice when I’m drinking too much pop (have been on Diet Rite cola) I get real spaced out feeling and I have pain near both ears – weird.
I was a heavy alcohol drinker for many many years and always attributed my dehydration and muscle aches and cramps to this addiction along with anxiety, laziness, loss of memory and depression. Well…I stopped drinking altogether over a year ago and have since then been waiting to go into full recovery of the alcohol addiction. Still not better.. Same problems after over a year of sobriety. (thinking… “man, I really messed myself up with vodka!”)
Lately.. I had been wondering if I maybe I’m just undergoing a year long hangover… A week ago I decided to try giving up Splenda after hearing these horrible things that it can do. I had counted up that I have been using anywhere from 20 to 40 packs each day (coffee and iced tea) along with diet drinks with sucrolose, splenda jello, ice cream you name it ( 40 packets..addictive behavior huh) Well after stopping… guesss what!? Feeling better than ever.. Splenda is dead for me.. Thank you Spleda for ruining all of this precious time of sobriety. This stuff is poison and should be banned.. kids are using this stuff!!!
[...] page lists some of the allergic reactions to Splenda, including constipation, that some folks [...]
[...] proprietor leading to fat gain, obesity). Defies logic. Take of the blinds you said and research …. [...]
I too wanted to lose a few pounds and was told by my nutritionist that splenda was what i should be using instead of sugar. I was feeling extremely tired and my muscles were very tired to the point where i would have to lie down and sleep, and when i woke i would still feel very tired. I stopped the splenda and felt myself again which was wonderful. I tried splenda again and the same symptoms happened. I tried a third time and once again i was extremely tired and fatigued. No more for me, I would rather have a few pounds to look at rather that sleeping my life away.
My symptoms began about six months ago. Well, I guess really before that. I had been experiencing symptoms like shakiness, chills, etc. Didn’t really think much about it, as they only happened every once in a while. Then, while shampooing, I was shocked to see that my hands were covered with hair. This caused me anxiety, but not to the extent that would be expected. It was like a faucet that I could not turn off, no matter what I tried. Shaking, not sleeping well, loss of appetite, tingling in legs and hands. For six months now, I have had the following symptoms.
• Unexplained hair loss
• Debilitating anxiety / panic attacks
• Heart palpitations
• Chest pain
• Shakiness
• Tingling of feet & hands
• Extreme restless leg syndrome at night ( in one leg!)
• Severe painful cramps in feet/toes
• Weakness in legs
• Legs feel as if “weighted down”
• Swollen ankles
• Chills going up legs
• Unexplained sleepiness, even immediately after a good night of sleep
• Nausea
• Stomach cramps
• Bloatedness
• Loss of appetite
• Stomach upset
• Itchy, watery, red eyes
• Bottom lip extremely swelled when waking from sleep in morning
• Hives over various parts of my body – sometimes itchy, sometimes not
• Unexplained itching, with NO hives present
• Daily bouts of sneezing
• Sinusitis, dry mouth
• Ringing in ears; ears feel closed up, can hear heart beating in ears
• Feeling as if in “fog”
• Dizziness, sometimes feeling faint
• Eyes feel sore when moved
• Neck & shoulder pain
• Headaches, & swollen nodes around neck area
About 2 weeks ago, I began putting these symptoms into a search on the web. I came up with the ONLY answer that I have been able to find, and the ONLY one that covered ALL of my symptoms and made sense. I have been using a good bit of Splenda for a few years now. I immediately ceased using it two weeks ago, and began attempts to detox my body. Now, in only two weeks, I feel like a normal person for the first time in 6 months. Nearly all of my symptoms have disappeared. The ones that are still there are barely noticeable. I can’t believe that I was poisoning myself and didn’t know it! This has been one of the most horrible periods of my life that I can remember. I am so thankful to have found the answer!
I am still having some problems with one foot, but it is much better since stopping the use of Splenda. Since it is known that Splenda can cause neurological problems, I feel that it definitely did in my case, maybe even causing some neurological damage to that foot. But, I am confident that will be healed also, in time.
Why are they still allowed to sell this stuff?!
I have been using Splenda for longer than I care to say. I don’t care for any other sweetner because of the after taste. So, Splenda was like a gift. About 6-8 months ago, I started to develop severe gastro-intenstinal issues. I began to eliminate certain things from my diet (not the Splenda). No effect. Then my husband told me about an article he read about the dangerous side effects of Splenda. I’ve now stopped using it completely. I’m going on my 2nd full day of no Splenda….
HI,I have been on Splenda for about 5 yrs.AS others,I’m diabetic and wanted something that I could use not to raise my blood sugar!During this time ,My bowel change has been unreal.I haven’t had the money tio go mto Dr.so I don’t really know what wrong.I won’t go into it all.My main objective,is my mouthj and tongue!!It stared hurting around 2yrs.after I started it.Now my mouth hurts,I can hardly swallow,and bumps r on the back of my tongue!and just recently .I have picked up coughing,but not sick…After reading all this,I am goimg to do my best,with the help of God,to stop slenda all together.I don’t know if it’s to late,except,l know God answers prayers.But it’s like being addicted ,so I am going to make it.signed messed up mouth!!
I have stopped using Splenda and cutting out diet drinks.. I have been so bloated and fuild retention.. My stomach looks like a big tire roll around my stomach. Makes me feel like my breath is being cut off.
I feel it is the splenda.
I have used splenda for several years. I have stopped using splenda and diet drinks.. I think it is improving some of the roll.. but it is going to take a while to get it out my system.
[...] as a sugar substitite because it is all natural. I found some useful info on Splenda here… Dangers of Splenda | Splenda Side Effects | Stevia Cafe If you don’t like the idea of using honey you should try Stevia. Apparently it is far more [...]
My mom always said, “Don’t eat anything that’s not food.”
It’s universal advice whether it’s dirt, sand, glass, nails, razor blades, Splenda, Go-Gurt or Hot Pockets.
Just buy meat, fruit and vegetables. Don’t even bother with bread, use potatoes.
While I was dieting last year I started to use Splenda. Immediately after I started to get this insane mirgraines. Excedrin Migraine would do nothing to relieve the pain. I was in and out of the hospital for the severe migraines. I was even given a spinal tap because the ER doctor wanted to rule out an aneurysm. I started to use sugar thining that my body was craving the sugar. Well, I started to use Splenda again for the last three days. I have had a terrible migraine that I can not even function. Last night I thought I was going to pass out from the pain. Maybe I am allergic to it but I know this is not normal. I had a cup of coffee today and used the splenda and my migraine got even worse. I realized then that it must be the Splenda. I am going to stop but I am debating on going to the hospital again because the pain is so bad.
i am not chewing 5 gum anymore because i do not want 2 die at an ealy age and also thank u to who ever made this website !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! also what is ismalt and maltitol if u can tell me all the information on that and if it is harmful so please contact me !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THANK YOU i thought i was going crazy. we started using splenda and evertime i got tea i would feel like crap. my head would hurt and my back, at night my legs would jump and drive me crazy. i was telling a friend that i had started using it and just felt bad and she sent me to this web site. I just want to say Thank You so much i was making my kids koolaid and everthing with splenda. i could have been hurting them and not even knowing
Well, add me to the list….I was ready to go to a neurologist due to frequent little zaps in my head — left side in line with ear…would come and go and I, too, had a gut feeling to try getting off of Splenda. I was not overdosing on it. Maybe 3 or 4 pkgs. per day at most….however had been using it for a couple of years. I have stopped completely — headaches have stopped. One day I tried one as a test and low, and behold, the little zapping came back. That did it. I have been off for a month and not one more occurrence. I believe God gives us intuition and I am so grateful I found my problem. I will be telling everyone of this site and my results. So, do we have to fear Stevia????? Right now I’m drinking coffee black and not loving it!! God bless and thank you all.
I left a comment above and not sure it went through. My little zapping headaches in left side of head to the left of ear have completely stopped since I got off of Splenda. I was about to see a neurologist when I had this gut feeling it could be the Splenda. I thank God for giving us intuition and have not had one episode since quitting.
Splenda for the win!
No wonder I started growing a third arm! Ive been munching on splenda since I was three!
Had unexplained bladder problems for about 8 years. Thought I had overactive bladder. Dr. suggested that it was my age (50)and it “happens to all women.” Went to urologist. UA showed blood in urine. Had CT scan and scope, both negative. Started analyzing when symptoms started and decided to start eliminating stuff. First eliminated caffeine. No significant difference. Then eliminated Splenda–immediate relief, and back to a normal life. No more splenda for me.
This stuff is great – take splenda, and now I can leap a tall building.
Oh btw, did I tell you that table salt also has chlorine?
i’ve been using splenda for over a year. not until recently (past few weeks) have I experience extreme stomach pains, rashes break out on the back of both of my hands, and rectal bleeding. i had no idea what it was that was making me feel like s***. a friend told me about side effects of splenda. i quit starting today.
I was recommended to use Splenda a few years ago by a weightloss program (famous one). Afterwords, I developed eye problems, and got a spare tire around my middle that just wouldn’t go away.
I was also sneezing my head off every morning, and always felt tired. Then, I lost interest in my favorite activities.
I found this site and another about the dangers of splenda.
I stopped using it. All the above is going away, and I no longer have eye problems. Even the spare tire in my middle is rapidly (and finally) responded to abs exercise, which it hasn’t done in 2 years!
Splenda is awful. Don’t give it to your children!
Thank you for the website.
My husband was diagnosed as a diabetic on 4/3/09, we switched to sweet tea with Splenda since we love sweet tea. I noticed a rash on my legs and then on my stomach, I did not know what was causing this. After a month of having the rash and trying every over the counter product and home remedy for rashes and still no cure, I decided to do some internet research. I found a website titled “Splenda toxicity”, I saw several cases that described the problems I had. I have since stopped using Splenda and the rash is slowly getting better. I am switching to Truvia/Stevia and pray it doesn’t cause any bad side effects. My husband still uses the Splenda but has not had any complications so far that we know of, Praise God. I do not recommend it though, the rash has been VERY annoying and I pray it does not scar me like others on here have stated, I have been putting vitamin E on the marks in hopes that they will not remain. Beware and do your research on products before trying stuff like this!
I have only used splenda for a short time because I needed to keep my blood sugar down. I have had extreme diarhea, water retention, and urinary tract infection. That is why I checked out your site. Thank you! May 24,2009
Splenda is much safer than nutrasweet (aspertame) which causes brain tumers and many other problems. I will stay with the safer splenda.
Why risk that kind of stuff…just eat real food and drink water or sweeten things with juice from real fruits! You can use organic jams, too. Why not add some different fruit juices made in a juicer?
Bring out your inner healthy chef!
WOW!!! I have suffered from chronic fatigue for 7 years following a long, serious illness. I had attributed all of my symptoms to that. Severe fatigue, muscle weakness, leg and foot muscle cramps at night, fogginess, dizziness, slurred speech, dull headaches all day. Ticking in the ears, tingling in the legs and arms and balance problems. I have been using Splenda, about 17 packets per day in my green tea for about 8 years. Last Sunday my sister told me she had read alot of negative information about Splenda. Willing to try anything at this point, I went to Trader Joe’s and bought Stevia. Three days later and the fog has lifted! Unbelievable! I had no muscle cramps last night and woke up today with no headache, no weak feeling, no tingling and I had energy!
I didn’t realize that I had been poisoning myself!
Reading this website was so great because I found so many others with the same afflitions! I have been reading everyone’s stories and I’m just stunned! Splenda should be put out of business! We have all been human lab rats!
You people crack me up!! What a bunch of Hypochondriacs!! Like a couple packets of Splenda in your tea is worth worrying about. Throwing it all out??? That stuff is expensive, and I am poor, so B4 you throw away any more Splenda, send it to me. (email me @ kevinsmckay@bellsouth.net for shipping instructions)
I just watched the tube advice you gave.. I have had splenda in my life for yrs and it is all coming to turn against me now. I have a burning in my mouth and lips and it is in my throat too.
I had surgery and had my gallbladder out thinking it was the problem. Then still to have the nause and sick feelings. Then as I drink tea with splenda in it a few days agao.. well it got worse in my mouth. So I laid off it and did better. So NO more for me. Lots of my health issues are now coming out to think.. the hives I have fought for yrs and hair at times coming out and so on.. it is all splenda… so I am OFF it for ever and off anything but REAL sugar if I need it sweet.. In life we don’t get something for nothing and I am paying a big price now……
Hope everyone will get off it and feel better.
A few weeks ago, I was at the grocery and decided to pick up some butter pecan ice cream. I rarely eat ice cream of any kind, and mostly due to the fat content. I was looking through the various brands and noticed one that was lower in sugar and calories. So I picked it up, brought it home and put it in the freezer.
About a week and a half ago, I decided to have some, and on closer observation, noticed that it contained Splenda. It should be noted that I have never used products with artificial sweeteners…I remember a co-worker who was into really healthy eating telling me how bad most of the artificial sweeteners are to the human body.
In the past week and a half, I noticed that I was having diarrhea fairly regularly. And, two days ago, I started getting naused. Within the past week, I had eaten a small bowl of ice cream about every other night. Last night, I awoke early in the morning with excrutiating stomach pains, and somewhat constipated. Nothing has changed in my diet…but I’ve decided to eliminate any more of the ice cream with Splenda.
I’m feeling better, and hoping that the stomach pains don’t return. But like I said, my guess is that my digestive system simply can’t handle the artificial sweetener, in particular, Splenda.
I plan to be a bit more observant when I select new products at the grocery store…products with Splenda will be those that I won’t buy.
To make a long story short… I broke out in hives on the back of my neck and the side of my face four days ago. Red welps and scabs formed on the side of my neck behind my left ear. I thought it was a heat rash our something to that effect so I was just going to let it heal itself within a few days as I have done many times before. My friend and I have been on a new sugarless diet. We started using SPLENDA in our oatmeal. I would use one pack per cooked cup and he would use 6-8 packs. I made fun of him and said he would catch cancer from that much. I went on line as a joke and found “Side effects of SPLENDA” (naturalhealthtechniques.com) and I was SHOCKED!!!!!!!! There it was in my face everything that I had been feeling and could see with my own eyes in a mirror. Even the feeling of 4th of July sparklers hitting my skin…
I know for a fact that SPLENDA caused this to happen to me because I am very strict with my food intake. I count every Calorie, Protein and Carb I eat. The only thing different about my diet in the last 4 weeks is/was SPLENDA in place of brown sugar on my oatmeal. NOW I KNOW.
I took some Benadryl after reading the list and now 5 hours later my swelling has went down, the itching has stopped and the “Sparkler Feeling” has went away. This is not “Fear Mongering”. It is pure facts.
If anyone doubts me or want’s to talk with me about this please feel free to contact me: mattxoaaron@hotmail.com
I started using Splenda after I figured out Nutrasweet had turned my memory into mush. I overheard a conversation in which a woman said she didn’t realize that her love of diet coke had made her forgetfull until she gave it up and after about a month she realized her memory was returning. I was 54 at the time and though my memory loss was just getting older, but after 2 months of no diet soda with aspratame, I was no longer constantly fogetting and getting confused. So after a couple of years of splenda based diet soda, I started thinking my legs were starting to have circulation problems, again blaming my age. A friend told me about leg and arm issues as a side affect of Splenda so I stopped drinking splenda based diet soda. After two weeks I noticed my leg issues were less and after a month virtually no problems at all!! PLUS my mental health was HUGELY improved. I had considered myself bordeline depressed with lots of anxiety, and now it’s gone also!!!! I used lots of nutrasweet and splenda, and when I stopped the splenda though I would allow myself a aspratame diet soda a day hoping I wouldn’t notice, but after a couple of months I’m realizing I’m having memory issues again, so that won’t work. I love soda but can’t have sugar soda because of blood sugar, so I guess my soda days are pretty much done. I’m not happy about it, but I’d rather have my memory and feel good…….
After reading all of these responses, all I can say is WOW! I’ve been using Splenda for over a year now and can honestly say I loved it. It was a dream come true. All of my favorite foods could be consumed again, due to this magical sugar substitute. But I also noticed that I’ve been slowly feeling lousy. I have been experiencing the same effects that many of you have:
dizziness
headaches
muscle cramps and tingling
ringing in the ears
head/ear pressure
sinusitis, etc… but just thought it was due to stress, or my workout, or just allergies and blew it off.
It never really dawned on me until just this morning. I woke up feeling great. Came to work and had my morning oatmeal with 2 packets of Splenda. After 2-3 bites, I started to feel real lousy. My head started to be foggy, my nose started running and the dizziness was kicking in. My ears started ringing loudly and I had to sit back and “gather” myself for a moment. I wasn’t hungry anymore so I threw away the rest of my oatmeal and grabbed my water. I also changed out my morning decaf coffee with skim milk and 2 packets of Splenda for decaf/skim and real sugar. I’m done with Splenda for a couple days to see if this is what’s making me feel so bad.
I thought I was going crazy with the “spacey” feeling it was giving me. But I just remembered, I had the same problem a few years ago when I went on the Slim Fast diet. I quickly stopped that once I figured out what the problem was. Now it looks as though I have discovered another diet food I can’t consume.
Thank you for this website and all the information you all have shared. It’s been very educational!
Just a thought for you all regarding chlorine in Splenda. To produce Splenda, three hydroxyl groups on a sugar molecule are replaced by three atoms of chlorine. To get an idea of just how much three atoms of chlorine is, check out http://www.pitt.edu/~jdnorton/Goodies/size_atoms/index.html or any educational site that will help you to comprehend the ratio of one atom to the size of some tangible object. I guarantee that you will be astonished.
You can also purchase a chlorine test kit for just a few dollars. Test your tap water first, so you can make a comparison. Then, use some distilled water (or let your tap water sit out for 24 hours) and then add a tablespoon of Splenda and test it. Remember, most of us consume far more water than we would ever consume of Splenda.
Make it a practice to never believe what you read from these sites, even if the information is ‘verified’ by several ’sources.’ Always find a way to verify the information ON YOUR OWN with true science and research, not just by visiting more websites that will simply “verify” what you already ‘believe.’
The mind is a powerful thing.
To keep my weight down, I used splenda for 2 1/2 years and wasn’t aware of any problems from it; however, I was starting to get episodes of depression. On a recent family visit, with no splenda to use, I discovered my mood greatly improved so I quit using splenda. Now that I have been “off” of it for almost a month, I have not had any moments of depression and I have found I am much calmer with my children. Even they have noticed the difference in my temperament. I think there is more to the side effects than were previously thought.
ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS CANNOT BE REMOVED FROM OUR WATER SUPPLY!!!! A study found that 85-65% of sucralose remains in our drinking water (85% of sucralose isn’t absorbed by our bodies and goes back into the environment….) EVEN WITH advanced filtration processes. I don’t know about you, but this scares the sucralose-laced you-know-what out of me.
I have used Splenda off and on for a few years now. I have not had any side effects, but then I only use it about once or twice a week in coffee or tea or if I run out of sugar, for baking. I believe that if you over use ANYTHING that you will have negative side affects. Moderation in everything. And, if you can get Stevia, since it is natural, use that. But again, use it moderately.
I have suffered with intestinal problems for 50 years, but they have never been as severe as they have been since I started using Splenda. The stomach cramping and gas pains were indescribable About a week ago, it was like a light bulb turned on telling me part of my problems might be caused by Splenda. I have also had unexplained itching and ringing in my ears–these symtoms usually happen at the end of the day after using several packets of Splenda. I have discontinued the use of Splenda and I feel much better. If you are having any of these problems, I urge you to discontinue the use of this product and keep a journal of how much better you feel!
Whoa! I had no idea of all the controversy with Splenda. I have quit drinking (alcohol) and have gone back to a healthier lifestyle. I purchased Splenda for my tea, which I recently have been drinking 2 pitchers per day with Splenda as the sweetener. I have been experiencing within the past week stomach aches, headaches and actually constipation (which is rare for me as I am a vegan), which is when I started to incorporate Splenda in my diet. I had no idea that this could all be caused from Splenda. I can’t recall the last time I had a headache or any of the other symptoms until I started to use Splenda. Splenda will no longer be in my home. Thanks to all those who gave testimonials!
Hey,
I am so relieved I have found this site! I didn’t even know splenda could cause all of this. I have been having splenda everyday, on my branflakes, over my fruit, in my tea/coffee, for over a year but heavily since may. I noticed for the past couple months that I had the following symptoms:
- Severe headaches every day
- Nervousness
- Heart Palpitations
- Trembling
- Stomach pains
- Urine infections constantly
- Feeling upset for no reason
- Trouble sleeping and bad dreams
- Very irritable
- Flushings
- Tiredness
- Blurry vision
- Unable to concentrate
- Diagnosed with anxiety/depression
I thought this all were just down to caffeine at first so I haven’t been drinking it for about 2 weeks and haven’t really felt any better, my mum were just curious when I mentioned having another headache and wondering if it were sugar I needed, she looked ’side effects of splenda’ up on the internet and found this…now I’m pretty sure it was down to the splenda I were consuming daily and quite a lot of it too.
Never having splenda or any sugar alternatives again from today! just wish I had looked this up sooner…thanks everyone!
This website may be my life safer. For the past month I have been ingesting a lot of Splenda through my diet drinks. I am use to ingesting sugar substitutes, but never in the large amount that I have been recently. For the past month I have been experiencing diarrhea on a daily basis and muscle pain. Since I recently lost my health insurance I instantly became worried that I could be very sick and have no way to find out. However, my husband has been complaining of the same thing. So I started thinking of our diets and what we have been ingesting differently. I strongly believe that the large amounts of Splenda that we have been ingesting is the cause of our constant diarrhea. I will lay off this sugar substitute and gauge if my troubles get any better. Thank you for everyone who posted!
I try my best to never ingest any artificial sweeteners, because I simply know too much about them.
Unfortunately I was at a Perkins restaurant this evening, and ordered a slice of Wild Berry pie, which was advertised simply as containing “no added sugar.” That should have raised a red flag for me, but unfortunately I didn’t realize my mistake until I had already wolfed down half of the slice. It landed in my stomach like a chewed up paraffin candle. Yuck! What an absolutely unnatural feeling. Then I noticed the pie was far too sweet to have been sweetened by the berries alone, and I asked the waitress about it. She confirmed that it indeed contained Splenda.
So far I’m okay; just a slight bit of nausea which didn’t last long, and a mild headache right now. I’ll try to pay better attention next time, because this artificial sweetener stuff is really insidious.
I want people to understand that restaurants are using Splenda without warning. It’s crazy… I can’t even go to a family restaurant that serves homestyle meals without being involuntarily fed synthetic chemicals.
Friday and Saturday I ate an entire – yet small box of Mother’s chocolate chip cookies (the small crunchy kind) they are highly sweetened with Splenda. The same thing happened to me the last time I ate them- severe cramping, diarrhea (I know- TMI!) but it has been awful and has been like this for 4 days, finally today I feel a bit better but not great. The first time I ate them I didnt think it was the cookies, but now I know! I think this product in high amounts is bad- and I have switched to Stevia at home- quite a while ago, but drink Splenda with tea at work. Gonna stop it all around and just use natural sweeteners. I watch my sugar intake so I do not want to make myself sick! Switch to natural sweeteners or naturally sweet foods.
Last week I woke up around 2 or 3 in the morning. I could hardly breath. I thought I was dying.
I was sweating, the bed was SOAKING wet and I had a headache. My wife was ready to call Emergency. I wrapped in a blanket and sat on the edge of the bed gasping. After an hour things slightly eased up.
The headache toned down slightly. About 8 am I had violenr diaharea. I was flat on my back all day, consuming only spring water.
I knew I had been through an allergic reaction of some sort. Before retiring I had a glass of a fruit juice. which the producer calls a “cocktail’. In reading the label I read the list of ingredients. One chemical name (in lower case letters) baffled me.
Later I found on the internet it was SPLENDA.
I recalled all the uproar in past media articles abou how it was made and the cocerns before the government caved in about its use. $$$$$$$$$$$
I contacted the juice company and complained there was no use of the word SPLENDA, only a substitute chemical name.
The gal at the juice company had one of those sweet sounding child like voices. More or less courteous in a tough way.
Yesterday an E mail arrived from a company which turned out to be the producer.
Well I know advertising (producing over 80 FORTUNE Magazine ads) plus a lot of other things.
Being a Medic with the @nd Marine Division in 2 Pacific invasions.
The first you learn in the Corps is Marines never back up. John Armstrong
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I use Splenda every single day, and have used it for the past 3 years. However, I only use it in hot tea, and I only drink 1 cup of tea per day while at work (maybe 1-2 days a week I’ll have a second cup in the afternoon). I have experienced NO side effects with Splenda in that manner.
With that said, I would NEVER use Splenda to cook or bake; I’ll only use natural sugar. And I do not purchase drinks or food items with the Splenda logo slapped onto it, or purchase anything that’s supposed to be sweet but says “no sugar added.” As Splenda says itself, “It tastes like sugar, but it’s not sugar.” Meaning, it’s a concoction created in a lab with scientists. Anything concocted like that is not good for you.
The real thing is ALWAYS the best thing. Do it in moderation, drink plenty of regular tap or bottled water to flush out your system (not fruit-tasting water or Crystal Light), exercise to keep your body functioning normally, and if you want something sweet, chew a piece of spearment gum to “fool” your brain that you’re intaking sugar. You’ll do a lot better that way than taking in a lot of this synthetic garbage.
WOW! IM A 29 YEAR OLD SPLENDA USER! I AM CURRENTLY SEEING A GASTRO DOCTOR FOR ALL OF MY PROBLEMS. IVE ALSO HAD HIVES FOR OVER A YEAR AND VERY DRY FLAKY SKIN ALL THE TIME. I CUT OUT ALL FRAGRANCES AND GLYCOLS OUT OF MY PRODUCTS AND STILL HAVE SYMPTOMS. I WAS ALWAYS RED AND BLOTCHY AND TERRIBLE CONSTIPATION. MY EYES ALWAYS FEELED CLOUDY. I USE SPLENDA ALL THE TIME. AT LEAST 8 TO 10 A DAY. I QUIT ABOUT A WEEK AGO AND FOR THE FIRST TIME MY FACE IS NO LONGER FLAKY AND DRY. NO ITCHING AND NO CRAMPING. THE OTHER DAY I HAD 2 SPLENDAS IN MY COFFEE AND FELT TERRIBLE. HAZY EYES AND RED SKIN THAT NIGHT. I ALWAYS HAD BUMPS ON MY BACK AND FOR THE FIRST TIME THEY ARE GONE. I CANT PROVE IT BUT I REALLY THINK ITS THE SPLENDA.
Hello
Thanks for all the testimonies.
I have just recently switched from Splenda (yellow packets) to Stevia (green Packets) I prefer the Truvia brand but I also buy the Trader Joe’s loose Stevia because it is about 1/10th the price.
I had NO symptoms that I could identify as being related to Splenda, Mostly just getting older and being overweight. I switched mainly because I like the taste of Stevia more than Splenda.
Christopher
I just noticed that after eating cookies with splenda that I suddenly had tingling tongue and asthma like breathing problems. I wont be using splenda anymore!
i’ve used splenda for years now and have never had any problems nor as anyone else i know. i believe your just trying to sell your product and trying to scare everyone.
I have used splenda for 3 yrs now. I use 6-10 packets a day, in my food + drinks. I now suffer from fibromyalgia, but more importantly, feel I have MS symptoms. My muscles + joints hurt SO Bad , that it affects my daily living. It hurts to get dressed , and to reach for things . My range of motion is severly limited . I feel now the splenda may have caused this. Any one else find this problem ? It is very debilitating . I drive school bus + my job performance has declined. Any input from anyone, please reply. Thank you. Jen
Good information on Splenda; however, one wouldn’t go to the web and search without a reason, which is why I am here.
My hair it THINNING, not in great gobs, but a steady loss until family notices and comments. I feel great, look good and haven’t had any other complaints, health wise. I use splenda in tea, coffee. I do not crave sweets, anymore, but do crave fruits! I never wanted fruit as long as I used sugar, so if this is due to splenda–great! I am very energetic, don’t exercise, but put it to use cleaning when I get the opportunity. No aches, pains, HA or other side effects. The hair thinning worries me, but it could also be stress from having a stressful job. Started both at the same time. I will stop the Splenda, which did take some getting used to, and then, My Job. I will be back in touch. I am 57, 6′9″ and 140, can touch my toes to my nose, never sick (so immune system is doing well), joints don’t hurt, can still run and do everything I ever did. Not a junk food eater either. Splenda is my only ??bad?? habit, no alcolhol, drugs or smoking-SO, stopping Splenda should tell me if it is stress or the chlorine. Oh, Live on a Well, no chlorine in the water and have a very open mind-won’t be judgemental here, be back.
RASHES, Splenda leaves large rashes across your bodies, mostly on smooth and susceptible limbs or soft tissue of your skin like your lips, forearms, thighs, literally on any part of your body that other than your neck and knuckles (actually, i take that back, your fingers can swell and reach your knuckles inevitably). If you don’t believe me, google splenda and rashes and you will thousands upon thousands of remarks about the dangers of this so called natural sweetener. Sugar is merely a 4 gram a serving carb. If you are worried about consuming to many calories, then I advise too excercise an extra 10 to 15 minutes, or reduce some of your caloric intake from other sources. (frankly, an extra caloric boost with 15 minute walks sounds better than all the potential side effects)
Spenda causes headache for me. It took me some time but i was able to establish the relationship of me taking splenda and headache very clearly.
These comments are all a bunch of fearmongering. Now, don’t get me wrong, I use regular sugar, but I don’t think a little Splenda now and again will kill you.
Also, this
“The results of the tests done by Splenda’s manufacturers, McNeil Nutritionals, are also quite worrisome. Their studies revealed that test rodents suffered from dangerous side effects such as shrunken thymus glands, and enlarged livers and kidneys … and there were only short term studies.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucralose#Safety_studies
As you can see, the study found in rats, the amount used to cause any effect, would be comparable to a person eating 4300 Splenda packets.
It’s ridiculous to believe that it was originally meant to be an insecticide. The company that discovered it does food processing. The issue was that one of the scientist misheard “test” as “taste”. The source for the below info is originally a professor/researcher at Finch University of Health Sciences/Chicago Medical School.
http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/549sweet.html
The Sucralose may have the strangest “accidental discovery” story of all the sweeteners. Tate & Lyle, a British sugar company, was looking for ways to use sucrose as a chemical intermediate. In collaboration with Prof. Leslie Hough’s laboratory at King’s College in London, halogenated sugars were being synthesized and tested. A foreign graduate student, Shashikant Phadnis, responded to “testing” of a chlorinated sugar as a request for “tasting,” leading to the discovery that many chlorinated sugars are sweet with potencies some hundreds or thousands of times as great as sucrose. (Walters, 2000)
http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/549sweet.html
Dear Sir/Madam
it has taken me almost two years to find out the side effects ( on my person) of the Splenda sweetner. After going through food and beverage elimination process I discovered that this sweetener was producing in me bloated and windy bowel.
After just two days of stopping the use of it I am back to normal digestive functions.
As for many food containing Sorbitol and/or Mannitol this, very embarrassing, side effect should be printed on the label of this product.
regards
GPS
You would have to consume a dump truck load of Splenda to have a serious problem. I use 4 to 6 packets of Splenda a day and have been using it for several years before it was approved by the FDA. I think we are all individuals and different things affect us in different ways. I hate stevia. I put a drop on my tongue because my friend said it was awesome. I could not get the bitter and horrible cloying taste out of my mouth for two days. I would rather do without sweeteners than add stevia, pink stuff, blue stuff, whatever to my diet. I just happen to like sweet tea with lemon. BTW, I lived in a third world country for years and we HAD to put bleach in our water to make it potable. We washed all of our food in it too.
S McG
I am an RN. I remember sitting in chemistry and my instructor stating, “yea all you nursing students that love splenda, it has the same chemical make up as rat poisoning! So ya’ll go ahead and use it and after 15 yrs when no one is dropping off like flies, I may consider it”. I kinda laughed it off but used my better judgement (because he was my instructor) and quit using splenda. Well as I further my career and gain more experience I learn alot. And yes I do believe, in moderation nothing is bad, and I also believe that your body does adjust differently than others to different things. My concern… the rising lifestyle changes that come with gastric bypass and lap band. Alot of people are using splenda. My aunt 40 years old had the gastric bypass. It was very successful for her. She is a big splenda believer used it in all her cooking of desserts and teas and koolaids. About 13 weeks ago she started having horrible back pain out of the blue and has recently been diagnosed with stage 3 pancreatic cancer. Im sorry, this totally raised a red flag for me. Im not saying that splenda is the definite cause, but I do believe that it does need to start being researched alot heavier, especially for those that are self disciplined enough to use it in high doses like our diabetics, weight loss surgery candidates, etc.
So next time you go to place anything in your body, just stop and think to yourself…. whats moderation for this? After all everyone has a different perception of what moderation for them would be. One 8oz alcoholic beverage is the normal moderation but tell that to the alcoholic when you see him. Or why can a skinny person eat 6 chocolate bars a day and not gain an oz but a heavy person eats one and gains 10lbs?
Your body is your precious temple, just please use sane judgement in all your endeavours.
Stinky, for some people your comment may be true. But, clearly, for others, the negative reactions are there with any amount of use. Just because people don’t respond to Splenda in the same way as you, you have to imply they are lying?
I don’t think so.
Oh, and as for Stevia, the key is to never overdo it. It tastes bitter if you use too much. Putting it *directly* on your tongue definitely falls under the category of overdoing it! Of course it will taste bitter! It makes me chuckle to think of you gagging for days because you dropped stevia directly onto your tongue!
I have been using minimal amounts of Stevia on a daily basis, and I have learned to add it to taste. I always put in a little, then gradually add more if I want it sweeter.
I love the taste of stevia. Actually, I *prefer* the taste of stevia sweetened drinks over the taste of sugar sweetened drinks! Of course, it took me a while to get used to it, but I love it now.
I’m chuckling at the thought of you putting stevia directly on the tongue! It makes me think of the scene in the movie “Big”, with Tom Hanks, when he eats something (caviar, maybe?), and he gags and scrapes it off his tongue. Hahaha!
The key to enjoying stevia is *never* overdoing it! Too much stevia means too much bitterness! I am pretty sure that putting it directly on the tongue falls squarely in the category of overdoing it!
I’ve learned that with stevia, you must always sweeten to taste, adding a little at first, and then a little more if I want it sweeter.
I’ve been using stevia on a daily basis (but sparingly) now for several years. It took a while to get used to it, but now I prefer stevia sweetened drinks over sugar sweetened drinks!
i have been drinking diet grandberry juice for a long peroid of time now and it has splenda in it and now im breaking out with a rash and clawing myself to death now I KNOW WHAT THE REASON WHY ITS THE SPLENDA why dont the consummers put a lable on splenda letting people know all the side effects before we use it. SURE WISHED the rash would go away so I COULD KEEP ON USING SPLENDA liked the taste, next best thing to sugar. thanks L.D.C.
I was doing research on splenda and the effects of it because I did a project in school [Junior in High school] and we had to see how much of the different types of energy we could give to yeast and see how well it could use it. We tested it by taping balloons to flasks, and when yeast cycles it’s energy it has a byproduct of CO2 [carbon dioxide] and it blows the balloon up. We use sucrose [everyday natural sugar] glucose [the most prefferred by organisms] splenda and corn oil. The sucrose and glucose balloons were up in a matter of minutes. However, the yeast, which is not a very picky organism, would NOT even accept it. It bubbled inside of it and and when we were done with the expirement it had a nasty smelling odor. Then I could not resist but to do research on it, not only did u find this article but splenda has also been linked to harming children in ways of internal bleeding and inhibiting of growth. All I can say is, if it isn’t made from the earth, don’t eat it.
I’m a single Dad who decided to cut sugar out of my diet. I picked up my kids for the summer and the next morning I made pancakes that we all enjoyed with a syrup containing splenda. The kids never even knew the syrup was sugar-free it tasted so ‘real’.
However right after breakfast my 9 year old son vomited violently. I couldn’t figure out why but the next day each of us ate a piece of candy containing Splenda and my son got sick again. My daughter and I were fine but both times my son consumed Splenda it made him very sick to his stomach.
I found this page researching Stevia and it’s side effects. I hope it’s legit without the adverse side effects of Splenda.
What a bunch of bunk. You people will believe anything. If you eat too much beef, you get fat and your body stores the fat and you eventually get high blood pressure and high cholesterol. If you eat too much sugar you get fat, because your body is lazy and will use the sugar and store the fat. Fat is fat, I know I am fat, why; I love to eat and sit on my butt most of the time. Oil is fat, olive oil is fat, butter is fat, and lard is fat,smaltz (chicken fat) is fat. Be active, eat as the food pyramid advises and try to be happy, that’s the cure for being fat, or having health problems. I wish all of you the best in this. I probably will stay fat, sadly to say
i used splenda and got headaches and my vision went dim (blackout w/o passing out). i tried using splenda over 5 year period with exact same side effects. When i stopped the symptoms stopped!
I had one splenda in my coffee every day over the last few years. I get migraines but recently (about the last year) I was getting migraines monthly or even every 2 weeks. Also, I had been having pains in my neck and felt disgusting. Finally as of Jan 1 i stopped eating/drinking anything with “fake sugar”. I have not had a migraine, and I feel so much better.
I just took the time to read most of the posts about Splenda. I beleive some of these folks definitly had an alergic reaction to sucralose. Since these people were not part of any study it would be difficult to determine what percentage of the people who use Splenda will experiance an alergic reaction. Just because some people react doesn’t mean it’s dangerous or should be avoided by everyone. That conclusion amounts to hysteria. I personally whould die within 20 minutes after eating only a tiny piece of a peanut if I didn’t get immediate medical attention. However, I don’t go around making posts and blogging about how deadly peanuts can be. Use some common sense. Judging from its popularity and the fact that it hasn’t been pulled off the food store shelves tells me people who react to Splenda are a very small minority (and also the only ones who would bother to tell everyone about it). Splenda is a very safe, good tasting and effective alternative to sugar for the majority of us who aren’t alergic to it.
I am having a laugh at this page. I have been using splenda for years (I am a diabetic), so has many other people in my family. I have never had any adverse side effects from this product. Splenda is simply table sugar C12H22O11 with the addition of chlorine atoms fused to it. Does this mean that people cannot be alergic to it? Absolutely not! However, people injest sugar and chlorine every day without problems. Hello, how about city water. There is flouride, chlorine, etc…The biggest problem with Sucralose (Splenda Brand) is that it cannot be digested. Guess what, that is the same for any other artificial sweetner, including Stevia.
The key is moderation. people should stop injesting artificial sweetners to avoid extra calories. Sugar is not the problem…Try evaluating the rest of your diet. Leave the artificial sweetners to those who have to avoid actual sugar.
also…
Look at the page you are on…Any company creating a sweetner is going to make their product out to be far more superior than the next. It is all about telling people what they want to hear.
I am not slamming Stevia in any way. In fact, I am probably going to try it. Not because I was persuaded by anything this webpage had to say, but because the product is in its most natural form and is not artificial.
i have been seeing a dr. for diet. i tried splenda for the same reasons that you all have. the dr. sugggested i try b12 along with my diet for the energy. my tongue broke out in sores. i assumed it was the b12 and returned it to the store. i only use splenda in my cups of tea. the sores are there today—no b12— so, i’m pretty sure its the splenda that’s causing them. i’m returning the remaining splenda packets to the store and also my diet rite 0 that i just bought yesterday also….good bye splenda!!!!!!
WOOOOW I’m a big cranberry drinker and bought these individual cranberry juice energy drinks etc. not knowing they had splenda in it…I get so sick when I drink it, like real weak, nausiated. I feel it in my entire body, my performance is lacking severly…horrible horrible
Dont knock natural sugar..its naturally in fruits etc and should be used in moderation of course but however still very fine for you =)
Splenda is evil!!!!
well no, to someone like me who uses natural sugars gets a large dose of that poison and digest too much chlorine from SPLENDA!!
jUST TOOK A FEW DRINKS FROM ONE OF THOSE CRANBERRY JUICES…HERE COMES THE DAM MIGRAIN HEADACHE! UNREAL I AM POISONED RIGHT NOW BASICLY!!
ok it does say splenda real tiny on the carton but how was I to know the effects??!! I let my small children have some…now am hoping I am not subjecting them to some poison that has hardly been tested and the test that were done on rats with the product showed dramatic results such as liver and kidney enlargment other crazy stuff etc etc
Splenda and equal make me very sleepy. I am a diabetic that is addicted to the taste of sugar and I use like 12 peackets in a 12 ounce cup of coffee or on a bowl of ceareal. Is this dangerous?
This is amateurish. If anything, less is known about Stevia. Furthermore, the older artificial sweeteners, saccharin and aspartame, no longer include red box warnings because there has never been any proven link between consumption and disease in humans. My personal preference is either sugar, aspartame, or saccharin, because I don’t like how Splenda dissolves in liquid or how Stevia tastes generally. Trust in science rather than fearmongering and possibly bullshit anecdotes.
I think im deff, allergic to splenda. i cannot have this stuff, even the tiniest amount will make me extremely sick. i will get a horrible stomach ache and dizziness, migraine. i will start shaking and become very weak. horrible, horrible stuff. i honestly dont know how people can eat this crap and feel normal.
i have suffered thyroid sypmtoms such as hair thinning and weight gain for 8 years. i have gone to several docs and also tried several different brands and doses of thyroid meds with no results… i just found a website full of people all suffering the same symptoms and all of them are splenda users. alot of them complain of dry itchy scalp wich is something i also suffer from. i have been taking about 2-4 tsp of splenda everyday for years. i am stopping today. if this works i will be posting messages at every hair thinning and thyroid message board i can find to try and help others before they suffer needlessly like i have for 8 years. i hope this is the answer!!!