Sugar vs. Splenda: The court date is set

8-15-2008 @11:31AM ericamklein said... "Of course the makers of Splenda deny this and say that their advertising is perfectly truthful."

I beg to differ. Splenda's marketing execs can say that it "tastes like sugar" all they want, but it won't change the fact that it tastes exactly like every other artificial sweetener out there: fake.

They won't ever fool ME into thinking Splenda's just as good as sugar, no matter what crappy advertising ploy they use.
Reply

8-15-2008 @11:35AM Jellodyne said... I don't know about 'natural' but its essentially chlorinated sugar that your body can't digest, so it really is a 'sugar product' which 'magically has no calories'.

I tried it once in coffee and I threw up, so apparently my body was able to ID the chlorine.
Reply

8-15-2008 @12:02PM RJ said... My wife is an incredible cook and we use the Splenda Baking Blend to make desserts. As a diabetic, Splenda is the ONLY artificial sweetener that mixes with sugar and gives the kind of results that rival sugar. We've prepared desserts for non-diabetics and NOBODY knows the difference between these desserts and desserts with regular sugar. Splenda bakes well and as far as me, my wife and my friends are concerned, it has no aftertaste (if you want to know what artificial sugar CAN taste like, try SUGAR TWIN and see what aftertaste is all about!!!). I hope Splenda wins, the only real problem with it is how expensive it is to buy in bulk. Sugar makes enough $$$ by being in almost everything we buy and eat these days-- why not leave those of us who HAVE to use an alternative ALONE!
Reply

8-15-2008 @12:03PM RJ said... My wife is an incredible cook and we use the Splenda Baking Blend to make desserts. As a diabetic, Splenda is the ONLY artificial sweetener that mixes with sugar and gives the kind of results that rival sugar. We've prepared desserts for non-diabetics and NOBODY knows the difference between these desserts and desserts with regular sugar. Splenda bakes well and as far as me, my wife and my friends are concerned, it has no aftertaste (if you want to know what artificial sugar CAN taste like, try SUGAR TWIN and see what aftertaste is all about!!!). I hope Splenda wins, the only real problem with it is how expensive it is to buy in bulk. Sugar makes enough $$$ by being in almost everything we buy and eat these days-- why not leave those of us who HAVE to use an alternative ALONE!
Reply

8-15-2008 @12:39PM Christine said... I hope Splenda will NOT win, and not because it's an artifical sweetener, but because they did use some bad and misleading marketing techniques. Splenda is a very useful product for diabetics and others trying to lose weight, but as a chemist I take issue with their claim that it 'tastes like sugar because it's made from sugar'. That makes it sound like sugar+chemical reaction to add chlorine to molecule=something that is sweet and as safe as sugar.

Think about it this way: pseudoephedrine (Sudafed)+chemical reaction=methamphetamine=clears your sinuses just as well as Sudafed but without the drowsiness!!

Oh please.

On a related topic, I really don't like that more and more products contain Splenda. I personally know two people who have adverse reactions to it, and I really don't want my kids to ingest a lot of it. I switched from Carnation Hot Cocoa mix to Swiss Miss precisely because they started adding sucralose to it, and it gave the cocoa an off taste.
Reply

8-16-2008 @1:21AM Ed T said... Our family uses both Splenda (suralose) and aspartame sweeteners and IMO they are a great way to reduce calories in a wide variety of foods. If more people used them perhaps their children might avoid ADD/ADHD & other behavioral disorders caused by ingesting pounds of sugar every week in sodas and cereals.
Reply

8-16-2008 @11:15AM B said... Kids shouldn't be growing up on a diet of sweetened crap no matter what you use to sweeten it. Beyond that, I don't know that there has been real evidence of a link between sugar and attention deficit disorders. I'd be quicker to blame ADD/ADHD on excessive amounts of external stimuli (TV, Internet, Radio, Books, Phones) that constantly bombard their young minds.

Those saying sugar subsitutes don't have a bitter aftertaste must have exceptionally dull taste buds.


Reply

8-16-2008 @1:26PM Ed T said... "I'd be quicker to blame ADD/ADHD on excessive amounts of external stimuli (TV, Internet, Radio, Books, Phones) that constantly bombard their young minds."

Baloney - most kids today start off as infants on formula loaded with HF corn syrup and spend their toddler years with a bottle apple juice stuck in their mouths. Children in America today consume 20X to 50X the amount of sugar compared to previous generations and it shows up as ADD, diabetes, and obesity (duh).

We all know sugar addicts, and yet no one in the medical establishment dares to recognize excess sugar consumption as the root cause for so many maladies. I guess it's easier (and more profitable) to prescribe pills or tread the symptoms.
Reply

8-16-2008 @4:40PM les said... Frankly, Ed, I would rather my child ingest something natural than a bunch of chemicals.

There has been no connection between sugar ingestion and ADD. However, there has been a link between TV, etc., and things that offer passive instead of active participation for children.

There were no artificial sweeteners, really, when we were young - and I didn't know a soul with ADHD or ADD. However, I sure do know them now. Of course, it isn't because of 400 channels on TV, playstation, Xbox - etc.
Reply

8-20-2008 @12:56AM Ryan said... Splenda is the best of the worst, indeed. I like the way it tastes, but I tend to avoid it.

As for the ADD debate, I know plenty of doctors who get paid plenty and enjoy trips around the world to hawk meds to parents. I know plenty of parents who dont know how to channel their energies (i.e. raise a kid at all) that look for "solutions" and their imaginative, boisterous children get prescribed meds.

Kids haven't changed at all, the world around them has. In many ways, its safer than the days when kids breathed lead gasoline vapors. I dont think sugar is to blame, its teaching kids that instant gratification is the key to happiness.

Now will someone PLEASE get me a soda made with splenda and a candy bar made with sugar? I feel a tantrum coming on.
Reply

8-18-2008 @9:19AM Monkey said... Splenda is "MADE with sugar" not "make with sugar" (sic).

Reply

8-18-2008 @10:02AM Annoachi said... I do hope sugar wins simply for false advertising. While I can understand the point of artifical sweeteners, I have had very bad reactions to aspartame and to a lesser extent to splenda so it almost feels personal when I'm told something like either of them is safe or "just like sugar" because my body very much does not think that is the case.
Reply

8-18-2008 @10:22AM Astin said... Can't fight big sugar.

I'm hoping sugar wins out here, but Splenda is technically made with sugar (chemically altered so it passes through the body without being absorbed).

As for people who are worried about the affects of HFCS and sugar on their kids should STOP FEEDING THEIR KIDS SUGAR! And I don't mean replacing it with chemical substitutes, but actually preparing and monitoring their food.
Reply

8-20-2008 @1:43AM Anna at Mediocre Chocolate said... Splenda, like all other artificial sweeteners is just about the worst thing you can give your body. I feel for the diabetics out there, but using that stuff can make you very sick and have far worse complications than a couple of extra pounds--brain tumor, anyone? My kids are not allowed to eat anything containing artificial sweeteners.
Reply

8-20-2008 @5:12PM yuri elkaim said... Both are poisons to the body. Sugar is natural, but it has so many negative effects on our immune system, mineral balance, blood sugar, and so much more!

Splenda is coated in chlorine - a carcinogen!

I say toss both in the garbage and choose a raw honey, maple syrup, or raw agave nectar!

Yuri
http://www.EatingforEnergy.ca
Reply