is sugar free stuff bad for you?

andielmt · January 28, 2008

i was just wondering if eating sugar free stuff is ok for our bodies. my friend seems to think that artifical sweeteners are not good to eat over a period of time. i dont eat alot of sugar free stuff but i do have Jello or pudding once in a while.

andrea

aubrie · January 28, 2008

My opinion? And it is my "opinion". YES!!!! Artificial sweetners are bad for you. they are chemicals. If they say that they are made from sugar, that may be true but they have also altered the sugar molecue so It is really no longer sugar. Most OB/GYNs won't allow it during pregnancy anymore. I eat as little as possible. Not only do I know it's bad for me, it also gives me wretched headaches.

the human tongue can tell when you have eaten something sweet. It sends a message to the brain to release the insulin to process it. Your body DOES NOT know the difference between artificial and natural sugar. It all registeres the same and causes the same insulin dump. If there is no sugar there to process, over a long period of time, it causes problems and eventually insulin resistance. I've read way to many medical journal entries and books to feel comfortable eating it now. I avoid it when possible. Now that I'm banded, I occasisionally eat a teaspoon of honey in a mug of herb tea, but I don't make a habit of that either. If I want something sweet, a few strawberries or a 1/2 cup of melon suites me just fine. I've never been a chocoholic, so that was good, but I know a lot of people have a problem with sweets. It's difficult, but once you get used to it, it's not so bad. My problem was always with carbs. I loved bread and chips. I don't eat that any more either. I've switched eating white potatoes to baked sweet, white rice to brown, and all my bread and Pasta is now 100% whole wheat. Your body just processes it more efficiently. God has made a wonderful buffet of natural food for us. Experiment. Try eating some fruit and veggies that you've never had before. It's fun and nutritious. I've found I like Japanese eggplant, star fruit, fresh brussel sprouts, plantains, bok choy, asian pears and chayote squash. Who would have thought?

snowbird · January 28, 2008

Everything is chemicals; you are chemicals, and so am I. Natural? Arsenic is natural; doesn't mean I'm going to eat it.

The biggest problem I see with sugar free/reduced sugar foods is that we don't read labels to see that just because it doesn't have sugar doesn't mean it doesn't have lots of calories and fat. Choose wisely. sugar free drinks like crystal lite are a godsend to my way of thinking.

Jachut · January 28, 2008

Personally I avoid them. If there's one food phobia I have, its artificial sweeteners.

And I truly believe that the key to long lasting weight loss is to learn to handle ALL foods. Sweet foods in moderation, fatty foods in moderation. Cutting out food groups is not to my way of thinking sensible life long eating practice. You need to be able to live in the modern world, go out to eat, eat with friends, eat food others have prepared etc etc. So just learn to deal with it all in moderation seems a sensible way to go

healthyagain · January 28, 2008

Aubrie, I found your post very interesting. I never gave it much thought before, But almost every overweight person I know (besides myself) is addicted to diet soda. I've never been one for soda so that's one thing I'll be just fine without. But I know plenty of heavy people some of whom are diabetic who drink enormous amounts of diet soda. The insulin thing you mentioned makes sense.

andielmt · January 29, 2008

thanks for the feedback, i will throw my sf pudding and Jello away. i have to say that ive only had one sweet in 3 weeks so the cravings are less so before i would have cravings all of the time so i would buy the sf pudding. but now i dont even want sweets that much which is huge for me because before surgery i would eat them once or twice a day. i guess if i am going to cheat once in awhile ill just buy one thing instead of a box of things which will be to tempting to keep in the house. i havent had soda since surgery and i dont miss it. i feel better listening to your feedback and realize that sf stuff isnt always the best way to go. i do buy reduced sugar stuff sometimes like jelly its low in everything. ive noticed though that when you buy reduced fat or sugar products they are high in other things so we have to pay attention to labels.

andrea