Horrible Reaction to Splenda

[smileyplayedme]

Hello All, Last year I lost 20 pounds on atkins during the same period I had an extremely itchy bumpy, uncomfortable rash on my chest. I went to 4 doctors, tried switching laundry detergent, stopped vitamins, switched soap, took steroids ect.. NOTHING Worked for 8 whole months I lived with this issue. The rash went away and I never really thought about why.... until recently.

I went back on atkins this week and BAM! My rash was back in the exact same pattern and just as itchy and irritating as ever! After about an hour of tears of frustrations I searched the web for atkins and rashes - nothing came up. Then I realized that SPLENDA was the one major diet change I took with atkins. I researched the web and was amazed that itchy rashes seems to be a well known side affect with a large number of people when they user Splenda. I have never been allergic to anything in my life. I hope this post will help anyone else from going through 8 months of pain and suffering. This web site is one example of many: http://www.mercola.com/2000/dec/3/su...stimonials.htm

I'm 6 pounds down in my 1st week of induction - and now that I have cleared my cabinets of splenda I can't wait to continue on atkins!

Any suggestions on alternative sweeteners? Is sweet and Low's new sugar substitute made from Sucralose? Is it safe to bake with or not because of Aspartine?

Thanks,
Tara

[Matt]

man im so glad i dont have that reaction, i love splenda.. it makes this WOE liveable.

[MAMZELLE]

Sweet & low is Saccharin, not sucralose. I use the tablets for hot drinks and melt many tablets in water in an empty tobasco bottle for sprinkling into cooking. I don't use powdered sweetners anymore because of it's sugar spiking tendencies from the 96% dextrose and maltodextrin in all powdered packets. Maybe that's what triggered your alergies. Those packets are only 4% actual 'sweetner' properties [sucralose] and the rest are the nasty chemicals..... as ALL powdered sweetners are, not only Splenda. [except Stevia, which I found intolerable taste-wise]

Glad you got to the bottom of that! What a horrible experience. So sorry. Same thing happened to me when pregnant many years ago[stillborn] and I was in agony, couldn't sleep, nothing. The doctors even told me to fill my bed with cornstarch and sleep in it. Nothing helped, they were at a loss. Thought I'd go out of my mind. The itching & scratching drew blood eventually but I couldn't stop and no medications helped. It all suddenly ended at the birth. Still don't know what it was to this day. It didn't manifest as a 'rash' though, and Splenda hadn't even been invented yet. Just agonizing itching for months that drove me insane. Sheeeesh, I had forgotten about that.

[Atkins_Nutritionist]

Congrats on your weight loss success! Remember that you should focus your meal planning on whole foods. If you want to include products, it seems like it would be a good idea to stay away from those made with sucralose or Splenda. This is a very individual response, the testimonials you referred to do not represent the norm, and there is a lot of research that went into sucralose to prove that it is safe.

Aspartame is marketed as NutraSweet and Equal, saccharin is marketed as Sweet n Low. These sweeteners may be a good alternative for you. Dr. Atkins saw that these may slow weight loss in his patients, but these were based on anecdotal reports. There is no research that shows this, and since the Atkins Nutritional Approach is founded in science, we can no longer say to totally avoid them since the science doesn’t support it.

Equal has come out with a product that is great for baking called Equal Sugar Lite. Make sure you always check ingredients in the products that you decide to buy.

[MaryMary]

I get migraines from Equal or aspartame. But tolerate Splenda with no problems. So I totally abstain from aspartame. I read all ingredient packaging and won't even drink diet soda made with Nutra Sweet.

There is another sweetener called Stevia. It is made from a plant in Paraguay and is sold in this country as a Nutritional Supplement because the sugar lobby is so strong they don't want the competition. In Japan, it is used to sweeten many of their products. Stevia does not impact blood sugars, and has no calories. It comes in liquid or powder. It can be found in GNC, and health food stores. Some say it has a slight licorice aftertaste, but if you want to try something that is not artifical, this may be it. You can go onto their website, I think it is www . stevia . com. Just leave out the spaces. They will send you some free samples and some coupons.

[Jean B]

Tara (smiley played me)
thanks for the Mercola link.
Ive had splenda (knowingly) twice only. The first time, my skin ( face and neck) became bright red and tight...2 nd time, (1/2 teaspoon in a salad dressing) - hives. There is no doubt that is what it was.

I never met anyone who had this reaction. Most people I am sure will be ok. It was reassuring to find Im not alone, though.

[Peri]

Not to suggest anything too crazy, but if you are using the powdered splenda the reaction may be caused by the filler they use to give it physical bulk.

Personally, I try to use as little of the powder as possible and when i need to sweeten something, i try to do it with davinci syrups which use sucralose but not the fillers.

If you rarely use sweetners and don't need them in solid form this might be a way for you to continue with sucralose but not with splenda. (There is a form of liquid splenda but it seems hard to find.)

[smileyplayedme]

Thanks for all the support and info everyone

I've never had a problem with sweet and low or equal powdered substitutes so I just whipped a ricotta cheese cake with Equal lite - I think it tastes BETTER than splenda and I just ate a piece with no reaction yet.

Thanks again,
Tara

[Diana]

WOW glad you found the problem!

[Jean B]

Peri - thank you too - thats good thinking - I wonder what the filler actually is that will be worth following up, for me.
I can easily live without sweet stuff but would like to know if what Im reacting to is lurking elsewhere.

[lkmjbc3]

Smileyplayedme....

As to your problem with Splenda... My bet is that it is in the one of the bulking agents where your problem lies.....

I would stay away from other powdered sweetners- they all use bulking agents. Try using some liquid sacchrine. It is sold under several brandnames.....

It is cheap and doesn't taste too bad... A little goes a long way!

You should be able to find it at Krogers.......

Be careful with the Mercola link.
Mercola is a quack and everything he states is suspect at best!
He says that flu shots cause Alzheimer's, that all vacination is bad (try telling that to a polio victim), underarm deoderant causes Alzheimers (Mercola has trouble making up his mind sometimes)..
etc.....

lkmjbc3

[MAMZELLE]

Ikmj.... you're not talking about 'mendosa' are you? Just want to make sure. SImilar name. Thanks

Oh, might as well add for everyone.... the cheapest way to make your own liquid sweetner, is to buy a bottle of saccharin tablets and throw many into a decanter of warm water [doesn't even have to be warm.... they disolve anywayt] and you can use that for cooking etc., while using the tablets in hot drinks too. Don't bother paying extra for liquid sweetners [the bottle I melt my supply in is a Tobasco bottle. It pours in 'drops']. I keep one tobasco bottle full in the kitchen and one in the bedroom in case I forget to use it in the kitchen it's right there next to my bed where I often eat with my laptop also in my bed and along with also a bottle of the tablets lol...... the height of laziness, that's me..... which is also the mother and motivation of invention..... but also efficiency!

[SaraS]

You have just explained something that I had been wondering about. Ever since I started using Splenda (didn't know it at the time), I have had breakouts on my upper legs but no where else. I honestly thought it was just from shaving, but now I am wondering if it is the Splenda because I have never had problems with shaving before. It doesn't bother me enough to stop using Splenda and it is really not that bad (I don't use that much Splenda), but I have never had a rash on my legs before. Guess I'll need to watch for when it occurs.

[Atkins_Nutritionist]

lkmjbc3, Thanks for pointing out that Mercola's warnings are suspect! People that read his claims may become convinced of his claims since he does reference the scientific literature, but what they may not realize is that he severely distorts the results and conclusions of studies, references outdated studies, and irresponsibly provides inaccurate information.

[MAMZELLE]

YES...it's lurking EVERYWHERE. It's the maltodextrin and dextrose mostly but probably more, that ALL powdered preperations have one or the other or both of, so if you're alergic be very careful about powders [jello, instant soft drinks like kool aid, crystal lite, Tang, instant ice teas, ALL of those flavored powders], all powdered sweetners and many other foods, I'm sure... so read the labels and watch out for those words in the ingredients.

[smileyplayedme]

Thanks - I noticed that the rash isn't getting better so I checked the equal lite ingredients and turns out the maltrodextrin is an ingredient... I'm going to try to sacchrin tablets next, thanks again

[MAMZELLE]

Good! Saccharin tablets is sweet N low but WITHOUT the chemicals that are in the packets. Hope it works. Let us know. [Stevia is the only packet/powder that dosn't have those addatives in the packet and is natural from a plant but I couldn't tolerate the taste, and remember it also being very expensive years ago when first coming out, so try the saccharin first, then you have that other option, but I think sacc. will be fine if those other addatives were causing it, at least you'll narrow it down and will know.

Also, I find saccharin much sweeter than splenda, which means it's even MORE economical because of needing less, and they do have liquid sweet & low [which is the sacchairn in luquid form] but I can't see buying an extra product for cooking [liquid] when the tablets desolve in water, and then you have your own bottle of the liquid lol

I like things very sweet, especially coffee so I get the 1,000 count bottle of the WHOLE grain so I only have to use one per mug, but they come in 1/4 & 1/2 grain too, according to how you want to use it. The whole grain may be too sweet for everyone else. It's VERY powerful stuff and was always my favorite.

[Jean B]

thank you mamzelle. Now I have had a think, Ive had 2xother reactions - minor......once when I licked the lid of a non-dairy creamer pot at Grand Canyon and once with a jar of sauce.... it may well have been maltodextrin......yep its in my splenda jar..... thanks all.....as I only ever use sweetener in marie rose sauce etc .... will try liquid saccharine instead.

[MAMZELLE]

Get the tablets instead, Jean. The tabs you can always convert to liquid for home use, but not visa versa....and the tablets you can always put into a nice pill box to carry with you, which you can't do with the liquid. If you're so sensitive, I wouldn't trust the sweetners restaurants have on the tables...so you'll always have your own saccharin tablets in your bag.