Many people have been misguided into believing Splenda, or sucralose, is a healthy alternative to sugar. They are just not aware of some of the questionable science that went into the marketing of this product. There are an amazing number of similarities to a previous harmful artificial sweetener, Nutrasweet.
The problem: Deceitful marketing ploys are working. However, the truth is there is no "magic" alternative to sugar when it comes to sweeteners. You simply cannot have your cake and eat it too when it comes to this area.
Can You Handle The Truth About Splenda?
So if you are among those who continue to use Splenda because you think it is a safe alternative to sugar or other artificial sweeteners, then I am about to give you a rude awakening. This artificial sweetener is not natural at all. Although they start with a sugar molecule they add chlorine molecules do it. This is a similar chemical in many respects to pesticides like DDT, and no one can even guess the long term consequences of ingesting this substance over many years.
Research in animals provides us with some concerns at it has already shown that consuming sucralose comes hand-in-hand with a plethora of health problems:
* Shrunken thymus
glands (up to 40 percent shrinkage)
* Enlarged liver and kidneys
* Atrophy of lymph follicles in the spleen and thymus
* Reduced growth rate
* Decreased red blood cell count
* Extension of the pregnancy period
* Aborted pregnancy
* Diarrhea
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The comment above
is from Dr Mercola,
http://www.mercola.com,
a source of natural health
information that I use. In my experience, I find
that I agree with about 85% of his information.
Dr Mercola recommends some things that I have found
a better source for. For example, he recommends a
product called living fuel for example, but I use
Sunrider NuPlus and Quinary. I have Clients that
were using living fuel and then responded much
better to NuPlus.
12 Questions you
need to have answered before
you eat Splenda:
Q: What exactly is Splenda?
A: In a simple sentence, you would just as soon have a pesticide in your food as sucralose because sucralose (Splenda) is a chlorocarbon. The chlorocarbons have long been known for causing organ, genetic, and reproductive damage. It should be no surprise, therefore, that the testing of sucralose reveals that it can cause up to 40 percent shrinkage of the thymus: a gland that is the very foundation of our immune system. Sucralose also causes swelling of the liver and kidneys, and CALCIFICATION of the kidney. Note: if you experience kidney pain, cramping, or an irritated bladder after using sucralose in Splenda, stop use immediately.
11 More Questions
asked and answered here:
http://www.formerfatguy.com/articles/splenda-questions.asp
The Mercola site
also has some great information about
Splenda and artificial sweetener dangers,
Splenda: here we
go again:
http://www.mercola.com/2004/jul/21/splenda.htm
"eating
sucralose--brand name Splenda--is like
ingesting tiny amounts of chlorinated pesticides"
Nutrasweet lowers
sperm count:
http://www.mercola.com/2003/may/3/artificial_sweeteners.htm
Splenda Dangers,
one mans personal story:
http://www.mercola.com/2003/nov/8/splenda_dangers.htm
SOLUTION:
most of us want something sweet in our drinks. There
is a natural whole food herb called Stevia that has
some great properties. It's at the BOTTOM of the
Glycemic Index (does not affect blood sugar), is
very very sweet and has been found to nourish the
pancreas and adrenal glands and helps regulate
blood sugar levels.
I have been using
Stevia for over 15 years. There are
some good brands and some not so good brands. The
not so good ones use alcohol in them or
steviocide and should be avoided.
The gift I give
away each month contains the stevia that I
use from Sunrider. IT's called Sunny Dew and is
a very concentrated blend of stevia and chrysanthemum
flower. I find that in regulating my blood sugar levels
by eating Stevia, I have much better control over my
cravings ie, I dont have them.
To learn more
about stevia:
http://www.formerfatguy.com/articles/stevia.asp
of all the fat loss books on the market,
Burn the Fat, Feed
the Muscle,
Fat wars by Brad King,
Eating Alive by Dr Jon Matsen,
Atkins by Atkins,
most of them
mention stevia as being the alternative
that you want to use in your program.
oh, and just
because I mention Atkins does not mean
I recommend it.
(http://www.formerfatguy.com/articles/atkins-diet-lies.asp)
Lots of info in
this email, make use of what you can and I
hope that if you've used Splenda or know someone who's
experiencing "issues" in their health, make them aware of
the dangers and the signs to look for.