[mtatum4496]

Hi Everyone,

What is your opinion of various and sundry sweeteners for use in recipes?

Personally, I have yet to find an artificial sweetener that is a good fit for me. I don't mind the taste of Splenda, but consuming more than a minute amount causes stomach upset for me. While the other more popular options don't cause any distress, I don't care for the taste of them at all.

I have had a little success with Stevia in terms of taste and it doesn't provide any unpleasant side effects for me. Often, I simply don't bother with any sweetener at all. Even before I was diagnosed, I preferred my tea without sugar and didn't really care for any extra sugar added to my cooked fruits.

That being said, has anyone come across something a little out of the box that might be worth trying?

 

[BestFoot]

New to this forum, so just browsing and saw your post ... I read something recently about Xylitol being a great alternative, but not sure where I saw it. Also, not sure if this counts, but have you tried Agave nectar? Might not work for everything, but it's definitely sweet!
-Steve

 

[BestFoot]

Never mind about Agave; just read something rather negative about it

 

[moon]

I came into diabetes hating artificial sweeteners of any kind, was very sensitive to the aftertaste. So, it has taken (and still takes) some work to balance that out.

The sweetener I like the most is erythritol (available online, expensive so I use it sparingly), but in quantity it does have an odd aftertaste. I use it in my coffee though without that being detectable.

I've found the reason so many recipes call for 2 different sweeteners is because each tends to negate the aftertaste of the other. I now use erythritol in all my baking but balance it with a few drops of liquid splenda. It works like a dream but I'm constantly refining.

Erythritol is a sugar alcohol but as it does not enter the large intestine (is secreted through the urine), it doesn't have the gastric effects the other sugar alcohols do, and it has no impact on my blood sugar (or most people's.)

 

[foxl]

Use em if you need em, I say.

Try combining a couple or even 3, to lessen the fakey taste: I combine erythritol, stevia, and splenda, regularly, and am happy with the results. I also use HALF the sweetening power called for in most recipes!

I use Mio to flavor water: you control how much you add so it does not need to be cloying.

 

[d33na]

I also use a mix of Erythritol which isn't an artificial sweetner it's a natural sweetener and I agree it's expensive so I mix it with splenda for baking and stevia for my coffee...but like moon I tend to use far less than most recipes recommend...I think diabetes hones your taste buds and (my opinion) tastes become more obvious....

Really....I think you need to 'play' to get the right taste for you are your family...

 

[Patdart]

And here I am with my favorite still being Cyclamate from the '70's although it's been cleared for purchase in the states, it's not been reentered in the market place. Mine is old, but you can buy it still from England shipped here....

 

[gphx]

I like things like pure Stevia. What I don't like is things prepared in such a manner as to be a cup for cup replacement for sugar. A stevia blend of this type we bought has a main ingredient not of stevia, but of dextrose, a form of glucose. Another mix we saw had an artificial sweetener as the second ingredient and the main ingredient was sucrose, another name for table sugar!

Dr. Richard Bernstein complains about such deceptive practices in his books.

Some food manufacturers are nonsensical, ridiculous, and borderline criminal. Read the labels on everything.

 

[swatantra]

consider every content carrin a molecule of carbohydrate is a poison

 

[swatantra]

artifial sweetners

consider every content carrin a molecule of carbohydrate is a poison at it would demand more insuline which perhaps you cand not produce

 

[jasonsandeman]

I like Stevia. I grow it in my garden, and I will be looking to make an extract out of it this year. I also like the drops that Now makes. They don't have an aftertaste.

As for the taste of sweetness items - since I got the big D, I can't stand the taste of conventionally sweetened items. I tried to have a bit of a Mr. Freeze the other day, and it was so sickly sweet, I couldn't handle it. I one had a low that I tried drinking a regular Sprite, and almost threw up on the taste.

I guess that's a good thing.

 

[Patdart]

I like Stevia. I grow it in my garden, and I will be looking to make an extract out of it this year. I also like the drops that Now makes. They don't have an aftertaste.

Oh, good about the stevia! I hope you'll share that experience with us, so do remember to tell us how it goes. I'm still not sure which I prefer, but luckily I don't taste that well to be bothered by an aftertaste so much as sensitivity to too much. I really dislike diet drinks because I find them sickly sweet.