I’m a recovering splendholic! It was my artificial sweetener for years. I had always heard how bad the “other ones” were so I stayed clear of them due to cancer risks. However Splenda was “made from sugar so it tastes like sugar,”…or so they want us to believe! According to Splenda’s own website it is NOT natural. They create it by a “process selectively replaces three hydrogen-oxygen groups on the sugar molecule with three chlorine atoms”
The main ingredient in Splenda is Sucralose. According to LiveStrong.com this is the definition of what Sucralose actually is:” One of the main ingredients in Splenda is sucralose. Sucralose tastes 600 times sweeter than sugar. Made from sucrose, which is a combination of the two sugars fructose and glucose, sucralose substitutes three chloride atoms for three hydroxyl or OH groups on the sucrose molecule. These chloride atom substitutions enable sucralose to pass through your body essentially unchanged. Most sucralose ends up in your feces, while a small percentage ends up in your urine.”
Now, I can have Splenda now and then and it doesn’t trigger a migraine for me. However, I have noticed that I feel as if it has more of an accumulative effect on me. For quite some time I had been addicted to a commercial diet tea that was sweetened with it. I noticed I started getting more and more headaches. Recently as a test, I allowed myself to have one cup of it a day. After a week of doing that I had a migraine.
Upon further investigation, I found this article by Dr. Mercola that made me wonder if Splenda, was in fact building up in my system.
- There have only been six human trials to date
- The longest trial lasted three months
- At LEAST 15% of Splenda is not excreted from your body in a timely manner
Now I avoid Sucralose aka Splenda as much as possible. I use Stevia, Monk Fruit Extract or Trim and Healthy Mama’s Super Sweet Blend. You MUST be careful when buying Stevia and Monk Fruit Extract if you are looking for a sugar replacement, many of brands put Dextrose or Maltodextrin (other forms of sugar) to counter balance bitterness.
Mommy Has A Migraine 