Have any of you long-time veterans on the Atkins plan managed to maintain this WOE/WOL not only without sugar, but without artificial sweeteners at all? Does anybody out there simply drink water, black coffee (no sugar or other sweetener), or just a little bit of milk (3/4 cup) with meals? (I drink milk only with my breakfast, which is otherwise carb-free; it's straight water from then on-I distill my own at home). Am I just dreaming to think I can do this without having something "sweet" to drink or eat?

Well.. I'm no veteran here. In the 30 days I've been on induction, I've noticed that something as simple as a grape or apple can more than curb your sweet tooth. I was almost amazed how sweet and juicy apples and grapes are. They're not meant for "induction" per say.. but you get my drift. I'm a die hard fan of just plain old H2O. It's the cleanest and most refreshing thing I can drink.

I believe that if I can get by with something as simple as this, you can too.

Good luck

hi deeniec,
i can live without the sugar but not the sweeteners.i just couldn,t give up having something sweet for the rest of my life.
i like my sugar free jelly and diet coke too much.
its a very tall order to do without both sugar and sweeteners.that would mean eating only unproccessed food forever.unfortunatly,i am not that perfect!

christine

Thanks for the quick reply, coolcat. One reason I asked is that there is so much info on this site about the artificials (in shakes, bars, some recipes, and in drinks). It goes against your thinking of why you're doing this- to avoid the sweet stuff, right? I guess adding some sugar is ok for those in maintenance. Anyway, it's kinda like when the artificial "fat" came out in Doritos and other chips. I thought,"this stuff can't be good for you"-it's not naturally occurring. It has to be processed in a lab somewhere. And a lot of people I know-including me-got diarhhea on that. Are "artificial" sweeteners naturally occurring or do they mix them up in a lab? I know that sugar and honey and stuff like carob are naturals,but I don't mind avoiding them. Now that I'm low carbing-and loving it-I don't want to ruin my good results. And I want to do it with foods and beverages that "remember where they came from"-haha.

The other reason I was concerned is because a very close friend of mine died a few years ago after going on a reduced calorie diet. He didn't eat anything "reduced fat" or "low fat" because he couldn't stand the taste. His focus seemed to be on the calorie reduction and he did use the artificial sweeteners-a lot. He drank tons of diet sodas and used Sweet N Low on cereals and in desserts. His oncologists said there could have definitely been a link between the cancer and the artificials since he had no family history of the disease and was an otherwise healthy 25 year old non-smoker. (I don't want to scare anyone-sorry)

Anyway, I'm glad to know that there aren't terrible sugar cravings that will ultimately make you resort to stuff like that. It's good to know it can be done without the artificial sweeteners.

Yes, it's possible to do without them and if you can you will be better off. You will completely break the 'sweet habit.'

Splenda is the only natural AS. (That's an oximoron - a 'natural, artificial sweetener') All the rest are formulated chemicals. Splenda comes from real sugar, but doesn't raise the blood sugar or insulin.

SDgrandma,

Splenda is technically chlorinated sucrose (table sugar).
It's not "natural" by any sense of the word.
Reference: splenda.com

Hogarth

I was probably a little loose with the term 'natural.' I meant that it comes from a food, not just chemicals.

Actually Stevia is natural and has been around for hundreds of years. It is made from an herb. I get the 2oz bottles for around $12 - 13. Sounds pricey but the cheaper stuff tends to have a bitter aftertaste and you have to use 2x as much. BTW it takes about 6-8 drops of the good stuff to REALLY sweeten a glass of tea.

Stevia is an EXTREMELY popular sweetener in Japan. Diet Coke was sweetened with it until, I think 1999 because Coke wanted to start making all their products the same (nutrasweet).

Jinx

PS I like NuNaturals brand and Sweet Leaf Stevia Clear - BOTH NON ALCOHOL!!

Sucarlose/ aka Splenda
http://www.karlloren.com/Diabetes/p40e.htm

Aspartame / aka Nutrasweet
http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/

check this out
This info about aspartame is scary! I use plenty of (too much?) frankenfood, even though I know I shouldn't. The reason 'why' I shouldn't is a little clearer now.