I was wondering if anyone else had really bad headaches when they consumed too many artificial sweeteners or splenda? I noticed this weekend when I had more that 4 packets of Sweet N Low that I had a really bad headache. I dropped the Sweet N Low and switched to Splenda and it has happened again a couple of times. This is really depressing. I don't mind giving up real sugar and all the high carb things I thought I loved but the idea of not being able to use anything sweet is a bit much. I can if I have to but I am afraid to put my will to that kind of test.

Has anybody else experienced this and how was it dealt with?

Thank in advance

Heather

I've heard of it happening with Aspartame, but I hadn't heard of it with Splenda. I've never had a problem, but I don't use all that much of them, either.

My husband also difficulty with Splenda when it is specifically concentrated in cooking. He tries to use less and it seems to help.

The body is a wonderful thing, isn't it? If we quit abusing it with sugar, booze, drugs, or exercise it starts sending us clear messages about what we should eat and do! We start craving broccoli or meat, we stop when we're full, we feel creaky and crave a walk--what a wonderful system!

No one needs artificial sweeteners, Mother Nature did not provide them for us (with the possible exception of stevia), and there's no rational reason to keep using them if they're hurting you. They hurt lots of people--causing cravings, stalling weight loss, causing headaches, resulting in who knows what other long-term effects--so especially in the face of noticeable ill effects why use them?

Well....partly because we're used to treating emotional distress with sweets, a habit we likely learned in childhood. But that is a habit that can be changed. There are a lot of books out there on emotional eating and binge eating--I've used several and continue to work through such issues on a regular basis. YMMV, of course, but it's worthwhile to at least ask yourself why you can't imagine a life without sweets.

If you quit using all artificial sweeteners, the most amazing things are going to start tasting sweet. Not just berries, carrots, red bell peppers or winter squash (which ARE sweet), but green peppers, grean beans, celery, broccoli, romaine lettuce. As those things started tasting sweet to me, a lightbulb went off: hey, this is why I was given sweet taste buds! To identify healthy, edible foods! (d'oh.)

Instead of a sweet dessert, I find myself truly enjoying a dozen excellent olives and a half-ounce of soft cheese..."dessert" can be other things than sweets. "Treats" can be long baths, watching a favorite old movie, sitting by a lake and listening to the birds, making love, or whatever else you find enjoyable.

HTH

That makes a great deal of sense. I have been wondering what obligation I have to certain foods that I used to love such as pasta and I find I have none. They do not need me. I hadn't really thought about sweeteners in the same light. I have never known an existance without "sweet" things. Yes there is a great deal of emotional issues tied in with it but for some reason I could easily see my self without the food that I have binged on for years as opposed to sweets. I guess sweetness still has a "good" connotation attached to it.

I don't think it would hurt to try life without them to see. It certainly can't hurt. Thanks Razzle.

H