RANT: my personal list of boobytrapped foods
Many drink and food manufacturers are adding sugar substitutes to all sorts of things, some of which are not labeled as "diet" or "reduced-calorie" foods. This is inconvenient, because I used to be able to use the diet/lo-cal labels as handy warning labels -- most sugar substitutes make me ill. (I have Crohn's disease and a few other things. Trust me, when I say that they make me ill, I mean that if I am visiting you and you give me a piece of the lovely pie you baked with Splenda without warning me first, the smallest room in your house is going to belong to me all day.)

I like sugar. How about they just make stuff with sugar, and not boobytrap it, OK?

(And do not start with the stevia being natural, OK? Just don't. DO NOT WANT.)

AM NOT LOOKING FOR SUGAR SUBSTITUTE! AM LOOKING TO AVOID SUGAR SUBSTITUTES. Please to read for content, yah?

*sigh*

Here's an incomplete list of stuff I avoid:

7UP Plus - contains sucralose
Coke C2 - contains acesulfame potassium and aspartame and sucralose
Pepsi EDGE - contains sucralose
Pepsi ONE - contains acesulfame potassium and aspartame
Propel - contains acesulfame potassium and sucralose
Pure Life flavoured water - contains sucralose
Sobe Lifewater - contains stevia-derived sweetener
Sprite Green - contains stevia-derived sweetener
Trop 50 orange juice - contains stevia-derived sweetener along with sugar


Here's an incomplete list of sugar substitutes that I steer clear of:
acesulfame potassium
aspartame
cyclamates
glycerol
mannitol
neotame
Reb-A
PureVia
sorbitol
Splenda
stevia
sucralose
xylitol

...and propylene glycol, while not a sweetener, also seems to mess my guts up. Alas. It also goes by the name of E1520.

The jury's still out on erythritol, but I'm not conducting tests until I can walk easily again.

(yep, I know, some are listed twice, as there are chemical names and trade names)

(109 comments) - (Post a new comment)

	txanne 2009-07-05 05:29 pm UTC (link)
	They sweeten OJ now? The fiends! (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-05 05:30 pm UTC (link)
	Some of it. Not all of it. I think that particular one is going to be listed as a low-calorie orange juice drink or something. But yeah, I know, I think it's crazy to sweeten orange juice with anything at all. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - mrissa, 2009-07-05 05:37 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - redbird, 2009-07-05 06:10 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-05 06:38 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - timprov, 2009-07-05 11:52 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - sethb, 2009-07-06 09:14 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - txanne, 2009-07-05 06:50 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - coffeeem, 2009-07-05 09:48 pm UTC (Expand)

hobbitbabe 2009-07-05 05:34 pm UTC (link)

If I were there, I might feed you some of the following sweet things, then: ginger cookies from Susan's recipe (sweetened with brown sugar and molasses) caramel honeybush tea (and you could have honey or sugar in it if it weren't sweet enough as is) tea biscuits (white sugar) strawberries with a bit of white sugar to make syrup or homemade jam (white sugar) fresh black cherries from British Columbia which get delivered right to my neighbourhood rice pudding (are raisins okay?) (Reply to this) (Thread)

elisem 2009-07-05 05:36 pm UTC (link)

Raisins are nice! (Fruit in general is nice, though I have to be careful and not have fruit with little tiny seeds in it just now. When I'm all robust digestively, I can have fruit with little tiny seeds, like various jams and suchlike, but when I'm delicate from the Crohn's, it's jelly for me, or non-seedy fruit.) I am happied by your listing of goodies, and they are making me hungry, which is a great boon. I shall go have my nosh and then get to the convention. Thank you! (Reply to this) (Parent)

sinboy 2009-07-05 05:34 pm UTC (link)

OJ? They're putting that crap in OJ? Ew! I tend to run a full list of what I'm making past anyone with dietary restrictions, and inquire as to those of anyone who's visiting. Using commercial broth is mostly what trips things up for me, but then, we don't keep soda on hand anyhow. We've got a seltzer maker, and can make syrup if people want something sweet and fizzy. (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	elisem 2009-07-05 05:49 pm UTC (link)
	Syrup and selzer! Excellent. Thank you for reminding me of that! *makes note* (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - ellen_fremedon, 2009-07-05 06:25 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-05 06:32 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - cjsherwood, 2009-07-06 10:22 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - dichroic, 2009-07-06 01:58 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - chinders, 2009-07-05 11:08 pm UTC (Expand)

nex0s 2009-07-05 05:37 pm UTC (link)

Oh, I HATE It when they sweeten things like juice. It's already too sweet for me and I have to cut my juice with seltzer as it is. On the upside: many flavors of "soda" for me that way :) You'll need to see if these guys are distributed near you, but GUS sodas - GUS stands for Grown Up Soda - is awesome and uses cane sugar. They list their sodas as "dry". I find them to be plenty sweet but not TOO sweet like a lot of other things. I *love* their Cola and it helped with my early pregnancy nausea, and I ADORE their Meyer Lemon Soda. I also liked the Valencia Orange (very Orangina like), and the Grapefruit. I havne't had the others yet. So, all of them that I've had I've liked :) If they are distributed near you, check them out sometime. With SUGAR!!! OMG! :) And they list all the ingredients on their website. I did have one of their grapefruit sodas once turn a weird flavor on me, but I think I kept it not-refridgerated for too long AND in sunlight (like weeks) on my desk so it was my fault anyway. As you know, I don't have Chrones and most fake sweeteners don't bother me... I just don't like them. They taste BITTER to me, not sweet. I also hate hate hate stevia. YUCKO. I avoid eating a lot of sugar because of a history of diabetes in my family but that's it. I'd much rather have something with sugar in it once in a while, than have fake sugar all the time. Ugh. N. (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	ellen_fremedon 2009-07-05 06:32 pm UTC (link)
	Ooh, I'll have to look for the GUS sodas; those sound awesome. Reed's Ginger Brew is probably my favorite commercial soda. The original is sweetened with fructose and honey; the premium just has honey and pineapple juice. They both make a fantastic Dark & Stormy :-). (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-05 06:44 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kightp, 2009-07-06 11:32 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-05 06:39 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - dd_b, 2009-07-05 06:52 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - txanne, 2009-07-05 06:52 pm UTC (Expand)

piwacket 2009-07-05 05:38 pm UTC (link)

I know several people with sensitivities to artificial sweeteners. one of my old coworkers would get migraines from them. I asked her once if she had the same reaction to Stevia, and she said no, but she couldn't get past the strange aftertaste. It really does have a strange aftertaste. I don't think artificial sweeteners should be used in food products at all. They're all just so bad for you. Even independent of any other health problems someone might have. (Reply to this) (Thread)

elisem 2009-07-05 05:44 pm UTC (link)

I know a bunch of diabetics who really depend on them, though. I'm of the philosophy that most things have appropriate uses. It's just that for me, most sugar substitutes (even the natural ones) have bad interactions. (For anybody unaware of this kind of thing, Google "mannitol" and "laxative effect" sometime, and then look up Crohn's disease. So very not fun combination.) (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - piwacket, 2009-07-05 05:51 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-05 06:37 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kayshapero, 2009-07-05 11:30 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 01:57 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kayshapero, 2009-07-06 04:40 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - crazysoph, 2009-07-06 01:56 pm UTC (Expand)

	britmandelo 2009-07-05 05:43 pm UTC (link)
	I sympathize. I have a severe allergy to aspartame, and it makes my mouth swell up and itch, also my throat. If I have enough of it, I vomit for hours. With swelling. And they hide that stuff in everything now: gum, soda, flavored water, cookies... (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-05 06:40 pm UTC (link)
	Oh, yes. I'm starting the list with drinks, but the cookies and crackers and.... oy. Yeah. Severe allergy is worse than what I deal with. You have my major sympathies... and anything you want to add to the list, just comment here and I'll add it to the post. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - britmandelo, 2009-07-05 07:13 pm UTC (Expand)

	therck 2009-07-05 05:46 pm UTC (link)
	My in-laws keep hitting me with the 'But Splenda's made from sugar!' line. I do my best not to snarl at them. If they were more educated in chemistry, I'd respond, 'Well, water's made from hydrogen and oxygen,' and let them go on to infer that being made from those things doesn't make it burnable or breathable. (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	elisem 2009-07-05 05:49 pm UTC (link)
	The example of the nice people with the Splenda pie is taken from life. Mine. They're people I love a lot. They meant well. I love visiting them. (However, it was very lucky for them that their house has more than one bathroom. As it was, they never offered me unannounced artificial sweeteners again, after that memorable occasion.) (Reply to this) (Parent)

(no subject) - panjianlien, 2009-07-05 10:22 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 01:59 am UTC (Expand)

redbird 2009-07-05 06:13 pm UTC (link)

What I found weird a few years ago, on a visit to Britain, was that a lot of things had both sugar and aspartame. It may be aimed at people who are counting calories, but what it looked like was "okay, diabetics will have trouble with this, and so will people who are sensitive to aspartame." (I am a little sensitive, so try to avoid it, but if someone handed me a diet soda by accident it wouldn't be a disaster.) (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	elisem 2009-07-05 06:40 pm UTC (link)
	That's exactly what gets me: the stuff with both sugar and Those Things in it. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - silme, 2009-07-05 08:22 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kayshapero, 2009-07-05 11:34 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - adrian_turtle, 2009-07-06 08:13 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 09:06 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - noveldevice, 2009-07-05 07:06 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 09:06 pm UTC (Expand)

	kate_schaefer 2009-07-05 06:23 pm UTC (link)
	You already know that many toothpastes have xylitol in them, I assume. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-05 06:42 pm UTC (link)
	Yeah, but mostly that's OK because I'm not swallowing the toothpaste. If I had a serious allergy, I'd avoid 'em. (I do avoid candies with xylitol. Even two or three hard candies with xylitol seem to mess me up a bit.) (Reply to this) (Parent)

ashnistrike 2009-07-05 06:34 pm UTC (link)

There are worse things than having a bad reaction to neurotoxins. (Okay, I know they're not all neurotoxins. But we used aspartame in high school to make stupid chickens, and it made an impression on me.) (Also, yesterday we watched an episode of Eureka in which propylene glycol was the base for a formula that caused invisibility and also death. But they are not so trustworthy as a source of information.) (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	elisem 2009-07-05 06:43 pm UTC (link)
	::Eureka love:: And... making chickens stupid with aspartame? Whoah. That's quite the teaser. What did you do, and what did the chickens do? (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - ashnistrike, 2009-07-05 07:00 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - genevra, 2009-07-05 11:33 pm UTC (Expand)

elynne 2009-07-05 06:50 pm UTC (link)

UGH. I seeble. Having to read ingredient lists for gluten booby-trapping is so not fun. Unless it's labeled "organic" or "kosher", in which cases WHAT IS ON THE LABEL IS WHAT'S ACTUALLY IN IT, I have to trust that there aren't any secret hidden prizes that will jump out and get me later on. Next year, companies will have to list wheat as an allergen, which is good - but wheat isn't the only source of gluten, and there are various chemical offspring (MSG, I'm looking at you) which may not be labeled as "wheat". I'll still have to be careful, but that will probably at least help some. You know what's impossible to find? Pre-made french onion chip dip that doesn't have MSG in it. I used to love french onion dip. I haven't figured out how to make it on my own yet; I've given it a couple of tries, but haven't nailed it down, which makes me sad. Dear food manufacturers: STOP PUTTING GLUTEN CRACK IN YOUR FOOD. Arrgh. (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	firecat 2009-07-06 02:49 am UTC (link)
	Yeah, I hate it when they hide MSG in the ingredient "natural flavors." (Reply to this) (Parent)

(no subject) - kightp, 2009-07-06 11:51 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kightp, 2009-07-07 01:28 am UTC (Expand)

hobbitblue 2009-07-05 07:07 pm UTC (link)

Wow, that looks like a wider range of nasty than they put in British food.. we've recently had some kind of sea-change with a lot of foods, so many things now have far fewer artifical things in, including sweeteners, though there's still plenty of crap in soft drinks and sweets, I've not eaten those in years though. I still read every label before I buy though, amazing what they will sneak in, though "diet" and "healthy choice" are usual a good sign of "contains a lot of crap to replace the nutrition you are looking for" As a diabetic I have more problems with the supposedly friendly things like sorbitol and maltitol than with a small amount of sugar - still remember asking in a high class chocolate shop if I could sample a truffle to see whether it would be a bad thing (I can manage some chocolates as they tend to not mask the cocoa with masses of sugar) and the guy gave me one of his special blend diabetic truffles, with maltitol. I'd never had maltitol before. Head was spinning for a good half hour, was glad we were walking around a lot for it to wear off... (Reply to this)

rivka 2009-07-05 07:26 pm UTC (link)

Ugh, I hate this. I'm lucky enough that I don't have a bad physical reaction to artificial sweeteners, but they all have a chemical aftertaste to me, even the ones that aren't supposed to. I also plain just don't like things to be too sweet, and if I'm not careful I buy something (like bottled ice tea) that says "no sugar" thinking that it's unsweetened, and am sadly disappointed. And I don't let my children have artificial sweeteners. As far as I know they have never been tested for safety in children. Nothing horrifies my inlaws more than the fact that I will let Alex have a bowl of ice cream but say no to sugar-free Jell-O. (Reply to this) (Thread)

ailbhe 2009-07-05 08:07 pm UTC (link)

Loads of children's *medicines* are sweetened with laxative-heavy artificial sweeteners. And a lot of the children-specific products, like Fruit Shoots (juice-related drink in fancy bottle), are sweetened with aspartame, which gives me the heebie jeebies. I believe sorbitol and xylitol have tested as safe not harmful for children in the doses used in medicines and chewing gums (xylitol is not usually meant to be swallowed by children - it's in toothpastes and things in Scandinavia), but never as an actual sugar substitute in all the things kids eat with sugar in them - a very small test was done which showed that it gives kids the runs in large quantities. Xylitol has been used in Sweden and Finland since the 1970s, and the babies now using it will mainly have parents who also used it as babies, so I'm inclined to trust it. But it still tastes foul. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - genevra, 2009-07-05 11:32 pm UTC (Expand)

	pyrzqxgl 2009-07-05 07:43 pm UTC (link)
	As a vegetarian diet cola drinker my label-inspecting issues are different than yours, but one eye-opening experience I had a while back was finding out that when a package says something like "pure fruit, no added sugar" it can actually mean "totally packed with artificial sweeteners". (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-06 02:02 am UTC (link)
	Oh, yes. I particularly find that to be true about fruit juice frozen pops. jenett reminded me that I need to get a popsicle-mold thingie so I can make my own. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - aedifica, 2009-07-07 02:52 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-07 02:59 am UTC (Expand)

stophittinyrslf 2009-07-05 08:17 pm UTC (link)

Ugh. I sympathize with you on this. My spouse's allergic to aspartame (migraines verging on hallucinations, oddly enough) and I'm avoiding all weird fake sweeteners while pregnant, so this has become a great source of frustration lately. The other day I bought a box of cereal. Children's cereal! Cereal for kids... not overweight kids, normal kids. I checked the ingredients for dairy (which I don't eat) and didn't even think to look at sweeteners. It had freaking aspartame in it, which I only found out after I ate some and thought "huh, this tastes really weird." It's a weird and annoying state of affairs. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-07 02:59 am UTC (link)
	It's the way it sneaks up on a person that gets me. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	fledgist 2009-07-05 09:08 pm UTC (link)
	One thing you can do is haunt the ethnic foods aisles of your supermarket. Last week, I just bought some Jamaican ginger beer and noted that it said "made with cane sugar" on the bottle. (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	nex0s 2009-07-05 09:22 pm UTC (link)
	A very excellent suggestion which I will second! N. (Reply to this) (Parent)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 02:02 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - maryread, 2009-07-06 01:53 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-07 03:01 am UTC (Expand)

copperwise 2009-07-05 09:44 pm UTC (link)

Artificial sweeteners give me headaches and I'm trying to avoid high fructose corn syrup in anything due to the effects it has on diabetes. Sugar is actually better than HFCS and I've noticed that it tastes so much better and less sickly sweet. Several of my favorite beverages are now being made in the "all natural" version, with cane sugar instead. In moderation I can have them. http://snackerrific.com/snack-review-lemon-tea-snapple-reformulated/2456 http://www.liptonpureleaf.com/our_teas/lemon.php (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-06 02:07 am UTC (link)
	I have a difficulty pronouncing "high fructose corn syrup." It always comes out as "highly fucked-up corn syrup." I got PNH doing it too, last time I was visiting Brooklyn. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - kayshapero, 2009-07-06 04:42 am UTC (Expand)

panjianlien 2009-07-05 10:27 pm UTC (link)

I'm a stevia fan, so I will throw myself on the stevia grenade in order to protect you from it, if you like. Hidden allergenic ingredients blow bigtime. Many people are amazed when I have to explain to them why I'm not eating $thing because I cannot confirm the ingredients and just because they don't think that $thing contains dairy doesn't mean that it doesn't actually contain dairy, and I am not really in the mood to find out the hard way as puking like a fountain often offends. You have my empathies and sympathies both. (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

kayshapero 2009-07-05 11:40 pm UTC (link)

When my daughter Vicky was still a child, she and I were part of a dinner party at a Mediterranean restaurant, where only one sauce on the menu did NOT list milk as an ingredient. Vicky, being allergic* to milk ordered the one that did not. She didn't much care for the taste, thank goodness, because after a bite or two she started to sneeze, and I had to remove her to the nearest source of Benadryl post haste. While this was going on, the doctor who was the head of our dinner party got a copy of the restaurant's card for me, and from what I'm told read them the riot act chapter and verse on the subjects of labeling and allergens along with explaining they would be getting the bill if an emergency room visit was required. Fortunately it wasn't (and therafter I always had some form of Benadryl in my purse, liquid or not.) I agree with you!! *Yes allergic - NOT, as so many people immediately assume, lactose intolerant. Ahhhhh----CHOOOOOOOO!!!!! (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 02:03 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 02:03 am UTC (Expand)

riverrocks 2009-07-06 12:04 am UTC (link)

I hear you on the adverse reactions to artificial sweeteners and other sugar substitutes. This body can't handle any of the alcohol-sugars (mannitol, xylitol, etc.) either. Or the artificial biggies. The only reason I don't have the same frustrations you do with the big name sodas is that I can't tolerate corn syrup either, so I stopped trying to consume Coke and Pepsi and that lot a long time ago. Once again I am very glad I live in a city with a plethora of food co-ops where I can occasionally find some sort of snack or sweet I can eat. (Reply to this)

	theodosia 2009-07-06 12:26 am UTC (link)
	Have you had any experience with agave sweetener? I ran across some ice cream substitute (coconut-milk-based from So Delicious) that had it, and couldn't tell it from the Real Thing plus no reaction. Aside from the runs from the alcohol-sugars, I don't seem to have a problem with artificial sweeteners, except that most taste "off" to me, so I avoid them if I can. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-06 02:04 am UTC (link)
	Haven't tried it, but I don't seek out sugar substitutes. Coconut-milk ice cream, however, sounds like a very good idea in and of itself. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - purpletigron, 2009-07-06 07:21 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 03:50 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kightp, 2009-07-06 11:56 pm UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-07 12:13 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - kightp, 2009-07-07 01:24 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-07 01:50 am UTC (Expand)

marydell 2009-07-06 01:20 am UTC (link)

Jarritos soda pop is made with sugar. And is very yummy--my favorites are the strawberry and the mandarin. Around here it's a standard item in Mexican restaurants and also any grocery that carries Mexican food. You might have a look at the baby food aisle for snacks. There are legions of little cookies and nom-noms for the wee ones, and they tend to have fewer atrocious ingredients than the grown up stuff. Some of them are quite tasty, including the Gerber fruit & veggie puffs. And Charlie and I have both gotten hooked on Baby mum-mum rice rusks, which are made of rice, water, sugar, and salt. Very nice crackers. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-06 02:05 am UTC (link)
	Ah! Jarritos. Yes, and there are eight g'million little Mexican-and-Central-American groceries in my neighborhood these days. That should work well. Will keep the rice rusks in mind too. They sound nice. (Reply to this) (Parent)

dichroic 2009-07-06 02:02 am UTC (link)

Propylene glycol just doesn't sound like anything anybody should be eating. (Sounds more like something you use to power a stove to cook the things you're going to eat, really.) One of the things I really like here is watermelon juice. I would say that I'll miss it when I return to the US, but I won't because it's a no-brainer to make: puree watermelon in blender. Drink. (In your case I'd be careful to remove seeds first.) And now previous comments have me thinking that it would be an even more refreshing summer drink with seltzer added! Or does watermelon have too much fiber? (Reply to this) (Thread)(Expand)

	elisem 2009-07-06 02:06 am UTC (link)
	Pureed watermelon might not. Hmm. (Reply to this) (Parent)(Thread)(Expand)

(no subject) - dichroic, 2009-07-06 02:09 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - firecat, 2009-07-06 02:54 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - dichroic, 2009-07-06 03:00 am UTC (Expand)

(no subject) - elisem, 2009-07-06 05:53 am UTC (Expand)

	aedifica 2009-07-06 02:06 am UTC (link)
	Have you tried Blue Sky sodas? The co-ops around here have them. Of the ones I've tried, my favorite is the grapefruit--but I haven't tried many, because I keep going back to the grapefruit. :-) The ones I know of have no sweeteners other than "real sugar," although I just looked on their website and they do have some sodas that are sweetened with corn syrup. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-06 03:51 pm UTC (link)
	Ah, I have seen those in places. I think I used to see them at the Wedge when I was shopping with Mike. (Reply to this) (Parent)

firecat 2009-07-06 03:01 am UTC (link)

I'm drinking a Diet Hansens with Splenda right now (if I only drink one a day, I don't get sick from it), but I'm horrified that these chemicals are getting into foods that aren't labeled in some obvious manner as containing artificial sweeteners. Maybe they should be labeled and regulated as drugs. These people make "home soda maker" machines. I don't have one yet but some friends of mine do and they like it: http://www.sodaclubusa.com These folks make seltzer bottles and cartridges. I've been using their seltzer bottle for a few years and it works great: http://prairiemoon.biz/ (Reply to this) (Thread)

	kayshapero 2009-07-06 04:44 am UTC (link)
	I tried a few Splenda sweetened sodas and found them waaaaaaaaay too sweet. Ah well, I learned years ago that I prefer my lemonaide with no sweetener whatsoever, so just squirt sufficient lemon juice into water, fizzy or otherwise. When not drinking tea, anyway. (Reply to this) (Parent)

	purpletigron 2009-07-06 07:23 am UTC (link)
	I'm involved in a campaign to improve European labelling laws (e.g. to include all the processing aids etc.). The informal campaign coalition includes vegetarians (such as my vegan self) and those with intolerances and allergies,although our labelling needs are distinct. (Reply to this) (Thread)

	elisem 2009-07-06 03:52 pm UTC (link)
	Good labelling is very important. Go, you guys! (Reply to this) (Parent)

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(109 comments) - (Post a new comment)