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Posted 11/16/2005 10:17 PM (GMT 0)
#1- I have been using Equal sweetener with my coffee and my Quaker Puffed Rice. I am now reading book 'The Diabetes Improvement Program' by Patrick Quillin, in which he states he strongly discourages the use of aspartame and suggests the use of Splenda instead. Would anyone have a comment about this?

#2- Also, I have been eating Quaker Rice Cakes (lightly salted) and learn that they should not be eaten as they are high on the Glycemic Index. Is that true? Should I discontinue eating the Quaker Rice Cakes?

#3- By the way, what is the Glycemic Index?

(I posted earlier that my physical had my glucose at 111 (the reference range on my doctor's report from lab was 65-109). My A1C was 5.2 (range 4.6-6.0). Everything else normal. Doctor had me take another A1C test (also without breakfast) and it was also 5.2. I am 70 years of age.)

Posted 11/17/2005 9:10 AM (GMT 0)

Hi Robert2,

I'll try to explain about the Glycemic Index (GI) as I feel like I'm starting to become an expert!  tongue

It's basically an index of foods where food is given a rating.  The rating stands for how quickly the food makes your blood sugar rise.  A rating of over about 70 is high, or quick acting.  Some sugars are around 100, mashed potato is around 95, rice cakes are also very high, cornflakes are high, surprisingly melon is also in the 90s....55 to 70 (or thereabouts) are moderates.  Your blood sugar will rise a bit more slowly than high.  Then, below 55 is low which is what we want to mostly aim for (it raises your blood sugar more slowly and keeps it more level).  Foods here are lentils, beans, some fruits such as cherries and apples, oat based foods etc.  Meat, salad etc is 0 so has no affect.  If you really want to eat a high GI food such as a baked potato, team it with a low GI food such as baked beans.  This will make it a moderate affect on your blood sugar.  You can look on the net or buy a book which shows you food values - I have a book that has a huge list of food and I find it very useful.  I am so surprised sometimes at some food - a mars bar is 55 on the rating so is quite low, but as it contains so much sugar it's still probably not the best thing to eat.  Parsnips are also very high - in the 90s!  It can be very baffling at first, but I have found it really has helped my blood sugars.  Fat in foods seems to bring down the GI of foods, but we obviously want a healthy diet so it's not best to eat a lot of fatty foods!  And fat-free products seem to pack in a lot of sugar (such as fat-free yoghurts, unless they use sweeteners) so you just have to be aware when you make your choices.

I've also heard a lot about how bad aspartame is, and it seems to be in so many things I buy from diet drinks (including sparkling water) to yoghurts.  I've actually heard that it can cause problems with your brain, and that the verdict is still out on splenda.  Someone on this forum has suggested using stevia but I've never tried this.

I hope this helps and isn't too confusing!

Claire

Posted 11/17/2005 3:10 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Robert and Claire,

Well Aspartame is nasty stuff.  There has been tons of research on this artificial sweetner and there is litigation pending on the manufacturers of nutrisweet and equal by people claiming to have been poisoned by the stuff.

http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/

Thats a link that has tons of links to the scientific data on aspertame if you're interested.  As Claire mentioned, the jury is still out on Splenda but it appears to be headed for problems also. It just doesn't have the years of toxic research that Aspartame has but still 

 

http://www.holisticmed.com/splenda/

read the information on this link and judge for yourself.  Me personally??  I've given up both and don't touch diet soda anymore! nono

For coffee, tea, etc.  Stevia in liquid form isn't bad and its prefectly safe.

As an anecdote to this discussion; my son when he was a youngster used to go over to his friends house for dinner.  His friend's dad was the guy responsible for inventing Aspertame - and he wouldn't allow it in their house.  Maybe this should tell us something.

scool  Warren

Posted 11/17/2005 3:54 PM (GMT 0)

Hi Warren,

That's scary stuff - I put in a post in this forum about my memory and what I have experienced is exactly described on the link you put in!!  I've heard a lot of diabetics feel the same, but maybe it's because most diabetics use aspartame!  I am drinking a cold tea type drink I bought today, thinking it's better than diet coke.  Guess what, it contains aspartame!

I have also experienced other symptoms - no more of that for me!!

Thanks Warren!

Claire

Posted 11/17/2005 3:54 PM (GMT 0)

Thank you all for your input.

#1- Where to purchase Stevia for tea/coffee?

#2- What, then, would one use as a sweetener on cereal, such as Bran?

#3- How about the Quaker Oats Rice cakes? Cut them out?

Thanks again.

Posted 11/17/2005 4:22 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Robert,

http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/detox.html

This should show, on a table, what to use instead of aspartame.

I personally would cut out the rice cakes, but it sounds like you have really good sugar levels.  The best way to see if you think you should cut them out is to test your blood sugar levels after you eat them and see what affect they have on you. 

I don't know about where to purchase stevia but I'll be looking out for it!

Posted 11/17/2005 4:24 PM (GMT 0)
Hello Robert. First of all with an A1C of 5.2 I'd say keep eating what you're eating because that is an excellent number to have and obviously you are doing everything right! And second I too recommend Splenda, I use it ALOT everyday now for over 10 years (ever since it came to canada) and I have had absolutetly no problems. I just had an ultrasound yesterday ( I'm 19 weeks pregnant) and my liver and kidneys are totally fine, so I dont' know about these websites. And lastly if you are uncomfortable using artificial sweeteners you could put fruit on your cereal, something like half a banana or some raisins are good sweeteners. Keep up the good work! Robyn
Posted 11/17/2005 4:31 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you both. I was just going out when your messages arrived. May I ask another question? You said to test after eating a Quaker Rice cake. Would that testing be done after 2 hours, or immediately after eating the rice cake?

Thanks again.

Posted 11/17/2005 4:35 PM (GMT 0)
I'd probably say around 1 hour, but someone else may say differently!
Posted 11/17/2005 6:30 PM (GMT 0)
confused  In fairness to all the negative stuff that has been posted about sweetners let me present the other side.

  • Is Aspartame Safe?   (FDA):
    To date, FDA has not determined any consistent pattern of symptoms that can be attributed to the use of aspartame, nor is the agency aware of any recent studies that clearly show safety problems.

  • Aspartame and the Internet   (The Lancet):
    Our research revealed over 6000 web sites that mention aspartame, with many hundreds alleging aspartame to be the cause of multiple sclerosis, lupus erythematosis, Gulf War Syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, brain tumours, and diabetes mellitus, among many others. Virtually all of the information offered is anecdotal, from anonymous sources and is scientifically implausible.

  • ACSH Debunks Internet Health Hoax   (American Council on Science and Health):
    Health scare artists have found a whole new medium for terrorizing the public — the Internet. Individuals in search of accurate health information may literally become caught in the Web, where health hoaxes and urban medical myths run rampant. The health scare messages are always the same — whatever it is, it will make you sick.

  • Beware The E-Mail Hoax: The Evils Of Nutrasweet (Aspartame)   (Dr. Dean Edell):
    A highly inaccurate "chain letter" is being circulated via e-mail warning the reader of the health dangers of aspartame (Nutrasweet) diet drinks.

    There is so much scientific untruth in it, it’s scary. Be careful, because others know how to manipulate you by this. Just because something is beyond your comprehension doesn’t mean it is scientific.

  • FDA Statement on Aspartame   (FDA):
    Analysis of the National Cancer Institute's public data base on cancer incidence in the United States — the SEER Program — does not support an association between the use of aspartame and increased incidence of brain tumors.

  • Study Reaffirms Safety of Aspartame   (MIT News):
    Even daily large doses of the high-intensity sweetener aspartame, also known as NutraSweet, had no adverse effect on study subjects' health and well-being, a visiting scientist at MIT reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last week.

    "We conclude that aspartame is safe for the general population," said Paul A. Spiers, visiting scientist in the Clinical Research Center (CRC).

  • A Web of Deceit   (TIME magazine):
    A widely disseminated e-mail by a "Nancy Markle" links aspartame to Alzheimer's, birth defects, brain cancer, diabetes, Gulf War syndrome, lupus, multiple sclerosis and seizures. Right away, the long list warrants skepticism. Just as no single chemical cures everything, none causes everything.

    •  

    So who's correct???  It's insideous because this stuff is in most everything that is "sugar free".  But my motto is "everything in moderation".  My mom used to tell me about going to parties "Taste everything and eat nothing and at the end of the night you've had a full meal".  Well I think that applies to stuff with aspartame.  Personally, I try to avoid it, but will I give up my sugar free ice cream because it's sweetened with aspertame???  Not on your life!!!! tongue Will I put equal or splenda in my coffee?  For the time being I'll use stevia.  In the long run, all this stuff will probably kill you, but the REAL question is

     

    "Will it kill you as quickly as if you used real sugar?"

     

    scool  Warren

    Posted 11/17/2005 9:21 PM (GMT 0)
    Here's an unbiased research from an undergraduate student at Penn State University Sucralose: An Overview that gives a scientific evaluation and concludes that Splenda is safe and does not build up in your liver or shrink your thymus unless you happen to be a starving rat who is being fed only sucralose.

    Sometimes I think that the lawyers are the ones who push these lawsuits!
    Posted 11/17/2005 9:24 PM (GMT 0)
    devine007...
    #1- You mention my A1C, that is okay. Can you or someone know why my doctor had me take test twice, even though first test came up 5.2 and second came up 5.2 also?
    #2- What is A1C exactly? Someone said it has to do how your system has been handling glucose for past 3 months. Does that sound right?
    Posted 11/18/2005 12:24 AM (GMT 0)
    Robert, an A1C of 5.2 is pretty much what a non diabetic would have and that is probably why they did it again just to be sure it was right. I had one of 5.7 and they tested again just to be sure it is correct and it was. I guess they probably also want to make sure that if it was 5.2 that you aren't having too many lows. And to answer your second question, yes an A1C is how your sugars have been over the past 3 months. Hope this helps, Robyn
    Posted 11/18/2005 2:29 AM (GMT 0)
    Robyn.... Yes, your answer does help. I consider myself pre-diabetic (even though doctor did not say it) because my glucose reading was 111 - last year physical it was 114 (as I said, reference range on last lab report is 65-109, A1C=5.2; cholesterol=183; ratio=2.7; trig=63; PSA=1.75; BP=115/75, etc.) and I walk 2 1/2 miles a day, which is what I believe brought my Cholesterol down.

    And so, I am trying to go over my diet and thanks to you kind folks on this site, I am gaining knowledge. I will do away with Quaker Puffed Rice and Quaker Rick Cakes and substitute All Bran. I have even bought glucometer to test to see where I might be going astray.

    Thanks again to you and all the others for their informative posts. You can never have enough good friends who will try to help you with your health problems! I am sure I will have more questions and therefore more posts.

    Posted 11/18/2005 9:05 AM (GMT 0)

    Good luck Robert, it sounds like you are doing a perfect job with your sugar levels!

    With regards to the aspartame, the only way I can be sure myself about it is to cut it out of my diet for a few weeks and see if any problems I'm having clear up.  There are so many scare stories around, it's difficult to not believe some of them!

    Posted 11/18/2005 6:07 PM (GMT 0)
    May I borrow those numbers for my next check up??
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