[pcmania]

I am newly diagnosed as having diabetes.
I was looking for sweeteners suitable for diabetics and bought Canderel tablets which I find a bit expensive
Tescos do their own version and I notice that the ingredients are slightly different. I tried asking customer service if they were suitable but found them useless. They hadn't a clue.

On the label it says under ingredients:
Lactose, sweetener (Aspartame),
Separating agent:Carboxmethylcellulose. L-Leucine, Maize, Starch.

Can anyone advise?

Thanks

[shockme]

hi pcmania!i can't really tell you what to use-it's individual taste.personally,i hate nutrasweet[aspertame]i use splenda[sucralose.but to each his own...just try them all to see which you prefer.trish

[GAB]

Hello pcmania,

Do a Google search for each of these and then decide which would be best for you.

1 - Stevia
2 - Xylitol

They are both excellent. We use Stevia. It is not that expensive because it is so concentrated you need only to us a very very small amount at a time.

A note of warning here! If you choose Xylitol and have pets such as Dogs or Cats be very careful they don't get any of this as it is very toxic to them and could cause death. Check with you Vet. on this.

What type do you have? Type I or Type 2

My wife Abbye has been type 2 for 18 years and is on insulin.
We are pretty well versed in this field. Not experts by a long shot but if you need some help just e-mail and we will try and help you out.

You will need to pay close attention to your diet! NOW, Please consult a Dietitian and an Endocrinologist. Learn how to count CARBS. TOTAL CARBS! Learn how to read the product labels. Total Carbs "includes" the amount of sugar in the food. It really is not a matter of sugar, it is your Total Carbohydrates intake.

Hope this information helps.

We have also found a couple of thing that help with Diabetes and would be glad to point you in that direction if you would like. The information on our website might be of some help to you also.

[wiseguy]

I agree with Trish in that it is up to individual taste, and I also dislike Aspartame and prefer Splenda. I also use Stevia for some things, like for sweetening my iced tea.

[GAB]

Hello again pcmaina,

Stay away from Aspartame and Splenda. They Are Not good for you. Do Google searches again for both of these and you will find more than enough information there to substantiate what we are telling you. This stuff will destroy your bodies organs, Liver, Spleen, Kidneys it's all documented. Do the search and you will find it.

Start you research on this site:
Aspartame & Splenda Side Effects

Just check it out, you will get the drift. We need to take responsibility for taking care of our own health no one else is going to. Certainly not the FDA, AMA, Drug Companies and etc, etc.. If they looked out for us they wouldn't make as much money. Heaven Forbid they help and protect someone, let alone make them well! It is all about marketing and money!
Not making people well or finding cures. Gee, lets see! Oh yeah, I think this is how it has been going the last 10 or so years. The Drug Companies advertise a new drug for a new disease they have just identified and are telling you that you should tell your doctor you want this drug to help you with this new disease they just created and you have the symptoms for. Before they can fix it with a drug it has to be a "disease". Does that ring a bell? How about this?
The drug your going to take for this new disease has side effects that will probably kill you, so you need to take this other drug to counteract the side effects of the other one.
HMMMM, whats going on here folks. Ring A Bell?

The food companies are just as bad with their advertising and labeling. Low fat, my foot. Check the labels. Check out the types of fat. No sugar add -- Another ploy. Especially in ice cream, cakes and pies. Check out the total Carbs on both.

Surprise, surprise! Many times the No Sugar Added has MORE total carbs than the cake or pie that is suppose to be bad for you. Also sugar alcohol is as bad as pure sugar. Go Figure?

Ok, ok, enough!! Do your research and do it well and you will be fine.
Stevia and Xylitol are natural products. Not a chemical mix that will destroy your body.

[GAB]

Hi pcmania,
I have to put my two cents in. I am Abbye, the spouse GAB is talking about. He is right, I have had Diabetes for 18 years. Went from diet to pills, to insulin and made all the mistakes my husband is trying to keep you from making, I did not have anyone to help me. Was under the care of a very bad Doctor, who almost killed me Went 10 years without a Dietitian.(Very important). Nor an Endocrinologist (Very, Very Important) I ended up in the Hospital, with an extended bladder, impacted bowels, my feet nearly twice their size. I ended up with severe neuropathy in my legs, hands, feet and back. For nine months after I left the hospital I had to Catheterize my self to take a pee. That was the worst. I now have a great Doctor, an Endocrinologist, a Dietitian and much back up.

I repeat, Exactly what my husband has written and researched for hours, days and weeks. DO NOT USE THOSE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS CONTAINING ASPERTANE. The only two that do not contain Aspartame, that I know of are Stevia and Xylitol.

[wiseguy]

Originally Posted by GAB

Also sugar alcohol is as bad as pure sugar. Go Figure?

Ok, ok, enough!! Do your research and do it well and you will be fine.
Stevia and Xylitol are natural products. Not a chemical mix that will destroy your body.

Xylitol is a sugar alcohol. The only really bad sugar alcohol is Maltitol. Stevia has not been approved by the FDA as a sweetener (probably a good thing).

[sparrow1]

Be careful of the Google results. There is a lot of misinformation out there about Splenda, especially from one Dr. Mercola who puts a great deal of stress on the danger of the chlorine compounds contained in Splenda. The following is a quote from a reliable biologist with many years of experience in nutrition and alternative medicine. (Aspartame, on the other hand, should be taken in very, very small amounts as it has been shown to have several adverse effects.)

"Sucralose marketed as Splenda, is made from sugar by a patented process that selectively substitutes three chlorine atoms for three of the sugar molecule's hydroxyl (-OH) groups. Although sucralose resembles the sugar molecule in structure, it is not sugar and, thus, the body does not recognize sucralose as a carbohydrate. As a result, sucralose passes through the body without being metabolized. The substitution of the hydroxyl groups with chlorine atoms stabilizes the bond between the two chlorinated monosaccharides that make up sucralose, making it unavailable for hydrolysis by the body's enzymes. The chlorine atoms, which are a unique attribute of sucralose, are not harmful to the body. These chlorine atoms are tightly bound to the sucralose molecule and are not stripped off during passage through the body.

Although some chlorine-containing compounds are associated with toxicity (e.g., the pesticide DDT), this is not the case universally. For example, chlorine atoms make up half of the chemical structure of table salt, a commonly used food ingredient in the home and in the food industry.

Accordingly, there should be no more concern associated with the consumption of sucralose than there is with table salt. Indeed, chlorine in the form of chloride is essential for human nutrition and the FDA has established a Recommended Daily Intake (RDI). Some opponents of sucralose have suggested that it is similar to DDT because it also contains chlorine atoms. However, the similarity stops there.

An acute dose of DDT of as little as 113mg/kg of bodyweight can be lethal. In contrast, in a chlorine feeding study, rats consumed sucralose at a level of 3,000mg/kg of bodyweight per day over a two-year period without harmful effect.

Therefore, the chlorine atoms associated with sucralose are a non-issue.
It has also been used in Canada for 20 years. If there were health concerns to humans, it would have shown up by now."

[HelenM]

The use of artificial sweetners produces lots of conflicting advice.
Aspartame is widely used. Its made from combining 2 amino acids phenylalanine and aspartic acid is metabolised as a protein. In Europe there have been recent reviews of its safety by various authorities and it was reapproved.
On the other hand Stevia is not permitted for food use as it is not considered safe .

For balance you might want to look at these sites which go into more detail.http://http://www.aspartame.org/aspartame_facts.html
http://http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/webpage/stevia


One of the best pieces of advice I was given is don't drink sweetened tea or coffee. (I found that very shortly after giving up sweetened drinks tasted foul) but if you can't don't use too much of any one sugar substitute. Vary the type that you use. (although the acceptable daily dose of aspartame is far higher than most people would want to consume)

And back to your original question Tescos own will be just fine (most of the ingredients are binding agents and are carbs but in miniscule quantities)

[pcmania]

I'd like to thank everyone for the response I had for my question about sweeteners.
I forgot to mention that I am in the UK and I think that some of the names, especially trade names may be different.
I received far more information than I bargained for so I guess it will take me a while to sift through it.

to answer a previous question I have type 2
I only learnt that I had diabetes two weeks ago so I am only beginning to learn.
The diabetes nurse didn't tell me a great deal except to stop eating chocolate bars, take sugar substitutes instead of sugar and to eat fresh fruit and vegetables

I didn't realize how bad my diet was until I had to cut out sugar.
I now read the labels on anything I buy in the supermarket and was shocked to find that almost everything I want to buy has sugar in it.

I usually drink red wine with my main meals and forgot to ask the nurse about wether it was ok to drink in moderation.
I'm currently taking Metformin tablets and I'm not sure if its safe to drink wine at the same time.
If anyone knows answers to that it would be very helpful