jessberry's Journal, 22 January 2015

Thanks, Linda! I actually just put it on my grocery list... I had been using Splenda for the longest time, but I hate it! I had a coupon for Truvia so I figured I'd give it a go, and I love the fact that it has no horrible aftertaste. Then I started researching it online and realized it was processed (more or less) and that stevia was natural, so I'll try it next!  

stevia is a bit more bitter than truvia, but an excellent replacement for sugar at almost half the price 

Does stevia have an aftertaste at all? I was hoping it didn't, seeing how Truvia doesn't, and there's stevia in it. Truvia is delicious, but it is a bit pricey!  

It appears to be that way, Glen! I rarely hear people talk about either, usually they just mention Splenda... But now that I've discovered a world of better sweeteners, I'll NEVER go back to Splenda, lol! I'll try stevia in the future, but for now, I'm lovin' the Truvia, I even like it's crunchy, sugar-like crystals : )  

Truvia is a Coke or Pepsi Product and is highly processed. I switched to Organics or PurVia. Taste just as good.  

I use natural sugar because the doctors said all the substitute sweeteners are not recognized by the body and cannot be easily digested like sugar. 

I searched for PurVia, but couldn't find anything. Did you mean PureVia?  

Well now I'm sad... I did further research on Truvia, it actually has very little stevia in it, and it's main ingredient, erythritol, is actually genetically modified corn... It's tragic that they can advertise that kind of stuff as "natural"... Here I am thinking I was doing good by switching from aspartame and Splenda to this junk. Btw, Truvia is a coca-cola product, PureVia is Pepsi... They are basically made the same way. Depressing. Very depressing. I guess I'll be buying some stevia sooner than I though, lol!  

Be careful since China uses pesticides in their stevia. 

"on" their stevia, I meant to say 

I believe it, js... Just goes to show that no matter how careful you are, unless you grow it yourself, you never truly know what's in your food, even if it is "natural"! I did read earlier that we get most of our stevia from China, not South America, like most people believe.  

Natural sugar is the best thing I was told to eat because it's natural, easily digestible, and you can just work off the extra calories which are only 15 calories a teaspoon. I only use two tablespoons in a glass of tea at the most and I only have one eight oz glass of it a day if any. The thing I drink most of is water. Of course, if someone is diabetic then they should probably talk to their doctor and find a substitute they feel comfortable with. 

I also put a ton of greens on my plate to make me fill up on something less fatty. Try different lettuce and greens raw, add a fruity salad dressing like Mango Chipotle or something to give it flavor with little calories. Today I splurged on Chinese take out since I've not had it in over 6 months and lost most of the weight I wanted to lose. I'm only about five lbs now from the goal weight. 

raw honey is a good sweetener - it has carbs but is healthy. I hate Truvia because it has a nasty after taste to me. I hardly use sweetener at all even honey. Let us know if you like the Stevia! 

Thanks for the tips, everyone! I will try the stevia, and I'll comment on this post to let you know how it goes... I still love the Truvia, just hate that it's gmo. I wish I could say that I'm going to avoid sugar all together, but I don't think I can. I don't want to feel deprived, especially when the rest of my family is enjoying a nice dessert or treat. I'd rather have just a little sweet treat (that suites my diet) than to go back to the way I was and just eat whatever was in front of me! Oh well, we all have our demons :) By the way, thanks for all the comments! I love my FatSecret friends... Even though we may be on different paths, I love the encouragement and support I get from all of you... This is the only source of encouragement I have, so it absolutely means the world to me!  

My understanding is that the liquid or tablet artificial sweeteners (like skinny girl liquid stevia) do not raise blood sugar (and therefore do not have a negative impact on weight-loss) while the artificial sweeteners that come in powdered form do - because they contain ingredients that do raise the blood sugar. My own experience is only with liquid stevia but I have found it to be very helpful. I've not noticed anything negative about using it. There is good info on this (IMO) in Dr. Bernstein's book Diabetes Solution. 

I bought it last night and used one pack in my sugar and found that it doesn't really have a taste. I think i'm going back to sweet n low.