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Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

dynomight.net

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Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#261

I don't understand how prevalent Aspartame and other artificial sweeteners are when they taste so bad. They don't even taste sweet to me, just "wrong" in a way that permeates my entire mouth. Is this a genetic thing?

For me it was a persistence thing. Keep drinking and you don't really notice it any more. If anything sugared drinks now feel overly sticky or caramel-like to me. I can no longer enjoy non-diet coke.

Soldier on!

Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#262

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not "I don't like the taste". It is "these taste like they're contaminated with antifreeze". They taste like they've been intentionally adulterated with the stuff they use to stop people drinking poisonous things.

You're underestimating how gross it was to me at first.

I also found it super gross but after a few weeks of tough endurance, the chemical taste subsided and disappeared. It comes back after a week or so without Diet Coke.

But yeah I could hardly swallow it in the beginning.

Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#263

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Crazy how most of the negative hype around that, total nonsense people have believed for decades now, started from some doctor making a joke paper in the New England Journal of Medicine because one of his other doctor friends was saying that orthopaedic surgeons were too stupid to get something published in there and bet like 10$ that to my recollection didn't even get paid (although this says 2024 I swear I remember…

The same This American Life episode raised serious doubts about Dr. Steel's claims, which is mentioned in the article you link: > When reporters tried to corroborate Dr. Steel’s claims, however, holes started appearing, according to the This American Life episode. Chief among them: There actually was a real Dr. Robert Ho Man Kwok, and his biographical details seemed to match those provided in the letter, like his pro…

Oh damn I just linked the first article I could find without fully reading it, my bad. That's crazy haha wow

Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#264

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Coke Zero is sweetened with aspartame and phosphoric acid. It's just formulated differently to avoid the taste associated with Diet Coke, which some find unpleasant.

Strange, Google says this: > Coca-Cola updated the recipe for Coca-Cola Zero Sugar in the US, quietly adding stevia to the existing blend of aspartame and acesulfame potassium (Ace-K) in late 2023/early 2024 Did they change it back?

CARBONATED WATER, CARAMEL COLOR, PHOSPHORIC ACID, ASPARTAME, POTASSIUM BENZOATE (TO PROTECT TASTE), NATURAL FLAVORS, POTASSIUM CITRATE, ACESULFAME POTASSIUM, CAFFEINE, STEVIA EXTRACT.

PHENYLKETONURICS: CONTAINS PHENYLALANINE

ZERO SUGAR

Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#265
post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not that I always follow it.. but my general advice is to keep sweetened drinks to with meals, and to reduce/eliminate snacking altogether. Sweetened drinks, even zero calorie, sugar free causes some glucose mobilization and insulin response... this insulin response likely contributes to insulin resistance over time. That's just my not a doctor, observational, take on it.

Would this insulin response be detectable with a CGM? The answer is no - sucralose, saccharin, aspartame; it doesn’t matter, diet soda and artificial sweetener does not affect blood sugar in any detectable way, at least for me. It was one of the first things I checked when I got my CGM. “It will crash your blood sugar” and “it will spike your blood sugar despite not having carbohydrates” are myths.

CGMs don't monitor insulin. They also don't monitor glycogen mobilization or fructose for that matter.

See: Cephalic Phase Insulin Response

Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#266
post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Indeed. It turns out that “MSG headaches” are just high sodium level headaches, either through dehydration, unbalanced electrolytes, elevated blood pressure or whatever else higher than normal sodium levels cause headaches. The same headache could be caused by salt. MSG actually makes recipes require less of other flavor ingredients, including salt. It’s also often found in dishes that still contain relatively massiv…

I have a family member who has discovered through gradual process of elimination that she gets migraines from MSG, aspartame and yeast extract. "just sodium headaches" doesn't really apply to her case; simply chewing a piece of gum that has aspartame, or eating a piece of meat cooked with MSG in her salad is enough to trigger them. I agree in the general sense with your comment and the article that there's no widespr…

Everyone I know that's discovered that MSG gives them migraines, somehow never get them when they don't know that the food they are eating contains MSG and never have a problem with foods that are naturally high in MSG.

Re: Aspartame is not that bad? (2022)

#267

I don't understand how prevalent Aspartame and other artificial sweeteners are when they taste so bad. They don't even taste sweet to me, just "wrong" in a way that permeates my entire mouth. Is this a genetic thing?

It changes over time. When I was a kid they all tasted horrible. Then I got older and they all taste the same as sugar.
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