Like many diabetics
I have been using Splenda low-calorie sweetener (the Great Value
version at Walmart) for about four years. The problem is that like
many people, I never really payed much attention to the carbohydrate
count of this low-calorie sweetener. Until I decided to go low
carbohydrate high fat (LCHF) I never thought much about counting
carbohydrates. This week I decided to take my LCHF regimen to the
next level by replacing the powdered Splenda which I have been using
with liquid sucrolose.
Why you may ask?
Well, the granulated or powdered Splenda is made of sucrolose, but it
has maltdextrin added to it for bulk, therefore, 1 cup of Splenda
contains 24 carbohydrates. This means that the coffee, sweet tea,
kool-aid, and homemade Gatorade that I have been drinking each day
contained many unwanted carbohydrates. In fact, the two cups coffee
(2 carbohydrates) I have in the morning, 16 ounces of sweet tea (3
carbohydrates) at lunch, and 24 ounces of kool-aid (4.5
carbohydrates) with my dinner on the way home contained a total of
9.5 carbohydrates. That's one-third to one-half of my total
carbohydrate intake goal for the day. That's a lot of carbs if you
are trying to keep your total carbohydrate intake in the 20 – 25
per day range. So I started looking for alternatives.
That's when I
discovered liquid sucrolose which contains zero carbohydrates, but
tastes just like sugar.
I am not sure when
the maker's of Splenda decided to finally make a liquid version, but
it is quite expensive. If you search the internet, you will find a
wide variety of manufacturers that sell liquid sucralose. Prices for
liquid sucralose can vary quite a bit, with some being quite
expensive, still they can be purchased on the internet for quite or a
lot less than you will find on your local supermarket shelves. With
the exception of the EZSweetz brand, most of the liquid forms of
sucralose are sold in a 25% concentration. EZSweetz Travel version is
50% concentrate, and their family size is 25% concentrate.
What Is Liquid
Sucralose?
Because they do a
better job of explaining what exactly sucralose is than I would, the
following information comes from the International Food Information
Council Foundation (IFIC) website.
“Sucralose adds
sweetness to foods and beverages without adding calories or
carbohydrates. As an alternative to sugar and other
calorie-containing sweeteners, it can play a role in weight
management programs that combine sensible nutrition and physical
activity. While the process to make sucralose begins with sucrose, or
table sugar, the final product is different from sugar. Sucralose is
made by replacing three select hydrogen-oxygen groups on the sugar
molecule with three chlorine atoms, resulting in an intensely sweet,
no-calorie sweetener.
Unlike sugar, the
body does not break down sucralose into calories for energy. Yet,
both sugar and sucralose activate the same taste buds on your tongue.
Most of the sucralose people consume is not absorbed and passes
through the body. The little that is absorbed is excreted in the
urine, and doesn’t accumulate in the body...Sucralose is 600 times
sweeter than sugar, and it can be used in place of or combined with
sugar in cooking and baking. Sucralose has been studied extensively
and has been found to be safe by experts and researchers around the
world. Government agencies worldwide, including the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration (FDA), have also reviewed the science on
sucralose and found it to be safe for human consumption.”
That pretty much
about sums it up. Despite what you may have read, according to the
FDA, sucralose is safe. In addition, the Mayo clinic has also
endorsed the use of sucralose as a safe sweetening alternative to
sugar. Ultimately, the decision to use sucralose as a sweetener is up
to you. I encourage you to do your own research so that you can make
an informed decision regarding the use of sucralose. Personally, I
have found liquid sucralose to be an amazing sugar substitute that
does not affect my blood glucose levels. As a diabetic, I have found
liquid sucralose to be quite amazing.
How
To Use Liquid Sweeteners
Liquid
sucralose can be used in both hot an cold beverages as well as baking
and cookign sauces. I have used liquid sucralose in my 'Sweety Q'
Kansas City style barbecue sauce with great results. Having said
that, the hardest part of using liquid sucralose is getting the right
amount of sweetness. Because liquid sucralose is so concentrated
(25%) you have to be careful when adding it to recipes. For example 1
drop of sucralose has the sweetening power of 1 teaspoon of sugar. So
if you are heavy handed with the bottle, you can easily add to many
drops to your recipe or beverage of choice. I recommend buying a
seperate bottle with a good dropper to help you control the drops as
I have read that some varieties and containers do not seem to have
good ways to measure drops.
Because
many of the liquid sucralose containers you may purchase do not have
instructions printed on the bottles, I have included the most common
measurements for 25% concentrated liquid sucralose. For a printer
friendly version of how to use liquid sucralose see the end of this
article.
Where
To Buy Sucralose
I
purchased my sucralose from a vendor on Amazon, but there are a
number of products and vendors on ebay and other web sites as well.
Even Splenda has jumped into market by offering their own version of
liquid sucralose. Most of the liquid sucralose available on the
internet come in the standard 25% concentration, and prices for such
vary depending on the seller. I purchased a 16 ounce bottle of 'JD
Liquid Sucralose' for $27.49 ($1.71 per ounce) on Amazon and shipping
was free because I am a Prime member. Compare than with the liquid
sucralose sold under the Splenda name that is sold at Walmart for
$4.19 for a 1.68 ounce bottle ($2.49 per ounce), that's a 32% savings
by buying it off Amazon. Even though we have adopted an LCHF diet, we
still maintain a pretty rigorous food budget, and anything we can do
to stretch our food dollars we do, so buying the liquid sucralose
from Amazon was a no brainier for us.
The
Ingredients
The
ingredient list for liquid sucralose is pretty straightforward. It is
made of sucralose, water, and the food preservatives potassium
sorbate and citric acid. The amount of water in the liquid sucralose
determines it's concentration (sweetening power). There should be no
other ingredients listed on the label. As mentioned, most of the
liquid sucralose that you can buy on the internet is listed as 25%
concentration.
Conclusion
The bottom line,
every gram of carbohydrate you consume can raise your blood sugar by
3 to 5 points. For the average person this may not be a problem, but
if you are a diabetic or someone on a LCHF diet, each gram of
carbohydrate you consume matters. So those 9.5 grams of carbohydrates
that I have been drinking using the granulated Great Value Low
Calorie Sweetener (Splenda clone) has the potential to raise my blood
sugar by 28.5 to 47.5 points over the course of the day. Granted
these carbs are divided up over a 12 to 16 hour period, for a
diabetic, any reduction in your blood glucose levels is positive
thing especially if it keeps you off or at a lower dose of insulin.
For several years
after I was first diagnosed with diabetes we used the granulated
Great Value Low Calorie Sweetener (Splenda clone) and it worked well,
but the liquid sucralose works even better and it does not have any
additional additives that contain hidden carbs to raise your blood
sugar. Another great thing is that it tastes just like sugar with not
bitterness or aftertaste than some sweeteners have.
At the end of this
article I have included a text version of the graphic that contained
the conversion measurements for liquid sucralose to make it easy for
you to copy and print for your home use. I hope you have found this
article to be informative and helpful and if so we ask that you share
it with your friends. Don't forget to send us a friend request on
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Printer Friendly
Conversion Information
Liquid Sucralose
25% Concentration
1
teaspoon sugar = 1 drop liquid sucralose
1/4 cup Sugar = 12 drops of liquid sucralose
1/3 cup sugar = 16 drops of liquid sucralose
1/2 cup sugar = 1/4 teaspoon liquid sucralose
3/4 cup sugar = 1/4 teaspoon + 1/8 teaspoon liquid sucralose
1
cup sugar = 1/2 teaspoon liquid sucralose
2
cups sugar = 1 teaspoon liquid sucralose
References:
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