Sugar substitutes? I can't have splenda, aspartame (Nutra Sweet), equal, ect with out getting raging head aches. For a short time splenda was ok and I thought I had died and gone to heaven. A whole world of low sugar and sugar free products opened up and allowed me to have icecream, yogurt and other yummy things without sacrifcing all my points. I don't typically eat some of that especially yogurt b/c frankly the full sugar version is not worth 5 points to me. I was able to enjoy many more things without feeling deprived.

But then splenda started giving me headaches too.

It seems like so many things that are worth the points (other than veggies and fruits and the good for you stuff that I try ahrd to include) have artificial sweeteners. Overall I'd like to avoid all that fake stuff, but sometimes a diet soda would be nice instead of using all my points on the regular.

Is there anyone else out there with this problem? Are there other low cal sweeteners available. I have heard of stevia, but I can't find it here in Podunk. Maybe if I try a larger market area.

I'd give stevia a try if you can find it - it's a natural plant extract, so it might not give you the same headaches as artificial sweeteners. It's usually at health food stores. It means you won't be able to buy so much off the shelf stuff, but you can use it in stuff you make. Good luck!

I always hate this (sorry pet peeve) statement. Marijuana is natural too. LOL!

However the thing I don't like about stevia is many times it leaves a licorice aftertaste.

It can be hard on points if you have to use the 'real' stuff but did you have your doctor do tests to see if it is actually Splenda or something else that is reacting and causing the headaches.

My friend got headaches from only certain items that contained Splenda. Just a thought.

LOL yeah I always say arsenic is natural, doesn't make it good for you LOL, especially when I see ads for "all natural" diet products and supplements. But I get what you are saying, Sierra, it's probablay less likely to cause issues than the chemical concoctions that are artificial sweeteners.

I guess it would be silly of me not to ask the dr. It really wouldn't hurt. I can make a pretty direct correlation though since I can drink plain tea, tea with sugar, tea with honey and be fine but tea with spelnda results in a headache. Same thing with yogurt and icecream ect.

I get headaches even from sugar free gum if it has aspartame. I've known for years that I couldn't have aspartame. Splenda was fine until I started using it daily. At first I tried it occasuionally to judge my reaction. When no headaches emerged I started using it alot in tea, also baking, and with products with spelnda. Within a couple of months I started getting the headaches. They stopped once I cut out the spelnda. But I was having several servings of it a day. I thought maybe it would stop if I didn't have any at all for a while, then just allowed myself the occasional serving.

Last winter I was able to have the sugar free icecream with splenda, I tried it the other day and it gave me a headache. I thought I was safe...guess not.

I really would just like to be able to eat it in icecream and yogurt the very occasional diet soda. I know I know this is a weightloss plan and all and who do I think I am wanting my cake and wanting to eat it too LOL, but it's frustrating to see others who can use it and enjoy these things. I can handle not using it in tea, I measure out my one cup of skim milk and write that down as 2 points every morning and then for each cup of tea I drink I add some of the measured milk and a measured tablespoon of sugar for a point. If I have more than three cups I count that one as 2 points. It's my little system and I can deal with that.

Can stevia be used to make icecream? If I can't eat sugar free icecream from the store perhaps I could make it on occassion.

Is there anyone else who has this adverse reaction? I mean there must be, but people at WW meetings look at me like I am nuts when I say I can't have splenda. How do you handle it? Can you have it occasionally?

If you use too much stevia, you will get that licorice aftertaste. You need only a small pinch in most cases.

There are websites that have recipes for baking and cooking with stevia--do a search. I don't know if there were ice cream recipes. Because you use so little of it, some recipes have to be completely redone otherwise the food won't turn out right.

You should be able to order it online, too. A small package will last a while, so don't order anything big (in case you end up with a weird reaction to it).

MistySeptember- YES I DO HAVE THIS PROBLEM. I loved having splenda and then I noticed that I was getting migranes again and my anixity was getting out of control again. I talked to my daughter-in-law and she was having the same problems. I then told my 3 daughters about it and they too were getting headaches. We all quit the splenda and now we have fewer headaches. I had similar problems with Nutrasweet. I have a friend who always uses natural products and she says that Stevia is the way to go.

MistySeptember- I feel you! I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome and even a little of artificial sweetener kills me--headaches, nausea, and I end up vomiting for a few hours. And that's if I screw up and eat sugar free gum! Stevia hurts my tummy. Did you know there's a lot of stuff that artificial sweeteners get snuck in? Toothpastes, cough syrups, lower calorie bread products, gums, mints, and nearly every single WW brand dessert. Aryificial sweeteners are the biggest ingredient in toothpastes right after the fluoride and anti cavity stuff. I use an organic toothpaste from Tom's of Maine, it works great. Since I can't do cough syrups, having a cold sucks even more. I thought i'd tell you this since it gives you problems too. Here are some names of common artificial sweeteners so you can scan your ingredient lists when you shop!
acesulfame K, aspartame, neotame, saccharin, sucralose, sorbitol (this one is nasty for peopel with food sensitivities), malitol, splenda, nutrasweet.
I know that artificial sweeteners can be a godsend for some people, like those with diabetes; so I hope no one grumps at me. But they can really screw up some people!