The Splenda Infiltration of Everyday Products

We were at the supermarket today and saw two of our regular favorite products had been 'enhanced' with Splenda, the sugar substitute. I had to stare at the two bottles of pickles, side by side, for a long time until I could see what the one difference between them was. And I am surely glad I did see it before that item made it's way into my cart!

It's not that I'm against things with less sugar. [Dragon, however, is against less sugar. He likes his sugar!] I am against chemical substitutes. Need we mention the problems with aspartame and saccharin? Make up your mind, have real sugar in it or not. If you can't have regular sugar, then learn to cook differently. My mom is a diabetic, and when I was a kid we changed our entire way of eating to accomodate her new dietary limitations. Instead of sugar she would add spices or a sweet fruit or vegetable to the menu. Rarely she would use a small amount of honey. When I became older and learned to cook for myself I still didn't see much value in adding sugar to most dishes to enhance the flavor.

I've tried Splenda in iced tea and in baking - and it is definitely 'fake.' Not only that, but the sweet flavor it gives is decidedly wrong, too sweet in one way, slightly powdery in another. So, to see it as an option in our usual brand of pickles or applesauce made me wince in pain.

I hope this isn't a trend that will supersede the regular products. It would be a hard choice between buying the item with the Splenda in it or just changing brands. A generic brand might be less likely to have been 'infiltrated' by this substance. If it came down to it, I would much rather have something that wasn't sweet at all, or add sugar to it at home. I am definitely not impressed to buy something off the shelf because it says 'Now with Splenda.'