Who knew that they are putting aspartame into full fat Pepsi now?

[Sep200024]

All cans of full sugar Pepsi now have less than half the sugar content. The rest has been replaced with aspartame.

The cans look exactly the same, and you won’t know the difference unless you read the ingredients listing.

You could also tell the difference by looking at the traffic light system on the side of cans. Old cans will have 40% RDA sugar. The new cans now have 17% RDA sugar.

Unbelievable that they have made a change like this without doing anything to draw attention to it, or to let consumers know.

How many people with allergies or medical issues relating to aspartame will buy Pepsi without realising??

okay then

Windbeneathmybingowings
Sugar is terrible for you.

It really isn’t. It has been around for far longer than the awful chemicals found in diet drinks.

I agree. Rather sugar in moderation than aspartame- look that up!

well sugar is terrible for you but then so are sweeteners. I just have water and herbal teas most of the time. Sweeteners give me migraines and I’m trying to give up sugar for the same reason.

I found this thread after having a few cans of Pepsi over the past few weeks, thinking it was me, but now I learn that the horrible artificial sweeteners are on the march again. I knew it. As soon as I had a drink from the first can I could taste the sweetener but let it go as I thought maybe it was just me and some dodgy tastebuds. Now I find the truth. I'm not a sugar addict by any means, but I neeeeed the sweet acidic fizzy hit every so often, and now there's only Coke left. I don't need much, just that quick hit, and I make one can last two days. I especially like it after a run or anything strenuous, and also if I just feel a bit unwell it seems to sort me out. Artificial sweeteners though, they make me feel sick, so it's the end of Pepsi for me. I'll take my chance with real sugar over chemicals any day. Please let me make the choice, drinks manufacturers! Please!!

Up until recently Club Orange was still good, but they’ve ruined it with sweetener now too, so all that’s left is Coke.
Aldi had a lovely cordial a few weeks ago with just sugar for €1.79 a bottle. I saw it on special for 99 cents so bought 30 bottles to see the summer out.

Just found this thread, after spending the night on the loo after not knowing that Pepsi had changed the recipe until it was too late. Yes I could taste the difference, but a) I'd just eaten strong flavoured food & b) the cat had just done a very smelly one in her tray affecting my sense of smell so taste too.

For those saying "ah but it has Acesulphame K not Aspartame", there really isn't that much difference on the body. In fact one article I read suggested that the main difference is that Ace K actually aids in the proliferation of E-Coli whereas Aspartame doesn't. Oh, and Ace K has been subjected to much less testing as it's a newer product.

Basically just about ALL AS can affect the bodies of those with sensitivities. It's a bit like saying saying I can't have Nurofen as it affects my stomach, but can have Naproxen - hint, they are both NSAIDs that will affect the stomach in many people in the same way.

Thank you the pp who linked to the article on how our genetics affect how we taste AS in drinks. They did a similar thing a few years ago on sprouts (of all things) and it turns out it IS genetically linked whether we like them or not.

For those saying "ah but it has Acesulphame K not Aspartame", there really isn't that much difference on the body

Agreed, but weirdly for a lot of people they react to Aspartame but not Acesulphame. I don't react to Acesulphame at all, though it tastes disgusting, but Aspartame is murder for me.

@Sep200024

Its probably worth reporting your original post and asking MN to change the title from Aspartame to Acesulphame as it is confusing.

We discovered this a couple of weeks ago when DP had a reaction when he drank a can of what we call “Blue Pepsi”. He’s allergic to sweeteners and is most annoyed. For the moment, Coca Cola is sweetener-free, so he has switched to that.

It's the way that recipe changes are not clearly identified as "new recipe" that is deeply infuritating in addition to the scale of loss of choice who find artificial sweetners deeply unpleasant or harmful.

It's not like the nation's obesity rates have changed for the better since the sugar tax was launched.

Sugar does have a place in people's diets. Some people consume excessive quantities, some people consume sensible quantities. When I'm running for multiple hours and my glycogen stores are depleted, it's sugar I need. Not artificial sweetners, and the accompanying stonking headache, hours of after taste and the urgent need for public toilets as my digestive system attempts to purge it ASAP.
Being decieved into consuming these products can be deeply unpleasant, and in the case of people in diabetic hypo, dangerous.

I don't object to the existance of clearly labelled diet products (not that they've helped public health) just keep a transparent choice.

At the moment , Coke and Mountain Dew, which is a sweet citrus drink, are still sugar free. I hate most sweeteners, apart from xylitol, which tastes more or less the same as sugar when I add it to drinks.

I have taken to buying sparkling water and adding "full sugar" mixers, like Flavorz Passion Fruit Syrup from Tesco. Not particularly cheap, but it tastes nice, with no bad sweeteners in site. Ideally, I'd like to make my own syrups (including cola flavour) with xylitol, but I'm not sure how practical that is.

All the data suggests it's overweight people who drink fake stuff and eat diet processed foods. People who drink Red coke and blue Pepsi are the normal weight ones.

The problem with Xylitol ( or Birch sugar as some manufacturers term it) is that it is absolutely deadly to dogs. I wouldn't risk having it in the house with dogs just in case they got hold of it. It is also creeping into more things recently.

My alcohol consumption has actually gone up considerably recently as there is nothing my local pub can offer me as a soft drink with the exception of soda water. I don't go out to drink soda water all night.

Very, very happy to hear that original Old Jamaica is available again. I can take or leave Coke but am delighted that my modest three times a year ginger beer habit can be indulged again.

Haven't read the full thread but I feel I'm in good company in detesting this chemical ruination of perfectly nice sugary treats!

Good to hear you can still get the ginger beer though. Will look out for it!

Sadly Rio has gone over to the dark side and added sweeteners and Old Jamaica Original seems to have vanished again. 😕

Oh no, rio used to be ok. My poor kids drinking shit sweeteners for a treat drink. I really think it's so much worse than sugar, these chemicals are extremely similar to the ones used to preserve dead bodies for viewing and burial. So unnatural.

Full fat Pepsi with sugar.

So shocked about this. I NEVER drink diet drinks. Hate the fake taste. Recently noticed that Pepsi (my fave fizzy drink) tasted weird. Googled it and apparently it was changed in March of this year.

Absolutely livid and now can't drink the stuff as it tastes disgusting! If I wanted aspartame flavoured Pepsi I would drink the disgusting Pepsi max stuff.

I recently got a can from my local takeaway with foreign writing on the back and had a sudden hope it was a pre March can. Checked the ingredients - no aspartame! I cracked it open and savoured every last drop.

So sad I won't be able to enjoy the new, not improved pepsi anymore. Oh well, maybe it will be better for me in the long run!

Pepsi tastes disgusting now. If there's Pepsi max why the need to change the original? I thought it had only changed in the uk but whilst on holiday to Tenerife I noticed their Pepsi tasted bad as well.

I noticed this tonight. Had a migraine brewing while shopping, no lovely ice cold proper coke in the sandwich section so grabbed a Pepsi as the next best thing. Took a few swigs on the drive home and realised it was crammed full of sweeteners. Sweeteners that make my migraines worse.

Ffs ice cold full of sugar coke is the one thing that can really really help stop a migraine jn its tracks for me (plus my medication as well, but it can be the difference between reclaiming some of my day or being out of action for a week!)

Did Pepsi used to help your headaches (if no proper Coke available)?. As i said earlier in thread id always assumed Pepsi had aspartame because it gave me the same aftertaste/ache in back of head.
I keep emergency cans of coke in cupboard and 1 in fridge that no one is allowed to touch as its the difference between managing a sinus headache that will have me vomiting or not

Yep, still furious about Pepsi, and concerned that Coke might go that way eventually. Nothing better than just half a can of Coke after a run, then I'll go on to water. I can see how it would help those who suffer from migraines too. And yes, I totally agree with @Boomboom22 I'm slim and healthy on my full sugar Coke, but those I see with diet drinks are often not. Sugar in moderation is a millions miles better than chemical additives.

I rarely buy drink fizzy drinks as there aren’t any I like apart from ‘full fat’ coke but it’s almost impossible to find anywhere. Aspartame gives me migraines, I’m usually good at checking ingredients and I can instantly taste sweetener and I hate it therefore I avoid.