Page 7 | To despise the rise of artificial sweeteners in soft drinks

MuddlingMackem · 13/09/2024 20:07

Itsgettingbettetman · 12/09/2024 21:27

Tooth decay and obesity Vs sweeteners that have no real hard-line scientific evidence to prove that they cause long term health issues...

Yeah sure there are things in food that don't agree with people. But sugar free alternatives are great in my opinion.

Alternatives yes - but we're talking about not being given a choice. That's not on.

Original poster

BrookGreen54 · 13/09/2024 20:26

Bluecherrysorbet · 13/09/2024 20:07

Edited to add who I was responding to as the quote went walkabout.

Responding to @Alainlechat

I had the exact same thing happen with Pepsi. I turned to DH and accused him of pouring me a glass of the wrong one, as we keep in all kinds, including the caffeine free one to accommodate varying tastes. I personally don't drink very many so they last ages.

Regarding the Coke. I hadn't had a can in years. All of a sudden fancied one last Christmas. Full sugar of course. 24 pack duly purchased to last several months, I cracked one open and took a sip. For some reason, with it being Christmas, I instantly recognised the taste as being like a clementine. That smell and taste of the spray of mist you get as you hold one close to your face and pierce the skin. In other words, it tasted like clementine pith and skin. Clementine-y but pithy bitter.

There were no clementines in the house at the time and hadn't had any at all that year.

In good faith, I might possibly be mistaking clementine for satsuma but they're pretty similar.

Did Coke always taste like this. It's been so long but I remember it differently. Kind of spicier.

Am I going totally mad?

On another note, I got diagnosed as diabetic two months ago. Am still waiting for the second blood test for confirmation as I was not symptomatic at the time. In the month after, I became symptomatic but the GP says The Bloods Laboratory will refuse to process another test before three months is up. He also told me I've been pre-diabetic for a while but now it had tipped over into full diabeties. Nice of them to not tell me so I could change my diet. I've cut sugar out completely before so I could have done it sooner. I'm quite pissed off they said nothing.

I've near enough always bought artificially sweetened stuff because I've always been overweight and bought into the bullshit marketing. Never made a blind bit of difference. I switched to real sugar two years ago and lost 35kg. Now I've got to go back to eating and drinking that toxic shit if I want anything sweet. Can't stand it. Especially sucralose. It gives me a dry cracked burning throat and gullet. Makes me feel like I've been desiccated.

Fuck this shit. Think I'm going to have to stick with water, unsweetened tea and eat plain yogurt. Yogurts with artificial sweeteners, in particular, make me gag. Sweeter than any sugared one could ever get. 🤮🤮🤮
I like fruit ones for the fruit taste, not the sugar taste. I'm one of the weirdos who longs for old style kinda sour/tangy fruit yogurts.
Don't get me started on stevia/truvia in yogurts. Makes fruit flavours taste odd, like they've flavoured them with fruit smelling shower gel...or tree bark 🤮🤮🤮

Everything with artificial sweeteners tastes horribly too sweet. All of it.

Edited

I’m quite a full fat Coca-Cola connoisseur - they definitely haven’t changed it! Thank goodness..

OP posts:

LifeofBrienne · 13/09/2024 21:32

Why aren’t any businesses taking advantage of the massive gap in the market? Coke is getting all the customers like me who dislike the taste of sweeteners. Surely it would be simple to start a line of ‘no sweetener’ soft drinks and mixers in other basic flavours - there’s no competition and lots of demand!

Butterfly8091 · 13/09/2024 21:33

BrookGreen54 · 12/09/2024 21:16

AIBU to just want proper sugar back?! (lighthearted… ish)

It is nearly impossible these days to buy a soft drink that does not contain any artificial sweeteners. I am completely fine with people having diet options if that’s what they prefer (aka how it used to be) but if I personally choose to drink proper sugar then why am I having to contend with horrible aspartame etc now appearing in almost everything? What happened to giving customers some choice? It tastes disgusting and gives me + plenty of others headaches, not to mention the other adverse, longer term health effects.

Bought a bottle of good old Orangina yesterday, which silly me thought would be a safe choice - unfortunately it seems to be the newest addition to the ruined by sweetener club. It now tastes revolting and so artificial, I couldn’t even drink it. The only things that are safe nowadays are full fat Coca-Cola, proper fruit juice and certain brands of squash. Even San Pellegrino has gone to the dogs..!

It will take probably a few more decades until we find out exactly how damaging sweetners are to our health. Sugar is also bad but if we have it as an absolute treat rather than the ridiculous culture of having sweet drinks all the time then it won't harm us and we will actually enjoy our drink. This, together with the elimination, or at least significant reduction in ultraprocessed foods, will save the NHS billions.

HighOnMaiden · 13/09/2024 21:42

They have changed cherry coke, and amazingly for the better. In a move that seems to be totally opposite of the way the drinks industry is going they have added a bit more sugar. They’ve also changed the flavour because it now tastes exactly as I recall it as a kid and bloody hell it’s good!

if you’ve not had a can for years do it, it’s amazing.

Bey · 13/09/2024 21:54

HighOnMaiden · 13/09/2024 21:42

They have changed cherry coke, and amazingly for the better. In a move that seems to be totally opposite of the way the drinks industry is going they have added a bit more sugar. They’ve also changed the flavour because it now tastes exactly as I recall it as a kid and bloody hell it’s good!

if you’ve not had a can for years do it, it’s amazing.

Thank you! I assumed the non diet cherry coke would not have sweeteners added, just checked on Tesco and the description says

Sparkling Cherry Flavour Soft Drink with Plant Extracts.Coca-Cola Cherry, a refreshingly smooth combination of the legendary Coca-Cola sparkling soft drink, first created in 1886 - and a sweet cherry flavour. This all-time classic carbonated drink with a crisp and sweet flavour.

totally getting obsessed now but does anyone know of "plant extracts" means stevia?

Highonthehillsisalonelygoatherd · 13/09/2024 22:34

bridgetreilly · 13/09/2024 15:05

Bad luck on the Fentimans, I’m afraid,

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Oh that's my Christmas treat gone now then 😭 thanks for the update though

soupfiend · 14/09/2024 07:27

Elphame · 13/09/2024 09:08

Stevia needs to be declared if it’s being used as a sweetener. If it is in low levels as part of some ‘natural flavouring’ it doesn’t! Someone one has already mentioned the SOS Save our sugar group on Facebook. There is a photo of the response from Bottle Green when asked directly about Stevia which explains why it is undeclared.

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That is disgraceful

soupfiend · 14/09/2024 07:28

Elphame · 13/09/2024 09:14

If I go into my local convenience store the ONLY drink I can safely buy is water. Everything else in the chilled section contains sweeteners. They do sell original Coke but that is always sold out!

Why can’t I have a choice anymore?

And are you aware that many medications are loaded with them? I am unable to have a needed colonoscopy because both the alternative prep products are sweetened with aspartame which I just throw up or saccharin which gives me major gut problems.

Avoiding sweeteners is getting harder and harder.

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Oh you've set me off again, this this this this!!!!!

Cough medicine, prep products, antacids, supplements, the list is endless

Hairyesterdaygonetoday · 14/09/2024 07:39

Itsgettingbettetman · 12/09/2024 21:27

Tooth decay and obesity Vs sweeteners that have no real hard-line scientific evidence to prove that they cause long term health issues...

Yeah sure there are things in food that don't agree with people. But sugar free alternatives are great in my opinion.

I wonder why the hardline research isn’t being done?

I discovered that aspartame gave me heart palpitations. But I’d had to do my own research, by writing down what products I’d eaten or drunk before the palpitations occurred and then looking up the ingredients lists.

I’ve now heard from other people who’ve had similar nasty effects from aspartame.

Are the manufacturers preventing research being published?

MouseofCommons · 14/09/2024 07:43

Yanbu. It took me a while to realise McDonald's hide the proper coke way down the drinks menu screen.
I rarely drink soft drinks but when I do I'd rather take my chances with sugar.

LiarLiarKnickersAblaze · 14/09/2024 07:46

I buy belvoir and mix with sparkling water or just have sparkling water! Same with biscuits unless I find shortbread which has a couple of ingredients I don’t buy shop bought cakes or biscuits often. Ingredients list the size of a novel on the back. 15 mins to make cookies with four ingredients at home. Ditto bread, we keep an eye on what’s in it.

MouseofCommons · 14/09/2024 07:47

See also, fake salt. M&S have ruined their popped potato crisps with some fake salt now. I can't eat them anymore. The Popchip brand was already inedible to me and now M&S ones are too.

LiarLiarKnickersAblaze · 14/09/2024 07:48

Hairyesterdaygonetoday · 14/09/2024 07:39

I wonder why the hardline research isn’t being done?

I discovered that aspartame gave me heart palpitations. But I’d had to do my own research, by writing down what products I’d eaten or drunk before the palpitations occurred and then looking up the ingredients lists.

I’ve now heard from other people who’ve had similar nasty effects from aspartame.

Are the manufacturers preventing research being published?

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It’s the same with sodium nitrate. It causes bowel cancer at the same rate smoking causes lung cancer (according to WHO). Wonder why there hasn’t been any widespread removal of it in hams, bacon and salami… any time I see research on it it gets pushed down by newspaper outlets. Ditto the proven cancer-causing effects of palm oil which is in bloody everything.

soupfiend · 14/09/2024 07:54

Butterfly8091 · 13/09/2024 21:33

It will take probably a few more decades until we find out exactly how damaging sweetners are to our health. Sugar is also bad but if we have it as an absolute treat rather than the ridiculous culture of having sweet drinks all the time then it won't harm us and we will actually enjoy our drink. This, together with the elimination, or at least significant reduction in ultraprocessed foods, will save the NHS billions.

Show quote history

Is sugar 'bad'?

In what way

Im sitting here eating watermelon, with tomatoes. Not very high in sugar, but sugar nonetheless.

HighOnMaiden · 14/09/2024 08:25

Be careful with cakes too. Mr Kipling has introduced a low sugar range that isn’t immediately obvious unless you study the box carefully, and If like me you shop on auto pilot you might not notice.

I picked up some cherry Bakewell tarts but realised before I got to the checkout that they were not the regular ones.

NCnora · 22/09/2024 11:51

It's Eastern European week in Lidl at the mo and they have the 'lowicz' cordials in.