Caffeine and aspartame .....

[Nata]

How about green tea? I've heard there's as much ( or even more!) coffeine in green tea as in coffee! Have I been misinformated? :confused

[Isabeau]

There are decaf. green teas available. I gave up caffeine when I started this woe. I absolutely LOVE coffee. I had a wicked induction flu and major headaches for several days (the caffeine withdrawal). I still enjoy coffee, regular, flavoured, espresso etc. I just gave up the caffeine, not the coffee.

[not2late]

Re: Caffeine and aspartame .....

Okay I know the ADBB is STRICTLY by the book and I know DANDR says caffeine should be avoided, but he doesn;t not say that it is because it will spike your insulin or because it is treated like a carb, he says, if I am correct that it sometimes causes blood sugar swings that can induce cravings? If that doesn;t happen to me, and I want to cut down from 10c coffee a day to 2 c coffee a day, BLACK, is that alright? What has been your experience with people who take in caffeine vs. people who don't? Obviously if I hit a plateau this will be the first to go.

When your blood sugar swings upwards, your insulin spikes upward too. Insulin is a hormone that regulates your blood sugar. It's job is to keep your blood sugar levels "normal". If you increase your blood sugar (eating a tablespoon of honey), your bod will respond by releasing insulin. If your blood sugar is dropped too quickly, your body will think its starving and that can cause the symptoms of hypoglycemia, of which cravings or hunger are symptoms. A more complete list of blood sugar instability symptoms are listed in the Blood Sugar Test in Chapter 12 or 13 of the book.

By the way, coffee does have carbs. Depending on the carb counter, it have between 0.8 to 1 net carb per 6 ounces. Most standard coffee cups in the US hold 8 ounces. Most coffee shops in the US serve 10 to 16 ounce servings of coffee. Those additional carbs have to be counted towards the daily carb count. Also the carbs in the sweetener and the cream have to be counted too. So roughly, 1 cup of coffee with 1 Splenda packet and 1 tablespoon of heavy cream has about 3 net carbs.

I also know DANDR says to stay away from aspartame because it is bad for your body in general, BUT if I don't really care about that, can I have a sugar-free jello cup with aspartame in it( the pre-pack oneas from the grocery store)? Can I have a diet rootbeer? I usually use Splenda in my recipes, and I don;t drink soda or eat jello THAT often. So I guess my question was, aside from the poison like properties of aspartame, does the body treat it differently with regardds to Atkins than say Splenda? Would I see a greater weight loss if I only used SPlenda as opposed to aspartame?

Dr. Atkins singled out aspartame in the 1992 version of the diet. He noticed that some people who consumed "excessive" amounts of aspartame stalled or slowed their weight loss. "Excessive" was defined in the 1992 book as "3 or more" servings of aspartame daily. But he didn't single out saccharin or cyclamate.

As for your Splenda question, we've had some ADBB members who cannot use Splenda because it stalls or slows them or they develop cravings. We had one ADBB member who was diabetic and demostrated a blood sugar spike (insulin response) to Splenda. So, it really depends on the individual, imo. Some people are affected differently by different foods. You might want to read the sticky above called "Addicted to sweets" because it partially explains the reason for this response to sweeteners.

[Checkers]

Well, at least I've been counting my coffees and anything added to it. My hubby made coffee this morning and I was all over it. I didn't tell him of my plan so that was a mistake. For anyone drinking coffee of any type I tried putting coconut milk in my coffee and it was really creamy just as if I'd put heavy cream in it. I researched it yesterday and it counts as a nut. And it's full of lucious fat! Soon I think I'll try a berry smoothy with the milk.

[Miss Phode]

I didn't think coconut milk was OK on induction. maybe one of the experts can advise. I found nothing in DANDR re:coconut milk. And nuts come on OWL. I love coconut milk, in curries, but I've been avoiding it. I'm quitting coffee. I had none on Saturday. half a cup yesterday, and a quarter of a cup today. I feel OK so far, not great, but not terrible. I have a slight headache.

[Checkers]

Hi, no coconut milk is a nut, just like the rest of the coconut. Not for induction, just a note for anyone looking that has reached the rung since we have people posting here that are not on induction.

[Miss Phode]

Oh sorry, Duh! I thought you were on induction. Nevamind!

[Checkers]

No, it was me that should have remembered where I was posting! The Atkins site does have an informative article promoting coconuts whenever you're ready for nuts. But I'm a coconut lover anyway.

[FightingTheFight]

We had one ADBB member who was diabetic and demostrated a blood sugar spike (insulin response) to Splenda

Would that be considered Cephalic insulin response?

[not2late]

We had one ADBB member who was diabetic and demostrated a blood sugar spike (insulin response) to Splenda

Would that be considered Cephalic insulin response?

Good question. I'm not sure if it's a Cephalic response or a "real" response.

I work in a doctor's office and a couple of weeks ago, my bosses got a "clinician's guide" to Splenda from the makers of Splenda---part of a promotion. Anyhow, here what the guide says about the absorption of Splenda.

The majority (about 85%) of consumed sucralose is not absorbed and passes through the gastrointestinal tract unchanged

So it makes you wonder what happens to the 15% that isn't absorbed.... ensive

[Miss Phode]

I had no regular coffee today! Woohoo. I did have a cup of decaf, but that stuff is so dang bitter! I have a slight headache. I'm managing. Yesterday I only had a half a cup, but I had such a bad headache that I went to bed immediately after work at 6:00 pm, and didn't wake up until this morning at 6 am! yikes! I will win this fight! I will get over my coffee addiction!

[eireanngobrach]

you will! I will too....I just haven't yet. Black iced coffee is my solution to ice cream fixes in this 90+ degree heat we are having in Boston. My boss took us out for ice cream today and I made him stop at dunkin donuts to get me a huge iced coffee.

I think i will try to go cold turkey off of coffee when i am on vacation this summer

[kbuchs]

coffee

I also didn't stop drinking my one cup of coffee in the morning. I only put creamer in it and I've continued to lose weight. Plus, isn't everything about moderation? Well, with those foods that don't have a lot of carbs in it anyway. :yes

[FightingTheFight]

The majority (about 85%) of consumed sucralose is not absorbed and passes through the gastrointestinal tract unchanged

thats interesting, Maybe its absorbed but not as sugar would be? Its definitley worth looking into.