Strange Side-Effects When Using Splenda

I have heard this many times before about Splenda.A quick search on google reveals blogs and websites about the sickeness' caused by Splenda. The only thing I can say is do an experiment on yourself. Stop drinking it for a week or two and see if you start feeling better.

I agree with Lana, at least to the extent of cutting it from your diet to see if you feel better. You have to recognize that the placebo effect may rule, so if it's not the sweetener, you may still feel better because you *believe* it's the problem even though it could be something else, like fatigue, stress or the onset of menopause.

The rest is anecdotal, and anecdotes are a far cry from evidence that Splenda (or anything else, for that matter) causes anything. The possibility is certainly there, but somebody claiming something on the internet is not a peer reviewed double blind study, and the good science does not support those claims to date.

I don't know about Splenda, but I get the temperature issues you describe when I'm not eating enough calories for a few days in a row. I get too hot and too chilled and my body temperature actually drops below normal.

If you're replacing sugar calories with Splenda, you might be lowering your energy intake to that point?

Hi Shelah -- I suggest checking any vitamins or supplements that you are taking for niacin (vitamin B3) ... or even the drink that you're having with Splenda. Niacin can create what's called a "Niacin flush" that affects people in different ways. It can definitely create the feeling of a "hot flash." Hope that helps.

My wife gets horrible migraines from anything with Splenda or sucralose in it. I simply can't stand the taste. We do Truvia instead - all natural, zero calorie.

It's the 'walk like duck, talk like a duck' theory: if you react negatively to a product, and the symptoms go away when you stop using the product, that's all the proof you need that it's something you should avoid.

The yellow stuff and the blue stuff make me retain water like a sponge. If I don't use them, I don't bloat. Simple.

Use stevia. It's natural, and it's safe.

I use Splenda all the time and love it. (So far, no problems~that I'm aware of anyway) However, I would prefer Truvia but can only find it in packets. They need to market Truvia in the big bag.

I had reactions like that. I stopped using it. They went away.... Since then I have become increasingly wary of 'created' sweeteners. In fact I don't use a sugar substitute anymore. I just weaned myself off sugar - now if I have sweetener in my coffee it tastes odious. Still need the occassional half tsp in my tea though...

No adverse effects from splenda. My wife and I have been using it and altern (Walmart's brand) for years.

We did have weird effects from Equal so we cut that out in 2003.

It is hard to figure out a cause sometimes unless you can isolate all possibilities.

Good luck.

Funny humans didn't find Splenda in the wild. Maybe we should stop eating that crap.

For 4 years I've been trying to figure out why I was having such a gas problem. I read the article on splenda and quit using it . In two days my problem was gone! My problem is all of the artificial sweetners effect me that way.

This is a great article on Splenda.

I have noticed that I get extremely chilled at one minute and then kicking the covers off the next.

I didn't think much of it until now, but when I had my last blood work done, it said that my ALP level was very high. The doctor said it was unusual but we'd wait 6 months and try again. Since 119 is the high point and mine was 129, I guess they didn't think this was that far out of the norm or they would test me further now.

Another strange thing recently is that I feel like my bladder hurts. It's a distant kind of pain but nevertheless is still not normal. It seems to get better through the daytime.

I don't know if this helps, but you asked.....

I haven't had any side effect from Splenda, but I don't like it because it is not as sweet as Equal.

I have a huge sweet tooth and I notice when using splenda packets that after a certain amount, maybe 4 packets, I could add 10 more packets and my coffee wouldn't taste any sweeter than when I added the 4th packet.

I have noticed chills one minute and then kicking the covers off the next minute as well.
Has anyone experienced shakey hands??
My hands tremer slightly which is of concern.
The only change in my diet has been the almost daily addition of Splenda, in coffee and water at the end of the day.
I'm older and post menopausal and have not had a flash in many years.
It must be the Splenda.
I feel hyper when I use this product; has anyone else had this problem??

After having used Splenda for about 3 month
I have now a rash on my arms that looks like small
raised moles, large moles also appeared all over my legs.Two moles were removed by my doctor for they were pre-cancerous.

I can say that side effects from splenda are very real and here is my story: About 5 years ago I was gaining weight and wanted to cut calories and lose weight. I am a big coffe drinker and I like sugar , so I heard that Splenda was natural , so I switched my large coffee to have 2 packets of Splenda in it, and I had 2 -3 coffees a day, so about 6 packets a day. After about 2 to 3 weeks, I started to itch,it began as mild ,, no rash, but it began to get worse, it felt as though I was being bitten by fleas, or mosquitoes. About halfway through the first day of itching it got severe in my groin area. I had no clue , all I could think was some bugs were biting me ,,, maybe crabs or scabies or something, but it didnt leave a rash, so then I thought about Splenda and how it was the only thing I had changed in my diet. I stopped using Splenda, and had to take cool showers for a day or so as that was the only relief I could get from the itching, which still had no rash but my skin would be red from itching. After a day and a half the itching stopped thank god. Months later I discovered I had a slow thyroid, a fatty liver, and later diagnosed with Lyme disease, so its possible my reaction was a symptom to those problems, there is no evidence that the Splenda caused those problems, but I would say if you have a reaction like I did , you probably have some underlying health problem, or immune system is weak, it took me a long time to figure it out so I am just hoping I can help someone.

I too have had some very interesting symptoms with splenda. I started breaking out in acne a few months ago, really bad acne and my face got really warm around my jaw area, i felt a lot of anxiety and muscle stiffness and did i mention the really bad acne. I am in my thirties and my parents were really concerned why at my age i was having this much acne. I tried several antibiotics, which helped but didnt eliminate the problem. Then a month ago i ran out of splenda, and all of a sudden, my face cleared up, my acne was gone and my muscle tension dissapeared with it. I put it dowm to stress at the time, but no major events have occured in my life lately. So when i got the splenda again, lo and behold, the acne and the tension came back, that is where i made the connection. Then I googled splenda side effects. I think i will stick to regular sugar, afterall splenda is reported to cause weight gain anyway.

Thanks for asking the question. I too have experienced hot flashes and chills. I use A LOT of splenda and I am going to stop today. I will let you know if my symptoms get better.