Splenda sweetener and spike in HbA1c

[hjbradshaw]

I have been in the pre-diabetic range and very stable for several years now, not needing medication, but suddenly my HbA1c has spiked and Dr has put me on metformin. I am on long term steroids which I think is why my blood glucose has become more of a problem, as the HbA1c does tend to vary a bit round my steroid dosage. However, for it to have spiked so dramatically to 65 (UK measurement) when my eating habits have not changed seems very odd(I am 62 btw!) But I recently saw some research which has found that Splenda, which was always considered one of the best sweeteners, can mess with your blood sugar and your bowels (I also live with really bad IBS-D) I have been using a lot more of the Splenda over the last few months as I thought it was safe, and am now wondering whether the Splenda has caused my sugars to spike? Anyone else had this experience or know anything about this research as I am hoping maybe with stopping the Splenda my HbA1c will go down…?

 

[ianf0ster]

Hi @hjbradshaw and welcome to the forum.

While high Blood Glucose is mainly associated with eating more carbohydrates (starches as well as sugars) than our body can easily tolerate, other factors like Illness, injury, stress, lack of sleep and medications including statins an steroids can all have an effect.

Also just talk about eating the same, not about what you are eating. So I wonder if you actually took any steps to reduce your Blood Glucose? If not, know that 'pre-diabetes' usually lives up to its name in that it precedes Type 2 diabetes (unless something is done to get back to 'normal BG levels'.

I doubt that Splenda usage could solely be responsible, but yes several artificial sweeteners do raise blood glucose for some people. There are some which don't, but in general it's preferable to avoid artificial sweeteners as much as possible because they tend to make it more difficult to lose your 'sweet tooth' and adapt fully to a low carb way of eating.

All carbs digest into glucose. Dr David Unwin says that starches like flour, grains, potato are like glucose molecules holding hands, so don't be fooled by the NHS so-called 'healthy diet' - grains and tropical fruit and especially fruit juice are not 'healthy' for a diabetic. For most pre-diabetics a diet of lots of whole grains and '5 a day' will almost guarantee that they will soon be full diabetic.

 

[Rachox]

Welcome to the forum @hjbradshaw
The only way to confirm or deny that Splenda raises your blood sugars is to do finger prick tests before and after consuming it.

 

[KennyA]

I have been in the pre-diabetic range and very stable for several years now, not needing medication, but suddenly my HbA1c has spiked and Dr has put me on metformin. I am on long term steroids which I think is why my blood glucose has become more of a problem, as the HbA1c does tend to vary a bit round my steroid dosage. However, for it to have spiked so dramatically to 65 (UK measurement) when my eating habits have not changed seems very odd(I am 62 btw!) But I recently saw some research which has found that Splenda, which was always considered one of the best sweeteners, can mess with your blood sugar and your bowels (I also live with really bad IBS-D) I have been using a lot more of the Splenda over the last few months as I thought it was safe, and am now wondering whether the Splenda has caused my sugars to spike? Anyone else had this experience or know anything about this research as I am hoping maybe with stopping the Splenda my HbA1c will go down…?

Hi and welcome. I think you'd have to be eating an awful lot of Splenda to have it solely be responsible. It has zero impact on my BG but that doesn't mean it won't affect yours.

In your position I would be looking at medication, illnesses, other food changes etc. I assume you test your BG before and after meals? Have you noticed readings creeping up?

Your A1c reading looks back around three months (with a bias towards the most recent month) so a rise from pre-diabetic to 65 is substantial.

To establish whether the Splenda has anything to with it you would need to test before consuming it and again two hours after. That will show you how well your system can handle it. I'd advise trying to isolate it as far as possible from anything else that might affect your BG so you can be sure that what you see is the effect of Splenda and nothing else. You might also need to repeat the test a few times to confirm what you're seeing.