Saturday, September 4, 2010

Stevia - substitute for sugar

I have been using Stevia which is a natural sweetner in cooking off and on over the last few years for Cooper. The Australian Government approved the use of Stevia in Australia in commercial foods and I followed this story with great interest. I was hopeful that new products containing this plant would be launched which I could use as a substitute for sugar.

The Japanese have been using this plant for years as a sweetener for cooking etc it has no calories. More info on Stevia. I tried to cook with dextrose but that always burns and rots your teeth. So Stevia is a great alternative.

Well my wish has been granted. There are a few products in the market place including, PureVia, CSR Smart (sugar and stevia), Hermesetas Stevia and Natvia.

I have tried Natvia which seemed to have a polyol which was the least offensive to a person with Fructose Malabsorption. So far I have made Cooper pancakes and muffins which he devoured. He was so happy to have muffins that tasted something like a real muffin.
The whole family ate them and now there is only 2 left.

I looked into the ingredients of these Stevia sweeteners and have to be careful because people with Fructose Malabsorption should avoid polyols. They have to combine the Stevia with another ingrediant to reduce the bitterness probably give it bulk and give it that sugar look and feel. So we feel confident using it.

I will continue to experiment with this new sweetener and hope that it has no ill effects on my darling boy. The pack does say something like (overconsumption may cause laxative effect).

9 comments:

Rachel said...

I just found your blog. For 2 years I have been dealing with these symptoms. Every night my little girl acting like her stomach hurts and crying out in pain. I have been trying a food chemical intolerance diet which seemed to help some. But has never alleviated the problem. At its worst she seemed in so much pain I would have thought her appendix was rupturing or something awful. Many nights it is just the constant squirming and seeming uncomfortable. But the longest she has ever slept straight was 7 hours and that was once in her 2yrs. I feel like I have been living in a fog all this time. I am going to my doctor tomorrow and I hope he can help us figure out if this is our problem. Thank you, thank you for doing this blog and making me feel like I am not alone in the world.

The Four Collins said...

I am sitting in my office, bawling crying. I have felt so alone, so crazed and neurotic. No one believes me when I tell them something is wring with my son. He is 1 year and a few days and from day one, he has experienced horrific cramping, bloody, stringy diapers. I put him on Nutramigen AA against my doctor's wishes and the blood disappeared but he still cries out in pain. I had to wait 3 months to get in to a pediatric gastro doc because it wasn't an emergency. Our first appointment was Aug. 13. He told us to leave and try food challenges. Of course, not believing me. I tried rice cereal and it had teh same affect as always. I stopped. Then we saw him again and he agreed to run a blood test. He doesn't have protien allergies so again, I was told it's okay. Finally got them to agree to do a biopsy. We go in this Friday, October 29. I would love, love to talk to either you Rachel or Liz. My email is adrienne.marie@hotmail.com. I am sorry you are experiencing this too.

Liz said...

Hi Rachel and Adrienne,

I am so sorry to read your words. When I read your comments it's like looking into a mirror. I remember wondering if anyone would ever listen or believe me. Don't give up...remember you are your child's only advocate. I only just opened up the blog to see your comments. BTW the sweetner was a disaster Cooper got tummy aches from it.
Adrienne I will email you direct.

Unknown said...

Hi Liz , Rachel and Adrienne, Oh god I can relate to this..I know this sounds so silly but I feel bit more human now knowing I am not alone in this. I'm so sorry you hae all gone through this and are going through this..it's just awful..I was told I needed to be put onto anti depressnats as I was not coping with my son and it was all behavioural with him.. I kept fighting for him and me..I finally told a dr well ok my door is open between 12- 4am you come and deal with him..thats when I got refereed to womens and childrens Adelaide for hyrdrogen breath testing and found out james is fructose and sucrose malabsorption.
Liz if you are able I would love to talk with you or meet up ..my email is kylee.neate@gamil.com
you have been my lifeline..i have been feeeling so lost, alone and crazy and to scared to feed James anything!! thank you thank you .. please give Cooper a hug from me he is a gorgeous boy!!

macocha said...

Us too. It took 2 years of issues before the doctor ordered the hydrogen breath test for daughter's fructose issues. School had called 911 for her pain. she even saw a neurologist. Even though my gut was telling me something was wrong - I would question in my head if she was being drama or faking for attention. it really gets to you after awhile when you do not get answers and you wonder. But I held strong for 2 years and finally got a diagnosis.

macocha said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Andie said...

Wow. I can't believe there are other people on this earth that know how I feel. Accept, I don't actually have a diagnosis yet for my 5 year old daughter. Her Fructose Mal. breath test came back fine, but she had a half gallon of diarrhea 2 hours after they gave her the drink. I feel crazy, but I know fructose is the culprit and that the test was a false negative. Does any one have similar experiences? She is feeling so much better off of fructose, but still doesn't have formed stools. I am thinking about switching table sugar for stevia and seeing if that helps. Any other ideas? I can't tell you how good it feels to have people who know what I am talking about!

Crystal said...

!!! it really is so wonderful just to surf the internet and find that somebody has the same thing. I have a 5 year old girl with chronic constipation- she has been hospitalized even for it, but we can't find her allergies. My son is 3. Since he stopped breastfeeding he has had diahreaa. We've tried taking him off lactose, and gluten with no real results. tummy aches, cramping, and now even mood changes and sleep probblems later we finally have him off lactose, and fructose and just after 8 days we are seeing so much improvement. We have done many tests and trials and doctors always just told me I was likely feeding him too much juice (which I wasn't) or he would grow out of it. It is so hard to watch your kids suffer and not know what to do, and have everyone tell you it will be fine with no real answers. It does feel great to see that other moms are doing the same thing as me. fructose intolerence seems so rare in the U.S. I can't find much information about it here. I'd love an email from anyone who has some great reciepes for snacks that are both lactose and fructose free.
jakeandcrystal.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

everyone I have lived this for 18 years and only getting worse. last year I wanted to be fed via a drip. then I came across
scdlifestyle.com
This diet heals every gut issue. For some it can take 5 years depending how long you have been sick. This site is the only one I trust after years of searching and they explain everything, even all the hidden problems with healthy foods. Best of luck to you all.