Belicove.Com - BeliBlog

January 3, 2005

SPLENDA ALLERGY

A recent 'rash' of news articles--with titles like Splenda's Sweet Success Means Tight Supply and Dieters May Face Splenda Shortage--have caught my eye as of late. You see, back in March of 2003 I wrote about how I suspected that the artificial sweetener Splenda was directly responsible for a serious rash that developed on my face (specifically, my left eye was swollen shut, and my bottom lip was swollen to elephantiasis proportions, after consuming beverages which contained Splenda). Click here for the full post from March 26, 2003. My own self-test the following weekend yielded that unofficially, Splenda was the culprit. Now, nearly two years later, Splenda's in such high demand because of its no-calorie attributes, that it's manufacturer, Tate & Lyle, can't keep up with the demand.

They say everyone's allergic to something, so I'm not here to suggest that Splenda's bad for everyone; but since I first posted a blog entry about my own experiences with the stuff, the number one reason for people visiting my blog via Google.com has been because of one particular keyword search string... "Splenda Allergy". On average, every month, 200 people visit this site because of that particular post. (Stands to reason...go out to Google.com, search for Splenda Allergy, and Belicove.com is the number one resulting site. Click here to see for yourself.)

I now avoid Splenda at all costs, and so too it seems do a lot of other people. Here's a sampling from the comments left by some of the people who have visited my website because of their search for information about Splenda-related allergic reactions.

From Brandon L. on January 1, 2005:

Add my name to the list... I used Splenda for only two weeks when the itching started. Two trips to the hospital, one suspecting the shortness of breath some kind of heart attack, the other due to itching, suspected tension. Stopped using Splenda and all the symptoms vanished in a few days. Could not be sure it was because I'd stopped using Splenda so I put two packs into a cup of coffee. Before the cup was empty, the itching returned with a fury that numbed the fingers as did the shortness of breath and chest pains. Goodbye Splenda...forever! Am feeling just fine without it. Thought I had to let you all know.

From Bari on November 30, 2004:

I did a search on "Splenda Allergy" today after racking my brain to figure out why I am covered in hives and itching to death and imagine my surprise to find this. I have never been allergic to anything, ever. But I cooked with Splenda this Thanksgiving in the cranberries & the pumpkin pie and have been drinking Pepsi Edge daily since Thanksgiving. One day after Tday is when the problem started. I thought I was silly to suspect Splenda because I thought it was just a harmless "sugar derivative" but now it seems it is the only explanation because it is the only thing new in my life. I'm throwing away my Pepsi Edge.

From Steve on December 28, 2004:

I am really glad to have found this topic. I too started drinking Pepsi Edge as I am diabetic and don't really care for the taste of diet sodas. I liked the idea of drinking a "full flavor" soda and being able to keep my sugars under control. A few days after I started drinking Pepsi Edge, I broke out with a severe rash. It is on my arms from shoulder to fingertips, legs from above the knees to the tops of my feet and on my stomach as well. I am using a cream for diabetics to help with the itching and taking Benadryl as well. I am really upset that there has been no advisory that I am aware of from Splenda or Pepsi that people are experiencing these rashes. As stated above, I am diabetic and have to really be careful where my legs and feet are concerned when it comes to skin problems. I have awakened in the morning with sores opened on my legs which I am sure is from scratching the itch during my sleep. I am trying to heal them as I would hate to think that I lost a leg due to Splenda or Pepsi. Thanks to all of you for sharing your similar problems as I was going nuts trying to figure out what was causing the rash all of the sudden.

Like I said, everyone's probably allergic to something, and that people are having reactions to Splenda shouldn't necessarily surprise anyone. However, that having been said, if you suspect that Splenda may be causing you problems, read Dr. Joseph Mercola's The Potential Dangers of Sucralose available for free by clicking here. FYI... it's easy reading!

Posted by Mikal at January 3, 2005 7:12 AM | TrackBack

Yeap rash on neck, and now have had tiny prickly feeling rash that itches intensely all over my body. I thought it was poison ivy, but its not acting like poison ivy. I was pretty sure the bumps on my neck were from a toxin: splenda, and now that you others have mentioned it I'm giving up my splenda and turning to just creamer in my coffee as hard as that is, but I will not poison my body with such a terrible toxin that hasen't even been proven. I knew it was too good to be true. I've been using it now for about 3 months. I know when I had to give up sugar completely I also gave up coffee, therefore didn't need to sweaten anything. I am reactive-hypoglycemic so must cut out sugar as well, because it makes me swell and my blood sugar go up. I remembered the two months off sugar, coffee, no splenda the bumps on my neck disappeared. I'm giving up the splenda first and if I have to the coffee also, but thats another hurdle. I thank everyone whose made a comment here. We can put this together even if the FDA dosen't "get it" before we do. I'm grateful to have found this site. Thanks to the lady who is a diabetic who said Splenda is in many products, I'll look out for that. Michelle

Posted by: Michelle in Pgh, PA at January 30, 2005 9:46 PM

My neighbor sent me this sight via e-mail because she knew that my daughter had broken out w an extensive complete body rash includ. face.. She came downstairs and showed me a few bumps on her arm and a rash under her armpits and the creases of her elbows. Within an hour of doing her homework she had rashes over her torso front and back her arms and tops of her legs. It spread to her face by A.m. with swelling in hands and feet.She had thrown up mucous during the night and also while I was gone during the next day. We would have taken her to the hospital had we known she vomited but she did not think it was significant so she did not tell us.

We suspected the perfume in the soap she used since the only other time she broke out with a rash all over was when she was 6 and we narrowed it down to the perfume in laundry detergents (particularly Tide since I used it exclusively at that time). We now use unscented version of detergents like Arm and Hammer and All. We also used Zyrtec to treat the rash and found it worked better than benedryl for her. We had to use the zyrtec for several months before her body calmed down. She was so hypersensitized that even rubbing up against material or her bedding made her break out. We felt very lucky that we avoided the prednisone.

Anyway, I was fairly convinced that it must be the body wash but this time rinsing her off and avoiding the soap as well as using the zyrtec seemed to give her only slight relief. Interestingly my neighbor sends me this blog site on Monday night. I didn't give it much consideration at first until I remembered that my daughter had spent her own money at the grocery store to buy a bag of diet candy that was supposed to taste like Baskin-Robbins icecream. She is worried about cavities because she has braces (and a few cavities already) and not her weight. Anyway this was Sat afternoon. She ate a few- no apparent problems. Sunday night, after her shower, she presnted with the initial rash that we are aware of. She was given zyrtec and flushed with as much water and boring plain food as possible on Monday. Still had rash,but better. Monday night I get blog And I take the candy away as safety precaution still not sure. She tells me that she hasn't eaten any since Sat so it can't be candy. Well I just wanted to be safe because she was pretty miserable. Another dose of zrtec P.M. and Tues day morning no hives period. Still some facial swelling but just keep an eye on her. Tuesday night I talk again about the importance of avoiding this splenda because it may be in things at school and not to eat food from other kids etc.... During conversation, she admits that she had a few more peices on Monday while I was gone. I said why didn't you just tell me because I had not yet taken it away-she wasn't in trouble. She just had forgotten. That rather explains why the zyrtec didn't work initially. She was still exposing herself to what she was allergic to.

My husband and I each had a piece of the candy with sucralose- no problem. My other daughter ate an entire bag in 1 day of some kind of chewy nips "something or other" no problem.

Not everyone has problems with it, but if you have a bad case of hives or rash and it can be traced to the 1st 2nd or even 3rd time you had sucralose-consider doing with out for awhile flush out with water and talk to a dr about an antihistimine that is safe for you.
Interestingly, this was to our best knowledge the 2nd or 3rd time my daughter had the sucralose and the most she had consumed at one time.

She is also fighting a cold virus right now which may have sent her immune system into hyperdrive more easily. The zyrtec and avoiding the sucralose got rid of the hives but she still has the cold.

WE are thankful to our neighbor and to this blog site.

I hope this helps another parent out there.

Our first case of hives and swelling was pretty scary, not to mention costly and nerve racking..........

Posted by: maggie at February 15, 2005 11:05 PM

For 3 months I battled a severe skin rash...Saw an allergist and a dermatologist, costing upward of $1000. in visits and medications. The allergist said it was dust mites, the dermatologist said it was an allergy or might be Lupus. Both doctors recommended a battery of medications including Benadryl capsules, Benadryl topical rash gel, several topical steroids and even a medication called Aderax (sp?) which I understand is an anti-anxiety drug because I was so itchy at night, I wasn't able to sleep. Well, the Aderax mellowed me out to say the least but did nothing for the itching. I mapped out my meals daily and stopped everything I could think of that could have been causing the rash. Believing that it might be Aleve which I had been taking once a day for a bad back, I went without it and all other like meds such as Aspirin and Advyl as well. To no avail, the rash kept on coming. I'd have a day or two where the symptoms would let up but then it would come back even worse. At one point I woke up with one eye swelled shut and my bottom lip so swelled than I couldn't speak. Every day I awoke with the rash covering almost my entire body. It was everywhere and seemed to get worse at night. I feared going to sleep at night because I was affraid to see what I was going to look like in the morning. Let alone fearing that I would not wake up at all. I was told that the severe facial swelling meant that whatever it was was becoming even more toxic in my body and I was reacting even more severely. At one point I had hives on my fingers that swelled so badly I couldn't get my wedding rings off and was affraid I'd have to go to the hospital to have them cut off. I became depressed with the notion that the "professionals" had no clue what was causing it and I began believing that I had Lupus. Then one night I was making myself a cup of tea (with Splenda of course) while on the internet, I typed into Google "Splenda Allergy". It was the one ingredient in my diet I hadn't stopped using (I'm a decaf coffee and tea fanatic) because everything I had heard about Splenda was that it was a sugar derivative and totally natural. I discounted the idea that it might be the cause of my hives. Meanwhile, I was beginning to develop other symptoms. My tongue began to crack and swell, my eyesight worsened and I was beginning to have upper resperatory problems. I threw the Splenda away and decided to try life without it. I was determined to find my cure. Well, 2 weeks went by. Every day, I had a few less hives. Then suddenly, they were back. My depression set in again and one day I sat in my office and just cried. I thought it was the Splenda! Well, I had been snacking mid-day on 94% Fat Free Kettle Corn at the office for 2 days. I hadn't noticed the label. It contained Sucralose!!! I immediately stopped and went to a brand of popcorn that didn't have any artificial sweeteners. A week later, the swelling and the tongue sores started healing. And finally after several weeks, I am feeling almost normal. I have never experienced anything like this before in my life. Strangely, I had stopped using Equal because I had heard horrific things about what it can do. I had been experiencing memory loss and switched to Splenda hoping it was safe. It seemed to be, for 6 months and then the hives... All I can say is, thanks to this webite and my dogged desire to find a cure, I am well.

Posted by: P.S. at February 22, 2005 6:23 PM

I have been using Splenda for about 4 months. But started trying new bars and cereals for convenience and taste. Also ice cream bars and candy for sweets. So the increase in splenda products went from just one per day to about five or six within the last two months. The itching started on the chest about Jan. 18 of this year. Then I went to the dermotologist and she said it was contact dermatitius and reccommended using some hydrocortisone cream. It worked for a bit. But then the rash moved to the back and shoulders.

Now this week it is all over the torso including the stomach and arms.There are no bumps or sores, just severe itching mostly in the morning and at night. I've been on the Internet for the past week trying to figure out what type of reaction this was... allergic, nervous, internal problems like liver or kidney related, iron deficiency, hyperthyroidism, worm infestations etc... I thought I was truly sick with some type of cancer yet I've been healthy all my life and have no allergies whatsoever. I workout quite extensively every week and have never had a problem. Then I thought that it had to be some sort of maybe poisoning or catalyst of something I was ingesting that may trigger these types of illnesses. I've only used Splenda because I thought it would be a better alternative to sugar in terms of my body's reaction to elvated blood sugars. Wrong!

Through this website I've now deduced that Splenda has caused these things to happen in my body. The first real reaction that I had that made me look for other possibilties was the huge bruises I have on my hips from doing these situps I do on my sides. I rarely bruise like that. So I immediately thought that it had to be some sort of iron deficiency anemia. I researched it online and tried to find out what causes it and the symptoms. Although itching was not the primary reaction it did tell me things that could inhibit iron absorption. From there there were a list of antagonists. It was from here I dedcided that the reason for this rash was from some vitamin or digested food causing deficiencies.

This was my list of deductions causing itching:

- iron deficiency
- temperature chages
- mercury?
- chronic renal failure
- scabies
- hypo or hyperthyroidism
- polyphenals from green tea
- worm infestations
- Atkins diet?
- allergy to wheat
- Splenda??

That was it!!!

From this website I have gotten validation and relief for my stirfe for the last two months. I am writing such an extensive letter because I want to give relief to anyone who is going through what I just did!

I will keep you posted on my progress as this will be the first day off all splends products.

Aloha!

Posted by: Maggie at February 26, 2005 6:02 PM

I believe my daughter (4 y.o.), who has multiple food allergies, is now also allergic to Splenda. She tried 2 sips of Fruit 2 O and complained of stomach pain within an hour. Later that evening, she had terrible diarrhea. I started giving her Pedialyte, to be certain she would not get dehydrated. She continued to be sick, so I assumed she had some sort of virus. More Pedialyte in the morning, then OMG! She was SO sick; writhing in pain. She was incoherant, grunting and holding her breath. Her nose turned blue! Her face was turning red from broken capillaries. She broke out in a sweat. I had an EpiPen on hand, since she is deathly allergic to some foods, but I honestly didn't know if she was having an allergic reaction. I gave her antihistamines (knowing it couldn't hurt) and called the doctor. Guess what's in Pedialyte? SUCRALOSE! I checked on line to confirm that SUCRALOSE is Splenda.

At this point, the pediatrician acknowleges that many children have stomach upset problems from artificial sweeteners, but doesn't consider it a true allergy. We are scheduled to visit our allergist soon, for an annual check up, and I plan to inquire about testing for Sucralose or Splenda allergy. We will *never* have the stuff in the house again. It was truly frightening to see my daughter in such a state.

BTW, within hours of stopping the Pedialyte, and switching to chicken soup and water, my daughter made a full recovery. She had a solid b.m. and slept through the night. Her "illness" began within an hour of 2 sips of Fruit 2 O and ended within 8 hours of discontinuing the Pedialyte. She had, in the meantime, endured a rectal exam, a stool culture for blood and bacteria, and an abdominal exam...my poor baby. I feel terrible that I let her try that stuff.

Posted by: Paula at April 26, 2005 3:53 PM

I started using Splenda a year ago (1 bag every day). A couple of months ago I started having eye pains (in both eyes alternating or sometimes in both eyes in the same time), dizziness and feeling depressed. It took me many weeks to realize that Splenda might be the problem. My eye pain was variable: sometimes needle-like, other times like a pressure in the back of the eye- but extremely disturbing. I was very worried, as I never experienced something like that. I stopped Splenda 2 days ago and virtually I had almost no eye pain since yesterday but I am still dizzy. I read that it may take a while to clear it out of the body. I also started having some frontal headaches and I had extremely rare headaches in my life.

I cannot believe I was poisoning myself with Splenda while believing I was doing something right for my health. When I read sucralose on the label, I was actually thinking about sucrose, which is naturally- and I thought it was ok. I do not think companies should be allowed to name artificial products almost identical with the natural ones. Their purpose is of course, to mislead us.

On another note, do you know what Canola oil is? It seems that almost everybody I asked does not know the �vegetable� of origin. I wonder why? Canola is an invented name; Canadian oil (oil low acid). If the manufacturers had written rape seed oil, I wonder how many people would have bought it. It is very toxic. You may find it even on the labels of so called �healthy� margarines like Smart Balance. There is written � canola seed oil�. If canola oil is a big lie, then the term �canola seed� is pure nonsense.

"CANOLA OIL: Deadly for the Human Body! Beware of Canola Oil, Canola Oil is an Industrial Oil, Not Fit For Human Consumption
Canola oil from the rape seed, referred to as the Canadian oil because Canada is mainly responsible for it being marketed in the USA The Canadian government and industry paid our Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). $50 million dollars to have canola oil placed on the (GRAS) List "Generally Recognized As Safe". Thus a new industry was created. Laws were enacted affecting international trade, commerce, and traditional diets. Studies with lab. animals were disastrous. Rats developed fatty degeneration of heart, kidney, adrenals, and thyroid gland. When canola oil was withdrawn from their diets, the deposits dissolved but scar tissue remained on all vital organs. No studies on humans were made before money was spent to promote Canola oil in the USA.
Refined canola oil, typically found in conventional food stores, is usually exposed to high temperatures, deodorizing and bleaching. Its health-giving constituents are processed away, and its omega-3s converted into the undesirable trans form. Even "lightly refined" and "expeller pressed oils can be exposed to deodorizing, which may raise the oil temperature to a sizzling 450?� 470?F. "
For the rest of the article please follow the link bellow.
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/soy.htm#canola

For more details please follow the link bellow.
http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/soy.htm#canola

Posted by: Diane at April 28, 2005 4:46 PM

I've been using Splenda for quite awhile, probably at least a year. I've gradually increased it in my diet. Both Sunday and Monday after eating some cereal with Splenda sprinkled on top, my throat felt like it was going to close. I used my inhalers and took a benedryl and felt better. My eyes have been twitching for months. Many times my eyes have been burning. I figured it was other allergies or lack of sleep. My skin is still itchy.

Here's the real scary thing! My mom started using products with sucralose (Splenda) about a year ago. She went for a mammogram a couple months ago. She was sent back for a second one and an ultrasound. Yesterday she had a biopsy. We won't know the results of that for about 10 days. I went for a mammogram last Friday. My doctor called on Monday to say they want to do a biopsy on me!

There is no family history of breast cancer. I was wracking my brain, trying to figure out if it was coincidence that we both came up with problems at the same time. The use of Splenda is the only common thing I can think of. I'll let you know when I find out more and if the doctors think their is a link.

Jean

Posted by: Jean at May 11, 2005 8:54 PM

I had a major breakout of hives after drinking Diet Code with Splenda last night! I am dieting so I was bought a Diet Coke with Splenda on Wednesday by a co worker because the store we use use out of Diet Cherry Coke. It tasted good enough and nothing happened - or so I thought! Now that I think of it I developed a bad headaches and itchy eyes about 30 minutes later but since I was working on a deadline I atttibuted it to STRESS! I had the next day off so I stopped by a convenience store on the way home and purchased a Diet Coke with Lime and a Diet Coke with SPLENDA for the next day so I wouldn't have to go out again to the store. I had my dinner last night with my 6 yr old daughter and we shared "half" a Diet Coke with SPLENDA and put the other half back in the fridge. After she came out of the bath at around 9pm she was complaining of itching on her legs and torso which produced small hive like welts. I figured it must be the body wash - since it's new but we had used it for several days without incident so I scratched that off as a culprit - no pun intended. I treated her with Eucerin Anti Itch Spray and she went to sleep without further compliants. I then noticed that I was a little itchy on my upper arms and armpits but nothing major. I went to sleep and was awakened at 3am by unbearable itching on my torso, neck, upper arms, armpits, crooks of my elbows and knees, tops of my feet and crease of my thighs! I immediately took a Benadryl with lots of H20 and was able to get back to sleep. WELL this morning it was worse than ever and here I am at work itching to death - there are red-purplish welts all over my body and I have even had to remove my bra and watch since the itching is sooooo intense. I am now trying an anti-itch cream and hoping to find a little relief. I am very suprised that no one has brought this up on the news nor the papers. This is crazy and the people at SPLENDA need to be held accountable for so many people they have made suffer - because as I see there are MANY!!! Everyone keep writing in so there is record of your complaints and something can be done about it. Thanks, G

Posted by: Gloria G. Saenz at May 20, 2005 12:21 PM

I came across this blog by accident but am extremely glad it happened. I'm diabetic and am always looking for solutions to my sweet tooth. Most candies with "sugar alchohols" give me diarrhea and are intolorable. about 4 months ago, I discovered diet Big Red soda which is sweetened with Splenda and I would pick one up every so often because they were good. No real problem. My wife noticed I liked them and started picking up 12-packs at Walmart and also started picking up Diet Rite and other RC products that use Splenda. I started drinking 2+ per day. Soon, the itching began. I'm sensitive to allergies in the spring, so I shrugged it off, but the itch became a rash around my upper arms, armpits, torso, legs, tops of feet, etc. Little clusters of red itchy bumpy areas. It was driving me crazy. I went to the Doctor. He checked for Scabies (yikes!) and prescribed an antihisthamine and dermatology ointment. The ointment helped where it was applied, but the rash continued to pop up in new areas. I was freaking out. However, my pursuit of non-harmful sweets continued. I Google'd Splenda last Thursday in search of other good products. Pretty high up in the search rankings, and among the pro-splenda sites, was this site and a couple of others discussing the possible side effects of Splenda! I was floored when I saw my exact experience being relayed by others. The internet comes through again!

So, I abstained from everything with Sucrolose for the past 6 days. The itching has stopped. No new rash or bumps have developed. The old bumps are healing up. I'm convinced it would have taken me many months, if ever, to reach the conclusion that the Splenda was causing my problem. If the makers of Splenda continue to dispute any side-effects, they are lying. Thanks. Jon

Posted by: Jon P at May 26, 2005 1:41 PM

I am so thankful that I came across this page. Let me share my story with you in hopes that it will save someone else the pain I went through. My rash started about the same time I had bought a box of Splenda to use in making Kool-Aid. I had bumps on my arm and what looked like a small ringworm on my chest. I never made the connection to Splenda, but instead treated the "ringworm" with an OTC cream for a week and it went away. About 10 days after getting the Splenda (it cost almost $7 for 200 packets!) and using it to make Kool-aid by the cup for myself (33 year old school teacher home for the summer), I went on a trip to Hot Springs for a school training event that lasted a week. Well, I had consumed a lot of Splenda Kook-Aid the day before and then picked up a Diet Coke with Lime and Splenda that Sunday when I left. That night, I had terrible diarrhea that lasted through Wednesday. I have never in my life had to take more than one dose of Immodium, and here I was taking it up to the maximum amount allowed by the directions! It was just something you ate, everyone told me. So, I didn't worry too much since I had no othe symptoms. Then, on Tuesday night, the rash started. At first I thought it was just heat rash under my breasts, but it soon moved to my entire chest area. I quit taking the Immodiom and started taking Benadryl for the rash. It worked somewhat, but the rash spread to my hips, behind and legs. By the time the session was over, I drove straight home, alomst 2 hours, and went to bed. I used cortisone cream, benadryl cream, and thought that I had hives. My chest looked like it had huge bruises all over them, and then my arms started getting a rash. The ones on my arms were prickly ones, much like scabies, and like the original one that I had thought was ringworm. Monday I got in to see my doctor who told me it was DEFINATELY something I had ingested. I asked him if it could have been the Immodium, and he said no, and that the diarrhea and rash were unrelated. He gave me a cortisone shot and some antihistimines that just put me to sleep and told me it should be all cleared up by the next day. Well, it wasn't, but it was certainly doing better. I put moisturizer on the rash, which helped alleviate some of the itching when I am awake. As I kept thinking what in the world had done this to me, I thought, hmmm...could it be Splenda? I don't have food allergies, but I do have allergies to Penicillin. Well, I logged on, and her your site is! OMG! I couldn't believe it. I haven't had any splenda since Hot Springs, and have no new rashes or symptoms. I am very frightened that Splenda is being put into everything out there. Now, I am going to have to read every food label. Interestingly enough, when I called my parents, my dad said that he had had a reaction to diet coke recently where he had broken out in huge welts. He said it had Splenda in it, but he didn't connect the 2 either. Needless to say, we are calling all of our relatives to let them know just in case. I hope this post helps anyone out there. My next step is to inform my doctor so that they can be on the lookout for similiar reactions in other patients. Oh, for the itching, Noxema does wonders to help the symptoms.

Posted by: Michelle at July 1, 2005 2:29 PM

I am glad I found this blog. I was about to start a course of Accutane for my rash/acne problem I have been having. I have had acne in the past and have done 2 courses of accutane. I thought that it was just coming back again. I was on the computer yesterday and decided to type in 'Splenda Allergy' in yahoo search. And I found this. I started drinking diet rite about a year an a half ago and was starting to get acne break-outs. I am in the navy and went overseas for year and the rash pretty much went away but then came back after about six months. Now that I look back that is about the time I started using myoplex protein drinks. Guees what. It has sucraslose in it. My rash/acne wasn't that bad. Must not be too much sucralose in the myoplex. As soon as I got home last April, I started drinking Diet Rite again and started adding other products with splenda/sucralose to my diet. My rash/acne started getting worse, but I still didn't connect it with my use of Splenda. I have been splenda free for 2 days now and I can already see the difference. I also have had a weird eye tick in my right eye for the last three months. Thought I was starting to fall apart or something at the ripe age of 34. The tick has also disapeared so far the last 2 days. God bless the internet!

Posted by: Jack at August 8, 2005 2:23 PM

I am SO HAPPY (yes, HAPPY), I found this site! About a month ago, I developed a small, itchy rash on my thigh. Five weeks later, it is a full blown, all over body rash that is unbearable in sight and ITCH!!! I have all the docs stumped (3 of them!).....and I am a RN, and kept believing it MUST be something I am doing everyday or injesting everyday as this rash does not let up.

Lo and behold, I zeroed in on the fact I drink 2-3 diet sodas a day with Splenda. The only thing I do consistently diet-wise. ALL my soaps and cleansers are organic, mild stuff I have been using for years. Now, I have had diet sodas with Splenda before, but never as much as recently (since my car accident I have been home-bound).

I Googled Spenda and rash and TA-DA......my poor husband has been telling me for several months to look up Splenda side-effects and I did not listen! Today is the day I found this site and all the info on Splenda and rashes. Yesterday morning is my LAST drink with Splenda.

How long does it take this crap to leave my poor body? I can hardly wait to see if this rash finally goes away and then to wow my docs with this knowledge!! Will let you know if this helps!

Peace,

Rose

Posted by: Rose at October 20, 2005 11:49 AM

About 10 days on a Thursday night I broke out in hives (welts and bright red rash) on my neck which spread down to my chest and arms. I had just eaten a chili dog and drank 2 large glasses of Hawaiian Punch Lite (sweetened with Splenda). The itching was severe and I called the doctor the next day who prescribed Benadryl for the weekend and an office visit if it did not subside. I felt panicky and tingly all over and had diarrhea. Today (10 days later) most of the itching and rash has subsided although I am still having a little bit at night and in the morning. But it has been 10 days..... Curiously, I had just visited my mother the weekend prior, she's 74 and diabetic, who had told me Splenda made her itchy. She cannot it in coffee or eat any of the diabetic pies made with it.... Well, I started on the Hawaiian Punch Lite back in August and loved the stuff. Drank tons of it. Initially, I noticed mild itching and a rash on my chest when I was out in the sun and thought it was a new lotion I was using or the laundry detergent. My family drank the Hawaiian Punch only occasionally. My husband complained of itching (no rash) and my 7 year old had sporadic itching as well (we thought it was a virus), although he mostly drinks plain grape juice, water or milk. Occassionally he would have the Hawaiian Punch.....No one in the family drank as much as I did. I seriously thought I had pancreatic cancer or was allergic to MSG until I read all of the testimonials about Splenda reactions. Thank you for this website. I'm staying off Splenda even though it tastes great! (and waiting for the rash and itching to completely clear up). I hope the word gets out! The reaction to Splenda has been scary, lengthy and hard to pin down until it was full blown.

Posted by: at October 30, 2005 9:11 AM

In the begging of this year I was diagnosed with diabetes. I think what was the worst part of being a diabetic was my love of desserts. I was ecstatic when I started finding sugar free foods that were very low in carbs. My favorite was Bryers Sugar Free with Spenda.

I had so many going on's this year, my daughter getting married, the birth of my son's first child, then my health, finding out I was diabetic in January, fracturing my foot in July, possible TMJ on my right jaw and then finding out I had nodules on my thyroid which by the way I am waiting for the results of my biopsy. So, when I mentioned the constant itching on my throat, my lips, my forehead, my doctor looked confused and just said it was a lot of stress with everything that has been happening to me this year.

My itching got to the point that I wanted to rip my throat off, a burning itch. Then came the headaches.

Yesterday I came home feeling pretty good, I ate dinner which consisted of a salad and water, still felt good. I sat in front of the t.v. with my daily bryers sugar free ice cream (with Splenda)- not even 10 minutes past and the itching came back, the burning itch and then the horrible headache. It finally clicked, it wasn't stress but possibly the ice cream I was eating. I googled under Splenda Allergy and I couldn't believe my eyes in reading all the blogs. I am counting my lucky stars that I haven't gotten any more symptoms then what I've read on these blogs.

Today I emailed all my family and friends regarding my story and I had them come to this site to read.

I already had to read labels because of my diabetes, now more than ever I'm reading labels - I don't want to feel what I've been feeling these last couple of months.
thanks again

Posted by: Silvia at November 23, 2005 10:59 PM

I've been racking my brain for the past five months to figure out why this rash on my face has been coming and going.

It's been mostly around my eyes and manifests itself as puffy, itchy red bumps. Most recently, it started appearing at the corners of my mouth as scaly patches and also on my throat.

Initially, I thought it was my eyeliner and over the past five months, I've thought incorrectly that it was cosmetics, eye make up remover, nail polish, down pillows, shellfish, soy, etc.

Until it finally dawned on me that about five months ago I switched from Equal to Splenda. (About a year ago, I had surgery and they discovered the very early stages of stomach cancer, so since that time, I've gone organic as much as possible. I've used Equal for as long as it's been on the market without any side affects. But, I thought that I should switch to Splenda because it seemed to be less of a chemical.)

Boy, was I wrong. It wasn't until yesterday that I put two and two together and made the connection between the flareups and days that I would use Splenda.

I've been Splenda free now for almost two days and already there is a difference.

And although I didn't seem to have the severe itching that many of you report, I was really getting tired of having red scaly skin around my eyes.

Having read all of your previous posts, I can see now that I am not alone.

The good news is that I can now go back to using my down pillows and eating shellfish and seafood which I love so much.

They really need to put a warning on this stuff. Dealing with the side affects can be extremely frustrating, not to mention expensive.

Good luck everybody!

Posted by: sophia at December 19, 2005 9:47 AM

I want to thank you for all the information I have found here today. This just reinforces my suspicions about what is causing my problems. I have just today realized what is going on and made the connection to Splenda. Around May, 2005 I started having the feeling that my throat was closing up. That gave me a panicky feeling and then came the tingling in my left arm and sharp pain in the left side of my head. After a trip to the emergency room to rule out stroke or heart attack, they said I just had a panic attack. I couldn't pinpoint any cause for my panic attack, and refused to take any prescription medication for anxiety/depression. I continued to have the episodes and after two more trips to the emergency room and refusing any medication, I decided to try another doctor. She understood my position on the drugs and suggested that I take St. John's Wort. In doing this, I decided to also try mostly natural foods and drinks in my diet and leave off caffeine, chocolate, dark diet sodas, Splenda, etc. My anxiety went away and I had no more episodes. I wanted to lose a few pounds I had gained over the holidays, and the Monday after Christmas I started using Splenda again. Just in the last few days I have been getting the tight throat feeling again. Also, I now remember another sensation that I had back in May I had forgotten about. Along with the tight throat feeling, I have thick post nasal drip and the feeling that my head is under water or that my head is full of water. I have also noticed a few red bumps on my shoulders and chest, however they are few and do not itch. It really frusrates me that our government officials are willing to contribute to the dangers of the citizens of our country in order to serve the monetary benefits of the large companies who put out this stuff!!! I am never using this poison again.

Posted by: denise at January 3, 2006 3:27 PM

Hi all,

I am SO thankful to find I am not alone in this nightmare. I started using Splenda in coffee way back in July 2003 when I started a low-carb diet! I can't remember the exact time span but it was during that same month that I woke up with red bumps on my right leg that itched like nothing I had ever experienced before. Like a million bugs crawling on me. I was tested for all the usual things and there were just no answers. Within weeks, it had spread to my other leg and then with time, at times included my stomach, thighs, abdomen, arms, back and feet. I have dark scars from scratching and bleeding and healing. Over and over again it happened. I went through all the same things with the doctors, lotions, changing of soaps, foods etc.... All this time until yesterday I never once made the connection. Last night after eating yet another bedtime bowl of low-carb ice cream (with Splenda of course) I broke out almost instantly in another HUGE red rash from the tops of my legs to the bottom. Of course this is on top of the rash that already exists. It just never ends.

THEN: it was like a bell went off in my head and I thought for a second, "NO, Oh my God! it can't be the SPLENDA can it?!!" Ironic that while eating the ice cream I was busy searching the web (just like all the rest of you were;it had become my passion) for information on food additives and was reading a website on ribonucleotide rashes!! (All of you might want to check that out because it too is causing a rash these days.) Over the past year I had become so depressed and felt like I must have some dreaded disease that would kill me in time. I have felt so alone and helpless for the past couple years! I know that most of you must know the exact same feeling and it makes me sad and furious at the same time. My body is scarred from the long period of time that this has involved and my life has changed so much due to the embarrasment associated with it. In the past six months or so I have had days where my eyes are so swollen I don't want to go to work or leave the house. Also, I would have days where I felt like I had a film over my eyes and they would be very red. I can't take a warm shower without feeling like my skin is burning off and wearing clothes is unbearable at times. I don't know how long it will take for my body to heal from Splenda but at least now there is hope. I feel nothing but compassion for all of you who have suffered with this and I hope my testimony here will be of help to someone. When I start to see some improvement I will write again and let you know how many days it takes. I know that is my biggest question now. When will the itching stop? What a plague. I wish you all the best and I am going to do my best to help get the word out. Splenda has got to go!!!

Posted by: Terri at January 13, 2006 6:24 AM

I too started a new weight loss plan in October'05 and started putting sugar-free hazelnut liquid sweetner in my coffee that has Splenda in it and drinking diet soda. One morning about 4 days later I woke up with a prickly type rash (tiny red bumps) around my eyes.On occasion I get little blisters around my eyes and feeling of a scratchy throat. Now its January '06, I have had such a strange headache everyday in the back left portion of my head, never had headaches there.The doctor prescribed a cortisone lotion for the rash/blisters which works but after stopping using it for 2 days it eventually comes back. We did get a kitten last July but I grew up with cats, thought maybe I'm allergic now?. But these symptoms did not appear until October, four days after my weight loss plan started. I have suspected Splenda as a culprit and tried to watch labels and not consume them but last night I had a Light ice cream bar and light cranberry juice. This morning the inside corner of my left eye is swollen and irritated and have my now regular headache. This really stinks!!. I am going to cut out all artificial sweeteners from here on out. I have never had an allergic reaction to anything but poison ivy in my entire life and I am 47.

Posted by: Marylee F at January 25, 2006 2:12 PM

Wow..the whole eyes swollen shut thing. that is freaky...i definitely woke up 1 day with both of my eyes mysteriously swollen...about half shut. it was crazy, there was NO reasoning behind why it would have happened. I began to research splenda more and quickly discovered the severe health risks of it. I come from a very health conscious/weight control family and typically, we tend buy everything "sugar-free" or "low-carb." many of these products, in the last couple years, have converted to being made with splenda! The past year or so i have been having the most crazy, unexplained problems. from huge red bumps all of my legs (NOT razor bumps)...to my eyes bein swollen for a few days...to having to go to the bathroom frequently and sometimes having trouble controlling it....to bein completely unable to lose any weight...my face being abnormally broken out....SEVERE knee pain out of NO where..no injuries to my knee or anything..so bad i could hardly stand to walk...severe lack of energy...its CRAZY! i researched splenda more and came across a site by Dr. Mercola. You might want to search it, something will definitely come up. It COMPLETELY made me realize that all my problems were coming from splenda. there were MANY other people experiencing the same side effects as i was! Splenda, or "sucralose"..which often misleads the public...is very harmful. It contains chlorine atoms and has more chemical similarity with DDT and pesticides than it does with sugar! Since i cut splenda out of my diet COMPLETELY..all my problems have subsided and i feel like the normal, healthy me again. It is AMAZING. Sounds unbelievable i know...but how else do you explain all the MYSTERIOUS health problems i was having? Its rediculous. I will NEVER touch splenda or "sucralose" again. you have to be VERY careful to read labels, cuz these days...almost everything contains splenda. please write back. thank you. ~Krista

Posted by: Krista at February 4, 2006 11:58 AM

Thank you for this blog!
I am 49 yers old, female, and most of my life have been able to eat mostly anything but have been a very healthy eater.

I have had my share of medical problems such as a kidney pancreas transplant and a triple bypass all due to diabetes complications. I never used Splenda until about 2 months ago.

I stopped using Equal sweetner because I noticed it would make my throat constrict and give me pain in the esophagus. So I switched to Splenda which after about a month, I was having itching fits. Mostly at night when I get ready for bed, but it has been unbelievable.

Lotion would not help nor would scratching. My whole body would itch and sometimes just my feet or just my hands. Or my scalp and definitely my neck and back. I suspected it was Splenda so I am stopping. This blog confirms that!

It's been about 3 days and the itching is lessening but I think it will be two weeks before this poison is out of my system. Maybe longer.

This has been so enlightening. Splenda is so awful!

Posted by: at March 1, 2006 10:20 PM

Over a year ago I posted my Splenda Nightmare on another Belicove Blog. There I detailed my experience having just gone thru it. Well, now looking back on the year "Splenda Free" I can truly say that that stuff is the worst poison ever released into the food supply. When I first had simptoms it was just as all of you had discribed. The hives,the swolen lips and eyes. But now I realize how severely this stuff has efected me. I had also been suffering (and I mean suffering) with severe back pain,muscle pain, joint pain, stomach cramps, bloating. All of which have stopped since I discovered that Splenda was the cause. But I also had other symptoms much worse. I had also experienced vision loss, memory loss, headaches, and a feeling as though I had a gauze vail pulled over me. I lived for over a year litterally poisoned by this stuff. Now a year later, I am coping. I wear glasses, I am hipoglysemic and my memory is stillnot what it used to be. The hardest part is thatSplenda iscreeping into more and moreproducts making it harder and harder forme to do and eat the things I used to. A client came into my officelastweekwith fresh cookieshe had gotten from a local "High End"bakery...Well, we all enjoyed them, at least until the stomach cramps took me over and destroyed the rest of my day. Later, I called the bakery and found out that they sweeten their (sugar free) cookies with Splenda. The client thought he was doing us a favor by bringing a low cal snack for us. No allergy labling reqquired, no warning...Nothing. What can we do to protect us from an industry that won't act until someone dies?

Posted by: P.S. at April 5, 2006 2:00 PM

I am just coming out of a very severe reaction to something I ate about a month ago. Rash in the elbows, on the tops of the hands, around the ankles, under the breasts, inner thighs, behind the knees, under the armpits, on the tops of my feet, on the stomach, and around the backside. All I could think of was if my outside looked like this, what must my insides look like?!!!! I too, am doing a low carb diet, South Beach Diet, per CRNP suggestion. So far so good. But it seems like all of a sudden I broke out with the rash everywhere. CRNP never saw anything like it before. Gave me tablets to help with this rash. But within 48 hours I ended up going to the ER because it was so bad I knew that there was a good chance that I could possibly die from whatever it was that I ate. The doctor took one look & said contact dermatitis. My foot! He gave me a cream for the skin. I told him, give me a steroid! So I got a pack of prednisone from him w/orders to follow up with my primary care.(This was on a Sunday.) I went to CRNP next day & said she couldn't believe that the dumb doctor in the ER didn't give me a shot of prednisone. So she gave me one along with a stronger pack of prednisone for 10 days. I asked her if she thought it was a yeast infection & she said no because it didn't present like one. She said if it was fungal the prednisone wouldn't touch it. Thank God the itching stopped while I was on the prednisone. Saw the CRNP today for blood pressure recheck. I tell her about the heart beating & then it like stops for a beat & then goes on. She said it was from the reaction to whatever it was. I asked her if it was something I ate or something that I came into contact with by skin. She said that it was systemic and it was something that I ate. She asked me if I figured out what it was. I told her no. I, like many others washed all my bedding & clothes over again in Tide Free & Arm & Hammer Super Soda Washing detergent. Racked my head to think what was it that I ate that caused this. I have eaten shellfish, and nuts with no problem. Why now? It's been 5 days off the prednisone but I still have some itching. Still doing the South Beach Diet and come across a thread talking about the effects of Splenda. Of course I am surfing the net to see if it might be the Splenda. Low & behold I am here. Oh my goodness! Holy Moly! Before I forget, I literally blistered everywhere! And I am still peeling! I wouldn't wish this stuff on my enemies! I was still using Splenda up to today never even giving it a thought that it might this. Something should have rang a bell. I have used Splenda off & on before SBD but more so when I started SBD at the beginnng of February. The first sympton was the itching all over; and then as the weeks went by it got worse until it was full blown. My eyes sometimes don't focus as well, and my skin is like sandpaper and just drier than the dustbowl back in the early 1900's! Wait till my CRNP hears about this. Thanks for those who posted. It's been a full month since I had this full blown rash. I just pray that time will heal my body as I continue to eat healthy minus the Splenda. Hopefully others will not have to go through this ordeal. Now, God help me and the rest of my brothers & sisters to heal from this. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Posted by: Brenda O'Donnell at April 14, 2006 8:17 PM

Fellow "SPLENDA" sufferers... It has been 44 days since my LAST SPLENDA intake. Today, I can say that I am "itch" free and have not had any antihistimines for 7 days!!!! My skin is still very, very dry. Continues to feel like fine sandpaper, but at least the itching is completely gone. As you all, I have never been so sick in my life. I lost my Mother, March 2005. She had been sick for 14 months prior. 3 different hospitals, 21 doctors and finally the nursing home. My Mother went from 200lbs to 135lbs. Doctors could not find out what was wrong with her. All tests came back as "inconclusive"! For the last 7 months of her life, she suffered with CONSTANT DIARREHA. Now, that I have searched everything possible about Splenda and find that it attacks the Thymus Gland,and in reading about those symptoms... I feel that I have been given the answers to what my Mother died from. My Mother struggled with her weight constantly. She was a SPLENDA USER! Her very first symptom was a Rough, Itcy patch on her hand! HELLO??? Then her system quite producing White Blood Cells, then it was swollen nymph nodes, removal of nymph nodes were "inconclusive"! What we have here is a Government so fixed on the almightly dollar that they do not care how many of us suffer or die from their "chemical" compounds! I purchased a bottle of Dansani Lemon Flavored water this morning before coming to work. As it sat on my desk, I noticed that on the side of the label was the SPLENDA Trademark. I threw it away. We all need to stand up and file a law suit against SPLENDA and tell "our" stories to everyone we come into contact with. I pray for all of us that our bodies have not been harmed by this "Chlorine Chemical" that the manufacturers call SPLENDA - SUGAR SUBSTITUTE!!!!!

Posted by: Lynn at April 19, 2006 4:49 PM

I am soooo glad to find all this info. I have had a rash for 6 weeks. I have had prednisone pills, prednisone shots. I've tried every non prescription crean and several prescription ones. I've changed shampoo, conditioner, deodratents and laundry soap an nothing helped. It seemed eveyday I was getting worse. After talking to the Dermatoligist I thought maybe it was strawberries. I started dieting in Jan. and found a love for strawberries with Splenda in March. So I stopped eating strawberries and the rash with in a few days was clearing up. As dissappointed as I was about the strawberries I was excited to know that I was on my way to recovery. Then on Friday last week I stopped and bought an iced tea with splenda and by Friday evening I had a rash all over my elbows. By Saturday it was on my ears, butt cheeks and knees. I now know it is the splenda because I have had no splenda for 3 days and the rash is a little better. I guess I will be able to enjoy strawberries again I will just not cover them in Splenda. This is worse then being allergic to strawberries. Splenda has helped me stay on my diet and allowed be to lose 32 lbs. But what good is being thin if your covered in a rash all the time. I have had red hot spots that have itched but never turned to a rash. I have had scally bumpy rashes. I have had them on my head, face, nose, ears, neck, forearms, elbows, hips, thighs, knees and butt cheeks. I will never touch this stuff again.

Posted by: Brittani at May 1, 2006 1:31 PM

What a relief it is to come across this info! About 2 months ago, I woke up one morning to a face with huge sacks under the eyes and swollen red eyelids. I looked like I had been in a boxing match. I nearly fainted! I had no idea what could have caused such a reaction as I have never been allergic to anything before. These past few months I have been racking my brain trying to narrow down what might be the cause, as the symptoms seemed to come and go. I visited a doctor; they weren't much help. I took allergy pills; no change. I tried removing various known allergens from my diet like wheat, eggs, certain fruits, dairy, etc. Still no change...the puffy red and swollen eyes would still appear. Then I started thinking about whether Splenda could be causing it; I recently started using it in my baking and my coffee, and also bought energy drinks sweetened with Splenda, all because I thought it was a safe low-cal alternative to sugar. Well lo and behold it's been 5 days since I have had no Splenda and my eyes are back to normal. I think, after reading all the posts here, that I will remove it from my diet. I'll go back to using regular sugar (and maybe give Stevia a try). I love sweet things, but not if the cost is big swollen puffy red eyes.

Thanks to everyone for your posts. I have felt like I've been going crazy these past few months and this information is the first I've come across on the internet that supports my suspicions about Splenda.

Posted by: Jennifer at May 18, 2006 12:13 AM

Hello everyone! I came across this website because I've been suffering from horrible allergies for the last ten months and have been searching like crazy trying to figure out the cause but not once did it cross my mind that it could be Splenda until a few days ago. Ten months ago I went on the south beach diet which uses splenda on a lot of their recipes. The first thing I experienced was the numbness and tingling on my hands and arms, went to the doctor, got all kinds of tests done and everything came back normal. My doctor said it may be carpal tunnel syndrome which didn't make sense since I dont do any type of work that would cause that, but oh well. Next, I got this horrible skin rash on my arms and back of the legs which my doctor said it was eczema. I did have eczema as a child so I bought into that one. So far none of things caused me to think it was the Splenda because I believed it to be safe since it's derived from real sugar. Sugar never caused me any problems, why would it start now. Before I go on, I have to say that I've always suffered from enviromental allergies and I'm allergic to yogurt and penicillin, but nothing that a once a day pill wouldn't take care of. I also have a real sweet tooth, so I started using splenda everyday on my coffee and other south beach diet recipes. Next thing I know I started getting this hives that would start on my feet every single day and over a period of time covered my whole my body. The doctor put me on prednisone because benadryl wasn't helping and it went away for a little bit. About 2 weeks later I'm in the ER with my eyes and lips swollen, completely unrecognizable and throat started closing. Went back on steroids and started to see an allergist. Allergy testing showed that I was allergic to everything that you could possibly imagine. Basically the only things I could eat safely were oatmeal, coffee, spinach, tuna, beef, sugar, olives and berries. My allergist was blown away and so was I of course. What happenned, I've eaten all the other regular foods all my life and I'm 36 yrs old, how could all of a sudden be allergic to them? Again I didnt think it was the splenda because it comes from sugar and that was ok. My allergist thought that something was making me hypersensitive to all this things that I never had a problem with before. So I followed the doctor's instructions and did what they called and "Elimination Diet" ate the things that were safe only and yes I was glad that I least could have the splenda in my coffee, oatmeal and berries. I also spent a lot of money changing all my bedding to hypoallergenic ones, got rid of the bird and all the carpets in the house. The hives still kept coming and so did the swelling regardless of all the changes I had made not to mention the multiple medications and large doses of prednisone. All of this has occurred over a period of 10 months and just the other day,it occurred to me that I had also started using splenda 10 months ago when I started the south beach diet, and I continued to use it through the elimination diet. I called my doctor and asked him, if has seen patients allergic to splenda. He said no, but of course splenda is fairly new on the market and there's probably not alot of documented cases on it. He did say to eliminated completely and be patient because it can take anywhere from 3 days to up 3 to 4 weeks before I can see real changes. Well I came home and googled "splenda allergies" and thank god I found this website. It confirms my suspicions, I felt relieved to have found others who have been through the same thing and that I'm not going crazy. It's only been 3 days since I stopped the splenda and although I have still experienced some mild hives I have been able to decrease the amount of medications that I take. I'm down to twice a day as opposed to 4 or 5 a day. I forgot to mention earlier that I was also feeling mentally foggy and that was the first change that I noticed since I stopped the splenda. I was completely blown away when I read all of your stories. My life has been a nightmare for the last ten months. I've been trough so much testing including Lupus. I've missed so many days of worked because of this, that I'm just lucky to still have a job. Why aren't this side effects being recognized by "Splenda" and the FDA. Maybe some of you can help shed some light on this.

Posted by: Marisol at May 22, 2006 4:05 PM

Splenda is dangerous? because it happened to me. I am a personal trainer and an office assistant. I eat fairly healthy and also the occasional junk food. I cleaned up my diet to enter a figure bodybuilding competition.

For the first week- I wrote down everything I ate, right down to the gms, total gms, calories, fat/pro/carb% ratio�s. I realized I had taken in so much fat and carbs, and not enough protein to maintain my muscle.

The second week- I started a clean diet, to stay lean and gain more muscle. This was the typical bodybuilders/competitors diet that I followed, but ofcourse adjusted the portions and calories, according to my height, bodywt, and goals.

On that second week - I started having eye pain every 2hrs. Pain inside my eye, like a spasm, also in front of my eyeballs. Not eye irritation, I mean �PAIN�. My vision also became blurry, as if there was a clear plastic bag in front of my eyes, sometimes clear, sometimes cloudy. I was freaking out, crying, because this would happen day and night. I started having panic attacks at night for fear that I might wake up blind.

I decided to see an Opthamologist. He said my eyes were in perfect condition, he could not find anything wrong. He said it may be associated with allergies, and suggested I take over the counter allergy medication. He said to check up with him in a year.

The third week- the same thing?groggy, fatigued, irritable in the morning, and anxious, restless, panic attacks at night. I cried at work because my vision got blurry and the pain became worse. I went to see another Opthamologist to get a 2nd opinion. This doctor did not find anything wrong either. She said my eyes look good and gave me a script-Zylet eye drops(take 4x�s day to moisten). I went home, ate some peanut butter bar mixed with Splenda, and lied down because my eyes were dilated from the exam. As soon as I lied down I felt excruciating eye pain again.

My boyfriend said to record how long, how often and when you get your eye pain, what you�ve been doing differently and so forth. Then it struck me! I looked at the huge box of Splenda that I had purchased. I never used a sweetener substitute before. All bodybuilders, competitors and trainers swear by it because it has no carbs! It was the only new thing that I had taken, right from the moment my eye pain began. I looked on the Web regarding Splenda and the dangers, and was shocked to find out many other people experienced the same problems I�ve had.

Splenda is a new synthetic compound called sucralose, comprised of 2 molecules of sucrose(sugar) and 3 molecules of chlorine. Industry experts claim the molecule is similar to salt, but independent researches say it has more in common with pesticides! Sucralose is not recognized in the body as food, so that is why it has no calories. We are ingesting an unknown substance in our body! There are no long-term studies of the side effects of Splenda in humans, and I believe we are the guinea pigs for Splenda.

I didn�t realize I was consuming Splenda at almost every meal! I ate oatmeal w/ splenda, my peanut bars w/ splenda, my whey protein shakes have splenda!(splenda brand indicated right on the tub), my cranberry juice had splenda, my meal replacement shakes had been sweetened w/ splenda, and even my vitamin C chewables were sweetened w/ splenda!!! I found out I was consuming about 1/2cup-1cup of splenda a day!(since I was counting gram for gram, ounce for ounce). So I threw out all the Splenda I had. Took me another week to get all of the splenda out of my system. From this moment on, I will never consume any sugar substitute again. I feel alot better now that all the splenda is out of my system! I am all organic now.

-Christina M

Posted by: Christina at May 25, 2006 7:26 PM

It’s Christina again. After reading all these stories about Splenda, I’m glad I didn’t spend anymore money going to the doctors. My Opthamologist suggested I see an ENT since she thought my eye probs were associated w/ allergies, then she said if they don’t find anything, she would send me to a neurologist to get an MRI. (don’t want any more bills… thankyou)

My co-workers want to know what happened w/ my eyes, and they keep suggesting maybe it’s irritation from my contacts, or looking at the computer screen too long, the lights, etc. Like they try to problem solve for you…. But it gets annoying. I told one co-worker that it’s from Splenda.. and she chuckled as if that is the most absurd thing she has ever heard. So I haven’t told anyone else (except family and my boyfriend). Others don’t understand, cause’ they didn’t go thru what we went thru. They think it’s a little pack of sugar.. big deal. But since this affected me soo much, I refuse to ingest another drop! If someone offers me something that has artificial sweeteners in it.. I just say I’m allergic to it. (K.I.S.S. rule).

I still get a little stinging in my eyes here and there. Maybe the chlorine molecules are leaking outta my eyes! I sometimes get some anxiety attacks at night, fearing the eye pain, twitching will come back. But the pain hasn’t come back since I stopped using Splenda. (I feel like Pavlov’s dog – already trained to respond to a particular stimulus!).

I recently tossed out my diet pepsi(which I totally loved), all my energy drinks, and even my Yoplait yogurt…. They all had sucralose(splenda) or aspartame in it.

Email me if you’ve had a similar experience. Christina M

Posted by: Christina M at May 28, 2006 9:39 AM

I had decided to stop drinking soft drinks and eat healthy. I started to drink ottled water. I tried several different bottled waters including Crystal Clear, Propel, Fruit20. I -thought- it was good to drink these water products, but little did I know it contained "sucralose", which, is actually SPLENDA. My mother had even warned me, "Don't ingest anything with splenda." I didnt know sucralose was splenda. For about 3 months I had been drinking this bottled water. During this time my left arm became tingling, sore, the muscles al ached. I'm a guitar player, and this was the worst nightmare of my life. I did not link it to the drinks. I also noticed that it was starting in my right arm. I WENT TO a doctor who could find nothing wrong so he recommended me to a neurologist. The neurologist ran multiple tests on my arm, including sticking needles all over my arm and sending electrical shocks through it. He said, "Good news and bad news. The good news is there is no nerve damage. The bad news is I have no idea whats wrong!" He suggested it was tendonitis and I continued therapy. It didnt get better at all. I was thinking... what is the one thing that really changed in my life when this started? And the answer was these bottled water products. I took a Crystal Clear Water bottle and looked at the ingredients. I found "sucralose" on the internet, only to find it is actually SPLENDA -- the very chemical my mother warned me not to consume, only it had a code name if some sort. I have never used any "sugar free" products in my life. I assumed the large "Naturally Flavored" label on the Crystal Clear Water bottle meant it was actually naturally flavored... apparently NOT, as Sucralose/Splenda is everything but natural. I had been consuming a genetically altered form of sugar, which, from what I read, contains chlorine. I have been poisoning my body for 3 months with "Natural Flavoring", aka CHLORINE. Both my arms and hands hurt and ache all over, and the pointer finger on my left hand has some odd bump on it and itches. I pray that my muscles are not permanently damaged, else I can never play guitar or use my hands again. Sad how 3 months of using what appears to be a harmless product can ruin your whole life and work? Turning a 26 year old body into that of a 60 year old. It feels as if someone has been slamming a sledge hammer onto my hands and arms. But enough of crying over this. I have read all your cries and pains too. The law here says you have to be 21 to drink alcohol. Well shouldnt there be a similiar law for Splenda, or perhaps, since it seems to have NO BENEFICIAL USE, only HARMFUL SIDE EFFECTS, it be taken completely off the market? Let's really think about what's going on here. These corporations have PURPOSELY cr3eated splenda/sucralose to destroy lives! They made tons of money off it by portraying it as sugar free, thus luring anyone who wants to be healthy into trying it, or even unsuspecting victims as myself who think we are getting "natural flavored beverages". Think of all the Tens upon thousands , hundreds of thousands of dollars that have been spent at the doctors office and hospitals running tests trying to find the problems that come back as negative!!! This is definately a medical industry and corporate scandle. THEY ARE ALL IN IT TOGETHER! Some great doctors you are when you are not up to date on the latest chemicals on the market, and able to discover the side effects? Think about this.. these corporations and industries have so much technology and scientists and information that they know EXACTLY what Splenda does to people. They keep releasing it because it generates them money and helps destroy the "lesser/lower" class. It shows how truly POWERLESS the average human is, and that we are actually being controlled and subtly manipulated by the elite and their evil agenda. President Bush is a member of the Skull and Bones, which is their main emblem as well. What is this other than the POISON LABEL. Yes, our very president of the USA is a member of a group that intentionally seeks to poison its population in order to gain profit. Now ask yourselves... why is nothing being done about chemicals like sucralose/splenda being put in our food? After readings hundreds and hundreds of horror stories on this product, why is it still on shelves? Why are the companies and people who make and push it.. still LIVING. WHY ARE THEY STILL LIVING?

Posted by: Brad at May 28, 2006 8:12 PM

Hi all, (especially Brad, Christina, and Marisol)(newcomers to the Splenda nightmare awakening.) I have been reading your stories (nightmares) over the past few days and just felt compelled to write. It has been a little over 4 months now (see my first posting on January 13, 2006) for me since I discovered what was causing my 3 YEAR long battle with a horrible, unimaginable body rash, joint pain, swollen eyes and stabbing eye pain, blurred vision. I feel nothing but compassion for you and wanted to share my life after splenda experience because I know that is the biggest question you have right now.... where does it go from here??? All I can tell you is that some of my symptoms have subsided... the rash has totally gone away (took about two months total,however I never had another rash appear since January 14th!!!) but I still have extensive scarring....the eye pain totally went away and I have not had even 1 day (NOT even 1 day) with swollen eyes. I am still having problems with occasional blurred vision and my joint pain continues. (Long term effects) No one in my family has ever had arthritis and I never had any feelings like this before consuming splenda! I will warn you that I posted a note about a month ago listing products that contain sucralose that most people are not aware of and it somehow miraculously disappeared. I am not sure what we are dealing with here but my blog was there for two days and then was gone!!!! I will not mention any names now but will say that one product was a vitamin bought at Costco and another was a childrens pain medication (over the counter, another was a bran cereal that claimed it was all natural,another was a breath mint.) Please, please read every single label of everything you intend to ingest because the "stuff" is everywhere. If you have any questions in regard to what I have gone through please feel free to e-mail me at terri_oneil@yahoo.com
I am so sorry to read your stories ... I can't believe what is happening with this stuff. Take care, Terri

Posted by: Terri at May 28, 2006 11:57 PM

Hey Terri... I am so glad u replied. When I figured out that my eye problems were due to Splenda.. I felt for everyone and all the stories that I read on this site. When I saw that others had rashes, itching, hives, etc, I thought Splenda must have an affect in a number of ways. I felt their pain, but overlooked it somewhat b/c I did not have any skin reactions(just eye probs, blurred vision, twitching, pressure, spasms). �UNTILL� I read your particular story you posted on 1-13-06. I didn�t even make the connection� but when I read your story� the same exact thing happened to me!!!

5mths ago, I was on an ice cream kick, and ate ice cream like crazy every night after dinner/before bed, in order to satisfy my sweet-tooth. Since I ate soo much of it� I decided to switch to low-carb ice-cream. On several occasions, right after I ate, went to bed, in the middle of the night I woke up w/ a severe rash all over my legs!... I was in pain!... The pain and itching was so intense that it was just as you described it �like a million bugs crawling on me�. Red bumps everywhere� and occasionally the next day or so it would travel to my stomach and back to my legs, both legs, one leg,... it traveled everywhere. Couldn�t stop itching. I would take cold showers, cold wash cloths, lotion, etc. It was so unbearable� that 3 out of the 5 times, I went straight to the ER. The doctor said it could be your lotion, detergent, pets? (none). But I�ve been using the same lotion and detergent for years, and have no pets. He gave me a script-steriod cream. It helped a little bit, but the rash would keep coming back here and there, and I could never understand why?! I washed and bleached my sheets, washed all my clothes and towels, cleaned the house�..?!?!? So I dismissed it as�. Maybe my skin is just sensitive. I ended up w/ over $700 in ER bills.

I wish I could remember exactly what I ate at that time. All I can remember is that I bought Edy�s Slow-Churned Butter Pecan ice cream. When I looked on www.edys.com for the ingredients, I did not find any splenda on it.

This is what the ingredients are: milk, skim milk, cream, sugar, corn syrup, roasted pecans(pecans, coconut oil, butter, salt), brown sugar, whey protein, egg yolks, tapioca maltodextrin, salt, natural flavor, cellulose gum, citric acid, mono and diglycerides, annatto color, guar gum, carrageenan, dextrose, vit A palmitate.

I was wondering if you can help me out?... Am I over-looking something? I�m sure I ate other sweet stuff during that 5mth period (that probably contained splenda/or other artificial sweeteners), that made me break out into a rash. That totally explains everything. So if I eat something sweet again, I will definitely make sure that I read all of the ingredients. I�m so glad you replied� otherwise I would have never looked at your story back in January.

Anyways� again, thank you so much for your reply and understanding. Let me know what your thoughts are, or if you find out anything interesting.

This is for everyone else too... if you have any thoughts please email me w/ "splenda/beliblog" in the subject area". tx

gijane1@comcast.net

Posted by: Christina M at May 30, 2006 7:22 PM

Hi Terri and everybody else and thank you for sharing your experiences. I have been officially without Splenda for 10 days now. This is the first time in the last 10 months that I've been able live without prednisone and without any major reactions. I've had just some mild hives every other day on my legs but my allergist says to be patient, it may be about one month or so before Splenda is completely out of my body. However I am concerned with the long term side effects. For now it feels great to be awake again, because all of those allergy medicines had me sleepy or groggy day and night. I was getting really scared because in the last ten months I felt like my health was just going down hill really fast. I feel alive again and everyday that goes by without Splenda I feel better and better. I also told some people at my job that it was the Splenda causing this and I also got some weird looks. I did share it with my youngest sister whom I talk to about once a month and she said last month she switched to diet soda and 1 week later she was having hives and swelling everyday. She realized it quick because the diet soda was the only new thing and sure enough it was made with splenda. She stopped the diet sodas and about a week later started to get better. I just feel so stupid every time I think that I was slowly poisoning my body with that junk. I just can't understand how this "sweet poison" is still on the shelves when there are so many of us with similar experiences. Brad I think you're theory is not too far from the truth, I have called to FDA several time to report adverse reactions on Splenda and nobody answers the phone. You just get a voicemail asking to leave a detailed message, which I've left 2 so far and no one has returned my call. I'm so scared now to eat or drink anything unless I'm able to see the ingredients with my own eyes. I'm just curious, have any of you reported your experience to the FDA or Splenda and what kind of reply did you get? Take care and thanks again. You can also email me at dearmd@hawaii.rr.com

Posted by: Marisol at May 31, 2006 12:02 AM

I am beyond excited that I stumbled across this site!!! I have been using Splenda for quite a while, when it was contained in soda, popsicles and other diet products, and never had a problem. It was in February when I started a diet that required no sugar that I bought a box of the stuff (poison) in the grocery store. Every morning I would have oatmeal and strawberries and Splenda. I had gone out to dinner one night with my family and mentioned to my husband before we even ordered the food that my tongue felt swollen and burned. I had only started the diet a day or two prior to the dinner. He suggested that maybe I had burned my mouth on the oatmeal. Days later I had no improvement in the way my tongue felt and it actually felt as though there was something stuck on the back of it. It really scared me and I knew I wasn't burning my mouth. My mother suggested that since sometimes I am sensitive to certain fruits maybe I had developed a sensitivity or allergy to strawberries. I got rid of the strawberries but continued to eat oatmeal with Splenda. I ended up with the flu and went off the diet for a few weeks. My tongue felt much better. Then about a month ago I started the diet once again. I started with the oatmeal without strawberries, but continued to load the oatmeal with Splenda since I am not a big oatmeal fan and the sweeter the better. Around the same time I got a new Siamese kitten who I completely adore. My little girls are crazy about him too. About a week after I got him I had two hives on my neck. Then I scratched them and they started spreading. They would seem to start to go away and then I'd wake up in the morning and my entire neck would be itching. It made lines of hives on my neck. I didn't know what to think. My boss, who had poison ivy at the same time had me convinced it was poison ivy. I knew I hadn't been anywhere where I could have gotten it, but thought maybe she was right. Then, it occurred to me that although I've never been allergic to cats and have had them my entire life that maybe it was the cat. Or maybe it was the new moisturizer I was using, or the laundry detergent, or the new soap I bought. One by one I removed the new soap, laundry detergent and moisturizer. No improvement. Memorial Day weekend we spent most of the day at relatives and my tongue and hives started to improve. I concluded that since I was away from the cat, perhaps my thoughts that I had developed a new allergy to cats may be true. What I didn't think of was that the entire weekend I cheated on the diet and never used any Splenda. I took the day after Memorial Day off and stayed home with the kids and the cat. I also returned to my diet heavy with Splenda. By that evening, my neck was crazy with horribly itchy hives. I was certain it was the kitten. I changed my sheets and comforter and that night I woke up with my swollen tongue and had tightness in the chest. I was sure it was him. I went out and bought an ionic air purifier and kept the cat out of my room for a few days. No improvement. I started asking people if they knew anyone that would like a new kitten (which broke my heart). I am thankful now that I had no takers. I stumbled across this site and have now been Splenda free for almost 72 hours. The hives are still there but they are beginning to shrink and barely itch. There is definite improvement. My tongue which felt so burned and swollen is about 90% back to normal. I have let the kitten back in my room and he has slept with me the past two nights, and yet my hives and tongue are so much better. I think I have finally found the answer. I am hoping these hives continue to go away at the rate they have already, and i will NEVER use Splenda again. I'd rather not lose the ten pounds than to go through what I've been through for the past month. It has been driving me crazy and the itch has been horrible. Now I am wondering if my recent fatigue can be attributed to the stuff and also my left foot has had an odd but sometimes painful ache in it for no apparent reason. It is frightening to think what this stuff may have done internally. After I found this message board I searched all about splenda and was completely horrified to find what it is made from and how it is processed. I will be sure my family and definitely my children will NEVER ingest this poison.

Posted by: Mary at June 4, 2006 5:13 PM

Hi all,
I check this blog site about 5 times a week just to keep up on new postings. I am wondering how everyone is doing after the splenda "enlightening"... as in how your life without Splenda is going;? and if you have any lingering symptoms... Please post a message and let the rest of us know!!
I know that I still have problems that are related to my consumption of Splenda for three years (What an idiot)(see my original posting on January 13th,2006...scroll up) and I am really curious as to what is happening with everyone else. Personally to Rose: (and also to Christina: I'm sorry I have not answered your e-mail) I continue to have major problems with my joints (pain) and also with my eyes feeling like they have gauze over them. I am still having occasional breakouts of the splenda blisters.. they are unique unto themselves in that they are like no other rash. I believe it happens now because occasionally I consume sucralose without knowing it in the least likely product.. the latest that I ingested was "Airborne" Yep, you all know what that is!!!! Right there in the ingredients and I broke out within 4 hours.
Anyhoo... hope you all are doing okay but please post a note and let the rest of us know; it is the only way we will make any sense of what has happened to us and the only way we can fight this product in the long term. Just because WE have found out what is causing our problem doesn't mean there aren't thousands of others out there suffering just like we were.. Our postings will someday help to take this poison off the shelves. Thank you, Terri

Posted by: terri at June 19, 2006 1:33 AM

Hello everybody! It's been a little over 1 month since I stopped using Splenda and was doing great, no hives, no swelling until I caught a cold and used Zycam (which is suppose to cut colds in half) well, about 30 minutes after using Zycam, my lips were swollen and started getting hives on my feet again. I couldn't figure out what had caused until I found the packaging for the Zycam and there it was the Sucralose under inactive ingredients. I didn't know that Splenda was being used in medications. Maybe some of you knew that already and pardon my ignorance since I am new to the reality of this sweet poison called Splenda. That same afternoon I had bought some over the counter cold remedies which I ran to check the ingredients and ended up returning them to the store because they all had sucralose listed in their ingredients. I have been searching online for a list of all the medications and products containing sucralose and can't quite find anything. If anyone has that information, please forward it to dearmd@hawaii.rr.com. Now that break out took about 3 days for me to get over it. So now I know 100% for sure that it was the sucralose causing all these health problems that I never had before. I almost went into anaphylaxis twice and I now carry and "Epi Pen". However the more information I find out about this poison the more appalled I am. This stuff is everywhere and for someone who is as sensitive to it as I am, that's pretty scary stuff. I have to be extremely careful with anything that I put in my mouth now. Like Heather said "I didn't think that in the U.S. we sell poison to the public to eat". I was reading on one of the websites that the guys that came up with Splenda, came up with it accidentally while tyring to come up with an insecticide. Sucralose it's even children's medications, so becareful when you're giving you're children that cold medicine. By the way, after several attempts I finally filed a complaint with the FDA but they said I will be contacted again for further investigation and of course I haven't heard from anyone.....

Posted by: Marisol at June 23, 2006 12:38 AM

I have quit using Splenda! Today was my first day without it in my coffee for about three years. I am going to take a picture of my eyes and see how it develops as I discontinue Splenda and sucralose. I hope it gets better, people ask me if I have two different color eyes or stare at me funny like I am taking an illegal substance or something. I hope it goes away, I would like to be able to drive at night and to read without problems again. I had 20/12 vision in both eyes and was modeling. Obviously I had to quit modeling because my eyes/pupils were shockingly uneven. I wonder how long it will take for the symptoms to subside?? My eye has been this way for a year and six months now and all the while I have been using Splenda unknowingly. So, it has probably built up in my system. The article in June 26ths "First" magazine said to flush your system with an antioxidant called NAC (N-acetyl-L-cysteine) and to use 600 mg. It is supposed to boost your body's production of glutathione. This will flush CBPs (chlorination by-products, since that is what is in sucralose - chlorine) from the body. They say to go to iherb.com or call 888-792-0028. But most likely I will check out a local health food store for the NAC.

Posted by: Heather at June 23, 2006 12:21 PM

OH MY GOSH!! Hello everyone!! Just another what looks to be a splenda victim. I've been using this for at least 3 years - diabetic and low carb diet....never noticed a problem...other then extreme fatigue (bad enough to think maybe I had something serious going on) but never related it...then about 6 months ago the itching started..and any area that I scratch welts up...little hive looking welts...then go away once the unbearable itch eases up. I looked online for skin itching and found that camphor cream eases it...I use multi times a day a spray made for poison ivy and within a minute of spraying the itching eases. i have seriously been thinking I was dealing with kidney, heart or pancreatic or maybe neurological problems due to type 1 diabetes for over 30 years...but nothing seems to fit. Today we were sitting on the patio after swimming and I mentioned how the cool water felt so good..and before I had a chance to even get the words out...as each body part warmed..so the itching started.

My hubby asked me to think...again...what have I changed or tried differently...the only thing I can think of is the splenda...even if not new...neither are these symptoms...he told me to search online...and geez...when I found this site I was amazed. We don't even question something that is so much out in the market - take for granted that governing bodies like the FDA should and would have tested and made sure this stuff is safe...amazing if this product can cause that...and we use it on our carefully purchased organic foods...frustrating!!!

I am going to stop using the splenda and see what happens...please keep writing...and I will to...it makes me so mad to think that something that we take for granted as being tested and safe can be causing damage like this!!

Thanks for listening/reading to my rant - I have to honestly say, I am still reeling from reading this blog!!!

Laura

Posted by: LC at June 25, 2006 3:10 PM

I found this blog 3 months ago and the info I have received here has saved my sanity! I began breaking out in hives over a year ago while I was 5 months pregnant. They started on my arms and by the middle of the night my extremities would be covered in huge, itchy hives and by mid-morning, all signs of them would be gone. My skin felt like it was "crawling" day and night and I was taking atarax and other anti-histamines to keep the hives away. I also had itchy patches on my face. I could not figure out for the life of me what was causing the hives!

It was around the time that I started having the outbreaks that I started buying Splenda in bulk from Sams' Club and using it in my tea, coffee, cereal, oatmeal... basically everything I used to add sugar to. I thought it was safe because it is "made from sugar".

I cut out all kinds of things from my diet but since I am nursing, I couldn't do the elimination diet. One Saturday morning, I googled Splenda and came across this blog and it hit me like a ton of bricks! It had to be the Splenda! I have never been allergic to anything that I know of, but I cut it out that morning cold turkey. It took over a month to get rid of all the itching and hives, but now I am medication- free and hive free! I tell everyone I know what Splenda has done to my body. Thank you all for posting your stories- I am now "normal" again!

Posted by: Julie R at June 28, 2006 11:41 AM

I'm back, it's been 4 full days since I've been Splenda free and what a difference - my itching has stopped and I do not see any new areas of the rash/hives that have been non-stop for a year. I have told my mom who is a diabetic and has had some weird problems - they were trying to diagnose her pain in her bladder or urinary tract but even after a biopsy, cat scan, etc. they haven't been able to figure it out. She still has pain but at times it is not as severe but other times she cries in pain. She is in her late 70's and being diabetic she relies on a lot of those artifical sweetners, including Splenda. Has anyone else had this type of undiagnosed pain in the bladder or urinary tract that antibiotics does not cure? Also, has anyone here gotten in touch with the FDA or know if there will be any type of action against Splenda? If so, please advise and I would add my story to it as well. Thanks to everyone who took the time to write here otherwise, I would still be searching for the answer to my itchy rash. There are still remaining bumps which I hope will clear up in time but the insane itchiness that was driving me crazy has subsided.
Thanks again.

Posted by: Cat at July 5, 2006 9:18 AM

Please add me to the list of those who have been suffering from the side effects of Splenda. About 3 mos. ago started a diet and loaded up on sugar-free (Splenda-filled) popsicles and ate them like crazy to avoid food cravings. Soon afterwards, I started having chest pains and made 2 trips to the ER where after every test available I was sent home with a doctor patting me on the head saying, "it's probably just anxiety". So, thinking it was all in my head, I kept eating all the same foods and since my "Splenda diet" was working so well, I decided to encorporate these lovely protein bars, sweetened with, you guessed it - more Splenda!! That was two weeks ago. Now, I'm having SEVERE chest pains, numbness down my left arm and even pains in my aorta all the way up to my neck!! Since my doctor thinks I'm a "chest pain hypochondriac" now, I didn't even go to the ER - instead I went to the Internet and typed in "Splenda chest pains" - and guess what - I'm not alone!!! In the past hour, I've read of at least 20+ people experiencing the exact same chest pains I've been having. So, beginning today, I'm not touching another Splenda product - EVER. This is scary stuff. I can't believe this toxin is allowed on the market for human consumption.

Liz

Posted by: Liz at July 14, 2006 1:37 PM

I am so glad I discovered this blog. My symptoms started around two years ago, with a swollen, itchy throat. I thought it was due to a throat gland, as I had the dry skin associated with that. I had a scan run, and they found nothing. Two blood tests and still nothing. I had been on low carb during this time, and was trying out many of the recipes for this diet using sucralose products. As the doctors couldn't find anything wrong with me, I finally gave up and quit complaining. Then the rashes started. You should see my poor hands as I type this. My fingers are swollen, and there is this horrible itchy rash all over my left hand and my right hand has some of it. This is what finally got me to thinking maybe it was the sweetener I was using. After reading all of your inputs, I have been adding things up. I am now of the opinion that the incredible joint pain and muscle pain I have been trying to cope with for the past two years, thinking it was related to aging (although NO ONE in my family has any arthritic symptoms, or indeed any symptoms of muscle weakness or pain), can now be attributed to this sucralose. I will have to see as this is the first day I've avoided it. This makes me sad though, as the Splenda tasted so much like real sugar it was an easy substitute to make. Sigh. Again, thanks for all the information.

Posted by: Linda at July 18, 2006 8:39 AM

Hi all, I was just reading back... blogs from months ago; because I just have to.....from time to time.... try to make sense of all this...splenda nightmare.
Anyhow, I came across a blog by "Edward," posted on March 13, 2006 (scroll up) and realized that he was posting a question to us all about iodine allergys. Another bell went off in my head! I know there are a lot of people out there who have never had a cat scan or any injected "dye" "iodine" from shellfish but I DID have one almost 15 years ago and it was then that I learned that I was allergic to shellfish (the source of the dye that they inject you with for catscans, etc...)
I have been wondering lately what makes some of us so hideously allergic to splenda/sucralose while others can consume it in relatively small amounts and suffer no consequences... Perhaps there is an iodine-chlorine connection??? I know it would take an organic science professional to come up with a correlation but there must be something to it!
After learning of my allergy to shellfish 15 years ago I then realized why everytime I ate shrimp (and thought, oh, this must be normal) my mouth would slightly swell and itch and my lips would feel numb. The friend who introduced me to Splenda in 2003 never had a problem with it; while my nightmare began within a few days of ingesting it.
Anyhooooo.... just more info for the site and hopefully it will pull a few more ideas together for some of us who are suffering the consequences of Splenda. Heaven help us all :)
Terri

Posted by: terri oneil at September 2, 2006 4:44 AM

I've been suffering from severe Post Nasal Drip, cough and lot of phlegm for nearly 5 months. I used all kinds OTC medicines for cough, cold and allergies. I visited my Doctor, he put me on Claritin followed by Zyrtec for about 2 months. Then finally Doctor referred me to an Allergist who gave me an appointment 3 weeks later. Meanwhile I started eliminating certain foods like milk, peanuts, eggs etc., from my diet to figure out if they are the suspects. Nothing helped. Finally I stopped using SPLENDA in my morning Tea and Coffee. I started feeling better almost immediately. My nose, throat and my chest became completely dry, no Post Nasal Drip, no plegm and no cough. Otherwise it used to start with first Tea with splenda in the morning and continue whole day. I am one hundred percent sure that it is SPLENDA. I never suspected SPLENDA because they advertised it is made from natural sugar. I used it for almost 2 years but initially just 1 or 2 packets a day. Then a few months ago I started using Zero Coke which is made of Splenda with rum and increased daily intake to 4-5 packets of Splenda in coffee and Tea. I am now convinced that probably my body became allergic to so much sucralose in my blood. Then I came across this web site which confirmed that it is true.

I hope this helps somebody with similar problems.

Posted by: Bob at October 11, 2006 10:10 PM

I hope this helps somebody with similar problems.

Posted by: Bob at October 11, 2006 10:11 PM

I've been suffering from severe Post Nasal Drip, cough and lot of phlegm for nearly 5 months. I used all kinds OTC medicines for cough, cold and allergies. I visited my Doctor, he put me on prescription drugs for allergies for about 2 months. Then finally Doctor referred me to an Allergist who gave me an appointment 3 weeks later. Meanwhile I started eliminating certain foods like milk, peanuts, eggs etc., from my diet to figure out if they are the suspects. Nothing helped. Finally I stopped using SPLENDA in my morning Tea and Coffee. I started feeling better almost immediately. My nose, throat and my chest became completely dry, no Post Nasal Drip, no plegm and no cough. Otherwise it used to start with first Tea with splenda in the morning and continue whole day. I am one hundred percent sure that it is SPLENDA. I never suspected SPLENDA because they advertised it is made from natural sugar. I used it for almost 2 years but initially just 1 or 2 packets a day. Then a few months ago I started using Zero Coke which is made of Splenda with rum and increased daily intake to 4-5 packets of Splenda in coffee and Tea. I am now convinced that probably my body became allergic to so much sucralose in my blood. Then I came across this web site which confirmed that it is true.

I hope this helps somebody with similar problems.

Posted by: Bob at October 11, 2006 10:14 PM

I have always been "allergic" to artificial sweeteners and so, without even trying it, I assumed I was more than likely allergic to Splenda as well. I didn't even bother trying it. At the same time, I was about my 16th week or so into doing Atkins without getting to indulge in anything for the ol' sweet tooth. I was DYING for chocolate (girl's best friend). My fiance' uses Splenda and one day, in a weak moment, just to taste something sweet again (I'd been really, really good), I put some in my tea (hot) along with some cream and YUMMMMMM...oh glorious day... Well, maybe I jumped the gun I thought. I waited to see if I would have any adverse reaction. When it didn't seem I'd had much of a reaction other than nausea, I was grocery shopping and low and behold! There, in the ice cream case - Bryers makes chocolate ice cream (only 4 net carbs per serving) and fudge bars (only 3 net carbs per serving). I have been indulging in that stuff now for four or five days prior to today. I do mean indulging...I'd not have eaten any carbs that day just to be able to eat (or feel like I was eating) real ice cream again!

I quit having Splenda today; If I'd had Splenda today, it would've been about my 9th day or so having some of it (I quit as of today). The only immediate reaction I had was some nausea - but then, I get that alot ( I have a stomach malady) and I figured for CHOCOLATE I could tolerate some nausea (food whore that I am) and so I put up with it a few days. Then, the weather turned a bit colder and all of a sudden I was itching on certain places, not all places, of my body. As the days wore on, the itching got worse and that's not all. Diareaha (sp?) whoa!!! Anyway it turned into whelp looking places on my arms and then into the back of my legs, the inside of my elbows, on my upper chest right up under my neck, on the under arm nearly to the pit area in a large circumference. I couldn't stand clothing touching me - everywhere it touched felt like I was being bitten by red fire ants.

It dawned on me today...the ONLY ONLY ONLY thing I've done differently these past few days was to add Splenda to my diet and like the feller said earlier in this blog, I know in my GUT that the Spenda caused this...

You know, when they approve something, it doesn't mean a thing except that someone's palm got greased in the right way and they allowed it to be used by the innocent sheeplike masses walking around in a daze believing what we're told and believing that some people in charge actually have brains enough to wait until those drugs/controversial foods aren't dangerous anymore before telling us that they're safe to use... I KNEW before I touched the stuff that I probably shouldn't - but after I tasted it, it just seemed like I had a little more freedom - like I was cheating without really cheating...guess ya can't get something for nothing... My thanks to Benedryl and Claritin...

They say: BUYER BEWARE and although the meaning of this coined phrase was meant in a different way, it can also be taken to heart and used for this situation...

Buyer Beware

No No No No No No SPLENDA - Say no to poison.

Posted by: April at October 18, 2006 12:08 AM

Thought you all might like to read this letter I received from Proctor-Gamble in regard to a letter I wrote to them about Pepto Bismol containing sucralose!! My letter follows theirs below.
I wrote to them because I discovered sucralose in a product that is supposed to "cure" diarrhea and was appalled... well you know the reason why. Hope everyone is doing well/better these days. Correspondence follows:

Recently you requested personal assistance from our on-line support
center. Below is a summary of your request and our response.

If this issue is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may reopen it
within the next 7 days.

Thank you for allowing us to be of service to you.

Subject
I have a concern! I went to take some Pepto Bismol the other day for
stomach ...

Discussion Thread
Response (RightNow Administrator) - 11/02/2006 06:46 PM
Hi Terri,

I'm sorry you had a disappointing experience with our product. Cherry
Liquid is the only Pepto version that contains sucralose. More than
100 scientific studies over a 20-year period have shown the safety of
Sucralose. Sucralose has been approved by the US FDA, Health Canada, and
the joint Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations/World
Health Organization and Expert Committee on Food Additives.

All of our products are thoroughly safety tested. We appreciate your
bringing this to our attention, and I'm sharing your report with our
Health and Safety Consultants.

Thanks for getting in touch with us.

Kelly
Pepto-Bismol Team

Customer - 11/01/2006 12:17 AM
I have a concern! I went to take some Pepto Bismol the other day for
stomach distress after eating too much at dinner(thought it might help.)
After reading the ingredients I realized that it contains sucralose!
Sucralose is a well known CAUSE of stomach cramping and diahrrea! It is
listed as such on many products these days that are sugar free and
containing it. I have a severe sucralose allergy and Pepto Bismol is the
very last thing I would have expected to find it in.
Sounds like PG should do some research on the dangers and reactions
to sucralose as there are already law-suits being filed. (I'm quite
sure they are aware of these) Please, please bring my e-mail to the
attention of someone who can research this or just someone who cares....
Why would you put something in a anti-diarhea product that causes it??
To sell more? I don't understand.
I have posted a blog to a website that has a 4 year "on-going blog
site" about Splenda/Sucralose and it's dangers and would like you to
know that your product has now been listed as one containing sucralose.
Google "Splenda allergy" and it will take you to the number 1 site.
I know that this will no doubt end up on the floor of the e-mail
garbage at proctor-gamble.. but in the interest of public health; I
sincerely hope not. Would hate to see this on the evening news.

Terri Oneil
Terri_Oneil@yahoo.com

Posted by: terri oneil at November 3, 2006 12:50 AM

I too, am so thankful to have found this site!! Six months ago I emptied my sugar bowl and filled it with Splenda. I only use the 'tip of a teaspoon' full for my two to three cups of tea per day. I had no problems. During the summer, I decided to try and decrease my Diet Coke intake, so I began drinking a minimum of 3 Neslie, flavored water (with Splenda). I also began eating yogurt with Splenda. Two months ago, my eye problems started. It started with pain in and around my left eye. I saw my Optometrist and she said that my eyes look very healthy. Within three weeks, I could not wear my contacts anymore....(after 24 years of problem-free contact use)! Two weeks after that came the burning. When I say burning, I mean the most intense burning/pain that you can imagine...a 10 on a scale of 1-10!! I have not been able to work (or do much of anything for that matter) for 4 weeks now. I have had every blood test possible, plus 4 more visits to the eye doctor. My family doc put me on 5 days of Prednisone.....nothing. I am now on a two week dose of antibiotics. No improvement. The doctor says that "something is attacking you....we just have to figure out what". Last night, while racking my brain trying to figure out what I've been eating/doing differently, it occured to me....Splenda!!! I googled Splenda + Allergy and here I am. After spending the past few hours reading up on Splenda, I am convinced that this is the culprit. It only makes sense....burning eyes-chlorine!!!! Incidentally, I should mention that my whole face feels hot. My ears, my throat, my tongue. I too have had a red rash on my upper eyelids. My eyelids have been swollen on many occasions. When my eyes are at their worst, my facial symptoms are also bad. My own doctor has been baffled by this and has arranged an appointment with a Neurologist this coming Tuesday, (November 7th). I will not be touching anything with Splenda in it for the next while. I will give this a 'fair shake' to see if my symptoms improve. I think I already know the answer though. It all makes so much sense. I will update in a few weeks. Has anyone else had severe burning eyes/face? If so, please email me at barbmah@hotmail.com. Thanks and good health to everyone!
P.S. If my symptoms do improve, I too would be interested in some legal action. This is a scary 'drug'.

Posted by: Barb Mah at November 3, 2006 4:01 PM

After suffering for eight months with a mysterious horrible rash sometimes covering more than 80% of my body, something told me not to use my regular sugar free creamer in my coffee the next morning. After following that instinct, I googled "allergic reaction to Splenda" and found this site as well as a few others. I spent that entire day reading and many of the messages posted by others sounded as if I had written them myself. Many of the symptoms mentioned I also had experienced to varying degrees, but the intense rash was the common thread. Every incident of the severity of the rash coordinated with my use of Splenda. If I just used it in my coffee that morning, the rash would be manageable. However, if I had it in my coffee, then on my cereal, perhaps in my iced tea or a diet soda, or maybe sugar free pudding or ice cream that evening, I would be covered with the hot, swollen, red, itching, ozzing bumps. That was October 5, 2006 - that same day I cleaned out my pantry, refrigerator and cupboards of all products containing Splenda/sucralose. As a pre-diabetic, I had been using Splenda for over two years but like many others, was purchasing and consuming more products as they became available. Today I feel great and am completely healed of the rash although I am left with some scars from the scratching I couldn't control. The itching was so intense that I would scratch until it bled, the pain was preferable to the itching. I spent many days not going outside of my house because clothing was so uncomfortable. Anything tight, such as socks or elastic waistbands, would be impossible to wear. I would wear summer pajamas or t-shirts and shorts all the time. During the eight months I was seen by my family doctor as well as two dermatologists, one of which suggested that it was something I was ingesting to which I had a hypersensitivity. I was prescribed three different series of oral steroids, a steroid shot, allergy medications, creams, and ointments. With the last ointment prescription I was instructed to apply the medication before bed and then wrap my legs in plastic wrap (they were really bad). This worked very well to speed the healing. I have written letters to both dermatology offices just to provide them with the information I discovered and my family doctor and I are monitoring my blood pressure closely as I suspect the sudden spike in my blood pressure last year could be connected to this same product. Additionally, my family doctor told me he has two other patients with a mysterious rash, and knows that one of them is a Splenda user. I also plan to discuss this with my health insurance carrier since they also bore the expense of my care and may find this interesting. This has been a horrible experience and hopefully, none of us will be found to have any permanent damage from Splenda and its related products.

Posted by: Gyla Crutchfield at November 3, 2006 10:18 PM

Ive been reading these blogs now for about 7 months. About 2 and a half years ago, I started a low carb diet and substituting sugar for splenda. I'm not too sure how long after that it was, but I developed a horrible rash on my leg. It would come and go, whenever it came I would get some
terrible pains in my hip.

This lasted for 2 years, I decided to look up "red bumpy rash" on the internet, all suggesting that I had something wrong with my immune system. Immune system!!!! How can that be?? I'm one of the healthiest people I know! I decided maybe I should try drinking green tea, Well I quit drinking coffee and started drinking tea. I found out I really like tea and was having about three cups a day. The rash got more frequent, only now I had hives covering my body.

I thought maybe I had allergies, and substituted honey for splenda in my tea. (thiking that honey is good for allergies) I would have honey in my morning tea, I wouldnt have the horrible hives, I would have splenda in my afternoon tea and the hives would come back. I thought maybe I was allergic to my laundry detergent, fabric softener, cat, pollen, never once thinking that it could be the sweenetner i was using. i just couldnt figure it out. Until I read an article in "First" magazine. It had a list of symptoms listed. I couldnt belive it. i just new that splenda was the cause of what i had been going through. I've been splenda free for 7 months.

I am very careful, I check everything. Its been a terrible experience for me, but when i typed "splenda side effects, I couldnt belive i found this sight, i read it quite often. Ive not had a rash in 7 months. and no hives!! terri i think your doing a great job of "keeping it going!!!"

thanks

Posted by: at November 7, 2006 11:10 PM

I'm yet another person who has suffered terrible health problems that I can only attribute to Splenda. I have always been a very healthy person, try to watch what I eat, exercise, etc. I have never been a fan of artificial sweeteners, that is until Splenda. Since Splenda is touted as natural, and made of a form of sugar, I didn't believe I was ingested anything that could be harmful. About two and a half years ago, I began using Splenda in large quantities......I used it to sweeten my iced tea, which I drink in LARGE quantities; I began buying the lite Orange Juice, sweetened with Splenda, along with various snack foods such as cookies, ice cream, etc. Well, a little over a year ago I got a bad rash on my right hand. At first it would come and go, and appeared as tiny little blisters that covered two of my knuckles. After a while, the rash remained and the skin on my knuckles started to turn really white (hypopigmentation). I tried over the counter cortisone creams, which didn't help. I finally went to the derm. who said it was eczema (which I've never had in my life), and prescribed me a steroid cream, which did clear it up relatively quickly. It wasn't long after that I developed SEVERE hives. They first started on the trunk of my body, but eventually got to the point where they covered about 90% of my body, including my face. Many morning I woke up with at least one eye swollen completely shut. I have NEVER had any type of allergy to anything in my life (I'm 35). I went again to the derm. who gave me a prescription to zyrtec and told me to return in 2 weeks if they hadn't cleared up. Needless to say, they didn't. I returned to my derm who then referred me to an allergist. I went through a series of allergy tests, all of which came back negative. I was sent home w/more allergy meds-about 6 total- and prednisone. After about another month of horrible hives covering my body I returned to the allergist. I was told that I might have Lupus or Rheumatoid Arthritis, as I was also having bad joint pain. The doc did a biopsy to test for vasculitis. All of these conditions I tested negative for......thank God!! Basically I was told that my hives were Chronic Idiopathic (meaning no known cause). It was the most frustrating thing I've ever been through in my life. I lived on zyrtec, benadryl and steroids.... I felt constantly in a fog. I decided to be my own detective and try to find the cause of this mysterious illness. I switched to laundry detergent free of dyes and perfumes, I stopped using anything w/fragrance, etc. The hives did not get any better. I was reaching the end of my rope. I got on the internet one day to research chronic hives. To my astonishment, in one of the first few hits there was a mention of a correlation between Splenda and hives. It hit me like a ton of bricks. Splenda was the only thing different in my life (I'm a creature of habit). It had never even entered my mind that it might be causing my condition. I quickly eliminated all Splenda from my diet and even called my allergist to let her know that I thought I might have found the culprit and to see if there was any test she could give me to confirm it, but there was not. Well, I noticed a little improvement in my hives, but not substantial. I was so frustrated. To my suprise, a couple of weeks later I was reading a post on the internet from someone else who had suffered a bad reaction to Splenda.....hives. A little ways into her post she revealed what she had been using that had Splenda in it.....PROPEL fitness water. Again, a ton of bricks. I drank the large size of Propel water at least 3 times per day. I used to buy it by the cases at Sams warehouse club. Well, Propel doesn't list Splenda as an ingredient, but does list sucralose (which is Splenda) in its list of ingredients. I couldn't believe that I had still been unknowingly consuming splenda this entire time. Well, now I am a fanatic about reading product ingredients and have completely eliminated Splenda for about 7 months. My hives are definitely getting better....I would say about 80% improved. I can now take an allergy med. every so often as needed, versus several a day. I am just wondering if I have built a toxic overload in my body and maybe it will take a while to completely eliminate it from my system. I do thank God for the healing I have experienced thus far and pray that it continues to improve as it has been. By the way, during the time I was having these problems my husband started having severe pain in his right leg, so bad to the point that sometimes when he would stand his leg would give out on him. He had just discussed making a doctor's appt. for this as it was getting so bad and he had no idea what it was. He is NOT a man who ever goes to the doctor and is super healthy. Well, one day while reading the many internet posts from others having problems w/Splenda I ran across someone w/the same symptoms he was having. During this time he had still been using Splenda in his iced tea. When he read the testimonial I showed him, he discontinued using Splenda and his leg problem stopped immediately.
THIS PRODUCT NEEDS TO BE REMOVED FROM THE MARKET, or, at the very least, consumers need to hear the problems that have been reported due to use of this problem so they can make an informed choice.

Posted by: Andrea at November 11, 2006 1:27 AM

I posted my blog in the wee hrs of the a.m. night before last. Today I saw my Gastroenterologist and she agreed after hearing my story that it was very possible that Splenda could be the culprit for me. It made sense to her. I have not had Splenda for 2 days now and already I am feeling somewhat better. No stomach pain or gas and no hives. Although I might still have an episode or even several, I feel in my heart that Splenda is the cause of all my misery. I spoke with my niece today and she uses a lot of Splenda and she has been having excruciating headaches, one of which she passed out after having vomited. She also thinks her problem is the Splenda. What amazes me is that it is in SO MANY products and that it is so toxic but there are no warnings posted about it. Is the manufacturer making so much money off this horrid product that they are spending big bucks to keep it hush-hush? That also makes sense! It SHOULD be on Oprah, on 60 Minutes, or how about America Undercover? An expose would be awsome! You will never convince me that a product that is in so many of our food items, whose properties are 2 molecules of Sucrose & 3 molecules of CHLORINE, IS NOT A TOXIC PRODUCT!!!....and they're marketing it as though it is GOOD for us!

Posted by: Trish at November 13, 2006 8:13 PM

I just found this blog ! I put in my daughter's and my symptoms and thought I would pull out a virus or an illness involving a bacteria but instead found Splenda as the possible culprit. I still can not rule out a bad virus, though. This is our symptoms: last Friday my Daughter took an afternoon nap and was awoken with sharp chest pains, she could hardly take a breath. She laid there untill it passed and then hopped in the shower thinking it would make her feel better. To her surprize she became covered in a rash on her chest and face that turned into hives. She continued to have off and on chest pains and a headache with nausea. She is pale still, and also, had diarhea. She did however, give blood two weeks ago, and has been very lethargic since. This could have weekened her and set her up for catching a virus, eventhough, there has been no fever, she has had chills. Then last night I had a very sharp pain in my chest that went as fast as it came to only come back later that night so bad that I could not take a deep breath without stabbing pain and then came the itching and this morning my face was red and swollen and I had a light overall rash on my chest, too. But not hives like my Daughter had. We eat energy bars in the afternoon but I don't deliberatley eat sweetners because of the toxic scare with nutra sweet and cancer with sacharin. It is just not worth it. But I have been chewing sugar free gum recently. I don't know if this is it or we are having a bad virus. Time and elimanation will tell. Let me know if this sounds familiar.

Posted by: ndemystic at November 29, 2006 3:39 PM

I am very happy to have found this blog, although I wish the shared interest was a positive one.
My name is Frank Herd and I am the Development Director with Citizens for Health, a consumer advocacy group. I am posting this response on Beliblog because of the large number of consumer adverse health events that have been documented here with regard to consumption of Splenda and/or sucralose containing products.

At Citizens for Health, we are interested in speaking with consumers regarding their experiences as we are currently in the process of pushing the FDA to create an adverse event reporting database for people, such as yourselves, who have become ill after consuming sucralose-containing products.
All of the health issues I read above are familiar to me and not unique or isolated events. My organization has sent alerts to our members soliciting personal stories and testimony about
negative health experiences with sucralose, and we have received dozens and dozens.
Most common are dermatological reactions like hives and rashes, as well as gastrointestinal problems akin to those associated with lactose intolerance, although there have been others.

If you are interested in speaking with me, please reply and provide your contact information so that we can speak by phone sometime in the next one to two weeks.

I thank you for your consideration in this matter. At Citizens for Health, we are actively trying to raise consumer awareness with regards to products such as these, in an effort to keep consumers safe and educated.

In health,

Frank Herd
Development Director
Citizens for Health
2104 Stevens Ave
Minneapolis, MN 55404
Office: 612-879-7583
fherdjr@citizens.org

Posted by: Frank at January 10, 2007 11:13 AM

OH MY WORD! Hello fellow victims. For the past 2 years I have had swollen eyes with bright red eyelids. It seemed to get bad and then go away and then get bad again. The first time that it happened I thought it was MSG, so I eliminated it from my diet. It wasn't the MSG because I still had the same symptoms. This time it started just like it had 2 years ago. Burning eyelids that turned red and then become nearly swollen shut. This lasted for several days and would begin to go down just to start up again. Benadryl, Zyrtec, claratin, any drug that was made for allergy didn't really help.My doctor said it was an "idiopathic allergic reaction that some people live with their whole lives". I figured I would kill myself before I lived the rest of my life with this pain and swelling.I don't think the doctors understand the "burning" sensation that is experienced. Finally tonight in my benadryl stuppor and out of desperation I began to really think about what cold be causing this problem for me. It must have been a God whisper of something because I immediately thought about the splenda that I put in my coffee this morning and that I consumed in my yogurt at lunch and in the diet coke on the way home from work. I ran to the computer to search " splenda allergy" and found this website. YOU ALL HAVE THE SAME SYMPTOMS AS ME! THANK GOD!I am so thankful for the internet. Thank you thank you thank you!I am Splenda free as of 4 hours ago and I am never going to have it again.

Posted by: KIm at January 12, 2007 8:37 PM

Well, it's been 2 years since my original posting. 2 years since I found this website and shared my story. 2 years that I have been without Splenda, without hives, without back pain, joint pain and even anger and mood swings. I'm finally feeling like a human being. Looking back after those 2 years I have discovered how I had been poisoning myself. How for so long I had been subscribing to the hype. Listening to the advertisers who say that it's ok to eat processed foods. using those darn double coupons!!! Well, I have completely changed my life and my families lives as well. I still have packaged snacks in my house. After all, with 2 small kids aged 8 and 4, it's hard not to. But the snacks I do have are made with natural ingredience. I choose to buy more products from stores like Whole Foods and Trade Joe's rather than from Nabisco and the like. At least in "health food stores" they use organic products to start with. No Splenda/Sucralose, no Equal/Aspertame. Funny how they make up cute little words like "Splenda" and "Equal" for poisons. Anyway...I FEEL GREAT!!! Just had to share that!! Hope you are all getting well. There is a light at the end of the tunnel just stay on the right road and you will recover!!!

Posted by: P.S. at February 5, 2007 3:23 PM

I have been reading many of these testimonials & I can not believe what a curse that Splenda is & all the other chemicals we have in our foods.
I have been bothered with eczema from childhood on & off some 60 years. This last outbreak is lasting so much longer with no let up. Nothing I do seems to help it. I have had it confined to my hands top & palms. Nothing seems to be helping to clear it up, it itches sometimes terribly. I have been to dermatologists & even to an allergist, all of them tell me this is not a disease of the blood & they have no medicine that I can take internally to clear it up.
But the first time I got it I was about 13 & my Mom ordered some medicine from a magazine, which was 2 kinds of pills & a salve to rub on. This cleared it up for some 12 or more years. So I know I need to work from the inside out to have any lasting results.
Then I found this web site & started reading all the testimonials from people who have had a multitude of problems from the chemical sweetners.
I have been using Splenda for sometime now & that just may be the reason this eczema will not clear up. So I am not using it anymore.
I will let you know if not using Splenda clears up my problem eczema.
Thank you for such a fantastic web site.
If there is any people who have gotten rid of eczema, I would be very interested in hearing from them as to how they did it. Eczema itches terribly, along with the dry cracking bleeding skin. The little blisters are under & on top of the surface of the skin. It seems that everything affects it & it is so hard to cope with.
Thanks for any help.
Sue Missouri

Posted by: Susie at February 12, 2007 7:08 PM

Posted by: Susie at February 12, 2007 7:10 PM

To get rid of eczema temporarily, you might try rubbing dried Hydrangea root powder onto your hands. But to fully get rid of it you need to go to www.emofree.com and try the EFT method (mind/body techniques). I have used it to get rid of allergies, microbes, toxins, heal damaged tissues and cells, and get rid of emotional issues. You do not need to buy the videos but they are a great help. As they say at the website, persistence is always helpful, but I have long since learned that a little biology learning helps a great deal. You need to tell your body to get rid of the stuff that is causing eczema as you tap on the acupressure points suggested there. Your nervous system will need to be trained to accept this method, and that happens the more you use the method.

The explanation for differences in responses to Splenda may also reflect differences in exposure to chemicals that cause critical cell damage. The cells responsible for rendering Splenda harmless may lie in the hypodermis (and inside other organs) and these cells can be damaged easily by exposure to fungicides and other chemicals. I am amazed by the large number of people wearing newly bought clothing without washing them first. I have repaired many cells in the hypodermis by using EFT, and got rid of many of my own responses to chemicals this way. I managed to repair the cells responsible for breaking down Splenda before ever using Splenda and thus never reacted to it as people above this posting have. Remember, exposure to fungicides or other chemicals can happen when someone across town is getting rid of black mold/pests/weeds or sprays their garden, and the air currents carry it to your house, and you cannot smell it.

Posted by: Splenda user at February 16, 2007 8:28 PM

I would like you all to know that there is an alternative sweetner that is very safe for human consumption. Natives have been using it for thousands of years without side effects. It's called STEVIA. Go to the web and search this name and you will see how the government has suppresed this alternative sweetner (because of politics and the fear of losing big money by keeping americans sick, as just one of the reasons). currently, STEVIA is sold at nutrition stores as what is called a "dietary supplement", because the government refuses to let naturalists market this as a sweetner. However, you will find in your studies that people have used this for thousands of years without any long term side effects. How long has splenda been consumed in the human body? HMMMMM.... Anyway, STEVIA is a natural sweetner (dietary supplement, due to the fact that it contains minimal amounts of fiber)and comes from a plant. The leaves are processed by pressing and the natural sweetner is extracted. No chemicals, no rashes, no kidding. Look it up, it may be the best thing you have ever done for yourself. by the way, pass this info along, the world needs to know how the government is keeping the natural sweetner at by and letting us all die of obesity because of politics and greed. Good luck to all of you!

Posted by: olive at February 22, 2007 4:20 PM

Oh my goodness!!! I have searched and searched for an answer to intense, rash-free itch for three years now to no avail, until the HUGE clue you all just offered herein. I have spent tons of money on lotions, potions, drug therapies, doctor appointments, Chinese Healers, etcetera and have not been able to make the proper connection!!

As of today, I will remove ALL artificial sweeteners from my diet -- and even noticed that SCOPE has sucralose in it!!!

'will report back on the findings of this experiment to see if there is relief!! To boot, I have always had a sweet tooth and believe it takes more sugar/flavorings to be sweet enough....

I cannot say enough how grateful I am if you all provided the clue!! I have had sleepless nights, poor attention span b/c I am preoccupied with the pricks/sensations of itch.....

I will be completely positive and open -- which will help any experiment energy-wise -- in my testing and will surely report back...

To boot, now that I read your messages, itching (no rash) could be just one of the symptoms and never made the connection to the other issues I have had (and just chalked it up to busy lifestyle/brain, etcetera).....

May we all find a cure...........

Posted by: yvette at February 23, 2007 6:55 AM

As of today, I will remove ALL artificial sweeteners from my diet -- and even noticed that SCOPE has sucralose in it!!!

'will report back on the findings of this experiment to see if there is relief!! To boot, I have always had a sweet tooth and believe it takes more sugar/flavorings to be sweet enough....

I cannot say enough how grateful I am if you all provided the clue!! I have had sleepless nights, poor attention span b/c I am preoccupied with the pricks/sensations of itch.....

I will be completely positive and open -- which will help any experiment energy-wise -- in my testing and will surely report back...

May we all find a cure...........

Posted by: yvette at February 23, 2007 6:55 AM

I have always had very mild �cne. One day while looking for skin improvement methods, I ran across a website that said drinking green tea helps reduce �cne. I started right away, drinking 4-5 cups a day, with 2 packets of splenda each. After only a day or two, I started developing cystic �cne and started feeling itchy. I kept on my tea diet thinking maybe it was just going to get a bit worse before it got better - but it kept getting worse, MUCH worse! I went from very mild �cne just on my forehead to having large cystic �cne ALL over my face and neck. I could barely stand to look at myself in the mirror anymore, my face just became a complete wreck. I slowly began removing things from my lifestyle I thought could be the cause - my new face cleanser, greasy foods, etc. I even joined a gym, but the �cne just kept getting worse. I finally stopped using splenda in my tea about 5 days ago after finding an article online linking splenda and �cne. I had NO idea splenda could be causing all my problems. Since stopping, my cystic �cne has cleared up completely, its just been amazing; although my face is badly scarred now from the whole ordeal. All this happened within this past month. I think it is so important people find out about this. If I would have known that there was even a slight possiblitily that splenda could do this to my face, I would have never started using it in the first place. Thank you everyone for posting your stories. It was such a relief to find this site & know that I am not alone.

Posted by: Laura at March 9, 2007 9:30 AM

I avoid aspartame/NutraSweet and other unnatural sweetners like the plague. I did make a big mistake last night though. I drank an energy drink with sucralose in it. I normally avoid most sodas and energy drinks, but was exhausted and needed something. Within a minute of drinking the energy drink, my face got beet red but I figured it was from the caffeine or something. I also developed a mild headache behind my eyes. Within 4 hours, my face was so itchy and dry that I knew something was majorly wrong. My tongue had gone numb in spots and I thought my lips were going to crack and bleed. I looked at the back of the can and sure enough there was sucralose. When I woke up this morning, my neck was very red and itchy and my chin was completely covered (I mean COVERED) with tiny white pustules that itched like crazy. I tried to scrub them off, but to no avail. I ended up popping most of them, putting some aloe on and it seems to be a little better. My face is still beet red, itchy and dry but the pustules haven't come back. I took some benadryl earlier but haven't noticed a difference yet. It's still early, but I know it was the sucralose that did it. I'm drinking lots of water to flush everything out of my system.
I'd had a reaction that was much milder about 6 months ago when I drank some 'diet' fruit juice but never thought anything of it. I just figured it was dry air. I ate some milled flax seed mixed into some oatmeal and it helped with the dryness problem very quickly last time. I'll be eating more flax seed tonight for dinner. Hopefully it'll help.

Posted by: Robin at March 12, 2007 12:20 AM

I am heartened to see that the blog remains active and robust.
I an the Development Director for Citizens for Health, a non-profit consumer advocacy organization working on issues of importance to the natural health community, like maintaining access to vitamins, supplements, herbs, and the health care practitioner of your choice.
In January I posted a comment about a petition we filed with the FDA to revoke approval for Splenda, and that our campaign was looking for folks to share their experience with negative health effects they believed were due to consuming Splenda. In particular we are looking for folks in California to participate in an upcoming press conference, although we will be holding such events around the country.
I wanted to announce that we have set up a toll-free hotline for folks who have had health problems from consuming Splenda. It is 1-888-774-2255 (888-774-CALL). If you have had such experiences, please take a moment to call and share them with us. If not, please pass the number along to anyone you know who may have.
I will return from time to time to share campaign updates and announce any events or press conferences. In the meantime, you may also email me at fherdjr@citizens.org , although if you want to simply report any health problems that is better done through the hotline.
This is a grassroots effort to hold the FDA and the makers of Splenda accountable, and such campaigns are won through community involvement. We need your help!
Thanks in advance for your participation.

Posted by: Frank at March 22, 2007 11:51 AM

I have been drinking Nestle fruit flavored water for a year and 2 months. I have been covered heat to toe in a rash, had joint pain, bloody stools and numbness in my left hand. I have consulted my MD and a dermatologist, both of whom basically said they had no idea what was causing my symptoms. I lived in China for 2 years and did not have this rash until I returned to the States. Yesterday morning it occurred to me that the ONLY thing different in my diet since Feb. of 2006, was this flavored water. I drink 4 bottles of it daily and just yesterday I noticed that immediately after drinking it, I have horrible itching everywhere. It started on my left ear, then my right ear, my scalp, both legs, stomach, armpits, breasts, buttocks and back. I ran upstairs and googled "allergic to splenda" and this site popped up. I knew that I had found the cause of my horrible rash and other problems. I want to thank each and everyone one of you for your comments. Yesterday I was so thankful and relieved. Today I am angry and want this product off of our shelves immediately. Amazingly, after just 24 hours off of this stuff, I am not itching. You are all in my prayers and again, my profound thanks to all of you. I will keep in touch.

Posted by: Sherry at April 11, 2007 11:13 AM

Imagine my shock when I discovered this blog!! I broke out in a severe case of hives which began mildly enough on April 16. It is now April 19 and I am covered (entire scalp, forehead, along hairline, ears, around nose, cheeks, chin, neck, shoulders, arms, stomach, thighs, buttocks, inside elbows, and hands.

I originally attritubed the hives to Febreze Noticeables as I added a 3rd plug-in this week to my home on Sunday. After a visit to my Dr. this aft, he suggested Aerius (same as Benadryl) and gave me a prescription for Cortisone if no relief. I was hoping the Aerius would work as I wasn't crazy about taking steroids. He agreed that that the Febreze could be the culprit as my internet research indicated that it is LOADED with toxins. I have never had an allergic reaction to anything before (I am 46). I initially had some relief from the itching but over the last several hours, the hives have increased in area and itchiness. My first task tomorrow (if I get any sleep at all) will be to get the Cortisone.

I have been on WW since January 23. I have lost 22 lbs. but have cut out all sugar. I started using SPLENDA each day in my morning coffee (3 per day, including today!!). Unlike a lot of you, I wasn't crazy about the taste but it was better than coffee w/o sugar.

I googled SPLENDA+HIVES 3 hours ago and was brought to this blog. I am gob-smacked. I have never eaten artifically sweetened foods in my life until Jan 23. In addition to the 3 cups of 'poison' that I have been consuming almost daily, I have also been ingesting other diet 'food' such as Orville Redenbacher's Smart Pop (at least 3 times per week), Yoplait Source O yogurt (daily) and Nestle Skinny Cow ice cream bars (2 or so per week). I've just tossed all in the garbage as all of these products contain sucralose!! I wonder where I would be If I liked diet soda?! I had never HEARD of sucralose until I googled SPLENDA.

Other symptoms include severe and sharp stomach (high up) pains that don't last long but are intense, unreal insomnia, daily diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and grogginess during the day. I actually have had very small outbreaks of hives over the past 3 months but I didn't know they were hives and I didn't pay much attention as they went away as soon as they came. The itching is unbearable. The welts started as small raised bumps but have now progressed to streaky, raised lines.

I am so fortunate that I came across this. No more artifically sweetened diet food for me. I'd rather be fat.

Tomorrow I have my regularly scheduled 3-month appointment with my Naturopath (what luck!). He no doubt will discover high levels of toxins in my body. I will share his comments when I return from my appointment.

Thanks for sharing all of your stories and info.

Barb in Calgary, Alberta CANADA

Posted by: Barb at April 19, 2007 11:22 PM

I am adding my experience to the list because my symptoms do not appear in the many testimonials that I have read. I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, as a result I decided to quit using sugar and switched to Splenda. A few months later I began to have a thickening of the skin on the bottom of my feet. The skin build up was the thickness of pie crust. The thickened skin dried and split open making it very painful to walk. The open splits on my feet were the perfect opportunity for bacteria to enter the body resulting in cellulitus. There was a painful swelling of my left leg and the leg turned purple within a few hours. I was admitted into the hospital for a few days. The path of the infection was clearly through my feet, however the doctors were more concerned about curing the infection rather than determining the root cause. After going to a variety of doctors (including my own son) My dermatologist was certain that it was an allergic reaction to something my feet came in contact with. I agreed that it was an allergy of some sort and came to the conclusion that it was from a food allergy. Along with the skin build up which had now included my hands I had a constant itching that was mostly concentrated on my hands and feet but was actually present all over my body. I focused on what I had changed in my life over the past year and came up with Splenda. I dumped all of the diet sodas and the remains of my 1000 packet box of the stuff and my symptoms are gone. My feet are back to normal and the itching and scratching are mercifully gone.

Posted by: Dennis C. Williams at May 7, 2007 12:57 PM

I promised to report back in a couple of days after I stopped using Spenda/sucralose. I still have the hives, and the eye problems, and some joint pain, but it is receding, thankfully. I had a routine visit scheduled with my Doctor yesterday, and asked him if he'd heard of anyone being allergic to Splenda. He nodded, and said that he does not recommend anyone use these types of sweetners. He said it would take a while for the hives to run their course, and told me to drink plenty of water, which I am doing. I also mentioned some of the other symptoms, and confessed I thought they were all diabetes related. We are hoping that time will prove that it was the Splenda all along. I have used this product since it came out... mostly in my morning cup of tea. But, like many others reported, I've increased the use lately in other products that seemed heavenly to a diabetic with a sweet tooth! I've had some symptoms for a LONG time, but it wasn't until the hives started itching that I looked for answers to 'why'. I'm advising everyone I know to throw away their Splenda. I'm going to get some Stevia and try that... or just use sugar when necessary. I use diet control to keep my diabetes in check... so I won't dare 'treat' myself too often to sugar.
I wish anyone who is reading this a LOT of success in getting past these symptoms. This itching is terrible, but Benedryl DOES seem to help.

Posted by: Joannie at May 10, 2007 7:09 AM

Thank you all for posting your symptoms concerning the use of Splenda. It saved me an expensive trip to the doc.

I had the itch and a terrible rash under my breasts...and I do mean terrible.....and in any other warm places on my body. I had not connected it to the Splenda. I thought it was the Synthroid. But I have been on Synthroid for 2 years and could not figure out why the rash all of a sudden.

I embarked on a weight loss regime the day after Thanksgiving. I was eating no sugar jello and puddings to help make me feel less deprived. I had a mild rash but it wasn't bothersome.

About 2-3 months ago I bought a case of Splenda sweetened fruit drink and was drinking one of them a day, occasionally two. The rash REALLY flared up bigtime but I still didn't associate until I stumbled on this and other pages about Splenda.

I stopped drinking the beverage but the rash persisted. Then I looked at the jello and pudding packages. Oops, more Splenda. Then I looked at the 'no sugar added' ice cream that I occasionally treated myself to. Oops more Splenda.

The rash lessened considerably but still hung around. The I thought of the 'no sugar added' hot chocolate that I drank one cup of each morning. You got it... more Splenda.

I've now cut ALL Splenda out of my diet and wallah, the rash is 90% gone after two weeks. So I'm assuming it's got to be the Splenda.

Its really making dieting hard without my little treats but the no itching and being able to wear a bra again is worth it. The good news is that I've lost 50 of the 100 pounds I'm determined to lose. But it sure is going to be dull without my treats to make me feel like I'm cheating.

Posted by: Aretta at May 23, 2007 4:49 PM

As I am typing this I am in tears because my brother is suffering!! My brother has been drinking whey protein shakes that contain sucralose in them for a very long time from what my mother has told me and this past week or so he has been suffering from horrible nose bleeds that last for up to 7 hours straight. He went to see his doctor recently who had his nose cauterized and stuffed with cotton gauze to try and stem off the uncontrollable bleeding. The pain he is going through as a result of this is absolutely horrible. He has gauze taped over his nose but its still dribbling blood even now. His face is swollen and his eyes are red and causing him severe pain. He is so miserable and in tears that he can't talk to anyone so I don't know if he has been experiencing any other symptoms like those that are described by people on this site. I have read dozens and dozens of testimonies like these about splenda/sucralose reactions because I had been suffering from nose bleeds, which I hadn't experienced since I was a kid, as well as migranes, vomiting, severe abdominal pain and diaharrea. I realized that this symptoms had to be a result from a recent diet change which I narrowed down to a watermelon flavored drink manufactured by Arizona Tea company I had started consuming recently. Low and behold the last listed ingredient was sucrolose so I stopped drinking it immediately and even threw out a bottle I had in the fridge. I also called Arizona Tea Company to complain about their sucralose laced product but have not heard anything from them about it at all, which didn't really surprise me much since all these companies that use this sweetner seem content with keeping consumers in the dark about it. Since I stopped my symptoms have decreased significantly and the nose bleeds have stopped completely. I told my mother that I think the sucrolose my brother has been consuming is the most likely suspect and that she had to throw his whey protein mix away immediately. I told her to go to a health food store and get him organic whey protein shake mix as a replacement. I also told her she should get him a detoxifying total body cleanser to clean the splenda and any other toxins out of his body. I don't know what else to do other than pray and hope they listen. I was wondering if anyone has suffered from uncontrollable bleeding from the nose or other parts of the body as a result of splenda/sucralose consumption at all?

Posted by: Aileen at June 12, 2007 12:05 PM

Hi,

I was a Splenda user for a little over a year. I thought it was the best thing ever created and was so excited to use it. However, I started to get these bumps/hives/pimples, whatever you want to call them, on one side of my buttocks and the side of my right leg! They would appear sporadically & then after a week or so,disappear, so I thought it was just a bump or pimple or something. They were also itchy but I didn't think anything terribly awful about it initially.

Anyway, this went on for months. I would get these itchy hives and then they would disapper after a week or so leaving my skin red and scarred. By the way, I've had to turn to Ambi to get rid of the marks that the hives have left on my skin! Furthermore, a coworker of my husband began to complain about his Splenda usage and stumpled upon this website! It's ridiculous that soooo many people are experienceing symptoms and this crap is still on the market! How can that be?? I'm truly outraged!

Well, I haven't used Splenda in about 3 months now but the hives are still coming up. I didn't think I needed to see my doctor about it because I was self-medicating ie; quitting the Splenda and using the Ambi to clear up the marks!! However, despite my efforts I've decided to tell/show her and ask her if there is anything she would recommend to take to stop the breakouts! I'm really frustrated & horrified about this! The right side of my buttocks is now discolored and scarred because of this! I hate this product and regret ever having used it!

I'd like to know if anyone has taken anything like (Benadryl) to stop these itchy hives? HELP!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by: D.D. at July 2, 2007 2:02 PM

I am so glad that I found this site. I really think that it could be the cause of my problems. A few weeks ago I started getting a head cold, so I drank about four cups of tea with about three packets of splenda in each in an effort to clear my head fog. That night, the itch started. No bumps at first, just the itch. A few days later, the bumps started. And within a few more days, they covered the entire surface of my body. Neck, chest, breasts, stomach, sides, back, butt, legs. Every inch of skin but the bottoms of my feet and palms of my hands. Even my scalp, ears and cheeks are itching. I�m scratching so hard that I�m starting to bruise. I went to the doc and was diagnosed with something called �pityriasis rosea� which I googled when I got home, and my bumps look nothing like that. So I continued googling things like �itch rash all over body� and stumbled upon this site. Lo and behold! People contributing the same symptoms as mine to splenda intake. Upon further investigation and the help of this site, I realized that Sucralose, (splenda in disguise) is even in the airborne tablets I was taking for a vitamin boost while I was sick. And, it is in the slim fast shakes I started drinking about two months ago. So I am looking for some advice�.even though im pretty sure this is my problem. There are too many coincidences that arose once I starting using splenda product. My questions are, I was drinking the slimfast for about 2 months before the reaction. Is a reaction sometime delayed like this? Or have most people experienced immediate symptoms? Does anyone think the larger ingestion of splenda has to do with the rash? Also�.starting today, no more artificial sweeteners for me��..i hope this brings me some relief�.can anyone share about how long it took after �quitting� splenda it took for their symptoms to go away? I don�t have any of the eye, or joint problems. Its all just itchy, itchy rash. I would really appreciate anyones input.

Posted by: vanessa at July 11, 2007 4:37 PM

To Vanessa,

Well, I was using Splenda for about 1 1/2 years or so. The rash began sporadically, meaning, I would see a bump here & there but nothing that looked like what I would consider to be a rash. Then, over time, I would notice a group of bumps on the right side of my thigh & buttocks. I would try to use Proactive to clear them up but the itching was very irritating. Eventually they would go away but within the last 4 months or so the bumps/rash are still coming up!!

I haven't used Splenda in about 6 or 7 months and these friggin' things are still coming up. I have a doctor's appointment to see my doctor. I was hoping to be able to self-medicate without seeing her but now I'm getting worried. I haven't used Splenda in a while so why is this crap still occurring?? I can't even wear shorts because this rash leaves my skin discolored!! I hate it so bad! I'm literally praying that God will allow me to get this crap out of my system!!

If anyone else has stopped using this for an extended time period but still are seeing symptoms please let me know. Also, please let me know what you did or what your doctor suggested you take!!!

Posted by: D.D. at July 24, 2007 11:58 AM

I went on the Akins diet and decided to start supplementing my "sugar" cravings with things made with Splenda. 4 months went by and no problems at all. Then one morning I woke up and I was itchy and not feeling very well. By that night I had hives under my breasts, my groin, and my arm pits the size of walnuts or bigger. So I took a couple of benedryl and went to bed. The next day, I felt ok, still a bit itchy. So I went about my business and ate as normal, by that evening I was in the ER with hives the larger then my hands and my feet were swollen on the bottom and purple. It was like walking on needles my feet hurt so bad. So I got a shot, took more benedryl and went home. About 2am I was hardly breathing - my throat was swelling shut, I couldn't hardly open my eyes they were so puffy and I couldn't walk because of the pain with my feet. Back to the ER, more shots, more benedryl and all kinds of other stuff. No one knew what was going on with me. I went off of almost all foods and ate soup and drank water. I cleared up and was fine. About a month went by and I decided to have a "Splenda laced snack" and within an hour or two I was itchy and getting hives again! So, Splenda it was! I went to an "alternative" type person and did a major body cleanse and got as much junk out of my system as possible and stear clear of anything with splenda in it. I accidentally got a Jones Soda one day with splenda in it, took one sip and my tongue started to tingle, tooked at the bottle - yep, Splenda. Beware beware beware!

Posted by: AB at July 31, 2007 12:35 AM

I haven't suffered from rashes but have experienced other common Splenda reactions: stomach pains, nausea and diarrhea, and headaches. Check out some of the numerous effects of Splenda (sucralose)here:

www.splendasickness.blogspot.com

The stories of Splenda users here are truly scary, many folks who mysteriously developed panic attacks and were given psychiatric medications for "anxiety disorder" only to discover themselves it was the splenda that caused their symptoms. Other stories on this site describe people spending god knows how much on medical tests for MS , gallstones, IBS, cardiac disease--- the list goes on and on---only to find out it was splenda making them sick!

I am horrified that this chemical is being placed in more and more products without a warning label, and I'm beginning to wonder what kind of long term effects it's going to have on children since it's now being marketed as a "safe" sweetener for common kid foods. It's in Flintstones vitamins now! It's bad enough the makers of Splenda don't feel a twinge of guilt over poisoning adults trying to eat healthier or lose weight---but now they're pushing this junk on children. I wonder what kind of disorders will be popping up after this crap has been in our food for ten years!

Posted by: Barbie at August 22, 2007 2:08 PM

I get the feeling "amanda" is being sarcastic. If not then I apologize but if so then all I've got to say is you are NOT funny.
As a nurse I can assure you that it's highly likely that at least once in your life you will have an adverse reaction to something: an antibiotic, a medication, a food ingredient, a chemical in a common household cleaner, a perfume, or something else. Then I'd like to see how funny you think it is, aman-DUH.
The fact of the matter is that the FDA has become woefully lax in keeping us safe from harmful drugs and food additives. Remember Vioxx and Seldane? How many people died of heart attacks before they pulled those drugs off the market? With food additives the FDA is even slower to respond than they are with bad drugs. Remember how long it took for them to ban ephedra? YOUNG people were dropping dead from heart problems and the FDA did not ban it until several states saw the dangers of that additive and banned it first!
Splenda (sucralose) is a dangerous substance and the word needs to get out. So I'm thankful for this forum and a few others on the web that allow regular people to report the side effects they've experienced from this chlorinated sweetener. If we waited for the FDA to tell us A LOT of people would suffer needlessly. So I think joking about it only shows what an ignorant and insensitive person you are.

Posted by: Barbie at August 27, 2007 2:31 PM

I started having swelling in my left hand around Dec of 2006. I went to numerous doctors and even a heart doctor to check it out. My wrist and hand would swell to the point that it was very painful. The swelling began to move from my hand to my neck and into my face over a period ov 6 months. The swelling would come and go. My face would swell to the point that I could not open my eyes at worst. Sometimes I would have small lumps sometimes half my face would swell.

One night at a resturaunt I drank about 8 glasses of tea. My face began to swell over dinner. I thought maybe I was allergic to tea. So I stopped drinking tea and all my swelling went a way in 3 days.

One week later I drank tea again, bam I had facial swelling. I thought it must be tea. I could not find any tea allergy information. I always add Splenda to my tea. So I looked up Splenda allergies. I have quit Splenda for 2 weeks and I have had not had any swelling of any kind. I am fine if I drink tea with good old sugar. My allergy doctor stated that there is no test for Suclarose at this time.

Posted by: Toby Allen at September 12, 2007 10:53 AM

I'm on a low-carb regimen to lose weight and I've been using Splenda in various forms: Sweetzfree is the liquid variety, very expensive, but one drop sweetens a large amount of food; and granular Splenda which I bought at Costco in a huge bag.

So, I've been using the stuff regularly and I was thrilled that I could once again enjoy home-made gelatin and home-baked macaroons and other foods that I'd stopped eating because of their sugar content.

Well, people started calling me Hot Lips. My lips swelled and throbbed and actually ached. I was going to go to the dermatologist to have him take a culture to determine the cause of the problem but I prefer avoiding doctors whenever possible so I tried to figure out what the culprit could be. When I stopped using Splenda, on a daily basis, my lips started to heal. It wasn't immediately better-it took several weeks for me to return to normal, but I'm fine now. The bottle of Sweetzfree cost $67 and I felt so foolish wasting so much money on it.

I've been using Stevita Stevia Spoonable which I buy from Vitacost online. Sometimes there's a bit of a bitter aftertaste, but it's a good product.

Now, my new goal is to stop using sweeteners altogether. We'll see whether I can do that.

Posted by: at October 7, 2007 10:00 PM

A few months ago I started getting night hives, which thankfully were only on my legs and went away a few hours after getting up in the morning. A few weeks ago, the hives started getting much worse, covering my whole body and taking longer during the day to go away. I adopted a long haired/shedding dog 2 months ago and am wondering if I'm allergic to her. I also started drinking lipton iced tea, made with sucralose a few months ago. On an average day I would have 2 diet pops. Waking up with hives every morning and being so itchy I want to die is not fun. The hives also appear on my face and neck, sometimes with a swollen lip or eye. I haven't drank any pop for 2 days, and the hives seem to have lessened a bit, although they were worse this morning after showering. Will be looking at everything I eat for splenda/sucralose etc. Really hoping that the hives disappear completely soon. I was reading about chronic idiopathic and autoimmune hives and have read stories of people who suffered for years. I was starting to think I would never be able to wear shorts, skirts, or tank tops again. Needless to say, very depressing and very scary. Will post again. Thank you everyone for your stories. I finally have a bit of hope that I can once again lead a normal/itch and hive-free life.

Posted by: Taryn at October 11, 2007 10:07 AM

I have been doing everything in my power to NOT use any splenda, aspartame, or any other artificial sweetener. Despite reading the label on everything i have been consuming for 2 years now I still failed in this task. There are too many code words, and different new chemicals out that are even WORSE than splenda. You people think this is an accident. You people think these corporations "accidently" are putting chemical-warfare ingredients in our food and drinks. It's not. This is NOT an accident. These companies are terrorists. They have several motivations for what they are doing, you must look at the bigger picture. They want to show you the power they have over you. You are NOTHING. You are disposable. They don't care about your pain, they PROFIT off your suffering, and enjoy every penny. They love to crush your spirits, health, emotions, and know you can't do anything about it. Anyone ever heard of the Illuminati, New World Order, or Secret Societies? That's the problem behind splenda, and all the other food problems, not to mention AIDS, and possibly ALL WAR. I see thousands of people crying over the injustice delivered to them by Splenda, but guess what people, this is just the beginning of their evil. You let these people take an inch, and they'll turn around and TAKE A MILE. Watch. Either we group together and stop them NOW, or soon they will put something so horrible into our food supply you dont even want to know.

Posted by: FASCIST HELL IS ON THE WAY at October 11, 2007 12:07 PM

It's in your mouthwash! I have been having severe rashes on my neck and chest. The rash would get better then return with a vengeance. I don't use artificial sweeteners, ever since I learned that Splenda was causing my arthritis-like pain a few years ago. I haven't used aspartame because I am pretty sure that my twenty-five years of drinking diet soda is what caused me to be treated for fibromyalgia. The rash was something new. A couple of days ago, I was desperate and started looking at everything I was ingesting. I went to the drug store and started reading labels. Many over-the-counter medicines have artificial sweeteners, including sucralose, asparatame, sorbitol, and saccharin. I also knew that many of the "health" drinks, such as Propel and K2O contain sucralose. What I did not know was that almost all mouthwashes (and many tooth whiteners) contain sucralose! I was dosing myself twice a day with sucralose, then wondering why I was miserable. The only mouthwashes I could find that do not have artificial sweeteners are Tom's of Maine (same with their toothpaste) and original Listerine (the nasty stuff). In two days off anything with sucralose, I feel 100% better--the rash is nearly gone, although it looks as if my neck is healing from being burned or scalded. And one more thing--it seems as if my vision is clearing, as well. I was sure I needed new glasses. Please write to the dental product manufacturers. We don't need sucralose in our hygiene products!

Posted by: Christina at October 20, 2007 8:26 PM

Hello Every one,
I came accross this site while searching for "Splenda, allergy\hives" on the web.
About 3 weeks ago I started getting a rash\hives all over my body. It started where I would wake up with the rash a couple of times a week. First is was on my arms and legs. Now it is everywhere even on my hands, feet and face. It gradually got worse and now I wake up covered in hives every day. They are itchy and make my skin feel hot. I was going crazy trying to figure out what I could be eating or doing different to get this rash. I then realized as part of a diet, I started using Splenda about the same time the rash started appearing. I've been using it in my coffe, oatmeal etc...
I then searched online and found multiple sites where many manny people are complaining of the same symptoms and some even worse. How is it possible that with so many reports of these types of problems with Splenda, that it is still on the market, not to mention being added to so many other products like Soda, snacks etc...
I think we are not speaking up enough and not going through the right channels. I recommend that anyone who has had and adverse reaction to Splenda\Sucralose report it to the FDA. Especially those who have seeked medical attention and have documentation\medical records to back it up. Please visit the FDA to reports the problems you are having at www.fda.gov and click the link for "Report a Problem with a Product"

Posted by: JO at November 7, 2007 10:05 AM

I am so happy that I found this blog. I have been suffering from a horrible head to toe rash since September. I have been on prendisone 3 times, had 2 cortisone shots, am still taking Atarax and Zantac (for histamine 2 blocker properties). I have had blood work, allergy tests, and numerous visits to the allergist, dermatologist and internist. I have had a biopsy. I have tried approx. 6 different topical creams. As soon as I would stop the prendisone pills, the rash would return. The itching was the worst. At first the rash wasn't visible but then it started showing up and spreading. Head and legs being the itchiest. Last week I found this site and for one week now I have been Splenda free! The rash is gone from my stomach and back and a little remains on my legs and my arms. I would really hate to think it as a coincidence. It's not as itchy now but there is sill a burning feeling on parts of my skin.

In September I started putting Splenda in my ice tea because a friend told me that the sugar syrup I was getting from Starbucks in my ice tea really wasn't good for me. Regular sugar didn't dissolve in the ice tea and the Splenda did. Plus there were no calories. Sounded too good to be true.......was it? Is this too much of a coincidence that the Splenda started in September and so did the rash??
Does anyone know how long the burning feeling lasts after stopping Splenda? Also, note to Judy: profuse sweating sounds like a "hot flash" to me not a Splenda reaction. Is this possible?

Posted by: Terry at January 20, 2008 6:24 PM

I am 16 and I have realized that it is probably Splenda causeing me some problems. When i eat splenda my stomach hurts really bad like about an hour after I eat it and i get a headache. Splenda should be illegal. Sometimes when my stomach hurts really bad I wonder now if there was splenda in something that I ate. I just found out to day that Sucralose is Splenda, I was looking up some artificial sweeteners that were in that Tang drink mix. I had some of that Tnag drink mix yesterday around 6:00 pm and then about an hour later things strated to get kinda wierd. I first realized that i was shaky. The shakiness just kept getting worse as the day contunued. I have had his happen before, and I have been told that gettting shaky is because of not having enough sugar. But I had eaten enough sugar yesteday. Then i got to thinking about that tang and how it had and artificial sugar taste to it, sure enough it had these three artificial sugars: Sucralose, acesulfame potassium, and neotame. When I woke up this morning I had a headache and I am still shaky. I am reasearching some of these artificial sugars and I found out that sucralose is splenda. So that is probably where the headach came from. I am still trying to find out what is making me shaky. I just thought that I would share my experience with Splenda. I think that artificial sugar should be illegal, esspecially Splenda.

Posted by: Jenny at January 21, 2008 10:36 AM

I've been itching since September, and have been seeing the doctor since November. I'm on my second dermatologist...I've been diagnosed with Scabies, had bloodwork done, a biopsy on my arm...and no one seems to know the cause of my rash. I had been on a high dose of antibiotic (one doctor actually thought I have a staph infection) and take two Allegra tablets a day. My rash has kind of cleared up, but the intense itching keeps hanging on. I had started to feel better, but was out with friends on Monday and had two glasses of iced tea with 4 packets of Splenda. Didn't fall asleep until 5am the next morning due to intense itching. Took the day off work. This morning, I thought "what did i do on Monday night that could have made the itching so uncontrollable?" On a lark, I googled "Splenda rash" and found this site. Obviously, I'll stay away from Splenda, but somebody please tell me if there's anything I can do to relieve this itching. I'm a diabetic, so prednisone isn't an option. I have a follow up appointment with my deramatologist on Monday morning. I am just appalled to be reading all of these stories that sound exactly like mine. My sister had convinced me that nutrasweet and other artificial sweetners were neurotoxins (which I believe her that they are), and I started drinking a mango fruit drink from Aldi's that had splenda in it. I thought I was actually doing something good for myself. Ha! Still...how long til this crap is out of my body and I can go back to wearing my normal clothes? This itching is driving me crazy.

Posted by: sue at February 1, 2008 9:13 AM

I'm from England and very recently our major supermarket chains have replaced all the older types of artificial sweetener in all their soft drinks with sucralose, none I've seen own up to the fact it is Splenda. I wonder if this is in some part because of the types of truly shocking side effects I've read here today.

The first I encountered was in Sainsbury's Diet Cola. I used to drink loads with no ill effect but within a few glasses from the first bottle after they changed to using sucralose in it my mouth and throat began to burn, I began to feel sick and just generally felt unwell. My husband said I was imagining things because I found the new taste absolutely vile, like licking severely burnt sugar. He said I'd have to get used to it, I said no and switched to Asda Diet Cola which still used the old sweeteners and I felt fine.

Three days ago I purchased my usual Adsa Diet Cola and upon drinking the first few sips thought this tastes yuckily familiar hope it's a stale batch but deep down I suspected they too had made the switch to sucralose. With a sinking feeling I ambled to the fridge to compare one of last weeks bottles with a fresh bottle from this weeks shopping trip. Confirmed, Asda have switched to sucralose too.

I only googled "sucralose disgusting" and it lead me to this site. I shall consider myself lucky that I came here before consuming any more of this foul and noxious poison. I took an instant disliking to the stuff, fortunately, because of the mouth burning and the fact I can't get the overly sweet taste of sucralose out of my mouth for many hours once it's there no matter how many times I brush my teeth and tongue.

Posted by: Christine at February 5, 2008 8:21 AM

WOW...this explains ALOT

I have been having this hideous rash around my mouth (always there, but sometimes flaring up terribly)...(hate to be graphic, but I'll describe for the sake of other people being able to identify their symptoms)......it is like a round patch of elevated skin that is a deep orange tone and constantly sheds flakes of skin).

I am SO grossed out by it, embarrassed and ashamed.

I went to about four doctors about it, including a homeopath. The homeopathic doctor told me I was allergic to Splenda after testing me against the most commonly allergenic food items.

But the rash continued. I've been devastated. Make up conceals it SOMETIMES, and I try to hide it with my haircut. THAT IS NO WAY TO LIVE!!!!!! I have just about given up...then I thought I would make one more go at truly examining what I am eating and coming in contact with. HA! Splenda (sneakily AKA "sucralose") IS in my usual morning drink and in the snacks I have been eating! I am going to take some pictures of my face (for a "before" and "after" comparison....and am going to strictly monitor the ingredients in EVERYTHING I eat....

LET'S SEE WHAT HAPPENS>>>>>

& let's get this GARBAGE off the market!!!!!!!!!!!!

~Marli

P.S. sorry to hear you all have suffered too! :)

Posted by: Marli at February 13, 2008 9:49 PM

I am so glad I found this blog. I am having Lap-Band surgery next week and the docotor put me on a low-carb protein shake diet. I started drinking the Atkins Advantage protein shakes. After a couple of days my facial skin started becoming dryer. It is winter and Texas weather is crazy so I blamed it on that and my new face wash. Well, over the weekend it became worse and by Tuesday I couldnt wear make-up to work. To rehydrate my face, I went through a whole container of Dove Dry Skin Facial mosturizer in a day and a half and I was drinking a little more than a gallon of water during an 8 hour period. I also bought flaxseed oil to take and used Lac-Hydrin and neither helped with the dry skin. Thats when I realized it probably wasn't just an incident of dry skin since it was only on my face and not anywhere else on my body. The only thing in my diet that has been new are these Atkins Advantage Shakes so I stopped them today. I called my doctor and they said sometimes people have a reaction to the sweeteners in these type of drinks---would have been nice to know before I looked like a poster child for psoriasis!!! I will go back to Slim Fast because I never had a reaction to them. I have never in my life had an allery to anything. I am taking Benadryl and I hoping the rash will go away soon. I am furious that this product is on the market and that when doctors put you on a diet and recommend using this product they don't warn you of the side affects. Thank you all for sharing!!

Posted by: Sara at March 6, 2008 9:17 AM

I started Weight Watchers a few weeks ago and was using one packet of Splenda every morning in my cereal. One afternoon I also had lunch with a friend and ordered diet soda. I'm 52 so I thought the rash I was developing might be a heat rash from night sweats. If it hadn't been the dead of winter, I would have thought I had chiggars. The rash is not so much like the welts of hives one usually associates with food alergy, but more like poison ivy or oak. It bubbles up in little blisters eventually, then becomes leathery as it heals. I ain't pretty. As the itching became more and more intense and the rash became angrier and angrier, I took a look at my diet. The only new element I'd added was Splenda.

I Googled "Splenda rash" and got a truck load of hits. I've been off Splenda for several days, taking Benadryl and Ibeprophen, using baby powder, Calamine Lotion, Selson Blue shampoo (as directed by another Splenda alergee), and now Cortaid. The first area to break out is getting better, but later areas are still angry. I read of one woman whose rash took three months to heal up after she stopped the Splenda.

I've also had weird chills with the rash and some chest pain and anxiety. I read about similar symptoms on some of these sites as well.

A few years ago I went on Weight Watchers, when Splenda was the new great sugar substitute. Then South Beach. Along that same time, I had a weird rash, but I didn't put two and two together, and it wasn't as bad then as it is now. I was more worried that it might have connections to a tick bite. But I believe now it was the Slenda.

I frightens me that Splenda is in so many products that you wouldn't think about, like Pediolyte for example. I've thrown away my Splenda and won't be using it anymore.

My daughter had a severe reaction to NutraSweet a couple of years ago too. They were testing her for brain tumors, MS, and Lupas. And all along it was a sensitivity to NutraSweet!

I fear we are engineering ourselves into extinction!

Darnell

Posted by: Darnell at March 11, 2008 7:34 AM

I have these "butt pimples" that my doctor calls "folliculitis". But the weird thing is I never had this problem in the past when I drank soda with Aspartame (which isn't good either). As soon as I switched from Aspartame to Splenda, I started seeing the pimples. I never made the connection of this new, weird health problem and Splenda. I also notice my hair was getting thinner and falling out faster. I thought it was because I became a vegetarian. So I went back to eating meat. It didn't help. I briefly quit using Splenda and then started up again. As soon as I restarted using it, I broke out in pimples on my neck and back. It wasn't just one, but a few to where it seemed weird to me. Just out of curiosity, I searched online for "side effects Splenda". Sure enough, my symptoms (hair loss/thinning and pimples) appeared to be caused by Splenda. So I quit. My hair has started to not fall out so quick and is looking a little thicker. But the pimples are getting worse. I am hoping by quitting Splenda, which I have, the problem will eventually go away. Unfortunately, I cannot tell if the hair loss will completely reverse / fix itself in time. Fortunately, I didn't lose a lot of hair. But these pimples are a pain in the butt (no pun intended) because they leave scars that take a while to go away. If I would have known my butt was going to look like a connect the dots puzzle, I would have just ate plain sugar. This sucks.

Posted by: at March 13, 2008 1:03 AM

I thought I was allergic to Splenda. I started with a scalp rash last June 07. Couldn't go out into the sun due to the intense itching. Later, I began to get small red bumpy itchy rashes on my neck and back. By September I had severe hives coming and going all around my body. Diet Pepsi had been our choice of soda for years but in April 07 we switched to diet RC. I couldn't imagine what else it could be. I stopped all products with Splenda in September but the hives continued and became unbearable. Between September and November I was placed on Prednisone three different times. I was also given various medications such as Olux, Atarax and Zyrtec. All throughout this time, I continued to stay on one medication that i've been on for years for fibromyalgia and migraines - Trazodone. A year earlier, my dose was increased. Now Trazodone is apparently used by dermatologists and allergists as a treatment for hives. No body thought that it could be that drug causing the hives.

At one point in time, I purchased a store-bought tea tree lotion to soothe the itching. I used it throughout the night to relieve the intense itching. Finally, one morning I awoke with what appeared to be sunburns on my arms and legs- it was everywhere that I used the lotion. It took a week to disappear after using that lotion. I decided to search the ingredients online and that's when I learned about sodium lauryl sulfate [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_lauryl_sulfate]. When the allergist prescribed for the third time a two-week course of steroids, he also prescribed three other hive medications and took me off my Trazodone. The hives finally disappeared the beginning of December. Three weeks later I decided to go back on my nightly Trazodone and took one tablet. The next morning I awoke with hives!!!! Imagine my shock! I thought it had been the splenda! I didn't take another tablet and the hives only lasted about 3 days.

I went online and searched Trazodone ingredients. When my dosage had been increased, that meant the prescription itself was quite different. I found most sites with dosage of 100mg had similar ingredients. But one site surprised me. The nonmedicinal ingredient in their Trazodone 100mg contained sodium lauryl sulfate. I immediately called my pharmacist who gave me the manufacturer's phone number. Upon calling Apotex manufacturer I learned that their Trazodone 100mg also contained sodium lauryl sulfate. Why would anyone put this stuff in medication to ingest daily? This chemical is used in household products such as toothpastes, shampoos, shaving foams, bubble baths, detergents, and soaps. And apparently in lotions too!

To make a long story shorter, I've been on a new prescription of Trazodone 100mg purchased from a different manufacturer that I made sure did not include sodium lauryl sulfate as a nonmedicinal ingredient. I have not had an itchy scalp or hives since December 07. I have also gone back to using splenda sparingly. I no longer drink flavored water with splenda or diet RC, but I have had Coffeemate sugarfree with splenda once in a while. I feel 100% positive that my 6-month allergy ordeal was caused by daily ingesting a chemical that should not be added to medications when its use is as a 'thickening effect' and 'to create lather' in household products!!

Posted by: Suzette at March 27, 2008 3:16 AM

I wanted to weigh in on the Splenda allergy, too. I had used the product without incident for several months before issues emerged, but one morning I awoke with eyes swollen shut, lips and face swollen badly, and hives from scalp to toes. Never thinking it could be the sweetener, I continued with similar hives for two weeks and began allergy testing only to rule out many culprits and peg other things to which I do not experience any identifiable allergic reactions when exposed. I engaged in an internet search and saw the information about the Splenda allergies being reported, and then examined my own diet. Hives were worst for me in mid-morning (after coffee with Splenda) and overnight (after having a Splenda-sweetened yogurt cup for dessert.) I quit using the product and have not had a reaction since.

Then my mother called one day to report that she suddenly had hives over her body. I mentioned my experience with hives and she said that she had just tried yogurt with Splenda for the first time.

Most recently, my preschool son ate peaches sweetened with Splenda and drank grape juice with Splenda. He had been exposed to the product for several months, too, but developed an allergy like I had. I called his doctor and was told that he could not possibly be allergic to Splenda since it does not have a protein, but it appears that there is a large, growing community of people whose experiences suggest otherwise.

The doctor's office said they would conduct a simple test of introducing water with Splenda at 15-minute intervals (presumably after a period of fasting) to watch for reactions. My plan is to conduct the tests with my doctor and my son's doctor to document the results, and then ask both doctors to file medical watches with the FDA. I would urge others with similar experiences to do the same. My intention would not be to limit use of the product for those who tolerate it, but to encourage proper labeling for those with known allergies and to encourage the medical community to recognize it as a common culprit.

Posted by: Jennifer at April 3, 2008 12:56 PM

I have been having respitory problems, and have been to the emergency room twice. Both time I was diagnosed as having Panic Attacks. I was having shortness of breath, heaviness on my chest, I would breathe in and it felt like I couldn't get all my air. I was light headed, and sometimes my arms tingled. I did not have any rashes, but my hand would itch once in a while and I didn't know what that was from. Quite by accident I identified that every time I ate one of my South Beach Diet Protien Bars, I would get the shortness of breath and then the whole episode would come on. I stopped eating the bars and it seemed to subside some, then yesterday on the way to the gym I ate a piece of gum and during work out I started with the breathing problems again. When I came home I read the gum package, and low and behold it said sucralose!!! Hmmmmm! I will continue to read all the packages now of anything I consume and try to stay off the sucralose to see if my breathing problems improve. I'm so glad I fell into this blog. I was reading an internet site for the definition of sucralose and it linked me to here. So glad I found this. I thought I was going crazy, having daily panic attacks!!!

Posted by: Sally at April 3, 2008 8:08 PM

Who would have thought that something deemed to be a "sugar alcohol", and "made from sugar" could be so problematic!

After using Splenda and products made with sucralose for 5 years I suddenly and without warning came down with the "Splenda Rash".

I too went online to self-diagnose after itching like a mad woman for a month. The closest thing I could find with my symptoms was scabies.
I was glued to the internet for about a week looking at every conceivable picture of skin problems I could find, trying to compare it to my own. I finally relented and made an appointment with my dr. That morning, while drinking my lovely coffee with three packets of (you guessed it) Splenda, and a good dose of sugar free Vanilla Coffee Mate (with sucralose) I happened upon thousands of blogs, threads links etc to rash and other medical probs associated with the wonder sweetener!

I scoured the pantry. It is in all of our protein bars, our whey protein powder, our sugar free salad dressing, soda, yogurt, candy, on and on and on.........

It makes me MAD to think how we are played like sheep to the slaughter! Before I started the Atkins diet on March 1, 2003 I did LOTS of research to make sure I wasn't going to cause myself more harm than good. Lost some weight, changed some bad eating habits, but over time have gained the weight back, have had problems with irritability, body aches, acid reflux, diarhea ect....
My husband has had terrible body aches & arthritis, as well as chest pains, weight gain, and other problems.
I wonder if Dr. Atkins was still alive today if he'd still be pushing Splenda to his patients?

We're off it. I feel terrible for everyone else who has had these same problems, but I am relieved too to know I'm not alone!

...and to think I was giving that stuff to my kids!!

Good luck to all of you. Now to stop itching.........maureen

Posted by: Maureen at April 24, 2008 10:24 AM

Wow, wow, wow, WOW! I can't believe all the similar stories, and how I missed this until now! I've used Splenda here and there over the years but never "continually" or solely, until a short while ago...

I also started on the Atkins diet a few months back, and was (and still am) using stevia to sweeten my iced tea, and wasn't having any trouble.

A couple months ago, I had just switched over to new anti-anxiety meds and had gone with my aunt to get groceries and when we got back, i also got a call that someone had ran into a building I own, but when we got out of the car, I started itching really badly. I thought at first maybe it was nerves from the call.

I had had a root beer (with sugar) earlier in the day, but last, a couple pieces of Cadbury milk chocolate that my aunt had offered me, so I read over the ingredients but didn't see anything ominous (except something like PRPC or something) and "tree nuts" but I now seem to remember them using maltodextrin as the sweetener, which I noticed because sugar was not among the ingredients.

Anyway, later that night I realized I had actual rashes and bumps, welts in fact, looked like huge mosquito bites and itched like crazy, all up and down my forearms mainly, but also across my lower back and chest and stomach and neck and waist.

But I thought it was my meds, though I had been on the new meds for about 3 weeks and this all just now started, but I did find some posts about Wellbutrin giving people hives, so I quit taking all my meds for a week. The hives were as bad as ever and in fact seemed to spread, across new parts of my arms, and elsewhere.

I also began to suspect my stevia extract was possibly cause, though this didn't seem likely as I hadn't had any trouble and HAD been using it fairly regularly and exclusively, up until this period, with no ill effects other than one headache that lasted one day.

So I finally got the see the psychiatrist and got him to change my meds, but he told me if I had an allergic reaction to my meds, it should have started within the first week, and ended a few days, maybe a week after I quit taking my meds. So I went back to the idea of just general anxiety - maybe I was "getting worse" even though the new meds had actually made me feel less anxious and I actually had more energy.

The psychiatrist also changed me to a new med because I was also reporting having a lot of trouble sleeping, both getting to sleep and staying asleep, so he said he expected it was the Wellbutrin.

So over the course of the next month or so, I've battled the hives and itching with anti-itch cream, taking Benadryl and using calamine lotion and its all gradually subsided and I actually haven't had any major itching problems for over a week, almost two now.

Last night I was at my uncle's restaurant and made myself some tea (sweetened with Splenda) and I noticed with some alarm last night my arms were itching a little bit, and now tonight as I sat down at the computer when I got home, my arms were itching like they did a month ago, and I can see bumps again, virtually "out of the blue" - except...

Now I realize that during the time I cut out my meds and such, I was also stopping by and having splenda-sweet tea at my uncle's, but haven't done that in the last month or so, but I did it last night and tonight (and I also made myself a gallon of Splenda tea tonight =/), and now lo and behold, I have itchy hives again! I notice I had also been sleeping better (though my "stay asleep" meds were increased x3 by the psych.) until the last week or so when I started waking up halfway through the night again.

I'm still in a quandry. I don't have any DEFINITE *PROOF* that Splenda is doing all this to me, as it still COULD be increased anxiety and nerves or something else, but as most other people said, that was really the only thing that has changed, same soap etc, but "coincidentally", within a few hours of drinking Splenda, I start itching again. I'm not one for wild allegations and prefer pure logic when possible, but a significant avalanche of even circumstantial evidence pointing toward one explanation needs to be seriously analyzed.

Posted by: Jason Patterson at April 27, 2008 12:36 AM

You know, it is pretty sad about the whole Splenda thing. It's in a lot of food and candy, but people don't even realize it. I have just recently had a sickening encounter with it a few weeks back.
My school went to Boston for a band competition, me along with them. I had been eating Runts and some other candies on the bus ride there. I don't get motion sick on buses, only airplanes. So when i started to get sick, i didn't quite understand it.
The next day we were walking around Boston, and I had been feeling like i wanted to throw up, and my stomach hurt very badly. At first, i though that maybe it was a low blood sugar, i was shaky with some dizziness. But I'm not diabetic, not that it would matter, but it helps. My mom wanted me to eat something because she says that when ever she has a low blood sugar, sweets usually help. I didn't though, because i didn't feel like vomiting.
I didn't know it then, but when we got home, i checked the box. What i saw was Splenda. I was upset because it had bothered me before, and it had almost ruined my weekend. But it's not like people look at the fine print or anything... From now on though, i have to avoid it... It's just nasty...

Posted by: Joelle at July 8, 2008 11:40 AM

I was stunned when I began reading the comments from others concerning Splenda! I have had a rash for 9 months that no one (myself or doctors) have been able to diagnose. It started as a small spot on my lower right leg, grew to a very large area of my leg and then moved to the other leg, one arm, both arms, chest, belly, and back. It was in the exact same spots on both sides of my body which led us to believe it was systemic, but after thousands of dollars of testing, and numerous creams, antibiotics, antihistamines, steroids, nothing worked. I was getting ready for another series of testing and had to go off the prednisone for that. The rash bloomed into something ferocious and feverish as soon as I was off the steroid. In desparation, I once again turned to the internet to try to find information. I began to think of foods that I HADN'T been tested for and systematically just began with breakfast. I thought of coffee and looked up coffee allergy, no it wasn't that, no rashes, no unbearable itching, no open sores. So I thought well,certainly it couldn't be the Splenda that I have been putting in my coffee for the last 3 or 4 years! I googled Splenda allergy and found this site!! Most of the people on this site have my same story. I stoppped using the Splenda 2 weeks ago and the rash is slowly easing. Today is the first day off the antihistamine and life is fine. My legs, arms and belly are horribly scarred from this. At this point, I don't care. I am just relieved to think there may be an end to this nightmare. I agree with the people who have written and said that there should be some warning on the box of Splenda. Believe me, I will be warning people from now on.

Posted by: Roberta at July 18, 2008 9:19 AM

hi, I just came back from the the endodontics dr, specialist in root canals, i was sick when there and had a bad toothache with a 4 day progessive migraine. 3 months ago the pimples on my legs were so bad that I sanded them of with an emery board! I know that sounds crazy. 3 wks ago I started to use Splenda heavily again for weight loss. Used it in my tea, coffee and foods now I see the connection so clearly that I want to scream!!! I may have gotten an $850.00 rework on a root canal that hasn't bothered me in 4+ years because of this horrible, vile product. I have used it over the years thinking it was helping me but as I use it I continue to gain weight. Today was the final straw and I thank you all for being here with your stories. Since I have used this "sweetener" my health has gone down hill. I now have Fibromyalgia, anxiety, those embarrassing pimples on my butt, mouth sores, severe eye pain,twitching, debilitating migraines. My God, I feel like this may be the answer to at least some of my problems. I am also allergic to rape seed, aka canola oil, and iodine and have developed one allergy after another. This is so sickening I can't put into words what I am feeling right now. THANK YOU ALL for posting your issues so I was able to figure out what is happening with my body. If anyone has any ideas on how to start a protest of these unhealth products I am 100% behind you. I will be back here to keep you posted as I cut all this poison out of my diet.

Posted by: Lynn at July 23, 2008 1:38 PM

I had to write again and give an update. Only because the updates are what have made my recovery bearable. I have returned to this site several times, looking for some "light at the end of the tunnel." I stopped Splenda on July 6th. Within 3 weeks, my arms, back, belly, upper legs were completely rash free. My lower legs were better, just not healed completely. I was also able to say my sinuses were back to normal. At this point we had to travel to the midwest to move a family member to assisted living. We were there for over 2 weeks, and working in a very dusty, moldy, environment. In about a week, I noticed that my legs were itching and getting really bad again. My sinuses were completely swollen shut (not infected, but inflamed) By the time we left to come home, both legs were swollen and infected (by scratching I had introduced bacteria--not the first time) I found an Urgent Care facility while we were on the road and started taking an antibiotic. We have been home three days now. The itching is subsiding, my sinuses are opening, my legs are healing. My theory is that I was not completely healed before I went into a hot, dusty, moldy, stressful situation, and that caused the rash to flare again. So my system must still be sensitized from the allergic reaction to the Splenda. So, I have been Splenda free for over 5 weeks and I am hopeful I will be rash free and symptom free very soon. Does anyone else find themselves getting angry over all the new products coming out with Splenda?

Roberta

Posted by: Roberta at August 13, 2008 9:13 AM

While I don't have the itchiness you guys all seem to have, I do have a really sever reaction to all sugar replacements: I get so sick to my stomach I puke or almost puke, followed by fever like symptoms (feeling super cold and having the chills when everyone around me is in teeshirts and tank tops) and then my throat swells up. Once, when someone added a full packet of sweet and low to my drink, I couldn't breath so bad I almost went to the hospital.

While I havent been tested for anything, I have done the "eliminate one thing from your diet, one at a time, and see what is causing this thing, per the doctors instructions. The root of it seems to be anything with a fake sugar in it. I never get a Aspartame or Sucralose, since they leave a HORRIBLE taste in my mouth, but the other few sneak up on me sometimes.

Today I was at Bumbershoot in Seattle and was given a sample of something, and after asking the promoter if it was a) a diet version or b) had a sugar replacement in it I started the whole cycle. Thankfully, it was a small enough amount that some benadryl, which I carry on me for these reasons, made it less of an issue than it could have been. However, I went back and asked the promoter for the label and it did indeed contain some sugar replacements. It had real sugar in it too, but not much.

Mostly, that was my fault. I trusted the word of someone who was seemingly very knowledgeable on the product (knew calorie content, a few other various nutrition facts, etc) and paid the price for it. But, more than 6 hours later, I still get the chills some, and, like after a fever, I have that lingering ache. My throat is much better, but it's still there. The doctors don't have anything to tell me except "don't eat it!", which has left me resorting to being a very very careful shopper. I just thought I would add this here, incase anyone with similar reactions stumbled here through google. Still, go to the doctor. tell them whats up. thats what you should do, since everyone is different.

Posted by: Kwen at August 31, 2008 9:45 PM

It took over 3 months of itchy terrible rash for me to figure out my allergy was to Splenda too. I started with the diet cola drinks thinking it would help me lose weight, but it sure wasn't worth it. My reactions were terrible...up and down my entire body were these terrible itchy welts. I was wearing long sleeves and pants to work even when it was hot just to avoid questions and funny looks. It wasn't as easy to hide the rash on my neck and face though (and I teach middle school!). I spoke to my doctor- he said it must be from something I'm using like laundry soap or something I was eating. I switched to the dye and fragrant free laundry soap- no help. So I talked to my very health aware sister-in-law and she helped me figure out that Splenda was also sucralose. That aspartame stuff was also not something I should ingest according to her. I eliminated anything I could that advertised Splenda on it or read sucralose in the ingredients. It took about 3 weeks for the hives to disappear, but the itching got better within a few days.
I was so disappointed to find that the Light and Healthy orange juice I bought (endorsed by Weight Watchers) has sucralose in it. It's not advertised on the package that it is in there, I just happened to be reading the box while the kids were eating. I have only had two glasses over two days and can feel the numbing in my fingers and the swelling in my hands already.
If products that contain Splenda are not CLEARLY labeled it makes it difficult to avoid them when you want to improve your diet, but your little kids are making you rush through the grocery aisle so they don't end up making an issue while you are there. I know I need to read the labels, and I usually do, but it would be so much easier if things were clearly marked. At least I haven't started the rash again (yet) from this juice and I've found out before I had too much.
I was glad to see my symptoms were not just me. The people who said the FDA needs to check this out further are right. Too many people are having the same kinds of reactions, Splenda has known side effects even if the company won't acknowledge them.

Posted by: Trina at September 1, 2008 6:07 AM

In response to Betsy's "post" I can assure you that most of the people writing comments have done their homework. I too switched to Splenda because I thought it was better for me. A few days later the dizziness, heart palpatations, and shortness of breath started. I didn't focus on the Splenda because my father had just been diagnosed with congestive heart failure and I freaked out that the same thing was happening to me. I went to the doctor, got a clean bill of health with the exception of a diagnosis of panic attacks and a nice bottle of Zoloft. It wasn't until I searched and found this site that I realized it was Splenda. The mornings were the only time I had any, and I averaged about 8 packets in a few cups of coffee. By lunch the nausea would be so bad I went home several days in a row. After cutting it out everything stopped with in a day. I felt normal again. Two days later I was eating yogurt for breakfast and it came back again. You guessed it, Splenda. I've ran into this several times since and when I get those same feelings it's always confirmed that I've had something with sucralose in it. But, this is a personal reaction to it. Everyone else in my family swears by it and uses it all the time. My sister has the same reaction to aspartame but loves Splenda. So before you preach patience in posting imagine these reactions happening to you from something that has been ok'd by the FDA, but hasn't been fully tested for the general public's use. Imagine getting a diagnosis of panic attack and clean bill of health while not being able to get a full breath or stand up without your heart beating out of your chest. Try some understanding before reacting because (to correctly use one definition of the word allergy) most of us are allergic to close-minded people like yourself not comprehending the situation. Enough said.

Posted by: Jason at September 29, 2008 8:56 AM

Here's another one for you! My son has been temporarily put on a strict sugar-free diet so the whole family jumped on the bandwagon to show some solidarity. I love my coffee and can't stand it without sugar so I bought some good old Sweet n' Low. It worked fine and you get used to the aftertaste. My husband had a fit and insisted that Sweet n' Low is incredibly bad for you, so he picked up some Splenda for me to use. After two weeks of NEARLY UNCONTROLLABLE ITCHING primarily on my scalp and face, dizziness, sleeplessness, not to mention general allergy syptoms like headache, runny nose, itchy eyes and also an acne outbreak (I'm 38, c'mon, ACNE?!)I finally realized that it was probably the Splenda (at first I seriously thought it was sugar withdrawl). After two Splenda free days all symptoms are starting to go away now. Thanks to those of you that pointed out having problems with other stuff containing sucralose so I know which ingredient to try and avoid. Back to Sweet n' Low! To the previous poster, Jason, who had a good hunch about arthritis and allergies- I have a lifelong sensitivity to gluten that caused a lot of joint pain,among other things,until I cut gluten completely out of my diet. My son and younger daughter have this problem also (sorry about the defective genes kids!). My doctor told me that any constant exposure to an allergen can cause all kinds of problems including joint inflammation. The gluten free diet is a real pain to follow but it's been worth the trouble for me, and I'll happily live my whole life without bread to be able to firmly hold a pen. :).

Posted by: Alexandra at October 11, 2008 9:28 PM

OMG!!! Thank you, thank you!. 3-4 years ago, I developed an UNCONTRABLE ITCHING sensation that felt like I had things crawling just under my skin, in any given place. I scratch, the area turns red, hives appear and the itch is so uncontrable, you might as well drag me naked down the highway going 90mph! The areas itch like mad for 10-15 minutes, get VERY hot to the touch, and I develop hives. I saw 2 dermatologists and an allergist. The derm told me it was dermatographism and would go away in 10 years or less. The allergist told me it was asthma AFTER I spent $3,000 on an allergy blood test and a few x-rays. He tried to give me an inhaler. I looked at him and said "what? You mean to tell me I itch b/c of asthma?" At this point I would believe anything, but I don't believe that. I work for a Dr and that idea is absurd. My lab tests showed an IGG level 3 times its normal limit. Researching that found either asthma or an allergic reaction to SOMETHING, but nobody could tell me what. I do have an inhaler that I seem to have to use more and more due to shortness of breath, which could be the Splenda or could truly be asthma. I did a food diary for 6 months to try and isolate what the problem is. I take twice the recommended amount of Zyrtec on a daily basis (on Dr's orders), and the thought of running out of it has me in a panic. I use soap with no perfumes or dyes, All free and clear detergent, and Bath and Body Works is crying over losing their best customer! I realized tonite, after all this time, that I haven't itched in about 7 days, until now. I made some iced tea tonite and used my splenda packets. I haven't had anything with splenda in it, until now. Right at this moment I am itching everywhere, the hives have appeared b/c it is an itch that CANNOT be scratched. I threw out the splenda and I will never use it again! Thank you everyone for coming together. I am so glad I found this site. Anyone a lawyer out there? I'm not much for frivolous lawsuits, but after everyone on this site that has the same problems, can you imagine the amount of money we have all spent to try and figure out why? Thanks!

Posted by: Melody at October 16, 2008 6:42 PM

Posted by: Melody at October 16, 2008 6:43 PM

Thanks for the site! I have never had a reaction to anything in my life until I met Splenda. I am doing great on the Atkins Diet and , of ocurse, Splenda is recommended over Aspartame. I was consuming four products a day (Atkins Shake and Two RC Low Carb Drinks). First came the wheeze and cough like the kind you get with histamine release after a bee sting, my mouth was dry all the time after starting the diet. Then one morning I noticed and felt my face itching. It was red with splotches and seemed swollen. It even felt a little numb. The rash got worse over the next few days and my upper lipped burned and eventully felt as if I was wearing someone else's lips and just wanted to peel them off. After a week, and stopping Splenda as that was the only thing different in my diet over the previous two months, it started to reside but took some time.

The rase finally left and I got my face back but the burning, cracked and swollen upper lips persisted and is just now heading back in the right direction towards normal. The dryness persists but is also getting better. My healed face, espcially around the nose and mouth feels a bit like leather and still a bit "numb"

Stopping the product consumption began an immediate change though it took a few weeks. Goodbye Splenda.

Posted by: Dennis at October 20, 2008 4:06 AM

Thank God I found this site. I have been experiencing severe hives and rashes for over a week. It started after having a bowl of instant oatmeal sweetened with Splenda. I have been an avid Splenda user for many years, with no apparent problem with the sweetener.

After the oatmeal on Sunday I took a shower and noticed I had a hive. Later that night they were much worse. I went to see the doctor on Tuesday and he prescribed antihistamines. I continued to use Splenda, never suspecting it was the culprit.

Wed, Thurs, Fri, I was an itching mess. Had Splenda in my coffee and in everything else. Had it Sunday evening at dinner and was up all night scratching old hives that "re-animated" every night. By Monday morning I was almost hysterical and beside myself.

Doctor took me off all meds. Thought it might be a reaction to my topamax that I take for migraines. Put me on Prednisone. Took it Monday afternoon and felt better almost immediately. Slept well Monday night, with only 1 hive throughout the night.

Had great energy on Tuesday (yesterday). Worked, cleaned house. Had lunch and drank a diet iced tea with Splenda, and got a few hives on my leg, nothing major.

Late last night I ate another bowl of oatmeal sweetened with five packets of Splenda. Within fifteen minutes I was scratching and itching with hives everywhere.

Was up all night in a state of panic, severely disappointed that the allergy was not to Topomax because I had stopped taking it, gotten relief from Prednisone, and now the hives were back with a vengeance.

Got up at 5am and started Googling everything I had eaten that could have given me an allergy. At first I was convinced it was the instant oatmeal. Now I believe it was the direct dose of Splenda in the oatmeal.

No more Splenda for me! I should have stock in the company because I have been a faithful and consistent customer for YEARS, purchasing the huge box over and over again.

I will see if the hives and the migraines and muscle aches go away after discontinuing it today.

I will also toss the remaining packets I have in the trash and make sure my family members don't use it again. I am pre-diabetic but I would rather adjust my diet to use real sugar sparingly than to continue to poison myself with a so-called substitute.

Now, if the hives don't go away after discontinuing the Splenda for a while, I will back to tell you that too!!

Posted by: Tracy Thompson at December 17, 2008 12:15 PM

My symptoms began about six months ago. Well, I guess really before that. I had been experiencing symptoms like shakiness, chills, etc. Didn�t really think much about it, as they only happened every once in a while. Then, while shampooing, I was shocked to see that my hands were covered with hair. This caused me anxiety, but not to the extent that would be expected. It was like a faucet that I could not turn off, no matter what I tried. Shaking, not sleeping well, loss of appetite, tingling in legs and hands. For six months now, I have had the following symptoms.

� Unexplained hair loss
� Debilitating anxiety / panic attacks
� Heart palpitations
� Chest pain
� Shakiness
� Tingling of feet & hands
� Extreme restless leg syndrome at night ( in one leg!)
� Severe painful cramps in feet/toes
� Weakness in legs
� Legs feel as if �weighted down�
� Swollen ankles
� Chills going up legs
� Unexplained sleepiness, even immediately after a good night of sleep
� Nausea
� Stomach cramps
� Bloatedness
� Loss of appetite
� Stomach upset
� Itchy, watery, red eyes
� Bottom lip extremely swelled when waking from sleep in morning
� Hives over various parts of my body � sometimes itchy, sometimes not
� Unexplained itching, with NO hives present
� Daily bouts of sneezing
� Sinusitis, dry mouth
� Ringing in ears; ears feel closed up, can hear heart beating in ears
� Feeling as if in �fog�
� Dizziness, sometimes feeling faint
� Eyes feel sore when moved
� Neck & shoulder pain
� Headaches, & swollen nodes around neck area

About 2 weeks ago, I began putting these symptoms into a search on the web. I came up with the ONLY answer that I have been able to find, and the ONLY one that covered ALL of my symptoms and made sense. I have been using a good bit of Splenda for a few years now. I immediately ceased using it two weeks ago, and began attempts to detox my body. Now, in only two weeks, I feel like a normal person for the first time in 6 months. Nearly all of my symptoms have disappeared. I can�t believe that I was poisoning myself and didn�t know it! This has been one of the most horrible periods of my life that I can remember. I am so thankful to have found the answer!

I am still having some problems with one foot, but it is much better since stopping the use of Splenda. Since it is known that Splenda can cause neurological problems, I feel that it definitely did in my case, maybe even causing some neurological damage to that foot. But, I am confident that will be healed also, in time.

Why are they still allowed to sell this stuff?!

Posted by: Vicki at January 30, 2009 7:24 AM

I discovered my Splenda allergy in 2005 after process of elimination. I had the itcy rash and probably 100 bruises on my legs which I discovered from your blogs that it was known to inhibit the absorption of iron. I didn't sleep for days from the itiching. My regular doctor and an allergy specialist were adamant that there was no proof. I KNOW the proof. I was consuming large amounts of Splenda. I guess it builds up in your system first and takes at least 4 days to go away after cold turkey. The best advice would be to get ice tea and mix half sweet with half unsweet. All the restaurants are used to that now. I can use it sparingly and nothing happens. I am now on Weight Watchers on Line (lost 8 pounds in 12 days) It is so easy! Yeah! I was trying artificial sweeteners a little everyday and have now had to move to those stevia products because my ears and neck are burning hot and my skin is flushing again. I tried to drink a Coke Zero last night and woke up with the flushing. I HAVE NO DOUBT ABOUT THESE ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS. Your body just doesn't know what to do with them so it stores them somewhere and it becomes toxic at certain levels.

Posted by: Rhonda Forbes at January 31, 2009 5:53 AM

I stumbled onto this site on Friday 9/4/09 while searching for a cause of my swollen, sore lips. I have been plagued with sore, swollen, severely chapped lips since early 2009 but it had gotten much much worse in the last 3 months to the point that it was so painful I could not focus on anything else. I had tried most every kind of lip therapy treatments out there to no avail. Anything I put on my lips in an effort to ease the pain cause severe burning pain. I had been online before and everything I read indicated that people with similar problems had been to doctors with no relief and had been told it would never get better. I could not accept that. I had tried to think of anything that I had been eating that was different or any product I had been using that was different, but there was nothing. I had not changed anything. I never thought about Splenda because I had been using it for several years with no problems (I thought). Then on Friday, I stumbled on to this site and began reading about the problems others have encountered as a result of using SPlenda. While there did not seem to be any scientific proof that Splenda caused these problems, it just seemed too much to be a coincidence. While reading, I realized that I had other symptoms too. I had twice in the past year had a mysterious rash or hives under my breasts. They went away and I did not think more about it. I also have noticed unusually blurred vision - sometimes, but not all of the time. I also have had random rash on my eyelids that would burn - but not constantly - it would come and go. I also have a scalely patch behind each ear. I also had noticed that my face sometimes seemed to be swollen around the jawline. I never connected these symptoms as they would all come and go - EXCEPT for the lip problem which was mostly constant. It would seem to get a little better some days but then the next day would be worse again. Each time it would be worse than before. I now believe that could have been because I didn't have Splenda every day. I didn't keep track because I didn't suspect the Splenda but I'm thinking that perhaps the days that my lips would feel a little better were after I had not had Splenda for a day or so and then I would use it again and they would be worse the next day. Anyway, after reading all of this "evidence" on Friday, I decided to test the theory. I have not used Splenda since Friday (this is Tuesday). By Sunday, my lips began to feel a little better. Actually a lot better - probably 50% improvement. Monday was even better. And today (Tues), I can actually smile and stretch my lips without pain or cracking. I'm still using lots of lip balm product and vaseline but they are soft for the first time in months. My face also does not look as swollen. I did not have the other symptoms on Friday when I started the test so I cannot speak for them. Unless, my lips get worse again, I am convinced that the Splenda was the problem all along. The thing is that I used Splenda for several years before any of the symptoms appeared. I did not use a LOT of Splenda. I used it in my iced tea when we went out to eat and I started making my tea at home with it. But I didn't drink tea every day. I didn't use it for anything else. I do not ever drink diet drinks except when I would eat at Chick-Filet I would sometimes drink their diet lemonade BECAUSE it used Splenda. I never liked the taste of any of the other sweeteners. I do like the taste of Splenda but unless my lip problem returns without my use of Splenda (proving it was not the Splenda that caused the problem), I will never use Splenda again.

Posted by: Donna at September 8, 2009 8:47 AM

While on vacation this summer in Outer Banks, NC I got Food Lion's Diet Dr. Perky. I loved the taste and noticed it had Splenda but didn't think anything of it. While on vacation I had some strange bladder issues and the inner part of lips got teribly and painfully chapped. I thought my lips somehow got sunburned although I had been to the beach many times and had never had that happen. Plus, it was the inner part so that didn't really make sense. I made nachos for supper one night and couldn't hardly eat because of the pain on my chapped lips from the salt and spices. Anyway, I loved the Diet Dr. Perky and got some cans and 2-liters to bring back to Indiana since we don't have Food Lions around here.

About a week later I developed a strange heartburn type pain i my lower esophogus that was so bad I had to send my husband to the store late in the evning for some Mylanta to try to help stop the pain. My sister is a nurse and she kept asking me if I had eatern anything different since I had never had this happen before. I had been drinking the Diet Dr. Perky daily since we returned from vacation and I hated to think it could be that, but I decided to look up Splenda side effects. I found several sites that listed the upper GI problems and the bladder issues I had. I also found the burning lips listed as a possible side effect. That explained my painful lips on vacation. I decided to definitely avoid Splenda in the future and sadly said goodbye to my new found love, Diet Dr. Perky.

A few months later, my husband brought home Pizza Hut for supper. I ate a slice, some cheesy bread, and a chocolate dunker and noticed that the inner part of my lips were burning and had a chapped feeling. They felt just like they did on vacation but I didn't think I had eaten anything with Splenda so I didn't see how that could be possible. The next morning the corners of my mouth were cracked, bleeding and extremely painful along with the inner parts being extremely chapped and painful. I decided that maybe the chocolate dunker (I think that's what they're called) was sweetened with Splenda so I decided to look it up on the Internet. Imagine my surprise when I found that Pizza Hut uses sucralose (Splenda) in their hand-tossed bread dough! I never would have expected it to be in bread dough.

I have looked everywhere to find a list of fast-food and restaurant items that contain sucralose so I can avoid them but haven't been able to find one. All I can find are lists of products like energy bars and flavored waters where you would expect to find Splenda or sucralose. It took my lips a week and a half to heal completely and I definitely don't want to go through that again. If anyone knows of a list of unexpected items that contain sucralose I would LOVE to see it. Please e-mail it to mmbl32@hotmail.com. Thanks!!!!

Posted by: Marcie at October 11, 2009 2:47 PM

Wow! My husband suspected that Splenda was my problem but I was unsure until today. Several months ago, I started using Splenda in my morning coffee. It didn't seem to cause any harm. A few times in the afternoon, I'd have more coffee. That's when I didn't feel well. Two different evenings and with one trip to the hospital, I felt awful. I had shortness of breath and chest pains. It felt like my tongue was huge in my mouth. I even suggested to the ER doc that maybe it was the extra caffeine. A friend of mine told me that Splenda makes her feel that way. I wasn't sure that Splenda was the cause but I stopped using it. Today is Thanksgiving. My sister tried three new recipes and all with Splenda. About 30 minutes after lunch, I started not feeling well...tired and irritable. I came home and took a nap, which is not unusual after a Turkey dinner but I told my husband that I felt strange and not myself. I awoke feeling like I was not breathing well. I again had shortness of breath. I felt that my tonge was huge in my mouth. I also felt like I needed to clear my throat to breath but there wasn't anything in my throat. My husband told me that he was sure it was the Splenda. I took Benadryl and I'm feeling better but I am sure it's the Splenda. I may be able to tolerate (now) in small quantities but I do believe that I have an allergic reaction to it in larger quantities. I will not ever use it again! Thanks for your site.

Posted by: Yvonne at November 26, 2009 4:51 PM

I am shocked I did not put two and two together until now. I started using Splenda years ago approx. 2003-2004. I would drink it in hot tea every morning. I developed big patches of excema on the tops of my hands. I went to a dermatologist who said it was stress. Three visits later, a couple of precriptions of prednisone and I still did not know what was causing it. I asked the doctor if I could be allergic to something I was eating. He said nooooooooooooo slowly then gave me a list of foods that cause psoriasis in some patients. I was eating everything on the list except for rhubarb. All these years I've suffered mostly from cracked knuckles and small itchy patches on my hands. This past fall I had a severe outbreak and had hives again. Went to the doctor and Prednisone knocked those out but the patches on my hands and the contact dermatitis persist. Last week I ate some hot cereal with Splenda Brown Sugar. I watched my fingers light up like Christmas lights. That is when the light switch came on. I have not had any Splenda since then. My morning ritual of digging into my hands and scratching is gone. The excema patches are still there but no itching. Time will truly tell but I believe Splenda is the cause.

Posted by: Kay at January 11, 2010 5:42 AM

For the past week and a half I havent been able to breath well. My chest alway felt tight and I just could never seem to get big enough breaths, I jsut wrote that off though because I have seasonal asthma and it acts up sometimes,so i went to the docters and he prescribed me an inhaler. About a week later my inhaler still wasnt working and i was starting to get the shakes and the feeling like my throat was closing up. One night i couldnt sleep becuase I couldnt breath and it was really freaking me out and i started to have a really bad panic attack which made it even harder for me to breath. Through out all of thses days i was drinking alot of milos sweettea that was sweetened with splenda, We ran out one day so i didnt drink any for a day and the next morning i felt better, but i drank some before i went to school, and took a benadryl well i felt a little better but about an hour later i started not being able to breath agian, so i took another benadryl and i felt a little better, but i ended up falling asleep in class. I felt better at lunchtime and I ate my lunch and remembered i bout some sweetheart candies sweetend with splenda in my bag so i started snacking on them and right after i started not being able to breath agian and my throat felt as if it was closeing up. I took a nap when i got hom and when i woke up i felt a little better and then for dinner i drank somemore tea and It made me not be ableto breath agian, so i tried my inhaler and it didnt work, so i used my inhaler agian and it still didnt work so i got on the computer and looked up alergies and found this website, and no lie its helped aalot, I'm going to quit using splenda and see if it helps. I reallyu hope it does because its drivig me crazy

Posted by: Katelyn at January 27, 2010 9:35 PM

I am SO GLAD I found this site!! On and off for MONTHS I've been plagued w/random hives on my forehead, eyelids and cheeks. In the months prior to this I'd only have Splenda in my morning coffee, two mugs and the occasional soda drink w/splenda. The only complaint I had at that time was itchy eyes and dry itchy skin w/no rash. Occasionaly I'd get pimples, but wrote that off as hormones, I'm 37, but I still wrote it off as hormones :)
When the hives appeared on my face, I wrote them off as severe dry skin and upped my moisturizer. When that didn't help, I assumed I had developed an allergy to my pets (that I've had for years and years) I also threw out my makeup and haircare products, changed my laundry detergent and dryer sheets. I got a water softener because I though my water was too hard and affecting my skin.
I was crawling out of my SKIN this morning with a new batch of welts covering my eyelids and face this morning when I came across this site. I almost cried to see people w/the same symptoms as me who KNEW WHAT WAS WRONG!!
My newest bout of welts, I'm sure, came from my piece of homemade cheesecake made with splenda and the strawberry topping made w/splenda I had last night before bed. I woke up in the middle of the night scratching my face raw.
Too bad I was already on my second cup of Poison Laced coffee when I started reading this morning...I am now in full detox mode, so I'll keep you updated as to my progress.

PS, my furry babies can now rest easy...I was so upset and sick w/the itchy and pain, I was considering adopting my babies out...THANK GOD I DIDN'T!!!

Posted by: christine at February 4, 2010 9:19 PM

I can remember the absolute relief when I found this blog page. I posted a couple of years ago. I would like to say that once I found out the Splenda had affected me and I took it out of my diet, that all was well. unfortunately that has not been the case. I really do believe that the Splenda set me up for some chronic skin problems. The itching I had from the Splenda was worse than anything I have ever had since. However, because of the constant use of prednisone, and antibiotics, my immune system was completely depleted. I have struggled with skin issues for over two years now. I have finally found a dermatologist that knows how to treat my eczema so hopefully I am on the path to recovery. I had a couple of things I wanted to share with everyone on this blog.
1. Most of us were using Splenda as a way to reduce calories and/or sugar content...it's actually easier to just stop using sugar....a much healthier way to eat and the added bonus of losing weight. I have lost about 40 pounds, just by taking sugar out of my diet. I use xylitol for sweetener in my coffee and oatmeal.

2. If you truly feel that Splenda has caused the horrible reactions we have all felt, file a report with the FDA. I did. You have to fill out a form, but it can be done online. You can also call them, I believe. Splenda is being touted as a safe alternative for sugar in products aimed at children. This could have serious consequences in the health of our children.

3. I have probably seen a dozen doctors in the last 2 and a half years, and not one of them believes my Splenda story. Not one.

It's nice to know we are not alone in this struggle. I know you all are not crazy, have scabies, or some weird immune disease. We all know what each other has been going through.

Don't give up!!!

Posted by: Roberta at February 14, 2010 9:55 AM

Sounds all too familiar, but I also finally figured out that Splenda is poison. I have had eczema for years on my hands, but recently it worsened. I had splotchy areas on my face particularly in areas that I shave. It got to the point, as others have noted, that I would awake scratching myself raw. I too had gone the same route as many on this thread. Allergist appointments, steroid cremes, Allegra, Benadryl, Claritin. I tried it all with limited to no success. I also cut out all probable foods from my diet. Shellfish, wheat, dairy. I also received weekly allergy shots for dot/cat, mold, and dust mites. I couldn't shake it and it truly made me miserable.

I used (note the past tense) Splenda quite a bit. In tea, kool-aid, coffee, anything that required a sweetener. I bought it by the bag. Recently, while at work, I just had my morning coffee and immediately started itching. It felt like bugs were crawling under my skin. Finally... a revelation! A simple Google of Splenda+allergy and I found this vast repository of similar stories. In just days since removing Splenda from my life, I am a new man. My skin looks wonderful, I can breathe, I can sleep, and am currently reintroducing some delicious foods to my life.

Splenda is indeed a danger. I am starting a one man crusade to tell all that I know. Stay tuned! Same bat time, same bat channel.

Posted by: danny at April 12, 2010 7:23 PM

Splenda is indeed a danger. I am starting a one man crusade to tell all that I know. Stay tuned! Same bat time, same bat channel.

Posted by: danny at April 12, 2010 7:24 PM

I woke up with hives on my face this morning and wanted to find the reason. I had been dieting and began using more and more splenda throughout the day. After reading your blog I began to realize that it was much more than the hives. I have been having problems for months with my eyes, sadness, forgetfulness, confusion, itchy ears, itchy areas like on my back, tired and a state of not well being that was beginning to concern me. It began with a weight loss program that was all shakes and transitioned to food. I did that for over a month and wanted to transition to more food education for a lifestyle. Again the products being sold were loaded with splenda and aspertain. I now realize I need to detox and rethink my life choices. I believe the route for myself will need to develop an appreciation for stevia. There is a product It called sun crystals that I like. It is a combination of stevia with a little bit of cane sugar. Just a thought.
I also believe I am going to get rid of my smart balance oil after reading about canola oil. I am going to go back to organic butter and olive oil. That was alarming. I knew about splenda before I started and knew margarines and some oils were some of the biggest problems in our diets.
I have always been a label reader but am going to step it up after reading so many of your blogs about products I didnt think of....thank you all so much!!!!
For me and my family we are going to need to eat right and stay with whole food basics. Pick up the exercise and stay away from this garbage they are poinsoning us with!!!! Wow marketing stinks.
I would join a class action law suit in a heartbeat. I feel horrible but believe in prayer that it will pass.

Posted by: Sara Garret at May 29, 2010 10:19 PM

�� DN 50-1200 ��, PN 1,6 -16 ��
31�545��, 31�945�� , 31�45��, 31��545��(��), 31��945��(��), 31��45�� (��), 31�77��, 31��77��(��), 30�919��, 30�519��, 30�976�� , 30�576�� , 30�76��, 30��76��, 30��976��(��) , 30��576��(��) , 30�915��,30�515��, 30�515��, 30��915��(��) ,30��515��(��), 30��515��(��) ,30�964��, 30�564��, 30�64��, 30��964��(��), 30��564��(��) ,30��64��(��), 30�941��, 30�541�� , 30�41�� , 30��941��(��), 30��541��(��), 30��41��(��), 31��945��, 31��545��, 31��45��, 30��976�� , 30��576�� 30��76��, 30��915�� , 30��515�� , 30��15�� ,30��64��, 30��964��, 30��564��, 30��41��, 30��941��, 30��541��.
�� DN 150-2000 ��, PN 0,1 -2,5 ��
30�42��, 30�942��, 30�46��, 30�946��, 30�546��, 30�947��, 30�547��, 30�914��, 30�514��, 30�511��, 30�911��, 30��42��, 30��942��, 30��542��, 30��46��, 30��946��, 30��546��, 30��947��, 30��547��, 30��914��, 30��514��, 30��911��, 30��511��, 30�907��, 30�507��, 30�65��, 30�965��, 30�565��, 30��65�� , 30��565��, 30��965�� , 30��907��, 30��507��, 30�950��.
�� DN 150-2000 ��, PN 0,1 -2,5 �� 32�910�, 32�10�, 32�510�, 32��910�(��), 32��10�(��), 32��510�(��), 32��910�, 32��10�, 32��510�, 32�930�, 32�530�, 32��930�(��), 32��530�(��), 32��930�, 32��530�, 32�910��, 32�510��, 32��910�� , 32��510��, 32�930��, 32�530��, 32��930��, 32��530��, 32��930��(��), 32��530��(��), 32�916�, 32�16�, 32�516�, 32��916�(��), 32��16�(��), 32��516�(��), 32��916�, 32��16�, 32��516�, 32�916��, 32�16��, 32�516��, 32��916��(��), 32�916��, 32�16��, 32�516��, 32�916��, 32�16��, 32�516��, 32��16��(��), 32��516��(��), 32��916��, 32��16��, 32��516��.
�� DN 50-2000 ��, PN 0,1 -1,6 ��
32�926�, 32�526�, 32�26�, 32�26��, 32�926��, 32�526��, 32�34�.

�� DN 50-1600 ��, PN 0,1 -16 �� 11��60�,11��60�1,11��60�2,11��60�3,11��60�6,11��60�7,11��660�,11��660�1,11�45�,
11��4�,11�(6)745�,11��(6)745�,11��60�,11��60�1,11��660�,11��660�1,11�45�,11��45�,
11�(6)745�,11��(6)745�,11��60�,11��60�1,11��660�,11��660�1,11�45�,11��45�,11�(6)745�,
11�(6)745�,11��60�,11��60�1,11��660�,11��660�1,11�45�,11��45�,11�(6)745�,11��(6)745�,
11��60��,11��60�1�,11��60�4�,11��60�5�,11��60�6�,11��60�7�,11��60�8�,11��60�9�,
11��660��,11��660�1�,11��660�6�,11��660�7�,11�(6)745�6�,11�(6)745�8�,11��(6)745�6�,
11��(6)745�8�,11�45��,11��45��,11��45�5�,11�(6)745��,11��(6)745��,11��60�,11��60�1,
11��60�2,11��60�3,11��60�4,11��60�5,11��(6)760�,11��(6)760�1,11��(6)760�6,11��(6)760�7,11�45�,11��45�,11�(6)745�,11��(6)745�,11��(6)745�8,11��68�,11��68�1,11��68�4,11��68�5,
11��68�6,11��68�7,11��(6)768�,11��(6)768�1,11��(6)768�2,11��(6)768�3,11��(6)768�8,
11��(6)768�9,11��(6)768�10,11��(6)768�11,11��(6)745�6,11��(6)745�7,11�45�,11��45�,
11�(6)745�,11��(6)745�,11��68�3,11��68�4,11��68�5,11��68�6,11��68�7,11��(6)768�4,
11��(6)768�5,11��(6)768�6,11��(6)768�7,11��(6)768�,11��(6)768�1,11��(6)768�2,
11��(6)768�3,11�45�,11�45�1,11��45�,11��45�1,11�745�,11��745�,11�745�1,11��745�1,
11��68�10,11��68�11,11��68�12,11��68�13,11��68�14,11��68�15,11��(6)768�,11��(6)768�9,
11��(6)768�10,11��(6)768�11,11��(6)768�12,11��(6)768�13,11��68�4,11��68�6,11��68�7,
11��(6)768�4,11��(6)768�5,11��(6)768�6,11��(6)768�7,11��62�,11��62�1,11��62�2,11��62�3,11��62�6,11��62�7,11��62�8,11��82�9,11��(6)762�,11��(6)762�1,11��(6)762�4,11��(6)762�5,11��(6)762�6,11��(6)762�7,11��(6)762�8,11��(6)762�9,11��762�12,11��762�14,11��762�15,
11��62�18,11��(6)768�,11��(6)768�1,11��(6)768�2,11��(6)768�3,11��(6)768�4,11��(6)768�5,
11��(6)768�6,11��(6)768�7,11��(6)768�8,11��(6)768�9,11��(6)768�10,11��(6)768�11,
11��(6)762�,11��(6)762�1,11��(6)762�4,11��(6)762�5,11��(6)762�8,11��(6)762�9,11��(6)762�,11��(6)762�1,11��(6)762�4,11��(6)762�5,11��(6)762�6,11��(6)762�7,11��(6)762�8,
11��(6)762�9, ��39032, ��39112�, ��36183�.

�� Dn 400-2000�� PN 0,25- 1,6 M��
30�6��, 30�906��, 30�15��, 30�515��, 30�915��, 30�930��, 30�530��, 30�925��, 30�25��, 30�525��, 30�39�, 30�939�.

Posted by: areetwe at August 23, 2010 6:27 PM