What Does Sweeten De Goat Mouth...

As some of you may now I’m in the final stages of my competition diet so sugar is not allowed anywhere near me. That being said, I was craving the taste of something other than egg whites, grilled chicken and broccoli so when I saw some Sugar Free Buttercreams whilst queueing in Marks and Spencers I decided to grab a box. In fairness to M&S, I DID see the warning on the back:

The adjective ‘excessive’ is subjective because I ended up eating the entire 42g box in about 20 minutes. What can I say? After weeks of abstaining from sweets, opening this box of sugar free sweets was like opening a can of Pringles... once I popped I couldn’t stop (and not for the first time that day as it turns out).

It wasn’t long before I paid the price for my ‘gluttony’. Within half an hour it felt like World War Three was kicking off in my gut... there were grenades, landmines, roadside bomb attacks – the lot. And the worst part was not being able to suffer through the war in the comfort of my own home. One of my colleagues could actually hear the war taking place in my belly. ‘Superbad’ and ‘Hot Ghetto Mess’ were the catch phrases that played in mind on loop all day long.

In between my covert trips to the loo my mind kept going back to the innocent looking packet of sweets - surely that tiny box of sweets couldn’t be responsible for this carnage!

Seems those blasted sweets were in fact the culprit.

‘Human enzymes can digest Isomalt only in small amounts and more slowly than sugar. As a result, blood sugar and insulin levels do not change significantly following consumption. Because the human body uses about half of the Isomalt ingested, it can act like a fiber that stimulates the bowel to counteract constipation. Thus, ingesting too much can cause diarrhea’.

-The Sugar Association

My enemy was Isomalt, but most sweeteners have the potential to throw a spanner in the works. www.lowcarb.ca states that

'because they are not completely absorbed in the bowel, they have a nasty reputation of holding onto water, and promoting diarrhea, gas and bloating. This is politely termed the "laxative effect". Sorbitol and mannitol are the worst offenders, maltitol and lactitol less so. The label should indicate the serving size. This is the amount considered safe to eat before the laxative effect takes over. So beware that overeating these foods can have serious effects. Especially for children, who of course will experience the effect from an even smaller amount'.

In layman’s terms, the body doesn’t recognise this dietary innovation so it may freak out when you consume it.

Whether you are dieting for weight loss, fitness competitions, or general healthy living, it’s no secret that sugar is one of the biggest diet villains you could encounter. Therefore, sweeteners are a godsend for many people as it helps to take the edge off of some sugar cravings. I have used other sweeteners in the past that have not had any effect on me whatsoever, but I have definitely learned a lesson in adhering to warnings on food labels and conducting better researching on what I eat.

In a way, I’m glad it happened to me so that I can now champion the benefits of eating sensibly and hopefully prevent others from making the same mistake I made. We live in the world of quick fixes but sometimes we just need to step back and be realistic. Did I need the ‘sugar free butter creams’? No. Would a small bowl of yoghurt and strawberries have sufficed? Yes.

In future, I’ll either eat the Werther’s and do the extra cardio or just forgo the sweets altogether.