Do you give your baby juice w/Splenda?
mysweetpeasWil&Wes wrote: I was at a playgroup last Friday and one of the moms said she gives her son apple juice with Splenda. I know some believe Splenda to be natural...I guess...but I don't believe this. It's a chemical IMO! Just like sweet n low. I would much rather my son get the REAL sugar than some substitute. Yeah, I dillute my juice to lessen the sugar, but it's the real thing. So one of the other moms asks why this mom gives juice with Splenda and she explains that she doesn't want her son to have the calories!! WHAT? First of all, maybe I'm misunderstanding her, but why would you be concerned with calories for a 10 month old? She went on to explain that she doesn't want him to fill up on juice calories and then not take his bottle or food. I guess my answer to that would be then give him water or just give him his bottle! Sorry if I sound harsh. This just doesn't make sense to me. It's like giving fat free milk to a child IMO! What's the point? 
Jamison'smama replied: Okay, it's not the calories that fill a person up---makes no sense to me--I think she is confused. I agree with you.
mummy2girls replied: those artifical sweetners are not good for anyone..expecially if you have them in large doses for long periods of times... Aspartime is really bad. So im not quite sure if splenda is the same but i dont let jenna drink it!
~Roo'sMama~ replied: I think that plain old sugar in moderation is way better for anybody than any artificial sweetener - especially for children! Even though Splenda is *made from sugar* and supposed to be better than nutrasweet I don't think it's a good idea to give it to your kid. 
Hillbilly Housewife replied:
ok...maybe I`m misunderstanding...but WHY would she add splenda to apple juice???? 
Isn`t it sweet enough?
I would never *add* sugar to anythig my kids eat - they even eat plain cheerios or rice krispies.... the only food I add some kind of sugar to is oatmeal - and I add some corn syrup or molasses to that instead of actual sugar....
And If I misunderstood, and she gives him juice made with splenda instead of *sugar*, then why doesn`t she just give him.... JUICE? lol 
booey2 replied: I have never intentionally give the boys anything with artificial sweetners. They get regular pop now that they are older and when they will little they got real juice watered down. If they have no other choice but to have diet pops if we are at someone elses house I prefer if they have ones with splenda and if that is not an option they get water. I have a SIL that would only give her kids diet pop with aspertame, I almost fell on the floor when I saw that for the first time. They now have CRUSH and that is made with Splenda.
Sunflower04 replied: I am the same way about "diet" food. I would never give Joey juice with sweetner.
A&A'smommy replied: She is nutso!!
jacobsmama replied: I agree...No splenda or sweetnlow......bad for everyone but definetly not kids! 
julesmom replied: No artificial sweeteners here!
And I agree, she is nuts.
5littleladies replied:  Is she for real??? I would never give my children artificial sweetners. Natural is always best IMO and besides-EEWW, Stuff with aspertame is just plain nasty!
mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied:
I don't think she added the Splenda. I'm thinking she buys the stuff that has it already in it.
DH's parents own a health food store so they grew up not having ANY sugar whatsoever unless they were at a friends house. Or it was in a natural form like REAL maple syrup. I am opposed to food that has too much sugar in them like kids cereals, soda, and those packaged fruit things, but like I said, I would much rather my son have the real stuff than the fake kind. BUT on the other hand, I've learned from watching my DH and my SIL, who didn't have any sugar growing up, that moderation is definitely something to keep in mind! They both have food issues, which may of course stem from other things. But when you're deprived of something to such an extreme, you go bonkers when you actually do get it! You should see them today! So I'm sticking to the "in moderation" plan myself when Wil gets older...but definitely NO artificial sweetners.
Thanks for everyone's opinions! Very interesting... 
amynicole21 replied: Splenda isn't aspertame or any other chemical as far as I know... I still wouldn't seek out something with it in there to give to my kids 
coasterqueen replied:
The problem is it *comes from sugar* so it can't be natural, which in turn leads me to believe that it's not good for you. How did they extract it from sugar? How did they make it? Just because it comes from sugar doesn't mean it's healthy or safe. They have not done enough research on it to even tell us it's safe. There are not years of research logged on it like aspertame. So I'm leary of the stuff.
DH drinks it, the stuff makes me puke if I even try for some reason. I think it's ALL bad, alhtough I admit to drinking the occassional diet soda.
mysweetpeasWil&Wes replied:
 But I am guilty too of drinking an occasional Diet Coke! 
Lynda836 replied: I don't know exactly how splenda is made, but I do know it's an artificial sweetener like nutrasweet. Diet pop made with splenda or diet pop made with nutrasweet...it's still diet pop. Splenda's gained popularity because you can actually bake with it...you can't do that with all sweeteners.
But I agree with you all....unless you're diabetic I don't think you need artificial sweeteners. And you certainly don't need it in juice...for pete's sake even diabetics drink regular juice....they just watch the amounts.
Re filling up on juice due to the calories...I think she might have meant that drinking to much juice might curb the appetite, which I can see. Juice has a lot of sugar in it....and if I was sipping juice all day, it would probably take the edge off my hunger just enough to spoil my appetite. But I don't think that's a good reason to give juice with splenda instead....water would be much better.
Hillbilly Housewife replied:
Thanks for clearing it up for me.... seems I`ve got preggo mommy brain!!!
I see. But it`s juice... wouldn`t natural juice be better?
I don't deprive my kiddos of sugar...don't get me wrong, they get their fair share of treats and little cakes and chocolates, and kool-aid, popsicles etc..... but I wouldn't buy something that has sugar or splenda in it if I can get it natural, know what I mean?
I dunno - I don't deprive myself of sugar - but we do try at home to follow good eating habits. Like for instance, ketchup. I never ever take it out of the fridge unless we`re having fries or hotdogs/hamburgers. If Zach wants some on something, he asks. Same with cheese sauce, or any other condiment... we drink pop at home, mostly Dh, but when we do, it`s Pepsi or Coke, not that diet stuff. We don't drink enough pop to make the switch... and maybe it`s just me - but I find the diet drinks much sweeter!
Moderation is definitely the key. Snacks at our house is NEVER junk food... 'junk food' is saved for desert after dinner, and that's not every day... it's random, so that the kids don't expect it. I don't want them growing up to go over to a friends house for dinner, and make an a$$ out of themselves or us by askig what's for desert, especially if the other family wasn't planning on serving any... kwim? So we keep junk for special random deserts, and for evenings or afternoons where we all sit together on the couch to watch a kids movie. It makes for special times.
Generally though, the treats for the kids is Jell-O, or pudding, or a plain muffin with some icing... some nachos, smarties or hershey kisses, or any other chocolate (small bars you get aorund halloween time)
I`m just blabbing now, didn`t mean to hog the post... 
Warbride replied: No diet in my house, I'm allergic to aspertame, and I'm too scared to try out the other stuff Don't doctors recomend not giving kids under 4 any more than 4-6 oz. of juice a day anyway? There isn't that much sugar in that small amount of juice. And if she's still worried about it, why doesn't she just dilute the juice with water? I don't understand why anyone would want to give thier babies artificial sweeteners. Fruit juice is plenty sweet enough, and it's natural sugar, which is usually better anyway. Maybe it's just me... 
deanaossenfo replied: "I don't know exactly how splenda is made, but I do know it's an artificial sweetener like nutrasweet. Diet pop made with splenda or diet pop made with nutrasweet...it's still diet pop."
As for me i will not give my kids a splenda because as far as I'm concern it is not for kids.
deanaossenfo replied: [QUOTE=deanaossenfo,Sep 23 2010, 05:00 PM]"I don't know exactly how splenda is made, but I do know it's an artificial sweetener like nutrasweet. Diet pop made with splenda or diet pop made with nutrasweet...it's still diet pop."
As for me i will not give my kids a splenda because as far as I'm concern it is not for kids.
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