Sweeteners (was Re: Guilt, satiety, calorie restrictio...

[Guest guest]

>

> I didn't perceive Mike's post that way...

No, one is seldom as sensitive to that directed

at another as he is to that directed at himself.

Re-read the post in question taking particular

note to the choice of such words as " that's the

most obvious way to make food sweeter, as so many

people already know " , implying that I can't see

the obvious, and haven't yet been able to figure

out what so many people already have. See also

the words " . . . some people are letting an im-

balanced palate feed a vicious cycle of desire " ,

implying that I have a defective sense of taste,

and lack self-control and a Zen detachment from

desire. He's Buddha, and I'm a drug-addict looking

for my next fix.

> but I think one point he was

> hitting at is... well, here's my point that seems to agree with his

somewhat:

>

> While I think stevia is from a health point of view possibly an

ideal

> sweetener in that it is non-caloric and sugar free and doesn't seem

to have side

> effects, I have somewhat of a philosophical objection (though I

still use it

> occasionally) to using any artificial sweeteners, because, well,

it's fake for one,

> but also because constant exposure to sweet taste in excess of

what's natural

> to have access to desensitizes your palate to sugar, and if one

abandoned all

> artifical sugars and consumed natural sweeteners in traditionally

moderate

> doses, ones palate would be sensitized to the myriad sugars we

consume in whole

> foods, thus enhancing their taste, and enabling the sweet senses to

be

> stimulated while consuming a much more nutrient-dense diet.

Of course. If one puts his left hand into a bath of

warm water, but not the right, and then plunges both

into a bath of room-temperature water, the left will

perceive it as colder than will the right. So it is

obvious that people who survive (barely) on a diet of

sodas, twinkies and macaroni and cheese are going to

have their taste for sweetness blunted. However, no

matter how little sweetener one consumes, or how many

years one has diligently followed such a diet (I have

had very little sugar most of my life), neither sea-

weed tea, nor raw oyster, nor raw beef is ever going

to be able to take the place, taste-wise, of any of the

lovely pastries and confections I mentioned, which of

course can be made, and I do make, much less sweeter

than their commercial versions. I will continue the

pursuit of a better tasting sweetener that has no effect

on blood sugar levels, or any other harmful effect, and

I will do so without any guilt about it not being " natural " .

People need to keep in mind that " natural " is a highly

subjective term, and means different things to different

people, and according to context.