My family and I drink a lot of Crystal Light. I'm just wondering if it's not something that I should be giving to my kids. I found it to be a good alternative to juice and sugary drinks. I can force them to drink water by itself, but I don't even like to drink water by itself all the time. I like a little flavor to my drink. The aspartame is what concerns me. There are side effects to everything it seems now a days. Everything also causes cancer apparently. I just would like some opinions on Crystal Light.
Thanks!
Thanks for all the advice. I have to take my daughter into the dr. next week for her 4 month checkup I'm going to ask them then, what their thoughts on it are.
Maybe a good alt. would be squeezing some lemons, limes, or oranges in the water for flavor. Have the kids mix and match their favorite combo.
I would change. Ever since we researched Aspartame, we stopped. Here is some information:
Aspartame accounts for over 75 percent of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. Many of these reactions are very serious including seizures and death.(1) A few of the 90 different documented symptoms listed in the report as being caused by aspartame include: Headaches/migraines, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, tachycardia, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss, and joint pain.
According to researchers and physicians studying the adverse effects of aspartame, the following chronic illnesses can be triggered or worsened by ingesting of aspartame:(2) Brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, parkinson's disease, alzheimer's, mental retardation, lymphoma, birth defects, fibromyalgia, and diabetes.
http://www.mercola.com/article/aspartame/dangers.htm
Hope this helps!
Yeah, I hate to say it, but I agree that it is just not safe for kids (or adults for that matter) I get major headaches if I drink it, but I also do know that can cause problems with weight as well. Your tastebuds think that you are getting something sweet, but you did not really get it, so you may crave more sweets than otherwise (OK, at least that is what the Dr. on Good Morning America said, take it for what it is worth!!) But, like the others said, my kids love a slice or two of a citrus fruit in their ice water, they feel so grown up:) And, be sure you are drinking good water, our tap is terrible, but good filtered water is so much better!! Good luck, I am sure this will be a tough one to break! ~A.~
Ditto all the posts that say to stay away from asparatame. Try homemade lemonade - you can always adjust the sugar level. Also, Tang is actually not too bad in sugar content and they have added lots of vitamins. Decaf iced tea, blended with a little fruit juice to give it some fun.
Good luck!!
you couldn't PAY me to give myself OR my kids aspartame, i would steer clear of that.
Aspertame has been linked to memory loss. Have you tried drinking Fruit 2O?
We have cut artificial sweeteners completely from our diets after my husband (a former chemist and lab guy) did some research. Man. We all feel so much better. I can't begin to tell you.
Any case..... I would also suggest limiting or eliminating it from your kids diets. I think an occaisional drink isn't going to hurt them; however, if they're drinking a lot you might try some alternatives. My son likes water with a splash of juice. Yeah, juice has some sugar (naturally) in it, but a few tablespoons a day doesn't worry me. You might try putting a spash in. I always put it on the top too so the first sip is the sweetest.
A squeeze of lemon, lime or orange is good too. I think part of the reason why you dont' like drinking water is because you're not used to drinking water. I would bet that once you start making it more of a habit, you'll find you crave it after a while. That's what happened to me.
There's been a number of studies linking diet drinks and obesity in both adults and kids. Turns out the diet drinks work against us when it comes to losing weight. Diet soda has also prevents proper calcium absorption and has been linked to bone fractures in kids.
I also drink Crystal Light, and only buy diet soda's for myself and my kids-when I do buy soda. I also drank atleast one diet cherry coke a day throughout my pregnancy with my last, and I sweeten my iced tea with splenda. Splenda does not contain aspartame however, and to me tastes much better than sweet n low. But, regardless they come out with everything causes cancer now, but don't consider scientific facts nor the findings, or in aspartame's case-lack there of. I found this on the internet:
Approximately 10% of aspartame (by mass) is broken down into methanol in the small intestine. Most of the methanol is absorbed and quickly converted into formaldehyde. Some experts/scientists believe that the metabolism of aspartame does not damage the body because: (a) the quantity of methanol produced is too small to disrupt normal physiological processes; (b) methanol and formaldehyde are natural by-products of human metabolism and are safely processed by various enzymes; and (c) there is more methanol in some natural fruit juices and alcoholic beverages than is derived from aspartame ingestion.[25][26]
In any case, I would believe Crystal Light is a much better alternative than soda. Also, many mom's think that they are doing good by feeding juice to their children, but in reality juice is high in fructose corn syrup and sugar, sometimes even more so than soda!
