Anonymous wrote:DS gets to chew sugar-free gum.

Even most sugar guns have aspartame in them. The only ones that don't are Chicklets and the old fashioned ones, like Clove gum.

Anonymous wrote:Different story of course, if your kid is diabetic...

Yes. And considering how little my kids get in the way of sweets, it probably doesn't matter either way, but the "no sugar added" ploy bugs me, because while a small amount of artificial sweetener may not be significantly worse than a small amount of real sugar, it seems to push the notion that sweeter is better, that sweet is the only flavor worth bothering with.

DS gets to chew sugar-free gum.

Different story of course, if your kid is diabetic...

We eat real sugar.

I accidentally bought a can of peaches in aspartame syrup (for smoothies...I thought "light" syrup meant light as in not much, not "lite"). I was going to throw them out but he found them and begged so I figured just this once was ok...

Anonymous wrote:I know a lot of people who only let their kids eat sugar free desserts (jello, for example, or juice made with splenda). Am I in the minority that I'd rather have my kid eat dessert full of real sugar so he isn't consuming all of those chemicals?

No, I won't let my child have sugar-free for the exact same reason. I have told her it is for people who have a medical need so there is no reason for her to have it.

Never. Sugar every time.

Sugar alcohols (which is what most sugar-free foods contain) are very bad for kids. They cause diarrhea and nausea in adults. I can't imagine giving them to kids.

Anonymous wrote:I know a lot of people who only let their kids eat sugar free desserts (jello, for example, or juice made with splenda). Am I in the minority that I'd rather have my kid eat dessert full of real sugar so he isn't consuming all of those chemicals?

Same here. We don't buy juices or foods with high fructose corn syrup. But when kids have treats, they get the real deal.

Ugh. Those chemicals are so nasty. I remember when parents were so high and mighty about sacharan, or whatever that crap in sweet n low is called.

My daughter doesn't get a lot of sweets, but when she does, it's with sugar.

I eat sugar-free, but I have blood sugar issues. For my son, when he eats sweets, he gets the real stuff. He doesn't have much of a sweet tooth though, so he still doesn't get a lot of sugar. I wouldn't freak out if he has a bite of the SF stuff, but I don't think he should eat a lot of it.

We don't do no sugar. We just try to limit the consumption of sweet goods. There's no candy in our house, for example, except for a week at Halloween and a week at Easter.

No, I prefer sugar to the substitutes.

We don't do sugar free at all. We do minimal desserts in general but always full fat and full sugar. I think the chemicals just make you crave more.

I know a lot of people who only let their kids eat sugar free desserts (jello, for example, or juice made with splenda). Am I in the minority that I'd rather have my kid eat dessert full of real sugar so he isn't consuming all of those chemicals?