Dear Karen,
I just read in an old thread (sent by an Atkins newsletter) something about whipping cream and sugar free jello not helping in this diet. Why? I have been making 2 cups of whipping cream and sugar free vanilla pudding. Is this ok? It's very popular.
Thanks, Dianamama

There are a couple of reasons. One is aspartame, aka Nutrasweet. Some people have experienced headaches, short term memory loss, dizzyness, and seizure-like symptoms while consuming this product. An internet search will bring up many varying studies and points of view on this sweetener but it's generally frowned upon. Atkins recommends Splenda as the sweetener of choice because there are questions about its safety.

The other reason is that some people will have an insulin reaction just as if they had eaten sugar. So, it puts you right back at square one. If you are a sugar addict, you could be switching one addiction for another by using artificial sweeteners. Kind of like substituting methadone for heroin. If you look forward to your artificially sweetened item and crave it, this may well be the case.

As with anything to do with low-carbing, it's a your mileage may vary issue. What is OK for one person may not be OK for another. After gathering information and gauging your reaction to the choice lies with you, the user.

Karen