"I thought I had found the greatest thing on Earth--sugar-free chocolate! The sweetening ingredient is listed as sucralose, not Splenda. The portion size is listed as six small pieces, and there is a very small warning about excessive consumption "may cause a laxative effect."
I ate maybe 10 pieces. Well, I would welcome that relief (laxative effect) because the reason I even found this website was researching as to why I am doubled over in pain with gas and bloating right now. I cannot walk or stand I am in so much pain, and I don't know what to do to put an end to this misery. I am now going to call the nurse helpline for my health insurance after I send this e-mail."
On 14 April 2004, we received an update:
"The symptoms did subside after about two hours. The 24-hour nurse helpline did not offer any suggestions for relief, probably because the symptoms could have been for another condition where taking any over-the-counter medication may have complicated things. I was actually advised that, should it become too painful, worsen, or continue for another two hours, I should go to the emergency room. Lucky for me, they did start to subside. This whole episode was even more stressful because I was home alone caring for two kids.
I am aware of how sugar alcohols work and have eaten other things--ice cream, soda, baked goods--with Splenda, but never had such a severe reaction. I wonder if the generic form is less refined and, therefore, more difficult to digest. And, now that I look at the candy's packaging, a 40g serving (6 pieces) contained a whopping 19g of sugar alcohol--very high when compared to the 4-6 grams in a 1/2-cup of ice cream.
I definitely would never do this to myself again!
Thanks for your follow-up and concern."
On 14 April 2004, we received another update:
"Ok. More of an update. Directly from the package: Ingredients consist of chocolate flavored coating (maltitol, cocoa butter, chocolate liquor, isomalt, sodium caseinate, milk fat, inulin, erythritol, calcium carbonate, natural and artificial flavors, soy lecithin an emulsifier, salt, acesculfame potassium and sucralose.
After further review of the products, it may have been the maltitol, not the sucralose, or a combination of both that got me. I am going to guess that erythritol is another alcohol. In the future, I will look closely at the grams and labeling."
Thank you T.H. for sharing your story with our visitors.
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