I started using Splenda when I went on the Atkin's Diet around March 2002. I lost a lot of weight, but then, out of the blue, while still doing Atkin's I started to notice that my fat cells were getting larger and I was gaining a lot of weight.  Then, about a year ago, I began to develop symptoms of vertigo, night sweats, mood swings, no motivation, weakness, and I could not lose weight.

I attributed all of my problems to getting older and not working out hard enough. So, I joined a gym and started using every ounce of energy I had to make it through a two-hour workout. Still, not really getting the results that I wanted, I cut back on my sugar intake and, when summer hit, I started using Splenda more and more. Sometimes, I would use 18 packets a day. Still, I had weight problems and large fat cells. Now, I am 5'7" and 130 pounds but I've been trying to get rid of the baby fat look that has developed. Never really concerning myself with the other symptoms, because my focus was on getting rid of the "baby fat." That was until the symptoms started preventing me from going to the gym and engaging in my daily activities.

Around the middle of August 2005, my symptoms began getting worse. I started noticing that I had no motivation. The vertigo was with every move of my head which made exercising very difficult. Drying my hair was hard, and going down the stairs scared me, not to mention driving. I sometimes felt as if my brain was floating around in my head. I also had a lot of anxiety, some stomach problems, and weakness.  My eyes would not focus quickly on things and my vision was often blurry. After about two weeks of the extreme symptoms, I went to my doctor.

The only thing the doctor could tell me was that my ear was clogged with fluid.  She ran a series of tests that all came back normal. So, for four weeks, I took antihistimines to dry out my ears. This of course got rid of my equilibrium problems temporarily, but some days I would be dizzy again.

So, about 3 weeks into the antihistimines, I started to wonder if my problems were due to something in my diet. I decided to cut out the Splenda and -- BOOM -- no more symptoms.  They went away. I remember the first day that I felt good.  It was a Monday afternoon and I decided to go workout. When I got there, it was like I had this enormous amount of energy and no dizziness. I could not believe it. I called my friend and told her all of my symptoms were gone and that it must have been my ear infection all along.

At that point, I had forgotten that I had taken Splenda out of my diet. So, for the next week, I started using it again. Well, the dizziness came back, along with my ears being clogged, my eyes not focusing, my head feeling funny, and my motivation diminishing. Most of my symptoms had returned. This really scared me!

Yesterday, September 1, I decided to research the internet for Splenda. I don't know what took so long or why this even came to my mind, but I found your website. I could not believe what I was reading. At one time or another, I have had every one of those symptoms. Splenda is toxic. Today, I feel better and, hopefully, within the next few weeks, I will know if Splenda contributed to my weight gain and baby fat. It's mighty funny that I have never had baby fat before. I just go on diets and get rid of the excess winter weight.  I never had the issues I have until now.

Yesterday, I went to the health food store and got stevia. They make it in powder form. I guess, maybe, I should research that also, but I just need to get all the sucralose toxins out of my body. That may take a few days, but I know I can and will be back to normal.

Thanks to everyone who has shared their story. Without that, I would have probably gone crazy trying to figure this out."

Thank you G.P. for sharing your story with our visitors.

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