I am a 41-year old, healthy man. In October of last year, at approximately 1:00 a.m., I experienced chest discomfort followed by an irregular heartbeat. The discomfort quickly subsided, but the irregular heartbeat continued for about twenty minutes. During that time, I went to the emergency room and had a chest x-ray, EKG, and bloodwork. All normal. I was discharged after about four hours and was advised to follow-up with my own doctor.

About a month later, I experienced the irregular heartbeat again.  Again I went to the E.R.  This time, although my x-ray and blood tests were normal, the irregular heartbeat was caught on the EKG. The irregularity was diagnosed as Premature Atrial Contractions (PACs). I was admitted for a day for observation. All further tests during the 24-hour period were normal, with the exception of the original EKG.  The PACs lasted for about an hour.  I was given a prescription for Atenelol and told to follow-up with my doctor.

Another follow-up visit to my doctor along with an echocardiogram and stress test revealed no problems.

A short time after that, I had the irregular heartbeat shortly after getting to work one day. I went to the doctor and was given a Holter monitor to wear for 24 hours. It showed several PACs, but nothing significant.

When thinking back to this latest episode, I tried to retrace my morning activities. The only thing I did that morning was get up, have two low-carb breakfast bars, and drive to work. So, I figured it may be something in the bars that triggered the episodes, although I can't remember what I had eaten prior to the earlier episodes. The only ingredient in the bars that I hadn't consumed on a regular basis in the past was Splenda (sucralose). So, I did some research online.

Using Google, I searched for "splenda irregular heartbeat." I found many cases where people attributed signs and symptoms I experienced to the consumption of Splenda. With this information in hand, I made a conscious effort to eliminate Splenda from my diet. I found it my my protein shakes, low-carb bars, and salad dressings.  I had been unaware of this artificial sweetener in those products.

Since that time, I haven't had a single episode or even a hint of an irregular heartbeat or other associated sign or symptom.

I can't be sure Splenda caused the problem, but with the evidence found in both the online stories and my own experience (the absence of signs and symptoms after eliminating the product from my diet), it's the only thing I can attribute it to.

Thank you."

Thank you R.M. for sharing your story with our visitors.

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