Stevia Side Effects

[hairbrain4]

I recently found out that Stevia started causing problems for me that are similar to MS symptoms. My legs & back muscles started getting very weak. I was really getting upset cuz my MS has been in remission for 3 years. So I tried to figure out what had changed in my life that might be causing the problem. I few months ago I had started using Stevia in my coffee. That was the only dietary change. No change in my meds etc. So I looked up side effects. Sure enough muscle weakness was one of them. And it also said that a person with MS was more likely to have muscle weakness from the Stevia. A few years ago I found out that I can't use Sweet n Low or Equal cuz they gave me major brain fog.

[Turtlepie]

I am glad you figured it out. Those sweeteners can be a problem

[hairbrain4 in reply to Turtlepie]

😊

[starlight5]

Interesting, thanks for letting us know

[hairbrain4 in reply to starlight5]

😀

[Frances_B]

Re you saying "...I looked up side effects. Sure enough muscle weakness was one of them. And it also said that a person with MS was more likely to have muscle weakness from the Stevia."

Do you have a link to a reputable and reliable source where you found this information?

[hairbrain4 in reply to Frances_B]

I didn't save the link. I just agoogled Stevia sude effects.

[Jer29-11]

Wow, I’m sorry to hear this, but I’m glad you found the cause of your symptoms. Thanks for sharing because I didn’t know about this!

[hairbrain4 in reply to Jer29-11]

🥰

[kdali]

Thank you for sharing! For far, stevia hasn't bothered me, but the rest are rough. It likely does bother me, but I'm just not aware of it. Aspartame affects my vision, and the others cause GI issues. It's not just me, I gave some sugar free candy to my husband since I couldn't tolerate them, and now he calls them "fart candy". He's not wrong, and he's no longer allowed to eat sugar free candy. My mother found a drink she liked with malitolol (or something) and ended up with fatty liver. I looked it up since her diet was otherwise clean, and lo, it's a thing. Her liver returned to normal after stopping the 1/2 of a drink per day.

Have you returned to normal now?

[hairbrain4 in reply to kdali]

Yes I've returned to normal. The weakness has gone. I've gotten to where I Pretty much just eat meat, green beans, sweet potatoes, avocados, apples. I drink lots of water to stay hydrated otherwise my legs will cramp.

[kdali in reply to hairbrain4]

That's great! Guess it was the stevia. There are a lot of things that don't jive with me, but it took doing carnivore to figure those out. I was amazed! I thought I was lactose intolerant for years...I'm not, it was the "healthy" foods 🤦‍♀️

Magnesium may help with leg cramps also.

[hairbrain4 in reply to kdali]

🥰

[Raingrrl]

I can’t tolerate sugar alcohols. One of the worst for me is erythritol. Erythritol is sometimes used in Stevia products so I’ve been avoiding Stevia. I found out what a big problem erythritol is for me when I tried Monk Fruit sweetener that was made with it. So, now I avoid all sugar replacements except pure natural things like honey and maple syrup. I hope you can find something that works for you.

[hairbrain4 in reply to Raingrrl]

Yes I'm finding that out too. I usually use local honey for my allergies but I ran out & the bees won't be giving it up for another month or so. That's why I tried Stevia.

[mrsmike9]

Wow! Who would have thought?

[hairbrain4 in reply to mrsmike9]

That was my thought exactly.

[Neworleanslady]

thanks for letting us know. I have read on many occasions that artificial sweeteners are very bad for a person.

Many years ago i switched to drinking coffee with only skim milk. It only took a coupla days to get used to it and now thats the only way i drink coffee. Except now ive strted using almond milk and its very good.

[Raingrrl in reply to Neworleanslady]

I weaned myself off of sweetening my coffee several years ago. So I drink it with either almond milk or coconut milk or a combo. (I’m lactose intolerant.) Like you, it only took a few days to get used to it.

[hairbrain4 in reply to Neworleanslady]

I'm getting used to heavy cream with cinnamon.

[swiftpoet]

all artificial sweeteners are not good for MSers. Use a small amount of cane syrup or maple syrup, avoid corn syrup - bad news; Try L-theanine, saffron, baby aspirin, and GABA supplements. Noble Aidaspirin brand has no corn syrup - important to cut out corn syrup; get veggie capsule, avoid additives; cut out beef and pork; increase eggs...

[hairbrain4 in reply to swiftpoet]

I was with you up until cutting out beef & pork. I eat mostly carnivore. Ive never felt better until the Stevia incident. I try to eat clean whole foods & no wheat or corn products.

[NanciG]

Thanks for sharing this. I am sensitive to all of the artificial sweeteners and the natural ones like stevia. I learned that products that say "natural flavoring" can actually have stevia or erythritol in them and it just comes under the natural flavoring umbrella and doesn't have to be listed separately. Some flavored teas I tried caused migraines with nausea and balance issues and I couldn't figure out why. Turns out it was the hidden ingredients in the natural flavorings.

[Tazmanian]

Sorry to hear this glad you figured it out

[hairbrain4 in reply to Tazmanian]

😊

[carolek572 CommunityAmbassador]

Glad that you figured that out, hairbrain4 . ALL artificial sweeteners give me headaches, so I avoid them. 😝

[hairbrain4 in reply to carolek572]

😀

[falalalala]

Thanks for posting this.

[hairbrain4 in reply to falalalala]

😀