I was so excited in the past when I found a flavor of Crystal Light that I hadn’t had before: Peach Tea.
The label said “sugar free, only 5 calories per serving”, and since it said sugar free, I didn’t read all of the ingredients. This was in the past when I wasn’t wise to reading all food labels like I am today. 😉
Crystal Light has never been a favorite of mine, although I did always like the lemonade and pink lemonade flavors. I have noticed before that I felt a little funny after drinking it sometimes, and it has never felt completely “right”.
The last time I had the Peach Tea flavor was quite a few months ago, and I ended up with a stomach ache, queasiness, and feeling like I was going to be sick after I drank it. It also gave me sugar cravings, so I definitely have not been drinking it lately.
I recently received a comment from Jen in which she mentioned that drinking a beverage that contained crystalline fructose made her stomach hurt. This reminded me of my own incident, so I got my container of Crystal Light Peach Tea out of the cupboard and read the full list of ingredients. Number three on the list is Corn Syrup Solids**. When you follow the asterisks, you will see it reads: **Adds a trivial amount of sugar.
My stomach ache made sense to me after learning that Crystal Light contains corn syrup solids. I got a stomach ache drinking it on an empty stomach the same way that Jen did from drinking her beverage that contained crystalline fructose. We were both drinking sugar, made from corn, and these were main ingredients of these beverages. I don’t know about you, but I don’t get a stomach ache from drinking plain ‘ole water or iced tea (nothing added, brewed at home).
If you have read any of my previous posts on high fructose corn syrup or crystalline fructose, you are aware that sugary sweeteners can be and are made from corn. It’s not that surprising that sugar can be produced from other sources than sugar cane, since you can also make sugar from beets, and there are many alcohols (liquid sugar) that are made from all sorts of food products (i.e.: potatoes, grapes, pears).
All of these (hfcs, crystalline fructose, corn syrup, corn syrup solids) are the same but different at the same time. They are made from corn and have different variations of ingredients and concentrations so they are essentially different, however they are all highly concentrated sweeteners.
Either way, my research states and my viewpoint is that they are unhealthy, and at least in my body, they don’t “work”. They give me intestinal cramps, stomach upset, queasiness, and other intestinal inflammations/upsets. I can immediately feel the upset when I eat these ingredients after being off of them for an extended period of time and eating clean like I am now.
Both Jen’s experience and mine are perfect examples of one of my previous posts, How to Use Your Intuition to Avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup. In that post, I wrote about how you can use your own intuition and listen to your body to tell you if high fructose corn syrup is healthy for you or not. You don’t have to believe everything you read, your body will tell you what helps it or what hinders it. In this example, we are talking about crystalline fructose and corn sweeteners, but you can do this with any processed or fast food.
I encourage you to listen to your own body and tune in to what it is trying to tell you. If you have been eating a diet filled with mainly processed foods (that used to be me), you may have become used to the unhealthiness that these foods produce for you. I can tell you from my own experience though, that once you get off of them and eat a diet filled with whole, healthy foods that have been minimally processed, you will then have first hand experience of how much better your body feels and functions.
That’s interesting. I will have to pay attention next time I drink it because I do not remember having this feeling before.
Hi Ashley,
Thanks for your comment!
I didn’t used to get an upset stomach from any form of corn sweeteners before either, but then I wasn’t eating as healthy as I am today. I did get bloated, cramped, and achy, however I didn’t pinpoint it to any one food item because everything I ate was processed.
I do know that I didn’t feel as good as I do today, and I became used to feeling sluggish and overall “not good” when I ate processed food day in and day out. Now, if I eat processed foods and and food containing the sugars made from corn, I can feel it immediately.
It’s also possible that if you eat very healthily that maybe you won’t feel like this when you have any form of corn sweeteners. It’s very possible it’s just me, but I know that you can tune into your own body and find what works the best for you. 🙂
All the best,
JoLynn
yes, we should take care better of our health
happened to me so many times what you described…and I knew it wasn’t just a coincidence
🙁
I’ve recently taken to drinking Crystal Light and diet sodas instead of the regular sodas and sweetened tea I used to enjoy. I haven’t had any intestinal problems but it saddens me to know that I’m still drinking sugar when I thought it was sugar free. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
Hi Jason,
Yes, I know what you mean — “it saddens me to know that I’m still drinking sugar when I thought it was sugar free” — I should have realized there was sugar in it when I used to drink it because it gave me sugar cravings, but I wasn’t as thorough with my label reading as I am today.
I think I wanted to believe it really was sugar free, because then it was a “treat” that I could have since I wasn’t eating sugar then, for the most part…I was still eating foods with sugar alcohols, and these also gave me sugar cravings.
Thank your for your comments! 🙂
I also get stomach aches from plain ol’ corn. LOL
I have IBS and corn triggers it really badly, I wonder if there is a connection between that (IBS) and the corn sugars!? :
I haven’t had that tea drink again, but I must confess I am still drinking Coke. 😳 I was down to one can a day (which is good for me) but then I got my period and well, it all went out the window. I do drink a lot of unsweetened iced tea, but it’s just not as fun as pop. Unfortunately. 🙁
I’ve also come to realize I’m addicted to cheese. But that’s a whole other story. 😉
Hi Jen,
I’m not a doctor but that makes logical sense to me that the corn sugars would trigger your IBS since plain corn does.
You could check the ingredients on your Coke, I’m pretty sure that it’s sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, but you could verify that on your can.
That’s interesting that you mentioned being addicted to cheese….I have a post in the works on that topic. 😉
Thanks for your comments, Jen!
I have been very bloated and gaining weight. I just didn’t understand why since I have been drinking Crystal Lite over the past few weeks. (Allot of it actaully)
I too felt I was doing a “good thing” by drinking something with no sugar. Is this why I am bloating and just feel fat?
I never would have seen this site if I had not been searching to see if the Crystal Lite Peach Tea had caffeine in it. Wow, now I fing it all has sugars too. Thanks
Hi Vicki,
It does the same thing to me – bloats me up, sure doesn’t feel good! It also triggers my sugar cravings, which doesn’t help me one bit.
Good job on investigating the culprit, bet it will be interesting to see how you feel after you stop drinking the Crystal Light. 😉