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Comment by raisedbyninjas | Hacker News Reader

There are only 12 milligrams of sucralose in a packet of Splenda. So the toxic levels found in mice had the same concentration as an 8 oz. cup of coffee with 16 packets of Splenda.

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>an 8 oz. cup of coffee with 16 packets of Splenda.

I have literally seen people do such things at Dunkin Donuts. "Yeah can I get a medium coffee with extra cream and 20 sugars." You WUT M8?

At a certain point you have to admit to yourself that you just don't like coffee.

With that much sugar I'm not sure if it's the flavour or texture you don't like.

I feel like we're ignoring scale here. 16 packets of Splenda in a mouse's stomach.

You might be right, I was inferring that the 16 packets was for human levels, but after reading it over again I am not sure that is the case.

A mouse is like 20g. No way are they shoving 16g's of splenda into one.

Well, they wouldn't be using all the filler in any splenda packet, would they? 12mg * 16 mixed into a liquid seems a bit more probable, if still unpleasant.

Absolutely. I didn't realize there was that much filler in a splenda packet. That stuff is incredibly strong.

I've seen that too. But unlike Starbucks which limits simmering time on a hot plate to less than 45 minutes at Dunkin Donuts and local dives you may get a cup of java that has been cooking for hours and tastes like battery acid. Hence the dozen packets of whatever sweetener.

Or, alternatively, 4-ish cans of Pepsi One.

Why four cans? The concentration doesn't increase with volume.

No, but the dose does.

Parent referred to equivalent concentration. The experimental dose was not the the chemical equivalent of 16 packets of Splenda.

Exactly. Most of that white powder in a sugar packet is dextrose filler.

How is dextrose in a sugar packet filler? That makes no sense to me. Maybe it's just a confusion of terms.

Maybe they meant cellulose?

Cellulose is used as an anti-caking/anti-clumping additive. It doesn't add bulk like the puffed up dextrose or maltodextrin does.

It's used as a filler in pre-grated "Parmesan" cheese. https://www.bonappetit.com/entertaining-style/trends-news/ar...

I believe parent meant a packet of Splenda, not actual sugar. However, it would not be surprising if packets of "sugar" actually contained dextrose as a bulking agent.

Someone made a chemistry joke that went over your head. Dextrose is sugar. Common in corn syrup, to be exact.

Yes, but the volume is higher than granular sugar. It's a "bulking agent" to give the sweetener a pleasing volume.

Dextrose is sugar just like cellulose is sugar.

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