Sweet tooth

Hi, I'm almost 3 wks postop and am in the "purée" stage (can start soft foods on Monday). So far I've lost 25 lbs. 

i am struggling with wanted a little something sweet in the evenings. However I don't want to get hooked on artificial sweeteners; I'd rather move away from sweets altogether, as the inability to eat the in moderation is are one of the two main reasons I ended up obese.

i was wondering if anyone has tried sweetening things with homemade date paste (basically you soak dates and then blend them and the water into a smooth purée that is naturally sweet and high in fiber)?  Are RNYers able to tolerate this as a sweeteners?  What about fructose or agave nectar; can you sweeten wit hour causing gastrointestinal distress?

btw I'm not talking about trying to make sweet foods (those have to go away forever) but something like hot cocoa, chai tea, etc.

Dates are sugar. Fructose is sugar. Agave nectar is sugar. Some people are fine with simple sugars in small amounts eventually; some have GI issues with it or find they can't control themselves and have to swear off sweets altogether. But if your goal is to move away from sweets altogether, adding additional sugar into your diet this early out isn't going to help. Being a "natural" sugar doesn't affect the calorie content or the way your body digests it. It's nothing more than a marketing gimmick.

I suppose you are right about just avoiding sweetness altogether.  so you are saying you drink coffee black now, eat yogurt plain, etc?  I've tried but found the taste so unpleasant that I just am not having it at all (especially since I can only handle non-dairy yogurts - without any sweetener they are REALLY sour!). 

Well I've never liked coffee anyway, but for everything else I just use no-calorie sweeteners. Some people notice they give them more of a sweet tooth and do best to avoid them to prevent cravings, but I haven't had that problem (bread is my weakness!). The only ones I have to be careful with are sugar alcohols (anything that ends in -ol), which I have to limit to avoid GI distress.

Stevia is a natural sweetener with zero calories.  Everything you mentioned  the body reads as pure sugar and will slow or stop your weight loss. 

have you looked into the lower calorie greek yogurts? I buy the carbmaster ones at Kroger (only 60 calories) or the light and fit ones for 80 calories. I only eat 1/2 since they are 5.3 oz.

you can even get plain low fat greek yogurt (make sure it isn't too much sugar), add PB2 into a food processor, and freeze it. its a yummy snack but only about 65 cal for 1/2 of the serving.

Sugar free jello?

Sugar free pudding?

Whey Low is real sugar but in a form that will be absorbed differently.  I have been using it since surgery and it does not cause dumping or weight gain for me.

@white dove - I've never heard of that product, thanks!  I will look it up. Sounds,like it may have whey in it though, which I can't eat, but you never know!

It is made from fructose, lactose, and sucrose. That's fruit sugar, milk sugar, and plain ol' table sugar.  I am lactose intolerant and have no problems with it.  It also does not raise my blood sugar like plain table sugar would.  It has no artificial taste at all.

I use liquid organic stevia or Erythritol...both natural, zero calories sweeteners.  Better than sugar for me. I even bake with that.