# Sweet & Low is a markedly inferior sweetner - Why does it even exist? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 23, 2008, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151 "2008-10-23T00:08:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/1 "2008-10-23T00:08:14Z")
Compared to [Equal](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_(sweetener)) and [Splenda](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucralose) [Sweet & Low](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweet_n_low) is a markedly inferior sweetener. It tastes less like sugar, and has a pronounced unpleasant aftertaste, and yet the red packet commands just as much counter space in supermarkets shelves and coffee counters. Why? It’s not nearly as good as the other two, who continues to buy this stuff in such quantity? ---
**Author:** ![LVBoPeep](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/858c86/32.png) [@LVBoPeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVBoPeep)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/2 "2008-10-23T00:13:35Z")
The real question isn’t why it still exists, but also why most gas station beverage isles continue to carry it exclusively. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/3 "2008-10-23T00:30:16Z")
It still exists, and continues to be offered by convenience stores and gas stations, because it is: One, cheap; Two, ubiquitous. It is _much_ cheaper than aspartame or Splenda, and is available all over the place. Add to this fact that some people have become ‘hooked’ on the strange petro-chemical taste, _and_ the fact that these days it is being marketed in a _yellow_ packet like Splenda and generics thereof, and there ya go. In point of fact, though, given a choice of real sugar, aspartame and Splenda, I’ll take the Splenda every time. Given a choice of real sugar or the “pink stuff”, I’ll take the real sugar and deal with the consequences. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Bobotheoptimist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/919ad9/32.png) [@Bobotheoptimist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bobotheoptimist)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/4 "2008-10-23T00:37:53Z")
The real question is “who put you in charge of deciding what sweetener I use?” I disagree with everything in the OP, except possibly “tastes less like sugar”. I dislike Splenda & Nutrasweet in my iced tea (my primary use of packaged artificial sweetener) - They taste bad, need two packets for the power of one pink, and don’t dissolve as easily. They both seem to me to be a solution desperately searching for a problem. Diet Pepsi tasted much better before the switch to Nutrasweet. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/5 "2008-10-23T01:00:30Z")
I thought ‘Sweet & Low’ was one of the few pure examples of a ‘Giffin Good’: One that would become totally obsolete given a significantly higher economc level. (See Also _‘Taco Bell’_) ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/6 "2008-10-23T01:12:13Z")
Sorry, I apologize. It’s probably my fault that Sweet’N Low still exists. I regularly buy it in 250 count boxes. I have used the stuff in my tea for my entire life, and since tea is my primary beverage (up to 5 or 6 cups - decaf - every day in cooler months), I need a substantial amount. I will use one of the other sweeteners if that’s the only thing available, but I much prefer Sweet’N Low. The whole “tastes less like sugar” argument does nothing for me, since I don’t think I’ve ever used additive sugar on anything since I was a small child, and have no idea what it tastes like. If Sweet’N Low has an aftertaste, I must be so used to it that I don’t even notice it. Price is not a factor at all for me. Until this thread I would never have been able to identify which of the artificial sweeteners was more or less expensive. I buy Sweet’N Low because it works for me. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/7 "2008-10-23T01:12:17Z")
> [@astro](#): > > …It’s not nearly as good as the other two, who continues to buy this stuff in such quantity? I do. Don’t assume your subjective opinion is fact. Equal/Nutrasweet makes me puke, literally. It’s the one with an aftertaste. I’m very happy there are now diet drinks made with Splenda. I usually sweeten my coffee with a packet each of Splenda and Sweet N Low. I find that the combination offsets each’s individual flaws. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/8 "2008-10-23T02:51:31Z")
I’ve come to find that everyone has different “sweet” receptors. Even people’s own sweet receptors can change. I used to loathe diet soda. Could not bear to take a sip. Then I stopped eating sugar for a while, and all of a sudden can’t stand non-diet soda. I prefer the taste of diet. Sometimes I can’t even get into the taste of the Splenda-sweetened versions because they’re too close to real soda. So Sweet 'n Low exists because it’s the right kind of “sweet” for certain people’s taste buds. ---
**Author:** ![greatshakes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/58956e/32.png) [@greatshakes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greatshakes)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/9 "2008-10-23T05:31:34Z")
I think that one problem is that the OP says that Sweet and low tastes less like sugar. I don’t want something to taste like sugar, I want it to taste good and sweet. If I wanted something to taste like sugar, I would drink sugar and water. Sweet and Low is a better sweetener all around. ---
**Author:** ![T\_SQUARE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@T\_SQUARE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/T_SQUARE)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/10 "2008-10-23T05:33:24Z")
> [@Count\_Blucher](#): > > I thought ‘Sweet & Low’ was one of the few pure examples of a ‘Giffin Good’: One that would become totally obsolete given a significantly higher economc level. > > (See Also _‘Taco Bell’_) Nitpick: ‘Sweet & Low’ and Taco Bell aren’t Giffin goods because they each have substitute goods and neither makes up a large portion of most peoples’ budgets. If the price of either rose, you wouldn’t have to substitute away from something else to buy more ‘Sweet & Low’. You might be thinking of Inferior Goods, which both could be. Not many Inferior Goods are Giffin Goods, but all Giffins are Inferior. Whether Giffins exist at all is debatable. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/11 "2008-10-23T05:43:42Z")
Actually I find _Sweet & Low_ better than Splenda which, to me, has a worse aftertaste. Plus I found Splenda much less sweet, it takes nearly twice as many Splenda packets for me to get the same sweet taste as _Sweet & Low_. Now with petro prices up, so is Sweet & Low. I used to get 100 packets for 99¢ (rather the generic kind) at Walgreens. Now it’s 100 for $2.50 almost as much as generic Equal. The best taste to me is Acesulfame K with either Aspertame or Splenda. (As in Coke Zero) ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/12 "2008-10-23T05:47:41Z")
Sugar Twin which is saccharin in the US has always been Yellow BTW Sugar Twin in Canada is cyclamate ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 10:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/13 "2008-10-23T10:29:19Z")
Wow, I really truly had no idea so many people really _like_ saccharine. OK, my ignorance has been fought. Your work is done here, people. Move along. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Tof](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cdc98d/32.png) [@The\_Tof](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Tof)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/14 "2008-10-23T10:54:19Z")
Just throwing my lot in with the Sweet & Low people (Or “Pink Ones” as they are known amongst my wife and I). I only ever really use it at restaurents, because I rarely drink anything that needs it at home. At Restaurents though, I’ll order Iced Tea. The reason I use Sweet & Low is that I can add buckets of Equal or Splenda into it and not get the same effect as a couple packets of pink ones. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/15 "2008-10-23T12:33:23Z")
I love Sweet n Low in tea. I always carry some pink packets in my purse. ---
**Author:** ![It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/it_s_not_rocket_surgery/32/312_2.png) [@It\_s\_Not\_Rocket\_Surgery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/It_s_Not_Rocket_Surgery)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/16 "2008-10-23T12:52:30Z")
Part of the reason Sweet N’ Low is still on the market is because of mob payoffs to politicians including Al D’Amato: [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,983398-6,00.html](http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,983398-6,00.html) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/17 "2008-10-23T13:47:20Z")
Moving thread from IMHO to Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Orzabal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@Roland\_Orzabal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Orzabal)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/18 "2008-10-23T13:50:29Z")
I quit asking these questions the day I realized that there are people who drink Diet Coke by choice. Give it up, **astro**. That way lies naught but madness. ---
**Author:** ![DeadlyAccurate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ac91a4/32.png) [@DeadlyAccurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeadlyAccurate)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/19 "2008-10-23T13:54:19Z")
I buy both Sweet & Low and Splenda packets. I use S&L in hot tea and Splenda in my cappuccinos and most anything else I might want sweetened. Splenda isn’t as sweet as S&L, and I like my teas fairly sweet. I buy the stuff at CostCo, so one box lasts me for _years_. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2008, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151/20 "2008-10-23T13:58:22Z")
I use Sweet & Low, and don’t particularly like Splenda. I got quite annoyed that Splenda replaced S&L in our work cafeteria. This is probably due to my youth, where we had these cool bottles of fizzing saccharine tablets to sweeten hot tea. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sweet-low-is-a-markedly-inferior-sweetner-why-does-it-even-exist/469151.md?page=2)