Reply #14: No, it's not the same as sugar.

[Shakespeare]

It SOUNDS the same as sugar, and the molecular structure is similar, but that's exactly the point--they've altered the molecular structure, and it's in no way been decisively determined that it's harmless. Here's a dissenting view:

"Sugar may have its health drawbacks, but at least we know we're not in for any major surprises -- and we just can't say that about Splenda yet -- so to imply that it's got the same profile as sugar is misleading and that is important today, as well as in the long run," she says.

Samantha Heller, MS, RD, agrees. "Saying Splenda is made from sugar is like taking the round wheels off a car and putting on square wheels. Is it still a car? Yes. But can it still perform like a car? No -- and what's more we don't know what's going to happen when people try to 'drive it' cross country," says Heller.

Indeed, while Splenda starts out as sugar, some serious scientific tinkering goes on before it gets into your coffee. As Heller explains, this involves removing three atoms found in sugar and replacing them with three atoms of the chemical chlorine. Some say that form of chlorine is similar to what's found in pesticides -- though in published reports the manufacturer has denied that claim.

http://www.splendaexposed.com/articles/2005/04/sweetener_in_th_1.html