Splenda is a trade name given to a generic, low calorie sweetener called sucralose. According to the Food and Drug Administration and the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives, sucralose is safe for everyone to consume, including pregnant women.

Many people have questioned the safety of the additive because the process to make sucralose involves taking real sugar and substituting three chlorine atoms for three hydrogen-oxygen groups on the sugar molecule. The addition of chlorine atoms renders the sugar molecule inactive so that it passes through the body without being metabolized. This is what makes it low calorie. Your body does not recognize the molecule as either a sugar or a carbohydrate, so it has no effect on blood sugar levels or insulin production making it a safe sugar substitute for diabetics to use.

US and international health authorities indicate that the safe level of sucralose for people to consume on a daily basis is 5mg/kg of body weight (2.2 pounds). This amount is well within the range of normal daily consumption. You will find sucralose being used in a variety of products including baked goods, dessert items, salad dressings, dairy substitutes, beverages and beverage mixes, jams and jellies, syrups, coffee, tea and chewing gum.

Although sucralose is considered safe for pregnant and nursing moms, as well as children it is best to try and stay with natural, wholesome foods to ensure that the necessary calories and nutrients are consumed. Pregnant and nursing women, as well as kids, need the calories found in whole foods, such as fresh fruits and grains. If their diet is full of artificially sweetened foods such as frozen desserts and baked goods, they may not have enough of an appetite left to consume more nutritious foods that provide the calories, as well as the vitamins and minerals necessary for the very important growth and development which they must support.

For the official, government word on Splenda's safety, read the FDA's talk paper on the subject.