6 replies to this topic

[calmcookie]

Fascinating that when the news came out from American Diabetes Association that "the more diet drinks people consume, the more weight they are likely to gain" ... coke chart blipped UP ... probably just to knock out some shorts. I think there's more downside to come ... support will be broken. By the way, we used to have normal size soft drink cans in the hospital, now they are all HALF the size (mini size) .... health care institutions are finally having to accept the fact that this stuff is unhealthy. Eventually we'll go from half the size ... to NONE ... but it'll take another 10 years to happen. And I am not suggesting that NO calories make you fatter .... but that the overstimulating tastes and other metabolic changes that occur with these drinks DO contribute to weight gain (exactly HOW this happens is currently under debate, but there's no question that it happens). It's possible that aspartame turns to formic acid and formic acid makes the body want to hold on to fat - in an attempt to neutralize the acid. I've been telling my patients this for years ... and it is finally being confirmed. Drink whatever you wish, enjoy life, but be aware of the facts. C.C.

Edited by calmcookie, 28 July 2007 - 08:45 AM.

[calmcookie]

Aspartame was not approved until 1981, in dry foods. For over eight years the FDA refused to approve it because of the seizures and brain tumors this drug produced in lab animals. The FDA continued to refuse to approve it until President Reagan took office (a friend of Searle) and fired the FDA Commissioner who wouldn't approve it. Dr. Arthur Hull Hayes was appointed as commissioner. Even then there was so much opposition to approval that a Board of Inquiry was set up. The Board said: "Do not approve aspartame". Dr. Hayes OVERRULED his own Board of Inquiry. Shortly after Commissioner Arthur Hull Hayes, Jr., approved the use of aspartame in carbonated beverages, he left for a position with G.D. Searle's Public Relations firm. Long-Term Damage. It appears to cause slow, silent damage in those unfortunate enough to not have immediate reactions and a reason to avoid it. It may take one year, five years, 10 years, or 40 years, but it seems to cause some reversible and some irreversible changes in health over long-term use. METHANOL (AKA WOOD ALCOHOL/POISON) (10% OF ASPARTAME) Methanol/wood alcohol is a deadly poison. People may recall that methanol was the poison that has caused some "skid row" alcoholics to end up blind or dead. Methanol is gradually released in the small intestine when the methyl group of aspartame encounter the enzyme chymotrypsin. The absorption of methanol into the body is sped up considerably when free methanol is ingested. Free methanol is created from aspartame when it is heated to above 86 Fahrenheit (30 Centigrade). This would occur when aspartame-containing product is improperly stored or when it is heated (e.g., as part of a "food" product such as Jello). Methanol breaks down into formic acid and formaldehyde in the body. Formaldehyde is a deadly neurotoxin. An EPA assessment of methanol states that methanol "is considered a cumulative poison due to the low rate of excretion once it is absorbed. In the body, methanol is oxidized to formaldehyde and formic acid; both of these metabolites are toxic." The recommend a limit of consumption of 7.8 mg/day. A one-liter (approx. 1 quart) aspartame-sweetened beverage contains about 56 mg of methanol. Heavy users of aspartame-containing products consume as much as 250 mg of methanol daily or 32 times the EPA limit. The most well known problems from methanol poisoning are vision problems. Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen, causes retinal damage, interferes with DNA replication, and causes birth defects. Due to the lack of a couple of key enzymes, humans are many times more sensitive to the toxic effects of methanol than animals. Therefore, tests of aspartame or methanol on animals do not accurately reflect the danger for humans. As pointed out by Dr Woodrow C. Monte, Director of the Food Science and Nutrition Laboratory at Arizona State University, "There are no human or mammalian studies to evaluate the possible mutagenic, teratogenic, or carcinogenic effects of chronic administration of methyl alcohol." The truth about aspartame's toxicity is far different than what the NutraSweet Company would have you readers believe. In February of 1994, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released the listing of adverse reactions reported to the FDA (DHHS 1994). Aspartame accounted for more than 75% of all adverse reactions reported to the FDA's Adverse Reaction Monitoring System (ARMS). By the FDA's own admission fewer then ONE PERCENT of those who have problems with something they consume ever report it to the FDA. This balloons the almost 10,000 complaints they once had to around a million. However, the FDA has a record keeping problem (they never did respond to the certified letter from the WEBMASTER of this site... a major victim!) and they tend to discourage or even misdirect complaints, at least on aspartame. The fact remains, though, that MOST victims don't have a clue that aspartame may be the cause of their many problems.

[traderpaul]

Thanks for the article.

[JAP]

I currently work for this company. The Nutrasweet part was sold off many years ago. My company has been sold and acquired many times over.

Aspartame resulted from a failed lab experiment... it was discovered completely by accident. Bet you didn't know that.

The things in this article hold a lot of weight. Yes, overconsumtion of sugar can cause many health problems, but it's much better for you than aspartame.

DON'T drink or eat anything with any type of artificial sweetener in it. The stuff is poison. I've been telling people this for years.

[Drano]

Is there a link to an article? As far as artificial sweeteners, I thought that cheap old saccharine was okay -- I'm super sensitive to all artificial sweeteners, except saccharine.

[vitaminm]

http://www.snopes.co...s/aspartame.asp

http://dorway.com/indexnew.html

Edited by vitaminm, 28 July 2007 - 11:01 PM.

[colours]

What about Splenda ? Is it as bad ( or worse ) than Nutrasweet or saccharine ?