Not sweet

[Guest guest]

Posted on another group:

> >

> > Sugar substitutes seem like healthy alternatives, but there is more

> > than meets the eye.

> >

> > Dave Gabriele

> >

> > We all know that eating and drinking sweets does nothing to promote

> > our health. Even the magical tooth-whitening gums or vitamin-

> enriched

> > energy drinks have a down side. We all know this, but mostly we

> choose

> > to ignore it. After all, how bad can a little piece of gum be?

> >

> > Sugar Substitutes

> >

> > A great deal of the foods we consume are artificially sweetened to

> > make them cheaper to manufacture. Real sugar needs to be imported

> at a

> > cost much greater than producing these sweetening chemicals. The

> > industry produces a whole range of artificial or artificially-

> derived

> > substances to meet our demands for sweet foods. Artificial

> sweeteners

> > have virtually replaced sugar in the processed foods that we eat.

> >

> > One of the most infamous sweeteners is aspartame. Since aspartame

> has

> > fewer calories than sugar, it has been branded as being a healthy

> > substitute. These aspartame brands including NutraSweet and Equal,

> are

> > marketed as being good for people on diets.

> >

> > Since aspartame is popular among dieters and can be produced at a

> very

> > low cost, it is used in many products available today. Hey, if

> > something can stay sweet and let us lose weight at the same time

> then

> > it must be good, right? Although it is true that products containing

> > aspartame don't have as many calories, there are many more serious

> > issues at play.

> >

> > History

> >

> > Where did aspartame come from? Aspartame was discovered by accident

> is

> > 1965 when a chemist at G.D. Searle was looking for an anti-ulcer

> drug.

> > Its value was immediately recognized. Aspartame would mean a great

> > increase in the profit of all sweet food manufacturers.

> >

> > But the dream didn't last long; the FDA rejected aspartame because

> > initial testing showed that it caused brain tumours in rats. When

> > Ronald Reagan came into power he appointed a new Commissioner to the

> > FDA. The new Commissioner approved the chemical in 1981 even though

> > FDA investigators and toxicologists were warning him about the

> dangers

> > of the substance. It is no secret that after the approval of

> > aspartame, the Commissioner became a consultant to G.D. Searle with

> a

> > huge increase in salary.

> >

> > So 16 years after its discovery, aspartame entered the market as a

> > legal sweetener.

> >

> > What Is It?

> >

> > But what is aspartame? Chemically speaking, it is a synthetic

> > substance that is made from a combination of methyl ester (10%), the

> > amino acids phenylalanine (50%) and aspartic acid (40%). Unless

> you're

> > a chemistry major that probably means nothing to you, but there are

> > significant problems with these ingredients.

> >

> > How Your Body Recognizes It

> >

> > After ingesting aspartame, the methyl ester becomes methanol.

> > According to the EPA, methanol " is considered a cumulative poison

> due

> > to the low rate of excretion once it is absorbed. " In other words,

> > methanol is considered a poison because once it's in your body, it

> > stays there for a long time. Methanol breaks down in our bodies to

> > form formic acid and formaldehyde. The problem is that formic acid

> is

> > toxic and formaldehyde is a carcinogen and a neurotoxin. And that's

> > only 10% of the issue.

> >

> > Phenylalanine and aspartic acid are amino acids that are found in

> > natural combinations with other amino acids in foods like eggs,

> > bananas and meat. These combinations are key to our body's ability

> to

> > process them. When they are consumed in isolation as they are in

> > aspartame, they are toxic and can cause health problems.

> >

> > Side Effects

> >

> > But just what kinds of health problems does aspartame cause?

> Although

> > the `official' word on aspartame is that it has no negative effects,

> > independent testing around the world has concluded what the FDA knew

> > in 1965: it does has negative effects.

> >

> > There can be immediate effects such as headaches or dizziness, or

> > there can be more serious long-term effects such as seizures or

> > cancer. Although the list of symptoms is very long, they are

> difficult

> > to connect to aspartame. This explains why aspartame has persisted

> in

> > our foods for so long; ill-effects are hard to prove.

> >

> > Where it is Used

> >

> > Which foods contain aspartame? According to the Aspartame

> Information

> > Center, these are the most popular products that contain aspartame:

> >

> > 1. Breath Mints

> > 2. Carbonated Drinks

> > 3. Chewing Gum

> > 4. Hard Candies

> > 5. Ice Cream, Sugar Free

> > 6. Iced Tea

> > 7. Jams & Jellies

> > 8. Juice Drinks

> > 9. Meal Replacements

> > 10. Yogurt, Fat free

> >

> > ____________________________

> > be careful

> >

> > The foods and beverages are always there ready to eat or drink and

> it

> > can be so easy to brush the warnings aside. After all, it's only a

> > piece of gum or a can of pop. But what you should know is that these

> > toxins have a cumulative effect that worsens with each dose. In the

> > end, the choice is yours.

> >

>