WDDTY e-News Service - 29 July 2004

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WHAT DOCTORS DONT TELL YOU - E-NEWS BROADCAST No. 93 -

29 July 2004

Please feel free to email this broadcast to any

friends you feel would appreciate receiving it.

 

 

BITTERSWEET: Is this the beginning of the end for

aspartame?

 

Is the writing finally on the wall for aspartame, the

artificial sweetener used in diet and sugar-free

drinks and foods? There's been a very effective

campaign to keep the lid on a devastating catalogue of

diseases linked to the sweetener, but in recent weeks

we've noticed a few straws in the wind.

 

Some brave souls have put together a film, Sweet

Misery, which documents " one of the most pervasive,

insidious forms of corporate negligence in history " ,

as a spokesman has put it.

 

And now academics are getting in on the act, and have

shown how aspartame can lead to overeating. A study

by Purdue University found that artificial sweeteners

disturb our natural abilities to monitor calorie

intake.

 

Not that any of this is revelatory. Government

agencies have known for decades that aspartame is

deadly. It was once on the Pentagon list of

bio-warfare chemicals submitted to Congress and, in

1984, Dr Woodrow C Monte observed: " Methanol (one of

the breakdown products of aspartame) has no

therapeutic properties and is considered only as a

toxicant. The ingestion of two teaspoons is

considered lethal in humans. " But his warning came

too late. Aspartame had been approved in the States

two years earlier as a safe food additive.

 

It took centre stage once saccharin was discredited

after studies showed a link between it and bladder

cancer. Aspartame was seen as a good substitute -

and one that packed a kick for all those with a sweet

tooth, as it is 200 times sweeter than sugar. Its

rise continues unchecked today, especially as its

patent has recently expired. Around 5,000 products on

the market contain the sweetener, and the list is

growing by the day, and includes diet sodas, fruit

drinks, frozen lollies, instant breakfasts, chewing

gum, cocoa and other instant drinks, supplements,

drugs, and yoghurt.

 

Because it is a food additive, no post-marketing

trials of its safety are needed. It's not even listed

as an ingredient on some products such as vitamin

supplements. Even so, aspartame accounts for more

than 75 per cent of adverse reactions to food reported

every year to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Some of these reactions are very serious, including

death.

 

Despite these alarm calls, it's been down to

individual scientists to investigate the dangers of

aspartame. Aspartame is a dipeptide (that started

life as a drug for peptic ulcer). It's made up of

L-phenylanine (50 per cent), aspartic acid (40 per

cent) and methanol (10 per cent). Some claim that

phenylanine on its is a health hazard, and that

certainly becomes more likely if it breaks down to

methyl ester which, in turn, becomes methyl alcohol or

methanol (remember, two teaspoons is lethal.) If it

doesn't kill you, methanol can cause blindness. The

US Environmental Protection Agency advises daily

maximum methanol consumption of just 7.8 mg - and yet

many cans of diet sodas contain twice that, and a

diabetic using aspartame all day could consume 30

times that amount.

 

So what causes this breakdown? High heat and

prolonged storage have both been shown to transform

aspartame into a more dangerous substance. An

interesting study linked Gulf War syndrome to diet

soda drinks that were kept out in the hot desert sun.

 

The evidence is becoming too overwhelming for the

authorities to continue to ignore this sweetener.

It's now been linked to multiple sclerosis,

Parkinson's, migraine and headache, brain cancer,

chronic fatigue and epilepsy.

 

Even the powerful groups that protect aspartame surely

cannot withstand the tide for very much longer.

 

* It's a major worry for anyone who takes vitamin

supplements that they could contain aspartame. So

which are the best - and safest - to buy? Find out in

the WDDTY Good Supplement Guide, which reviews all the

major supplements and manufacturers. It's a must-have

for anyone who is taking his or her health seriously,

and who wants the very best. To order this essential

guide, :

http://www.wddty.co.uk/shop/details.asp?product=373

 

 

 

FLUORIDE: Let the people choose

 

In a disarming act of democracy, the UK's Department

of Health is allowing local people to help decide if

their water supply should be fluoridated.

 

The Strategic Health Authorities (SHAs) have received

instructions from health officials on how they should

consult local residents. They should advertise in

local newspapers their plans to fluoridate the local

water supply, and then have a three-month consultation

process. Only if the response were " predominantly in

favour of fluoridation " would the water company be

told to start fluoridation.

 

Apparently this is enshrined in section 58 of the

Water Act 2003.

 

So, everybody, you know what you have to do!

 

* And if you're not sure why you should vote against

fluoridation of your local water supply, get the facts

by reading the WDDTY Environment Handbook. It's

available by clicking on this link:

http://www.wddty.co.uk/shop/details.asp?product=12

 

 

 

BACK PAIN: It's women who suffer

 

Women are at least twice as likely as men to develop

some musculoskeletal disorder of the upper body, such

as lower back pain and carpal tunnel syndrome.

 

A study from Ohio State University carried out a

meta-analysis of a range of studies that all confirmed

this finding. Some of the studies found that women

were up to 11 times more likely to suffer one of the

disorders.

 

" Anyway you slice the data, women have a significantly

higher prevalence for many of these disorders, " said

Delia Treasler, one of the research team.

 

So the next big question is why?

 

(Source: Ohio State University, news release, July 21,

2004).

 

 

 

READERS' CORNER

 

Itchy vulva: Plenty of help for the woman last time

who suffers from an itchy vulva, which she says wasn't

thrush. In the first place, says one reader, avoid

bubble baths and any products that contain sodium

laurel sulphate or propylene glycol. Try a product

called Bio-Fem Actigel, a natural gel made of plant

extract that provides 'instant relief to vaginal

discomforts', says the supplier. One reader has

actually tried it, but is not so sure about the

'instant' bit. She's used it for five days and is yet

to see an improvement. Another reader who had a

similar problem started taking a homeopathic remedy

after visiting a practitioner, and the itch went away,

never to return. Vitamin C will do the trick, advises

another reader, and make sure your clothes are washed

in baby detergent, and rinsed in pure water. Don't

use tampons or pads that have been made with bleached

paper. And rinse the vulva with pure water, and

either use calendula cream or make calendula tea and

rinse with that.

 

 

Itchy scalp: The other itchy issue last time has also

had you scratching around for a reply. Last week a

woman told us that her head was full of scabs, and

didn't know what to do. You, on the other hand, do

know. B complex is the answer, says one reader, as

recommended in the early 1960s by American

nutritionist Adelle Davis. A lack of B6 causes

peeling, and the deficiency can be brought on by a

diet rich in sugar and honey. Sesame oil is another

option, and should be rubbed into the scalp. One

woman had a similar problem until she read an article

in What Doctors Don't Tell You and started using

natural hair products. Neem is another possibility,

available from the Village Pharmacy, or try Mercy

cream. Diet and detox are vital. Oils, margarine,

shortening and sugar should be removed from the diet,

but you may also need to detox. You could also try

Sebulex shampoo. And get rid of any negativity in

your life, says one reader, which in her case was her

now ex-husband!

 

 

Arrythmia: Then there was the reader whose

50-year-old husband had suffered from arrythmia for

four years. More information was needed from you, and

so here it is. A male reader, who is also 50 years

old, has had episodes of arrythmia for 25 years. His

has worsened in the last few years as he believes his

body metabolism has changed as he's aged. Stop

drinking caffeine and sugar-loaded drinks for a start,

he advises. Arrythmia can be caused by a mineral

imbalance, thyroid problems, and caffeine and alcohol

consumption, suggests one reader, as can some

pharmaceutical drugs. In terms of background

information, try Hans Larsen's book on atrial

fibrillation.

 

 

Breast enlargement: One woman wanted to know if a

breast enlargement formula she's received information

on would work. Just one reply to this, and it's a

simple one: don't be silly, of course it won't!

 

 

AOB: Benign cysts on the genitals - a topic featured

last time in case you were wondering - are known as

barthalin gland cysts, and can be removed by cleansing

the blood naturopathically. . .the deadly infection

MRSA that is rampaging through our hospitals doesn't

seem to occur in hospices, a reader tells us. There

they use tea tree oil, which stops it developing.

Another reader says a similar effect can be had with

Bee Propolis. . .some confusion last time about the

right ratio between omega-3 and omega-6. It should

be, as stated, 2:1 in favour of omega-3, so we should

consume double the amount of omega-3 to 6 (whereas the

modern diet tends to be the other way round). . .could

we please start putting a contents list at the start

of each E-news? It would be especially helpful for

practitioners, pleads one practitioner. Everyone

agree? . . .no AOB would be complete without some

reference to ticks. This time it's from a reader

living in a 'tick-infested' area of northern New South

Wales in Australia. If it's a grass tick, apply a

large blob of Vaseline, leave for 10 minutes, and then

rub off. For all other ticks, use tweezers and grasp

the tick's head and turn anti-clockwise. But go

gentle, and don't separate the body from the head. .

..more Bushisms (for those who can stand it) and this

time some supportive noises from our American readers.

One thanks us for spreading the news that is not

being covered by her own media, while another says

there are checks and balances like Congress and the

Senate to stop Bush overstepping the mark too much.

Hmmm.

 

 

 

Readers' questions

 

Bunions: Anyone with natural cures for removing these

naturally?

 

 

Eye herpes: One reader has herpes virus in the eye.

Any ways to treat or kill this nasty infection, she

asks?

 

 

Hydrocele: One reader's baby boy (he's 22 months old)

has been diagnosed with hydrocele, where one testicle

is enlarged from liquid coming from the abdomen and

through a tube that should have closed by the time he

was 12 months old. Doctors recommend surgery to close

the tube, but she feels he's too young for a full

anaesthetic. Do readers have any natural

alternatives?

 

 

Diabetes: A reader recalls reading about an Indian

homeopathic remedy for late-life diabetes. Can anyone

tell her the name of the remedy, or even suggest

others?

 

 

GBS: One reader who is five months pregnant has been

diagnosed with GBS. Any ideas for clearing it up, she

wonders?

 

 

Lichen planus: One reader has this in her mouth. Any

ways to treat this 'untreatable' condition, she asks

of her fellow readers?

 

 

 

* To search the WDDTY database - where every word from

the last 14 years of research can be found #8211;

click on

http://www.wddty.co.uk/search/infodatabase.asp