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belle
VIP Member


6502 Posts
Posted -  22/04/2008  :  10:08
Many of you may have already heard this information, but I have just read about it this morning and thought it was important to pass it on, especilay to those who are weight watching.
It has apparantly been discovered that the artificial sweetener Aspartame, which is found in diet drinks, yohurts, desserts, other diet foods and sugar substitutes, can cause severe health problems which mimic MS and lupus, and can even threaten life. The reason is that Aspartame is made from wood alcohol which at 87o f turns to fomaldaheid and is stored in the body as formic acid, (no doubt tizer will sort me out if i have got the science wrong!) which acts on a detrimental way on the nervous system.  It can cause dizziness, vision problems, mood swings, depression, weakness in the limbs, chronic  fatigue, tingling in the limbs, behavious disorders and ultimately death. it is especially dangerous for children and Diabetics, as it can cause seizures. Interestingly the Diabetic society is partly funded by money from the Aspartame industry, I believe.
I went to have a healthy breakfast this morning after reading this and found my weight watchers yoghurts contained it, so am now going to be more careful in label reading. Some doctors even think the high consumption of cola drinks by the armed forces in hot places contributes partly to what is known as Gulf war syndrome.


Life is what you make it
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Callunna
Revolving Grey Blob


3044 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 10:18
It can cause dizziness, vision problems, mood swings, depression, weakness in the limbs, chronic  fatigue, tingling in the limbs, behavious disorders and ultimately death.

Well I've got all those symptoms (except, hopefully, the last...) but I put it down to turning fif... fift... middle aged last November. I shall read the labels even more closely now. Go to Top of Page
Stanley
Local Historian & Old Fart


36804 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 10:25
The food processors have been desperately searching for alternative no-cal sweeteners for many years, saccharine was the first of many and aspartame seemed to be the answer until of course, further research started to throw up problems.  That's why corn Syrup has become so popular as a 'natural' and sweeter tasting substitute that means less calories are added.  Problem with this is that they have now found that the spike in fructose take-up by the body caused by highly refined sweeteners ia damaging the isulin response and could be a contributory cause for the rise in Diabetes in the young.


Stanley Challenger Graham




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frankwilk
Senior Member


3975 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 10:56
Calluna wrote " but I put it down to turning fif... fift... middle aged last November. I shall read the labels even more closely now. Go to Top of Page"

That's why when you reach fifty  ish your eyes start to fail,  it's so you can't read the labels.   I work on the basis I got to fifty so why bother,  if I like it I eat it,  or even drink it.



Frank Wilkinson       Once Navy Always Navy Go to Top of Page
belle
VIP Member


6502 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 12:06
I think if you are healthy that's not a bad apparoach, "a little of what you fancy" etc if you suffer from chronic problems that mimic the above, then it's not too hard to give it up and see if it improves the situation.


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Tizer
VIP Member


5150 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 14:21
Belle, is this the aspartame chain letter again? The urban myth that goes back a decade or more? Have a look at the Snopes web site which is dedicated to debunking myths:

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/aspartame.asp

I've had a quick search of the Web but didn't find anything new about aspartame and safety. I've got to go out now so will leave you with this for now.

Tizer 


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belle
VIP Member


6502 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 18:31
Thanks for that Tizer, it's always nice to have both points of view, and now I don't feel too bad for having a yoghurt with it in just hours after posting this...


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Tizer
VIP Member


5150 Posts
Posted - 22/04/2008 : 20:55
These stories have a life of their own Belle and they seem to carry on forever. I think some people get a kick out of thinking up new ones. As for sweeteners and sugar, if people don't want added sugar in their food the best solution is to eat food that doesn't contain it. We only crave sugar because we get used to food being sweet. I ate everything with loads of sugar until I got married and my wife put a stop to it - thank goodness. I soon disliked very sweet food & drink and now don't want sugar in tea etc.

The problem of course is that food manufacturers only give a choice of sugar or "artificial sweetener", so most foods are sweet. The reason is that the manufacturer who makes unsweet food loses sales to his competitors who make sweet products.

I'm talking hear of food that doesn't need sugar - there are some that do need it, like jam for instance. I would rather eat sugar in jam than drink it in tea etc (the fruit in the jam is healthy).


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Stanley
Local Historian & Old Fart


36804 Posts
Posted - 23/04/2008 : 08:15
Mr Pollan says that one good ploy in the search for healthy eating is to stop worrying about labels.  Simply refuse to buy anything that needs one.  This gets over all the problems in reading them.  I like simple advice........

Tizer is right, craving sweetness is a habit fostered by the food manufacturers.  We get all the sugar (and salt) that we need in natural fruit and vegetables.  My late son in law's father worked in a bakery that mad the baps for MacDonalds and another burger chain in Perth, WA.  He said that the specification for the MacDonald baps contained much more sugar than the others.  More attractive to the kids who naturally crave sweetness.....


Stanley Challenger Graham




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belle
VIP Member


6502 Posts
Posted - 23/04/2008 : 08:31
It's amazing how we accept manufacturers putting substances in our food that they know is addictive, the oldest eg probably being sugar....they might as well be shoving cocain in there...in Cokes case I guess they already did. The ploy of lacing the treat so it's gets addictive and we all buy more, has been around for centuries!


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Tizer
VIP Member


5150 Posts
Posted - 23/04/2008 : 10:49
Bang on target Belle. The analogy with pushing illicit addictive drugs can be extended to other areas too - films with lots of sex and violence etc. The problem is that most of the world believes in open, largely unrestricted markets for products and services. Sometimes I think we went of course centuries ago when the wrong set of economic philosophers won the argument. But if the system changed how would we decide where to draw the line? The same problem exists with censorship of TV, films and videos. Personally I'm appalled by much of what is allowed now, especially when kiddies can often see it. But one person's porn is another person's tea party (and vice versa..no pun intended). And if we went down the stricter censorship route we could end up like the Taleban and ban kissing etc. And the internet's an even bigger problem because it's global - no matter what we try to control here, it can creep in from abroad. I don't know what the answer is.

Sorry, this went off at a tangent! 


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marilyn
VIP Member


5007 Posts
Posted - 23/04/2008 : 11:44
Still on the subject of health....I see there is a test being developed for diagnosing Alzhiemers, prior to symptoms being present. A swab is taken of the inside of the cheek (buccal mucosa), rather like a DNA swab. Lack of Buccal Mucosa cells points to Alzhiemers.
Would you have the test if it were made available?
I would. I'm a bit like Stanley...the thought of mental decline worries me, though we have no family history of it. Febby says he wouldn't have the test if offered, but he has always been an Ostrich.


get your people to phone my people and we will do lunch...MAZ Go to Top of Page
Tizer
VIP Member


5150 Posts
Posted - 23/04/2008 : 20:29
"the thought of mental decline worries me"

Was it Samuel Pepys or Samuel Johnson - can't remember - who gave his housekeeper a key to his room and told her to lock him in if he ever lost his faculties? He was scared of what might happen otherwise.


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Stanley
Local Historian & Old Fart


36804 Posts
Posted - 24/04/2008 : 07:09
Now where did I put those keys........


Stanley Challenger Graham




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belle
VIP Member


6502 Posts
Posted - 25/04/2008 : 11:12
I wouldn't have the test, in the same way I declined tests for downs etc on my later pregnancies, trouble is the results are not always accurate, and you coule end up worrying yourself to death over something you might never get! Not for me the "watching and waiting" 'where ignorance is bliss tis folly to be wise!'


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Tizer
VIP Member


5150 Posts
Posted - 25/04/2008 : 17:16
As they say, Stanley, while you worry you might go mad, you are sane. When you are insane you won't know. So get on with enjoying your exciting life instead!


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