artifical sweetners-toxic?

suziev

hello all

just got a very intersting email of a friend about the very bad side to artifiacial sweetners. i've checked the email out and about the E number or aspartame as it is know on the net and am not saying that it's right or wrong just asking people to google and decide. however i think it's true and worth a mention!

the email is mainly about MS however it covers other illnes such as
systemic lupus and fibromoyalgia.
it says that drinking diet cokes is very bad for you, i think we know that already but when the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in ASPARTAME converts to formaldehyde and then to formic acid, which in turn causes metabolic acidosis.. Formic acid is the poison found in the sting of fire ants.
The methanol toxicity mimics, among other conditions, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus.

like i say am not saying right or wrong just saying have a look and have a think!
after all knowledge is power!
i'll happily forward on email if anyone wants it
suzie

woodbon

Hi, Although I'm trying to lose weight, I don't use artifical sweeteners or diet foods as I thought it was better to just cut down and sometimes out, the sugars in my diet. I use fructose if need to sweeten something in cooking as thats a natural product. I'm slowly losing wait, nothing dramatic a 1lb or so a week (unless I've been naughty!) The funny thing is that I've lost my sweet tooth for a lot of things. I do still like the odd bar of chocolate, or cake, and last week I had to finish off the last of the ice cream as we needed the space in the freezer ...... Take care, Love Sue
PS Ginger, just a little will make cooked friut taste sweeter.

tkachev

I was having the exact same conversation with my OH coming home in the car just now.Aspartime effects him badly so he forbids to have it in the house.I didnt realise how dreadful it was.
Tkachev

page35

Hi Suzie
Aspartamin (sp) is also in alot of kids drinks such as Fruit shoots and Oasis, which really annoys me as it can make kids hyper.
i never buy anything with it in.
page

mellman01

I always look at it like this the farther it gets away from a natural source the more chance it has of being toxic, the food industry will use stuff like this mostly due to cost rather than risk, apart from the general side effects it has on RA suffers I’m pretty sure this chemical has a cancer risk with it and I don’t think the Europeans use it as much as we do, bottom line is food companies will give you as little true info as they can, a good example is salt how many packets of food do you see stating the weight of salt as just Sodium and not Sodium Chloride, why is that?, it’s because you have to double the weight in grams to get the true figure, if they can’t even be honest about that then what else aren’t they telling us.

sharmaine

Hi
I didn't know artificial sweeteners were toxic!!! Thanks for the warning. I've been using Splenda which I thought was a natural bi product of sugar. I think our food shops have a duty to ensure that we're not being sold these items. They should really put a toxic warning on them.

I don't like any other artificial sweetener - I'll have to try taking my coffee sugar free (or use the real stuff).

Sharmaine

babette

Hi sue

From what I remember reading years ago, aspartame is not licensed for use as a sweetner in the USA for precisely the reasons given, it's toxic and a potential carcinogen ( cancer causing). With that in mind I have always gone for the "white death" as Arnold Sarzenegger calls it - good old fashioned sugar, it might make you fat and may rot your teeth but as far as I'm aware it'll not make u ill if used in moderation.

B x

suzster

i just thought i'd add, when i was 1st diagnosed with RA i had a diet drink and had a terrible flare up, so i avoided it like the plague!
then once i was given a diet drink by mistake and again next day had a bad flare up, so i'm not sure if it was a coincidence but i stay away from all artificial sweeteners now.
sue

avalon1

In my opinion all artifical sweetners should be avoided and banned.
I used to work in pharmacy and did some research into the various artifical sweetners - and to the person who says they use fructose - is not natural it is a highly refined commercially produced sugar and is dangerous and linked to heart disease. Your body is not designed to cope with these type of sweetners and the pancreas cannot cope and will stop working if too much is consumed - causing diabetes. There is a huge increase in diabetes among children at the moment and the government are making out they don't know why - well if I know they must know. Artifical sweetners are so much cheaper than sugar that is why they are used. Have unrefined sugar in moderation and brush your teeth regularly - read all the labels of squash and fizzy drinks and avoid anything that has a sweetner other than sugar!!

c4thyg

I've always responded very badly to artificial sweeteners and avoid them at all costs. Aspartamine in particular is an excitatory neurotransmitter (chemical in the brain) and we wonder why kids these days are more prone to being hyperactive!!

If you are looking for a better sweetener for a dieter then try using honey. It has a lower glycaemic index so it doesn't give you the rapid high (and crash) like sucrose or fructose.

Another problem with sweeteners is that your body learns to crave more sugar when it needs it because the body's needs aren't being fulfilled by sweeteners. You have to have some sugar in your diet and using sweeteners just sets your body's cravings higher if it doesn't get the sugar it needs. This is one possible reason why children are more overweight now than a generation ago, the wider usage of sweeteners in drinks etc.