Check this article out by Jeanne Cuevas, from East West Healing www.eastwesthealing.com. Artifical sweetners aren't as sweet as you think they might be!
Aspartame...nutrasweet, equal, Equal-measure…call it what you want, like many silent killers this additive has many alias’ and proves itself to be one of the most dangerous substances ever foisted onto an unsuspecting public. As early as 1974 after several studies conducted on rats and monkeys clearly identified the dangerous effects of this substance with side effects including: brain tumors, gran mal seizures, and even death due to cardiac arrest from an over stimulated nervous system, the FDA still approved it for YOUR consumption!
In 1974 after much reveiw and several studies by scientists and researchers such as Dr. H.J. Roberts, Director of the Palm Beach Institute for Medical research, and Dr. John Olney of Washington University, the FDA did actually put the use of aspartame on hold. At that same time the FDA set up a panel of doctors to study the effects of aspartame, and once again after 5 years of study, in 1980, the panel unanimously ruled aspaprtame unsafe for human consumption!
Will someone please explain to me WHY it is that 29 years later over 6000 products on your local grocery store shelves contain aspartame…a chemical poison? Clearly this is not a science issue…this is a political issue! More importantly, as Dr. H.J. Roberts states,”this is an ignored epidemic!”
What is Aspartame?
Aspartame was discovered in 1965 on accident and later developed by the company G.D. Searles. This chemical concoction is made up of 2 amino acids and the chemical poison methanol that when ingested by the human body, converts to formeldahyde.
Although amino acids have several purposes within the function of the human body, phenylalanine and aspartic acid, when presented in excess and
unaccompanied by other amino acids become neurotoxins and are often referred to as “excitotoxins” …literally stimulating the neural cells to death! Additionally, excessive levels of phenylalanine in the brain from long term consumption of aspartame or the inability to metabolize phenylalanine (PKU) have shown to influencee the decrease of seratonin in the brain leading to emotional disorders such as depression.
A few other chronic illnesses associate with long term exposure to “excitotoxins” include:
MS, memory loss, hormonal problems, hearing loss, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, hypoglycemia, AIDS dementia, brain lessions, and neuroendocrine disorders.
Methanol, a known carcinogenic, when broken down will convert to formic acid and formaldehyde, another deadly neurotoxin! The absorption of methanol in the human body is sped up considerably when free methanol, created from aspartame, is ingested.
The EPA suggests a limit on methanol consumption per day of 7.8mg…one liter of an aspartame sweetened beverage contains 56mg of methanol! Listen up…if you eat ANY processed foods, foods that claim to be LOW FAT or consume soft drinks…on average you could be consuming up to 250mg of methanol daily…32x the EPA limits!!
In addition formeldahyde is known to cause retinal damage, interferes with DNA replication and has been linked to certain birth defects. The #1 most common symptom of methanol poisoning are headaches but can also include:ear buzzing, vertigo, gastrointestinal disturbances, chills, memory loss, numbness or shooting pains in the extremities, behavioral disturbances, dizziness, and nausea.
Diet foods and low fat products are everywhere…….they may as well swap the word “diet” or “low fat” with “aspartame” at least then you know what you getting! Don’t be fooled!
1. researchers believe that any kind of sweet taste signals the body and readies itself for high glucose foods when this doea not occur your body will crave that sugar or high-calorie carbs that it was expecting to get in the first place.
2. it fools you into thinking you can eat more…major problem with most diet foods! Unfortunately, food no matter how you cut it has calories…don’t be the one that orders a double cheeseburger, fries and a diet coke!
According to Dr. H.J. Roberts, people getting off aspartame completely lose an average of 15 pounds.
If you are experiencing any of the above symptoms I recommend substituting your sweetener with a more natural option such as stevia, xylitol or agave syrup. These are all sweeteners your body can recognize and digest without the harmful side effects.
One more thing…if you are eating processed foods, sodas, cookies, cereals, iced teas, pudding, even childrens vitamins…you and your child could be ingesting this stuff and you don’t even realize it!
Read your labels…it is hidden everywhere!
At EastWest Healing we strongly believe that education is empowerment! Each day we realize how little people really know about the effects food can have on the body…you now have a choice…what are you gonna do?
Jeanne Cuevas
