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Many people have been falsely sold by the deceptive advertising campaigns of synthetic sweeteners. What do I mean by synthetic sweeteners? Anything that is chemically made, such as: NutraSweet, Equal, Sweet n Low, Splenda, and others. The big problem with these is that they are toxic to our systems. This can really be divided into two distinct categories: Apsartame, and Splenda. Aspartame has been around the longest and was originally developed to be used an anti-ulcer drug that was later learned to taste sweet, and so it began to be used as a sugar substitute for diabetics and those that were on the low-cal diet craze (or often, on a diet in general). Apsartame can be found in most all chewing gums as well as diet drinks and even diet brand items. When consumed enough, Aspartame is found to promote a number of health problems such as Fibromyalgia, Migraines, and can eventually lead to forming formaldehyde in the brain and thus, death. Splenda is the newest kid on the block when it comes to chemical sweeteners and is deceptively marketed as being like sugar because it's “made from sugar”. This is true to a point… Splenda is made by genetically altering a sugar molecule with a chlorine molecule (Splenda is considered a chlorocarbon), so it is made from sugar molecules, not real sugar. Splenda has recently come under fire for also causing serious health problems such as calcification of the internal organs. Despite numerous studies that point out the serious problems in these sweeteners, the FDA has yet to take any serious action against these products and instead continues to supress all natural non-sugar sweeteners such as Stevia.
There are, of course, healthy alternatives to Apsartame and Splenda. Many people have switched to using products like Agave Nectar (a syrup from the Agave plant), Xylitol (in small, short term quantities. Over extended periods, Xylitol can cause digestive problems.), and Stevia (a sweet herb). Stevia is available pre-packaged in small packets like Aspartame and Splenda and costs about the same as well, but thanks to the FDA, you won't find it in the same aisle as the other alternative sweeteners. The FDA will not allow Stevia to be labeled as an alternative sweetener, so instead it is stuck being considered a “suppliment” and is often with Vitamins and other such products.
We are told that the Food & Drug Assoc. is here to help protect us from such things, and now we see that in reality, they are protecting big corporate interests in this case and the serious health problems that are being caused by such products is being completely ignored. While the issue of the FDA is another (large) subject entirely, it's important that everyone understand that they can not depend on a large government body to protect them or their health. We must take our health safety into our own hands because clearly big government organizations such as this can not be trusted. My advice to everyone is to go for what is natural, and what comes from nature.
Most commonly, people will experience the poison from these alternative sweeteners from “Diet” Colas. Even just 2 diet colas a day can be too much and can lead to a myriad of problems! As I spelled out this month: do yourself a favor and get off the sodas. In my opinion, Diet Sodas with these synthetic sweeteners are even worse for you than regular sodas (the problems of which I outlined last month).
There is a fantastic documentary that I implore everyone to watch entitled Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World. This outlines in great detail what Aspartame does to you and even chronicles a case where Aspartame caused a man to die and his wife was wrongfully charged with his murder. When I called these products poison, I do not say it lightly. These are dangerous substances which should be outlawed because of the harm they cause. I'll be putting up a few articles on my website that talk about the studies done on these horrible products for those interested. Do yourself a favor though and read the ingredients labels of all the products you buy; most especially anything labeled as “diet”, “low cal”, or “low carb”, because it's almost always going to contain one of these toxic substances.
Related sites of interest:
Be Healthy Now! 