Just how dangerous are Diet Sodas?

Lots of us, and I mean lots - including me, drink diet sodas on a daily basis.  They are something that have been marketed as a way to help you in your quest to lose weight, maintain your healthy weight or as something diabetics can enjoy or a way to avoid the vast amount of sugar found in regular sodas.

But the truth about diet sodas is far uglier than companies such as Coca Cola or Pepsi Co would want us to know.  Aspartame, the chemical that gives diet soda and other goods their sweet taste, is also called NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure.  It was originally discovered by James Schlatter, a chemist at G.D. Searle Company who was testing an anti-ulcer drug but discovered aspartame instead.  It was first approved for use in dry goods in 1974, but Dr. John W. Olney, a neuroscience researcher and a consumer attorney James Turner filed objections in August 1974 and subsequent investigations of G.D. Searle's research practices caused the FDA to postpone approval of aspartame in December 1974.  However, it was finally approved for dry goods in 1981 and for carbonated drinks in 1983.  Then in 1985 Monsanto bought G.D. Searle and made Searle Pharmaceuticals and The NutraSweet Company separate subsidiaries.

Over the years, it has been found that aspartame accounts for over 75% of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA.  Many of these adverse reactions are actually extremely serious, including seizures and even death.  A report has documented 90 different symptoms caused by aspartame, such as:

• Headaches/ migraines
• Dizziness
• Seizures
• Nausea
• Numbness
• Muscle Spasms
• Weight GAIN
• Rashes
• Depression
• Fatigue
• Irritability
• Tachycardia
• Insomnia
• Vision Problems
• Hearing Loss
• Heart Palpitations
• Breathing Difficulties
• Anxiety Attacks
• Slurred Speech
• Loss of Taste
• Tinnitus
• Vertigo
• Memory Loss
• Joint Pain

But, unfortunately, that's not all.  Researchers and physicians studying the adverse effects of aspartame, say that certain chronic illnesses can be triggered or worsened by taking aspartame, these are:

• Brain Tumors
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Epilepsy
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Parkinson's Disease
• Alzheimer's Disease
• Mental Retardation
• Lymphoma
• Birth Defects
• Fibromyalgia
• DIABETES
• Systemic Lupus

Why is aspartame so dangerous?

When the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 27ºC, the wood alcohol en 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.

Systemic Lupus has become almost as rampant as multiple sclerosis, especially with Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi drinkers.  The victim usually does not know that the aspartame is the culprit.  He or she continues to drink it, irritating the lupus to such a degree that it may become a life-threatening condition.  In the case of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, most of the symptoms disappear and many cases where vision loss returned and hearing loss improved markedly.

The good news is that symptoms from aspartame poisoning including: spasms, shooting pains, numbness in your legs, cramps, vertigo, dizziness, headaches, tinnitus, joint pain, unexplained depression, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision or memory loss are reversible.

All you have to do is eliminate diet sodas and other forms of aspartame from your diet.  Diet soda is not a diet product. Diet sodas are a chemically altered, multiple sodium (salt) and aspartame containing product that actually makes you crave carbohydrates.  It is far more likely to make you GAIN weight than lose it.

These products also contain formaldehyde, which stores in the fat cells, particularly in the hips and thighs, formaldehyde is a toxin and is used primarily to preserve tissue specimens.

Aspartic acid and phenylalanine are neurotoxic when take without the other amino acids necessary for a good balance.  Especially diabetics, the aspartame passes the blood/brain barrier and it then deteriorates the neurons of the brain; causing various levels of brain damage, seizures, depression, manic depression, panic attacks, uncontrollable anger and rage.  Aspartame consumption causes these same symptoms in non-diabetics as well.  Documentation and observation also reveal that thousands of children diagnosed with ADD and ADHD have had complete turnarounds in their behavior when these chemicals have been removed from their diet.  Children are especially susceptible to neurological disorders and should never be given artificial sweeteners.

A lot of the problem, as always, is political.  Monsanto funds, among others, the American Diabetes Association, the American Dietetic Association and the Conference of the American College of Physicians.  This was recently exposed in the New York Times.  These organizations can not criticize any additives or convey their link to Monsanto because they take money from the food industry and are required to endorse their products.

Senator Howard Metzenbaum wrote and presented a bill that would require warnings on labels of

products containing aspartame, especially regarding pregnant women, children and infants.  The bill would also institute independent studies on the known dangers and the problems existing in the general population regarding seizures, changes in brain chemistry, neurological changes and behavioral symptoms.  The bill was "killed".  It is known that powerful drug and chemical lobbies are responsible for this - as always. 

As I have stated in many of my posts, the only way to truly look after your body is to eat as naturally as possible and to avoid all processed and chemically enhanced food products.  I admit, I have been an avid Diet Coke drinker for years, in fact it made up a large part of my daily beverage intake.  But, since reading up on the dangers of aspartame I have eliminated it from my life - for good.

Having information like this means that you can make an informed decision as to what goes into your body, and knowing the effects those product might have on your health.  There is no greater power than information.

Social Nutrition:
You can make an appointment to improve your health with Social Nutrition either in person (Madrid) or online (Skype).  Just send an email to lucycarr@socialnutrition.com

Dare I say Sugar and Heroin in the same sentence?

Well, you all know by now how anti sugar I am.  I've already written two previous posts about sugar and High Fructose Corn Syrup.  As a Nutritionist I can honestly say that there is NOTHING positive to be said for sugar.  Last week I read a book that was first published in 1973 "sugar Blues" by William Dufty.  I have to say even I was shocked at just how poisonous sugar is to the human body.  Now when I say sugar, I mean man-refined sugar.  there are natural sugars in natural foods such as fruit and, to a lesser degree, in vegetables.  These natural sugars, in moderation, are fine for us and our bodies can cope perfectly well with them and they are needed.

Man-refined sugar has not always been a part of the human diet.  None of the ancient books such as: Mosaic Law, the code of Manu, the I Ching, the Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine, the New Testament or the Koran mention sugar.  The prophets did tell us a few things about sweet cane in ancient times: "It was a rare luxury, imported from afar and very expensive.  What else they did with it except offer it up as a sacrifice, we can only surmise." (W. Dufty. Sugar Blues).  The Greeks had no word for it.  When Admiral Nearchus in the service of Alexander the Great explored the East Indies in 325 B.C, he described it as "a kind of honey" growing in canes or reeds.  Herodotus called it "manufactured honey" and Pliny called it "honey from the cane".  It was used as a medicine and a Roman writer of Nero's time recorded its latin name saccharum.  I could go on for a very long time about the origins of sugar but one this is blatantly clear if you read the history of sugar - nothing good has ever come from the sugar trade.

With the introduction of sugar into human life, only bad things have happened.  The sugar trade brought many riches to those who were rich and powerful enough to deal in it.  However, it also brought slavery and illness.  Sugar cane grew in tropical climes and when grown elsewhere, slaves were also imported to work the plantations.  Invading armies found it fascinating  but soon found themselves succumbing to illnesses they had never heard of.  When it reached Europe, only the wealthy could afford it (the peasants living off the the land eating whole foods and a little meat and fish every now and again, couldn't afford it and strangely enough didn't succumb to the illnesses rife in the larger cities where sugar was available).  The Portuguese, Spanish and British all did very well, financially that is, from the sugar trade.  Americans soon outdistanced the British in sugar consumption - and almost every other nation too.  The U.S. has consumed one-fifth of the world's production of sugar every year but one since the Civil War (1861-1865).  By 1893, America was consuming more sugar than had been produced in the whole world in 1865.  Sugar consumption has continued to rise consistently - through depression, prosperity, war, peace, drought and flood - nothing, it seems, can stop it.

Only one other plant has kept a parallel trajectory to sugar and that is Opium.  Both began as a medicine; both ended up being used as habit forming sensory pleasures.  The Opium Wars ended with the treaty of Nanking in 1842 and the British insisted in 1858 that Opium imports into China be reinstated.

By this time, chemists had managed to produce refined versions of both Opium (morphine) and sugar.  "Morphine shots became the wonder drug of their time, a cure for all ills, including a new malady that had been discovered in sugar-bingeing nations called Sugar Diabetes.  After the American Civil War, morphine addiction in the U.S. was called the "army disease".  The abuse of morphine in the Union armies of the North was so widespread that thousands of veterans went home hooked on the stuff.  During the Civil War years, soldiers also developed a yen for cans of condensed milk preserved with great quantities of sugar.

"When physicians belatedly discovered the addictive properties of morphine, the chemists went to work again and came up with a further refinement of morphine that was much touted by medical men as a new non-addictive painkiller.  Its multisyllabic chemical name, diacetylmorphine, was soon supplanted by the name of Heroin.  Heroin was hailed in its turn as the miracle wonder drug of its time.  It replaced morphine in the TREATMENT OF SUGAR DIABETES." (W. Dufty, Sugar Blues).

There, I said it.  Sugar and Heroin in the same sentence.  We all know the dangers of Heroin and other hards drugs, but if Heroin was used way back when to treat sugar diabetes - what does that say about SUGAR?

By now (2012), most of the general public should at least be aware that sugar causes:

• Obesity
• Diabetes
• Heart Disease
• Cancer
• Low Blood Glucose

The brain is the most sensitive organ in the body.  The difference between feeling up or down, calm or stressed, sane or insane, inspired or depressed depends largely on what we eat.  For the body to work efficiently the amount of glucose in the blood must balance with the amount of oxygen in the blood.  The adrenal glands have the job of maintaining this balance.  When we eat sucrose (man-refined sugar), it is close to being glucose so it largely escapes chemical processing.  The sugar passes directly into the intestines, where it becomes "predigested" glucose.  This is then absorbed into the blood where the glucose level has already been established in precise balance with oxygen.  The glucose level in the blood increases drastically, the balance is destroyed and the body goes into crisis mode.

So how does the body cope with the crisis?  The brain registers it first and hormones are released from the Adrenals, Insulin from the Pancreas works specifically to hold down the blood glucose levels in direct antagonism to the adrenal hormones which are trying to keep the glucose level up.  As a result of the emergency response to the crisis, it all goes too far.  The blood glucose level drops drastically, the pancreas producing insulin shuts down and other adrenal hormones kick in to bring the glucose level back up to normal.

All this has a direct effect on how we feel while this is happening.  While glucose is being absorbed into the blood we feel great - on top of the world!  However, when the blood glucose level falls drastically we feel tired, vulnerable, irritable, nervous and jumpy until our glucose level returns to normal.  So, if to combat the "blues" you eat more chocolate the whole process starts all over again.  After years of such abuse , the end result is damaged adrenals.  This results in "sugar blues"; day to day efficiency lags, constant fatigue and you never seem to get anything done.

The late endocrinologist Dr. John W. Tintera, was very emphatic when he said: "It is quite possible to improve your disposition, increase your efficiency, and change your personality for the better.  The way to do it is to avoid cane and beet sugar in all forms and guises."

In the 1940s Tintera rediscovered the vital importance of the endocrine system especially the adrenal glands.  The adrenal glands, damaged from the constant whiplash caused by the consumption of sugar, were producing a state of mental confusion or "brain boggling".  His patients' symptoms for mental confusion were incredibly similar to other patients who were unable to handle sugar: fatigue, nervousness, depression, apprehension, craving for sweets, inability to handle alcohol, lack of concentration, allergies and low blood pressure - the sugar blues!

He announced that many psychiatrically treated patients just needed to undergo a glucose tolerance test, if they couldn't handle sugar - remove it from their diet and they would be cured.  "Nobody but nobody should ever be allowed to begin what is called psychiatric treatment any place, anywhere, unless and until they have had a glucose tolerance test to discover if they can handle sugar."

This all means that to the already substantial list of health problems created by sugar, you should add:

• Depression
• Fatigue
• Nervousness
• Apprehension
• Cravings for sweets
• Irritability
• Inability to handle alcohol
• Lack of concentration

As with most things, there are people who handle things like sugar or alcohol worse than others.

Sugar has become such a part of our lives that we hardly even notice it.  All thanks to the riches from the sugar trade and huge efforts in political lobbying.  Just because it is such an ingrained part of our lives does not mean you have to consume it.  Life without sugar is possible and has a long list of benefits.  Understanding the poisonous side to it is just the beginning which I hope will lead you to a sugar-free, healthful life.

Danger! Your Sedentary Lifestyle Could Kill You!

Our society has changed - some would say it has advanced for the better and in many ways it has.  New technologies, on the whole, are helping us with day to day chores and making them much quicker and easier.  Computers facilitate office work, machines diagnose illnesses in record time and there are machines that even carry out operations in hospitals, smart phones keep us working for an extra 2 hours a day as we are constantly connected.  None of this is negative except for the impact it is having on our health.

As little as 40 years ago (which isn't long in the great scheme of things), people were far more physically active than they are today.  Cars were a luxury, dishwashers and washing machines were not in every household, lawnmowers had to be pushed up and down the garden and people walked, cycled and took public transport when they did the shopping or going to work or school.  Children played outside everyday until it was dark.

"Modernization" - to give it a name or "progress" has meant that humans in the modern world have become less physically active.  We sit in our cars in endless traffic jams, just to get to our offices where we sit in a chair for 8-9 hours a day looking at a computer screen.  We then get back in our cars to go home before collapsing exhausted on the sofa to watch TV and eat a pre-cooked meal.  Children come home from school and play video games for hours sitting on the sofa.  Don't get me wrong, I am all in favor of computers, dishwashers, washing machines, video games and any modern appliance that makes life easier and more enjoyable.

Everything I have said up until now is nothing we don't already know.  Many people blame new technologies for this newly acquired sedentary lifestyle but the truth is, it's all our own fault.  Your car doesn't stop you from taking exercise, your video game doesn't say "hey you can't go out and play with your friends you have to be inside playing with me!"  The microwave dinner doesn't stop you from eating healthily.  YOU are the only obstacle in your way to better health, and it's a lot easier than you think.

Yes, you will still have to go to the office for 8-9 hours a day or, if you work from home you will still have to complete deadlines and work like you have up until now.  But with a few minor changes you can make a big difference.

But first the bad news... this is so you can understand just what you are letting yourself in for by having a sedentary lifestyle.  Lack of physical activity is one of the leading causes of premature death.  The risk is higher among those who sit still for more than 4 hours a day.  It has been shown to be a risk factor on its own independent of hard exercise and your BMI.  People that sit still for more than 11 hours a day have a 40% higher risk than those that sit still for fewer than 4 hours a day.

Health problems associated with a sedentary lifestyle and lack of physical activity are:

1. Anxiety
2. Cardiovascular disease
3. Mortality in elderly men by 30% and double the risk in elderly women
4. Deep vein thrombosis
5. Depression
6. Diabetes
7. Colon cancer
8. High blood pressure
9. Obesity
10. Osteoporosis
11. Lipid disorders
12. Kidney stones

So, what do you need to do to make sure you stay healthy?

Obviously health eating is a necessity.  All those doughnuts, and prefabricated foods in the office vending machine and on the supermarket shelf are extremely dangerous to your health and that includes the TV dinner on the sofa in the evening!  It may seem difficult at first, but once you get into the habit you'll notice the benefits straight away.  Take fresh fruit and/or vegetables to the office for a snack.  This doesn't mean you are limited to an apple or an orange, other fruits such as melon, pineapple, kiwis, mangos, strawberries, carrot sticks, celery, etc can be prepared at home the night before and taken to work with you.  Cook all your meals from scratch using fresh ingredients and eat lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.  Cut your intake of soft drinks by drinking a glass of water every time you feel like having a soda.  Try and have a healthy lunch - a light salad or bring your lunch from home, it can always be the leftovers from the night before.

While at the office take regular short breaks.  Walk around, or do some stretching exercises at your desk.  If you have to read a report, do it standing up.  Take a walk at lunchtime, even if it's just round the block a couple of times, the fresh air will do you good.

Rethink your schedule.  Could you take public transport to work?  Or walk?  Or cycle?  This will most probably benefit your bank account too!  If you already take public transport to work try getting off the bus or subway one or two stops early and walk the rest of the way.  Joining a gym isn't always the answer - it works for many people but some can't afford it or just don't have the will power to go on a regular basis.  Try and find a sport you love and maybe even get an office team together.

Strangely enough, the more active you are the more energy you'll have, brain function improves and you'll sleep better.  There is nothing better than physical exercise to combat stress.  So forget all those energy drinks you need to get through the day, cut back on caffeinated drinks and you'll reap the benefits.  Green tea has many beneficial properties and is packed full of antioxidants.  Hunger pangs are also one of the first symptoms of dehydration, so before attacking the office vending machine, drink a large glass of water first, if the hunger pangs disappear it was just thirst.

So get active - it is possible