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the truth about aspartame

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I've been drinking diet sodas for over a year and although I've read about the *dangers* of aspertame, well, I guess I just don't care. Face it, everything on the Earth is bad for you if you dig into deep enough. Even though there is no solid evidence against aspertame, come companies are starting to look towards sucralose(Splenda) simply because of the rumors surrounding aspertame.
In the store I work at I've actually seen people choose certain RC products(Diet Rite etc) over Pepsi and Coke simply because RC uses sucralose in several of their sodas. Aspertame or not, I gotta have my diet Dr. Pepper...
 
Originally posted by: rh71
So is there any truth to this:
why Aspartame is so dangerous:

When the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in ASPARTAME converts to Eformaldehyde 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. People were being diagnosed with having multiple sclerosis in error. The multiple sclerosis is not a death sentence, where methanol toxicity is!

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 its use, irritating the lupus to such a degree that it may become life-threatening. We have seen patients with systemic lupus become asymptomatic once taken off diet sodas. In the case of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, (when in reality, the disease is methanol toxicity), most of the symptoms disappear. We've seen many cases where vision returned and hearing improved markedly. This also applies to cases of tinnitus.

During a lecture I said "If you are using ASPARTAME (NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc.) and you suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms, spasms, shooting pains, numbness in your legs, cramps, vertigo, dizziness, headaches, tinnitus, joint pain, depression, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision, or memory loss-you probably have ASPARTAME DISEASE!" People were jumping up during the lecture saying, I've got some of these symptoms: Is it reversible?" Yes, Not drinking diet sodas and keeping an eye out for aspartame on food labels, yes!
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if it was 86 degrees C, I'd believe it. 86F is nothing....the temperature in your mouth is much warmer than that. If that were the case then chewing sugarless gum should cause all those symptoms 🙂
 
Most diet sodas have low sodium content and are fine to drink after physical exertion. Only marginally worse than water.
 
Originally posted by: Vic
Why do people even use artificial sweeteners? Sugar is natural and safe.

Fat person at the drive-thru: I'll have 6 quarter-pounders with cheese, 4 large fries, and a small diet coke :roll:
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Sugar is not safe for diabetics and others who can't have the immediate spike in blood sugar that comes from high-GI foods (like Coke).

Granted, I don't drink a ton of diet soda -- I probably have one every few weeks -- but I'm glad it's around. I drink it as a treat, as many of you would drink a normal soda. Most of the time I have water, but I'm glad that I can enjoy a diet soda every now and then. 😀

Rob
 
Originally posted by: FreshPrince
if it was 86 degrees C, I'd believe it. 86F is nothing....the temperature in your mouth is much warmer than that. If that were the case then chewing sugarless gum should cause all those symptoms 🙂
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Wouldn't you agree that there's a significant difference in the amount of aspartame gum contains compared to soda?
 
Originally posted by: Wingznut
Originally posted by: FreshPrince
if it was 86 degrees C, I'd believe it. 86F is nothing....the temperature in your mouth is much warmer than that. If that were the case then chewing sugarless gum should cause all those symptoms 🙂
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Wouldn't you agree that there's a significant difference in the amount of aspartame gum contains compared to soda?
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apparently you don't know my gum chewing habits 🙂 <- addicted
 
Originally posted by: Entity
Originally posted by: Vic
Why do people even use artificial sweeteners? Sugar is natural and safe.

Fat person at the drive-thru: I'll have 6 quarter-pounders with cheese, 4 large fries, and a small diet coke :roll:
Click to expand...

Sugar is not safe for diabetics and others who can't have the immediate spike in blood sugar that comes from high-GI foods (like Coke).

Granted, I don't drink a ton of diet soda -- I probably have one every few weeks -- but I'm glad it's around. I drink it as a treat, as many of you would drink a normal soda. Most of the time I have water, but I'm glad that I can enjoy a diet soda every now and then. 😀

Rob
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Ah the sugar is bad for diabetics old wives tale is still alive and well. Carbohydrates are good for everyone and necessary for the body to maintain health. It's more the rate at which the carbs are absorbed into the body and make it into the bloodstream where they are converted into glucose.

If you ate a big mac with a soda the fat from the big mac would slow the absorbation rate of the sugar from the soda.

From studies the ability of the body to breakdown carbs more slowly is more complex then simply using the glycemic index.
 
Someone tried to show me websites with this crap a while ago. Its obviously BS.
I went to snopes immediately.
People on the internet are dumb.
 
Originally posted by: NightCrawler

Ah the sugar is bad for diabetics old wives tale is still alive and well. Carbohydrates are good for everyone and necessary for the body to maintain health. It's more the rate at which the carbs are absorbed into the body and make it into the bloodstream where they are converted into glucose.

If you ate a big mac with a soda the fat from the big mac would slow the absorbation rate of the sugar from the soda.

From studies the ability of the body to breakdown carbs more slowly is more complex then simply using the glycemic index.
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Coke = 150 empty calories
Diet Coke = 0 calories

If asparatame has no proven, substantiated side effects, why would people choose Coke ove Diet Coke besides taste? Even if you aren't diabetic, a coke is 150 calories that do absolutely nothing to fill you up. That, on a dialy basis (most people that drink sodas usually drink two a day or more), is far worse for your health and appearance than any long-tern, circumstantial side effects.
 
Originally posted by: beer
If asparatame has no proven, substantiated side effects, why would people choose Coke ove Diet Coke besides taste? Even if you aren't diabetic, a coke is 150 calories that do absolutely nothing to fill you up. That, on a dialy basis (most people that drink sodas usually drink two a day or more), is far worse for your health and appearance than any long-tern, circumstantial side effects.
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Exactly why on the rare occasion I drink soda, I opt for the diet. Why drink extra calories?
I make my own birch beer and I use Splenda. Why not? I could use cane sugar or corn sugar, but if it tastes as good, why make it worse for you than it may already be?
 
<THREAD HIJACK ALERT /> Please disregard as this is off the topic of the thread.
Originally posted by: LordJezo
How does one make their own birch beer?
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Water + Sweetener + Flavoring + Gas = SODA!

Right now I use the Gnome birch beer extract from Northern Brewer.

As you can see, they have a variety of different flavors available.

You can either carbonate by force (pressurized container) or by fermentation (yeast). I actually have a kegging system that lets me force-carbonate it in 6-liter bottles.
 
Originally posted by: NightCrawler
Originally posted by: Entity
Originally posted by: Vic
Why do people even use artificial sweeteners? Sugar is natural and safe.

Fat person at the drive-thru: I'll have 6 quarter-pounders with cheese, 4 large fries, and a small diet coke :roll:
Click to expand...

Sugar is not safe for diabetics and others who can't have the immediate spike in blood sugar that comes from high-GI foods (like Coke).

Granted, I don't drink a ton of diet soda -- I probably have one every few weeks -- but I'm glad it's around. I drink it as a treat, as many of you would drink a normal soda. Most of the time I have water, but I'm glad that I can enjoy a diet soda every now and then. 😀

Rob
Click to expand...

Ah the sugar is bad for diabetics old wives tale is still alive and well. Carbohydrates are good for everyone and necessary for the body to maintain health. It's more the rate at which the carbs are absorbed into the body and make it into the bloodstream where they are converted into glucose.

If you ate a big mac with a soda the fat from the big mac would slow the absorbation rate of the sugar from the soda.

From studies the ability of the body to breakdown carbs more slowly is more complex then simply using the glycemic index.
Click to expand...

Old wives tale? I didn't say carbohydrates are bad for diabetics, just that sugar -- meaning the typical definition -- sucrose, which is a high-GI carbohydrate that provides little other nutritional value -- is bad for them. And, by them, I mean me. Perhaps I should clarify that I'm a type-one diabetic, so I have to take insulin for any food with carbohydrates: consequently, I will drink a diet pop more often than a sugar-loaded counterpart.

Sure, you can have other things with sugar that will slow the absorption: that being said, it doesn't make sugar good for you. Drinking that Coke with a Big Mac is still going to be bad for a diabetic -- if you don't believe me on that, I can refer you to my doctor -- Irl Hirsch -- who is fairly renowned in the field of diabetic education. 😀

I fully understand how sugar absorption works, since I have to work with it on a daily basis. Ben &amp; Jerry's, which has tons of sugar, takes a long time to get absorbed into my system; the same is true for a Snicker's bar. Pop, however, which was the subject at hand (note how my entire post was about soda), is not the same. Drink a coke with a big mac, and the sugar will get into your blood stream almost as fast as without the Big Mac. I know this from personal experience.

Rob
 
Originally posted by: Vic
Solution: drink water. Even without the sugar, soda is bad for you.
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Maybe because they want some flavor? Some of the caffeine? Or maybe some enjoyment?

Why is it so hard for people to comprehend that just because you eat a fattening meal, that somebody might choose a healthier alternative for a drink. Would you belittle somebody if they order a hamburger, large coke, and a salad instead of fries?

Either you guys need to learn some more reasoning skills, or new materials. Every standup comic on this planet has made this joke before.
 
Originally posted by: torpid
Many reasons:
1. Much better for your teeth
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The acid in soda has a much greater effect on your teeth than sugar. Also, some sugar substitutes differ just enough chemically from sugar that most people won't metabolize them (most notably Splenda or sucralose). The effect on your teeth with this is the same as sugar. Of course, there is the fact that American soda does not contain sugar, it has corn syrup, due to political factors.

There is one company that has a near-monopoly on sugar in this country, and they have a big lobby keeping import tarrifs in place for foreign sugar. These import tarrifs are large enough that soda bottlers in the US use corn syrup instead for cost reasons. Coke bottled in Canada, Mexico, and other countries uses sugar. My guess is that the corn syrup is probably worse for your teeth because it is stickier so it stays in your mouth longer after you are done drinking.

2. Unlike 6 quarter pounders or even candy, your body does not adjust to soft drink sugar intake. There was a recent study that showed this. If you drink 500 calories in soda, your body does not recognize this as caloric intake and still thinks it needs more.
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This is a total load of crap. Your sense of hunger/fullness is directly (well, inversely) tied to blood sugar level. Can't think of any food more effective at altering blood sugar level than sugar (duh).

3. Even if your body did adjust, if you would rather eat calories in different sources you might use it. For example, I use it in tea and coffee and eat something else. My overall enjoyment is higher even though my overall coffee/tee enjoyment is lower.
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Huh? Any other source of calories the body must convert to sugar before using it....

4. Heartburn. Some people get a lot of heartburn when using sugar as a sweetener. I only get it from sugar-laced pastries.
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Fatty foods cause heartburn, not sugar-filled ones. (Although the pastries fit into both categories, and the sulfur in the eggs used in the pastries can also cause it).
 
Originally posted by: glugglug
Originally posted by: torpid
Many reasons:
1. Much better for your teeth
Click to expand...
The acid in soda has a much greater effect on your teeth than sugar. Also, some sugar substitutes differ just enough chemically from sugar that most people won't metabolize them (most notably Splenda or sucralose). The effect on your teeth with this is the same as sugar. Of course, there is the fact that American soda does not contain sugar, it has corn syrup, due to political factors.

There is one company that has a near-monopoly on sugar in this country, and they have a big lobby keeping import tarrifs in place for foreign sugar. These import tarrifs are large enough that soda bottlers in the US use corn syrup instead for cost reasons. Coke bottled in Canada, Mexico, and other countries uses sugar. My guess is that the corn syrup is probably worse for your teeth because it is stickier so it stays in your mouth longer after you are done drinking.
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Q: Can drinking lots of soda pop cause cavities?

A: Yes. The sugar in carbonated soft drinks is a primary source for cavities. Bacteria in your mouth feed on sugar and make an acid that dissolves tooth enamel, which eventually causes cavities. Diet sodas, which have no sugar but contain acids, are not entirely safe.
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Diet soda is not entirely safe, but it is safer.

http://www.lhj.com/lhj/story.jhtml?storyid=/templatedata/bhg/story/data/10842.xml
2. Unlike 6 quarter pounders or even candy, your body does not adjust to soft drink sugar intake. There was a recent study that showed this. If you drink 500 calories in soda, your body does not recognize this as caloric intake and still thinks it needs more.
Click to expand...
This is a total load of crap. Your sense of hunger/fullness is directly (well, inversely) tied to blood sugar level. Can't think of any food more effective at altering blood sugar level than sugar (duh).
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Most studies I've seen agree, though personal, anecdotal evidence seems to differ: I feel more satisfied after eating 200cal worth of foods with fat &amp; protein than I do when drinking a soda that has a similar amount of calories (a 50 carb soda, for example).
3. Even if your body did adjust, if you would rather eat calories in different sources you might use it. For example, I use it in tea and coffee and eat something else. My overall enjoyment is higher even though my overall coffee/tee enjoyment is lower.
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Huh? Any other source of calories the body must convert to sugar before using it....
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I think all he's saying here is that he'd enjoy having splenda with his coffee and then using those same calories toward something he'd enjoy more later.
4. Heartburn. Some people get a lot of heartburn when using sugar as a sweetener. I only get it from sugar-laced pastries.
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Fatty foods cause heartburn, not sugar-filled ones. (Although the pastries fit into both categories, and the sulfur in the eggs used in the pastries can also cause it).
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From what I've heard, this is true as well.

Just trying to clarify a few points. 😀
 
For those of you looking for a much more benign type of sweetener Stevia is a good natural alternative.

It is the only sugar substitute that doesn't raise blood sugar levels that eventually lead hunger pangs as they drop.
 
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