Diet Soda and Aspartame

[NJCher]

Poll question: Diet Soda and Aspartame

I heard a radio program about the dangers of aspartame. The person interviewed (Dr. Betty Martini), said that many states are considering banning aspartame. I quit drinking diet soda a long time ago but recently started again. Now I'm going to again stop drinking it.

BTW, I haven't totally checked this source out so I don't know if she's credible.

So I was curious--do you drink diet soda?




Cher

[I Have A Dream]

1. I used to consume disgustingly large amounts of aspertame.

I'd have at least 4 diet soft drinks a day, 2-3 hot drinks a day -- each with 2 packets of Equal, and I sweetened everything I ate with it -- fruit, cereal, etc.

My sister (who's really not very health conscious) kept sending me articles about the hazards. I'd been concerned for quite a while, and finally one of her articles just did it for me; I quit -- cold turkey.

I started using Splenda, and fortunately, starting getting rashes pretty quickly. (Especially on my face & neck.) It took a few months to figure out, but it turned out that it was from the Splenda. Just like sugar, my *ss! x(

I suspect that much evidence of harm is being supressed -- all for the sake of profit.

I don't drink regular soft drink anymore either because of the high fructose corn syrup. I certainly don't need the calories anyway. Every once in a while, I allow myself to have a soft drink made with cane sugar. My favorite thing right now is a bottle of seltzer water with a few ounces of organic grapefruit juice in it. :9

(On edit: My one vice is a few glasses of iced tea a week with just a little bit of saccharin. I don't think that saccharin is nearly as bad as the other two, and I use far less of it than I did the other two.)

[lildreamer316]

7. I just use sugar.

I mean, really. It's more natural than aspartamine or saccharin; and better than corn syrup. I just don't use a lot of it!
I'm looking into stevia, since it's now much more available.

[I Have A Dream]

8. I don't like sugar in my iced tea. Iced tea is the only thing in which...

I like saccharin. Stevia's OK, but I'm not crazy about it. For the most part, I just go without. I do use sugar in my hot drinks now.

Yeah, I've been hearing not so good things about high fructose corn syrup. Almost all of our non-diet soft drinks now have it in them rather than sugar. The difference in taste is quite startling when you do a side-by-side taste test. :(

[lildreamer316]

13. It wasn't even

the taste for me..I noticed a serious weight drop when I stopped using it. I didn't believe all those people who said it was contributing to weight gain. Boy, for me at least, I was completely wrong.

How's honey in your hot tea? Too heavy?

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

16. You can grow your own stevia plant

I've been using stevia for about a year and a half, and have just found where I can buy the plant. I've talked to folks who raise their own plants and dry the leaves to use for sweeteners. I really like stevia because you use so little of it to sweeten things (if you use too much, it is bitter).

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

15. Have you tried stevia?

That is what I use for my sweetener. A drop or two is enough to sweeten a large glass of tea or lemonade (or my favorite, limeade). And yes, you are right about Splenda. Preliminary research suggests there are health risks with eating it--I don't get a rash, but I can get "hooked" on Splenda like I am on sugar, so I avoid it when I can.

[davsand]

2. I used to drink about two liters a day of Diet Coke.

I developed a spasm in the entire right side of my face--to the point that it pulled my lip up and off to one side (think about Cheney's perpetual sneer and you are getting warm...) It started with just a muscle twitch in my eyelid and over a period of a couple weeks it became this permanent spasm that never relaxed. Very painful and creepy as hell.

I'd had this one other time, and had found relief with acupuncture. The lady I'd seen before had retired and I was scrambling to find a new acupuncture person. I remembered a man my husband and I knew who is a healer and I set up an appointment to see him.

I walked in there with a bottle of Diet Coke in my hand.

We sat down and talked and he was asking me about what was going on in my life and he asked about the bottle of Diet Coke. He wanted to know if I drank it every day. Yep. Sure did.

He asked if I'd ever had this face thing before. Yep, sure had. After my daughter was born--she was about one year old. He asked if i was drinking Diet Coke then as well. I about fell out of my chair because literally, I had been pregnant or nursing for the prior two years and I had JUST begun drinking Diet Coke again when I'd had the problem before...

He pointed out to me that Aspartame began life as a neurotoxin that was originally developed to kill bugs. It was modified later to be a sweetener.

I have not consumed any Diet Cola with Aspartame regularly since then. I have not had any facial spasms since then.


Laura

[NJCher]

3. symptoms

I am so sorry to hear both of you have had these bad experiences. Laura, it sounds like you were able to get your face to straighten out, yes?

I absolutely am afraid that information on it is being suppressed for profit reasons.

Last week I had a headache. I never get headaches. I was wondering why it could be and then when I heard the program, they said "headache" is one of the top symptoms.

Other diseases implicated with use of aspartame are adult onset diabetes and cancer. Certainly nothing to trifle with and for sure, not worth a soda.


Cher

[I Have A Dream]

4. Yes, I *ALWAYS* had a headache.

I only get them occasionally now.

I do wonder what permanent damage I did to my body. :(

[davsand]

29. Sorry, Cher, I thought I had replied to you already.

Yes, my face did finally clear up. I am very careful now not to use Nutrasweet except in rare situations. I have had no repeats of the facial spasms since I quit drinking diet soda, and I find that I am feeling much better, overall.

I was using Splenda there for a while, but I saw that study that says Splenda kills digestive bacteria, and I stopped using it as well. (Oddly enough I have had a lot of stomach problems in the last year or so--about the amount of time I was using Splenda in my coffee every day...)

I'm starting to think that the only sweeteners I can use with any confidence in the safety are the ones I can find in nature. I've been using Agave Nectar lately, and I'm getting used to it (slowly.) It claims to be acceptable for diabetic use (I'm not diabetic, but I do watch blood sugar and insulin spikes as a matter of weight control.) I also use Stevia sometimes but I am just not happy with it because I can't get stuff to taste right with it. I keep thinking that with time I'll figure it out.


Laura

[Why Syzygy]

5. I gave it up about 20 years ago.

I was on three Rx to combat headaches. That even cost me a job, because when I revealed I took meds for headaches during the drug test, the hiring manager decided I wasn't fit for the job (he had already offered me). An ND suggested I stop drinking aspartame, and headaches went away.

My younger sister has had bladder cancer since 1996. When she asked me to bring a bottle of diet soda to a meal at her house, I told her I felt the same as she would if I asked her to bring me a pack of cigarettes. She stopped drinking it a couple of years ago after her oncologist told her "it couldn't hurt" to give it up. :eyes:

[Why Syzygy]

10. Want to add...

My sister always struggled with her weight, though she was never massively overweight. After giving up aspartame, she effortlessly lost weight and looks great, the thinnest I've ever seen her. I'm convinced it is a large contributor to the obesity epidemic.

[Celebration]

6. I used to drink it just off and on

Then I went up to the inlaws lake place and found a diet Sprite and drank it. I think it was one of those old ones that had been around maybe a year or more, perhaps not in temperature control, though I didn't think about that until after I drank it. I got strange flashing things in my eyes when I went outside for the entire day. No way I could have driven a car. I just "knew" it was from the aspartame. That did it for me.

[Bluestar]

9. I gave it up in 2004; within a week I couldn't believe how much energy

I had! After researching it on the web, I determined that all of the articles were saying that it turns to formaldehyde in the body. That didn't sound good to me. My husband stopped drinking it then also and he immediately stopped having the need to urinate all the time--he's been fine ever since.

What many people do not know is that Donald Rumsfeld was CEO of Searle when Aspartame was approved by the FDA. Many of the articles I read said that he pulled a lot of strings in the government to get it approved and to market. Typical Illuminati Republicans.

[NJCher]

17. yes!

The program also said that--about the formaldehyde. Also, I have heard other reports of people saying they had to urinate frequently when they drink diet soda sweetened with aspartame.

Re Rumsfeld, they also told about that on the program. They call the various problems that crop up with the use of aspartame as "Rumsfeld's Disease."


Cher

[elleng]

11. I've never used any of the pretend sweet stuff;

always concerned about effects, and disliked taste. Only had sodas at home for parties. Discouraged kids from using diet stuff, and hope they're not now that they're away from home.

[Kind of Blue]

12. Yeah, agreed.

Grew up during the time when talk about whether it was a carcinogen or not was raging and I just couldn't take the taste either. Yuk x(

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

14. My doctor specifically tells patients

NOT to drink diet sodas with aspertame, as it causes many complications (including causing you to GAIN weight!) If you want to continue drinking sodas without sugar, get those that are sweetened with Splenda instead--they include Diet Rite, Diet RC, Pepsi One, and many sodas of various flavors that you can get at a health food store (Haynes is one brand).

I infrequently drink diet sodas, but if I do, it is a Haynes black cherry. Most of the time I make my own limeade using stevia as a sweetener.

[japple]

18. I never really had the soda "habit" because I don't really

care for sweet drinks. Can't drink sweet iced tea, which is rare for someone from Georgia. I drink coffee and tea straight, nothing added. Occasionally, mostly in summer, I like Hansen's Grapefruit Soda which is sweetened with cane juice, or a ginger ale. Sometimes I use a squeeze of lime. Mostly, though, it's just water, tea (black or herb), coffee (extra strong, black, no sugar). My folks drank it that way, so does my sister.

[southerncrone]

28. Wow, japple, thought I was the only "Southerner" who didn't sweeten their tea!

You & I agree completely on our "drinks"! Most restaurants in The South serve "light molasses" in my opinion, instead of sweet tea. LOL

[Brewman_Jax]

19. I avoid soda

when I'm out. I've read of the dangers of the artificial sweeteners in addition to HFCS. The only soda I drink is the soda I make; I use cane sugar.

[SheilaT]

20. I gave up diet soft drinks

about twenty-five years ago when I started reading about how aspartame changes when the soft drinks are stored in a hot place. I was living in Phoenix at the time.

More recently I've learned that the chemicals in the diet drinks tend to leach calcium from bones. And people wonder why there's an epidemic of osteoporosis in the country. Plus, I have read that calcium is best absorbed in the presence of fat, which means your body simply does not absorb calcium in skim milk. No fat cheese or yogurt is likewise a bad idea.

If you eat real food, meaning full fat everything, sugar in reasonable quantities, and so on, you tend to feel quite satisfied with a reasonable amount. There really is a reason why so many of us are overweight and obese.

[MorningGlow]

21. I never drink diet soda or buy anything with artificial sweeteners

I can't stand the taste, but even if I could, after hearing about all these "wonder" sweeteners, I'd run away as fast as my legs could carry me.

Saccharin: may cause cancer (http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1637197)
Aspartame: brought to you by Donald Rumsfeld and Monsanto, the makers of Agent Orange--better living through chemicals!--and when stored for a long time at high temperatures, turns to formaldehyde (cases of diet soda stored outdoors in 100+ degree heat, then served to soldiers at mess, are being considered as a possible cause of Gulf War Syndrome) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspartame)
Splenda: created with bleach?! (http://www.janethull.com/newsletter/0607/splenda_hearings.php)

:scared: :scared: :scared:

[Delphinus]

22. Things with aspartame give me a serious

headache.

[LaurenG]

23. I don't drink much soda -

the phosphorus is really bad for your bones especially for those with a family history of osteoporosis.

edit: Had to remove the link it was giving my log in and name - sorry.

Consumption of Carbonated Drinks by Teenage Girls Associated With Bone Fractures


New York (MedscapeWire) Jun 15 — Consumption of colas and other carbonated beverages is associated with bone fractures in teenage girls, according to an article in the June issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Grace Wyshak, PhD, from Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, analyzed self-reported survey data from 460 ninth- and tenth-grade girls concerning physical activities, beverage consumption, and bone fractures to determine the possible association between carbonated beverage consumption and bone fractures among teenage girls. Nearly 80% of girls reported drinking carbonated beverages, 49.8% cola beverages only, 11.5% noncola beverages only, and 15% both cola and noncola beverages. Approximately 20% of girls reported having had a fractured bone. The author found that the girls who drank carbonated beverages had about 3 times the risk of bone fracture than the girls who did not drink carbonated beverages. The girls who reported high levels of physical activity and drank cola beverages had nearly 5 times the risk of fracture as those who did not drink carbonated beverages.

According to background information in the article, teen consumption of soft drinks is on the rise while their consumption of milk has plummeted. While considering past research, Dr. Wyshak speculates that the phosphorus contained in soft drinks may change the physiology of the body including a deleterious effect on bone due to the change in the phosphorus-calcium ratio or possible bone resorption from high levels of phosphorous. "Our findings have implications both for the health of teenagers and for the health of women at later ages," the authors conclude. "In addition to research, health and social policies to promote better behavioral practices, including one's diet, among American women of all ages are needed."

Because adolescence is a crucial time for bone development, it is important that adolescents approach consumption of carbonated beverages with caution according to editorialist Neville H. Golden, MD, from Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. According to Dr. Golden, the fndings of the study by Wyshak, "are alarming and warrant further confirmation with well designed prospective studies" that quantify the amount and type of beverages consumed as well as dietary calcium intake.

The author notes that "what is clear is that today's teenagers are consuming diets that are high in phosphorous and low in calcium," both of which can impact negatively on attaining peak bone mass. "Osteoporosis should no longer be considered only a geriatric disease but rather a pediatric disease with geriatric consequences," writes Dr. Golden. "Pediatricians should be playing an active role in the National Bone Health Campaign and, if Wyshak's work can be confirmed, we should be including education about carbonated beverage consumption in our efforts."

article from medscape

[omega minimo]

24. .

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=aspartame+rumsfeld&btnG=Google+Search&aq=0&oq=aspartame+r

[Digit]

25. I drink Diet Rite...it contains Splenda instead of Aspertame

My guilty pleasure is occasionally drinking Mexican Coca Cola made with real sugar.
Costco has it.

[Shallah Kali]

26. Splenda kills beneficial bacteria in the digestive tract & does not break down in water treament pla

That Splenda you're drinking will be in our water supply for awhile
http://www.sciam.com/blog/60-second-science/post.cfm?id=that-splenda-youre-drinking-will-be-2009-03-09

New Study of Splenda Reveals Shocking Information About Potential Harmful Effects (mercola.com google cache because the site is sooooo slow on dialup)
http://74.125.95.132/search?strip=1&q=cache:http%3A%2F%2Farticles.mercola.com%2Fsites%2Farticles%2Farchive%2F2009%2F02%2F10%2FNew-Study-of-Splenda-Reveals-Shocking-Information-About-Potential-Harmful-Effects.aspx

I don't use any artificial sweeteners. I have enough issues without risking adding to them! Also the one time I tried a tv dinner without knowing it has splenda sucralose in it I ended up spitting out the first bite. I couldn't bring myself to swallow it tasted so horrid and nauseating to me. Made me glad in a way so I was never tempted to try it in anything else considering how the FDA keeps approving things that should never see the light of day.

[southerncrone]

27. Back in the early 80's I was a sales rep. who called on grocery stores.

All of us reps knew each other, as we would be running into each other fairly often.

One day I ran into the "Coke Guy" & he said, "You've gotta taste our new Diet Coke, it's fabulous!"
He gave me a sample (we were always exchanging our product of the week w/each other). I was NEVER a fan of diet drinks, but had to admit it was an improvement in the taste department. As we talked, & I drank the Diet Coke,I intuitively "knew" this was a BAD PRODUCT, even though it tasted better.

I now consider this event, & my intuitive reaction to this product, one of the most protective moments in my life. Reflecting back now, I realize that my intuitive abilities have always been strong, I just didn't realize it at the time.

I still didn't drink diet drinks. Thankfully. They are truly poison. I feel like the increase we are now seeing in kids w/autism & ADD & ADHD is a direct result of the increased consumption of aspartame by the mothers. (It is a neuro-excitotoxin.) This increase does seem to coincide w/the addition of this sweetener to diet drinks & other products. Diet Coke seems to be the worst offender; it must be extremely addictive. Everyone I know who drinks it, acts like a typical ADDICT....they HAVE TO HAVE IT & consume copious quantities of the stuff. One of the teachers I teach with drinks 6+ cans just during the school day! Then more when she goes home!

Please check ALL of the products you purchase for this dangerous poison. They are putting it in EVERYTHING these days. Gum, breath mints, cookies, candy, yogurt, etc.

For those who don't know it, it turns into formaldehyde in our bodies. This CAN'T be good!

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

30. Aspertame contains neuro toxins

and I don't recommend that anyone consume it.