The bitter truths about artificial sweeteners

This was passed on to us by a friend of a good friend who has sworn off soft drinks (diet or not) forever. Here are excerpts from Nancy Markle’s article on the bittersweet issue that is Aspartame (an artificial sweetener, which she says does not sweeten up our lives at all):

The methanol in Aspartame converts to formaldehyde in the retina of the eye. Formaldehyde is grouped in the same class of drugs as cyanide and arsenic. DEADLY POISONS!

Unfortunately, it just takes longer to quietly kill, but it is killing people and causing all kinds of neurological problems. Aspartame changes the brain’s chemistry. It is the reason for severe seizures. This drug changes the dopamine level in the brain. This drug also causes birth defects. There is absolutely no reason to take this product. It is NOT A DIET PRODUCT. The Congressional record said, "It makes you crave carbohydrates and will make you FAT." Dr. H.J. Roberts stated that when he got patients off Aspartame, their average weight loss was 19 pounds per person. The formaldehyde stores in the fat cells, particularly in the hips and thighs.

Aspartame is especially deadly for diabetics. All physicians know what wood alcohol (in Aspartame) will do to a diabetic. We find that physicians believe that they have patients with retinopathy, when in fact, it is caused by Aspartame. The Aspartame keeps the blood sugar level out of control, causing many patients to go into a coma. Unfortunately, many have died. People were telling us at the Conference of the American College of Physicians that they had relatives that switched from saccharin to an Aspartame product and how that relative had eventually gone into a coma. Their physicians could not get the blood sugar levels under control. Thus, the patients suffered acute memory loss and eventually coma and death. Memory loss is due to the fact that aspartic acid and phenylanine are neurotoxic without the other amino acids found in protein. Thus, it goes past the brain barrier and deteriorates the neurons of the brain.

Dr. Russell Blaylock, neurosurgeon (who wrote a book on what he calls "the taste that kills"), said, "The ingredients stimulate the neurons of the brain to death, causing brain damage of varying degrees." Dr. Roberts, diabetic specialist, tells how Aspartame poisoning is escalating Alzheimer’s Disease and indeed it is. As the hospice nurse told me, women are being admitted at 30 years of age with Alzheimer’s Disease. Dr. Blaylock and Dr. Roberts will be writing a position paper with some case histories and will post it on the Internet. Dr. Roberts realized what was happening when Aspartame was first marketed. He said, "his diabetic patients presented memory loss, confusion, and severe vision loss."

Dr. Roberts says that consuming Aspartame at the time of conception can cause birth defects. The phenylanine concentrates in the placenta, causing mental retardation, according to Dr. Louis Elsas, pediatrician professor at Emory University, at his testimony before Congress. In the original lab tests, animals developed brain tumors (phenylanine breaks down into DXP, a brain tumor agent). When Dr. Espisto was lecturing on Aspartame, one physician in the audience, a neurosurgeon, said, "When they removed the brain tumors, they found high levels of Aspartame in them."

If it says SUGAR FREE on the label, DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT. Senator Howard Hetzenbaum wrote a bill that would have warned all infants, pregnant mothers and children of the dangers of Aspartame. But the bill was killed by the powerful drug and chemical lobbies.

Now, there are over 5,000 products containing this chemical, and the patent has expired. This "poison" is now available in 90 plus countries worldwide.

On that bitter note, Markle ends her piece with the hope that everybody has been warned (and is now armed with adequate info) because ignorance is not sweet bliss.

* * * It’s A Mall World

What we don’t know can hurt us, especially if we’re in public places like malls (can there be anything more public?). Shoppers (mall rats), beware! It pays to be street-smart. Here are a few scenarios (of course, you may already be familiar with them):

• You’re clutching your cell phone and busy texting while walking in the street or waiting for a ride. Suddenly, somebody materializes out of nowhere and snatches your phone.

• You’re dining in a crowded restaurant and suddenly, you find that your bag (which you remember putting behind you) is gone.

• A woman or a man, in her/his 30s to 40s, accosts an unaccompanied child, usually 10 to 15 years old, and accuses the latter of doing something wrong. The man or woman drags the child to a corner. Of course, the child has not done anything wrong. This is an excuse for them to rob the child.

• A group of boys (who look like members of a fraternity) approaches a guy (usually their age) on the pretext of talking to him like a long-lost fraternity brod. Of course, the guy doesn’t know these other guys who later on frame him up for something wrong that he supposedly did to them in the past. When they finally let go of him, his wallet is gone.

"There’s deceit all the time," says our mall source who’d rather remain anonymous.

According to our source, she’s heard stories of armed robberies in stand-alone restaurants of late. Happening usually at night when the restos are full, a group of armed men barges into a restaurant and tells everybody to empty their wallets.

But happily, our source adds, "a system is in place to arrest the problem and make public places like malls safe."

The good news is that these shady mall characters often get caught. All mall entrances and exits are tightly guarded by a security force that’s well-trained by the PNP. Then there are the plainclothesmen to beef up the security force.

"Yes, they know what they’re looking for when they frisk you or search your bag," our source assures us. "They’re not just doing it like a routine."

The carparks are well-lighted and well-guarded. There’s security round the clock. "Carnapping in malls is almost nil," our source points out. "If there is, the car is often recovered. And losing something in your car to thieves is almost impossible."

The cinemas have guards inside and outside, so you can watch your favorite movie and enjoy your popcorn in peace – and go home in one piece.

It’s a mall world and you should never let your guard down. Our source gives us this list of tips which may come in handy the next time you shop or go out:

• When you’re dining in a restaurant, DO put your bag right beside you where you can feel it or on top of the table where you can see it (NOT behind you). DON’T put your bag where there are people passing; put it on the opposite side.

• Don’t wear valuable jewelry when going to the mall; don’t call attention to yourself.

• DON’T leave your parking ticket in your car. That’s precisely the instruction written on the back of your parking ticket, if you bother to read it.

• DON’T text while you’re walking. You may get into an accident or somebody will get into an accident because of you. Hello! There’s a time and a place for everything.

See you at the mall!