Diet soda itself is not the cause of any major health issues but the low-calorie sweetener aspartame, which many diet sodas contain, has been the subject of much debate.

The U.S. Senate even investigated the claims in a November 1987 hearing.

One study conducted by the Department of Emergency Medicine at Klina General Hospital, Belgium, found that excessive intake of diet soda can result in an increased risk for epileptic seizure. The study suggests that the convulsions related to the beverage are a consequence of high doses of aspartame and caffeine from the diet soda.

In another study conducted at the IWK Children’s Hospital, in Nova Scotia, Canada, the EEGs of children who consumed aspartame showed an increase in spike wave discharge-a type of brain activity that is a possible indication of an area that produce a seizure.

The FDA maintains that the link is nonexistent. Until the controversy is settled, it’s smart to drink diet soda in moderation.

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The Corn Refiners Association (CRA) seemingly takes exception to any suggestion that High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is in any way to blame for the increase in Child diabetes in the United States.

The CRA loves to quote the American Medical Association (AMA) as saying that HFCS doesn’t appear to contribute more to obesity to other caloric sweeteners (such as regular sugar, for example).

However, The AMA also recommends a daily limit of 32 grams of such sweeteners. The average can of soda contains 40 grams of HFCS.

So even if HFCS in itself does no more harm than other sweeteners, we can’t get away from the fact that the average American consumes far more sweeteners of all kinds than is recommended by the AMA – over 500% more. As practically all processed food products contain HFCS, it is a major contributor to obesity, and diabetes in the USA.

The best way forward is to cut out processed foods altogether. Eat fresh fruit, vegetables, meat, pasta, diary, beans and whole grains. Check anything in a carton, box, or packet though to be sure of what you are actually eating.

Cutting out processed foods, and sweeteners, including HFCS, cannot do any harm.

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“Dirty” skin is a commonly missed medical condition.

The skin is hyper-pigmented, in a smooth, yet irregular, shape. It can be found in the “folds” of the skin.. at the neck, axila, navel, knees, elbows, ankles, and groin.

It is called Acanthosis Nigricans, and the main cause is Insulin Resistance.

Insulin Resistance is a pre-cursor to diabetes (pre-diabetes) and the main symptom of Poly-cystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS.)

Type-2 (Adult-Onset) diabetes used to be something only adults needed to be concerned about..

But, many children are now being diagnosed with diabetes.

Insulin is a regulatory hormone, in the body.  It works with Glucagon, to tell the body when to store and not store the fat that we consume, in our diets.  It is triggered by carbohydrates or “sugars.”

When insulin levels are high, the body stores fat (converted “sugars”,) to use, later, for energy.

Glucagon is a regulatory hormone that pulls “fuel” from the body..  It is a reaction hormone and dependent on  insulin levels lowering, to react, to burn stored energy.

When we constantly consume “sugars” and junk food, we over stimulate our insulin production.  We burn out this imaginary switch, that tells the body to start producing Glucagon.

It doesn’t matter, to the body’s functioning whether we are not producing any insulin (Type I Diabetes) or if we have a constant supply of high levels of Insulin (Type II Diabetes.)  All that matters, is that Glucagon is not being triggered..

The body is constantly storing fat.  The “sugars,” being consumed, are being converted to fat, and also being stored.

Insulin Resistance is the main cause of obesity.

(Nothing in this article is intended as medical advice. Nothing in this article is intended to diagnose or cure disease.  It is purely for informational purposes.  Please allow your medical doctor to diagnose your illnesses.  Seek the advice of a medical professional, if you feel that you have a medical problem. This article was not written by a professional medical doctor.)

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“Sugars” are any carbohydrate that is consumed.

“Sugars” include sweet substances like table sugar (sucrose,) fruit sugar (fructose,) milk sugar (lactose,) etc. (Look for words ending “ose” on labels.)

These sweet-tasting sugars can also be known as honeys, molasses, syrups, candies, and nectars.

“Sugars” also include non-sweet-tasting carbohydrates, including:

• Breads
• Crackers
• Rice
• Pasta
• Potatoes
• Cereals
• Other Starchy veggies, including peas, corn, beans..

All “sugars” raise insulin levels in the bloodstream, when consumed.  When insulin levels are high, sugars are converted to fat, and all fats are stored in the body.

The trigger of insulin production is to the flavor “sweet” and although “sweet” can have differing degrees of response, please note that sugar-substitutes are also “sweet” to the brain.

It is possible to eat a low/no-fat diet and gain weight, that is stored as fat.

(photo credit)

(Nothing in this article is intended to diagnose, treat, or cure disease. It is for informational purposes only.  Always seek  and follow the advice of your professional medical doctor.)

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I’m very leery of the new things being done with Stevia, by Coca Cola and PepsiCo. I’m not sure, yet, how to feel about Rebiana.  It is a recipe.  Recipes can be patented. Patents mean money.  Not Health.

I’ve spent years reading the bans on Stevia.  I think its a joke that Monsanto and NutraSweet had so much clout to blocking Stevia [PDF].  Then, after the ban was lifted, circa 1991, when I really needed to learn how to use it, it was illegal to call it a “sweetener” but only a “food additive” and so it stopped many recipes that I needed.

Stevia is so bad, for us, that people are not dropping dead, from it, in other countries, where it has been legal and openly marketed, for over 25 years.

I have a real problem with the GRAS approval, from the FDA, because money is being thrown into manufacturing and genetically modifying a natural plant.

Truvia? PureVia? Is this just Steviaside?  Or is Rebiana some by-product of Steviaside?  Can we believe what they tell us? Truvia is made by Coke. Purevia is made by Pepsi.

What is Erythritol? Its a sugar alcohol made from Corn.  Mixed with Stevia, it seems to break the bitter after-taste. Hmmm

Coke pushed their idea, before approval, and that seemed okay.. when other manufacturer’s have been stopped, at customs, from entering our country.

Celestial Seasonings, Sara Lee, Lipton, Nestle, and Sunkist are just some of the brand names, we may be familiar with, that have had products seized at American borders, by the FDA, in recent years.

Now, it is OK, by FDA standards and Federal Law, for Coke to bring out SpriteGreen, and some new Odwalla Juices. Pepsi is bringing out Sobe Life Water.  All are sweetened,  with their own version of Stevia/Erythritol. SpriteGreen also contains sugar.

I’ve looked up individual brands.  I’m not comfortable that we are so big on grabbing and running with everything, new.  Everyone seems to be fixated on substituting sugar, instead of modifying, reducing, or eliminating it, from their diets, if they have health concerns, that warrant just that.

We live in a disposable commercialized world.  We seem to not care, anymore, what we put into our mouths or our bodies.

Compare the over-all health around you.. its not getting better..

Consider the word “artificial” when making choices about what you want to consume.

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Today, we are over-bombarded with a slew of chemicals that we call “sugar substitutes.”

“Sugar Substitutes” are toted as big serendipity inventions.

Acesulfame Potassium, Aspartame, Sucralose, Saccharin, Neotame (made by NutraSweet) and Cyclamate, are better known, to some of us, as:

• Sunnet
• Sweet One
• Equal
• NutraSweet
• Canderel
• E951
• Splenda
• Altern
• Sucraplus
• E955
• Benzoic Sulfinide
• E954
• INS 961

and are made, in processes, that include:

• sulfonation
• sulfamic acid
• sulfur trioxide
• anthranilic acid
• nitrous acid
• sulfur dioxide
• chlorine
• ammonia

and break down into substances such as:

• aspartic acid
• phenylalanine
• methanol
• formaldehyde
• formic acid
• diktopiperazine

What does all of this mean?  It means that chemical substitutes have a recipe.  They must have a recipe to be patented.  They are only important to manufacturer’s because they are profitable.

They make them money.

Did you know that Splenda is Chlorinated Sugar?  Does that make you want to eat more of it?

Stevia is a plant, that grows in the ground.  Stevia has been blocked and banned, from the US, by the FDA, for many different reasons, in the past.  Now that companies are making a recipe, with it, it has been approved.

This is very concerning.

Manufacturer’s of other sugar-substitutes, at risk of losing their own fortunes, fought against the approval of Stevia.  Stevia, as itself, can not be patented.

Rebianna is a recipe.  It is a sugar-substitute that is made from Stevia.  Please keep in mind that Sucralose is made from Sugar, when you consider if this is a good thing or not.

Moderation is best.  Balance is best.  “Real Natural,” in “as whole of a product, as possible,” is best.

The only real fortune to the invention of chemical sweeteners is the money that is made!

(Image via Wikipedia)

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On the cover, it may seem like a miracle.

No Calories! No Transfats!

Upon closer examination, that only applies to:

ONE TEASPOON!
One teaspoon? Do you only use one teaspoon of sugar? Would you only use one teaspoon of sugar substitute?

Katherine Prouty, of Low Carb Freedom, received an email, from the manufacturer of Splenda. In it, the company explains their claims and the real values..

Low Carb Freedom: Splenda’s Real Nutritional Information: An Update to the Sweetener Post via kwout

Ah! If you make your serving size, on the product packaging, smaller, you can claim “zero” and “no” by law.

That isn’t real helpful to the consumer.

There are 48 teaspoons in a cup.

One cup of Splenda, has 24 grams of carbs. That’s twice as many carbs, as once cup of StonyField Farms Whole Milk.

One cup of Splenda has 96 calories.

We all have different diets. We all have different needs and requirements. We all must adjust these labels, to receive the accurate information, that applies, to each of us.

Just know that “NO” and “Zero” on a product’s packaging are as truthful as “No MSG,” “MSG Free,” and even, “Natural,” and many other claims, that the FDA allows, in the U.S.

Why do they feel a need to be deceptive?

While we are standing in the store, making a decision, on which product to buy.. what they show you, right there, in front of you, is all that they have, for marketing.

These products are not about “good for you,” or “healthy.” They are manufacturer’s with budget agenda’s, who want you to simply buy their product.

Do your own homework. Know what you put into your mouth, and those that you feed.

Don’t be deceived.

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Ever heard of it? TGFC suspects that many people haven’t. It’s been used as a zero-calorie sweetener for many years in other countries, but the US FDA has taken its time on approving it, on the grounds of safety.

Perhaps, it was more a case of the food processing giants not wanting to make a switch from products such as Equal and Splenda?

Coca Cola and Pepsi are ready to include it in some of their drinks, and it’s now been given approval for use.

What is Stevia?

It comes from the Stevia plant. The leaves are naturally sweet, and the products derived from these leaves are highly concentrated.

The jury is still out on what effects existing artificial sweeteners have on the body, and of course there is, of yet, no long-term data available for Stevia.

TFGC’s take on it is still the same, use natural cane sugar, and use as little as possible. Work towards cutting sugars and/or sweeteners from your diet.

Quit drinking soda of all kinds, and drink more water instead. Watch out for restaurant items, and eat fresh and not processed food.

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Yesterday we swung by Wal-Mart to grab a few odds and ends.

We needed some sugar, so I went to find it.

This is what I got. Florida Crystals. It’s the first American Sugar certified Carbon Free by Carbonfund.org.

From their web site at FloridaCrystals.com

Florida Crystals pioneered certified organic sugar farming and production in the United States and organic rice farming and production in Florida. More than a decade ago, Florida Crystals milled the first certified organic sugar ever in the USA. Their organic cane sugar remains the only certified organic sugar grown and harvested in the U.S.   Florida Crystals’ organic farm is one of the single largest organic farms in the country.

Florida Crystals® Organic Cane Sugar has a fine, golden tan granulation that is ideal for everyday use. Because it is less processed than refined white sugar, it retains more of the flavor of the original sugar cane juice to enhance the taste of foods, beverages and recipes. It is used just like refined white granulated sugar and in the same amount. Florida Crystals® organic products are certified by the Quality Assurance International (QAI). The USDA’s National Organic Program ensures that our organic products are produced to the most stringent standards in the world.

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