6. Aspartame
(Artificial sweetener: Trade Name Equal and NutraSweet)
As a natural health consultant I’m always trying to convince people to eat less sugar. But sometimes a little big of sugar is much healthier than some of the artificial alternatives.
There are far worse things than sugar hiding in your food.
Aspartame, the artificial sweetener also known as Equal and NutraSweet was first approved for use in dry foods in 1981. Its approval by the American FDA which paved the way for approval throughout the rest of the world was highly controversial. The FDA commissioner, Dr. Arthur Hull Hayes who approved its use over ruled his departments own board of enquiry who recommended against approving aspartame for use in food. Shortly after approving aspartame, Dr. Hayes left the FDA to take up a very well paid position in public relations for the pharmaceutical giant, Searle, who produced aspartame and pushed hard for its approval.
Why is aspartame so bad for you?
* Aspartame is broken down or metabolised into the well known toxin, methanol (wood alcohol).
* Methanol is then converted to formaldehyde and formic acid (which is responsible for the pain caused by ant stings).
* Formaldehyde is a potent neurotoxin and causes damage to the nervous system.
Other documented effects of methanol poisoning include vision problems and problems with DNA replication which can cause cancer and birth defects. The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) classes’ methanol as an ‘accumulative poison’ as it is excreted slowly once absorbed into the body. This means that even very small amounts of aspartame can be toxic if taken on a daily basis. When taken on an empty stomach, the metabolism of aspartame to these toxic byproducts is accelerated – ironic when you consider that most people who use this artificial sweetener are in fact dieters eating aspartame laced unhealthy foods and meal replacements.
When aspartame is heated to temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius, large amounts of free methanol are produced resulting in greater toxic reactions due to faster absorption. Despite this, in 1993 it was approved for use in foods that would be heated to high temperatures such as jelly, cakes, biscuits and puddings. Aspartame toxicity is believed to be responsible for ‘Gulf War Syndrome’ caused by diet cordial and soft drinks consumed by troops that had been heated to temperatures above 30 degrees Celsius in the Saudi Arabian sun.
Some of the toxic reactions caused by Aspartame and acknowledged by the FDA include:
• ADHD
• Anxiety attacks
• Asthma
• Birth defects
• Blood sugar control problems
• Chronic cough
• Chronic fatigue
• Depression
• Headaches and Migraines
• Facial flushing
• Heart palpitations
• Hearing loss
• Insomnia
• Numbness or Tingling of extremities
• Seizures and convulsions
• Tinnitus
• Vertigo
• Vision loss
• Weight gain
Aspartame can also mimic or worsen the following disease:
• Fibromyalgia
• Multiple sclerosis
• Lupus
• Diabetes
• Chronic fatigue syndrome
• Multiple chemical sensitivity
• Epilepsy
And lets face it, at the end of the day, the sorts of foods that aspartame is found in are pretty unhealthy foods at best, making it pretty easy to avoid if you're even marginally interested in a healthy diet.
7. Soy Protein
Textured vegetable protein (TVP)found in vegetarian "Not Meat" products and Soy protein isolate found in most processed foods.
No matter what side of the fence you sit on the great soy debate, TVP or textured vegetable protein made from de-fatted soy flour is so processed that it hardly qualifies to be called a food anymore.
It is a highly processed and unhealthy food, it is NOT a health food.
If you want to include soy in your diet, use the whole bean or foods made from the whole bean – fermented of course!
TVP is used by many vegetarians and vegans to increase protein in their diet and is also used by meat eaters keen to reduce meat in their diets due to budget or health reasons but don’t want to miss out on essential protein.
If you're currently using TVP or other forms of soy protein you might want to find an alternative:
• Having most of the fats and carbohydrates removed means that it's no longer a whole food.
• Food grade soy protein was originally used as animal feed, which didn't pay all that well. So it was re-invented as a human food, and then as a health food, which was much more profitable. Think about the price of protein shakes, veg sausage, or veggie burgers, and you get the picture
• The world’s biggest manufacturer of TVP is the world’s second largest chemical company – DuPont. This same company funds much of research and telling us how healthy and safe texturised soy protein and soy powder is.
• Soy protein is used in a variety of foods such as salad dressings, soups, vegetarian foods, meat imitations, beverage powders, cheeses, coffee whiteners, frozen desserts, whipped toppings, infant formulas, bread and rolls, cereals, pasta products, oriental foods and pet foods. It is not used in these foods to enhance nutrition, it is used emulsify (combine oils/fats and water) and add texture to food - it's used for the convience of food manufacturers, not to make it healthier for you.
• Most soy these days comes from genetically modified soy beans (soy beans are genetically modified to make them resistant to pesticides, so they don’t die when the weeds growing around them are sprayed).
"SPI (soy protein) is not something you can make in your own kitchen.
