Something to read while sipping on that diet soda...
BACKGROUND: Aspartame (L-phenylalanine N-L-alpha-aspartyl-1-methyl ester) is an artificial sweetener with widespread applications. Previously published results have shown that among rats receiving aspartame a significant increase of lymphoreticular neoplasms, brain tumours and transitional cell tumours occurred. The aim of our short-term experiment was to investigate the biological effect of aspartame consumption by determining the expressions of key oncogenes and a tumour suppressor gene. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After one week per os administration of various doses of aspartame to CBA/CA female mice, p53, c-myc, Ha-ras gene expression alterations were determined in individual organs. RESULTS: The results showed an increase in gene expressions concerning all the investigated genes especially in organs with a high proliferation rate: lymphoreticular organs, bone-marrow and kidney. CONCLUSION: Aspartame has a biological effect even at the recommended daily maximum dose.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/..._uids=17354619&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_DocSum
Aspartame Causes Cancer in Rats at Levels Currently Approved for Humans
A statistically significant increase in the incidence of malignant tumors, lymphomas and leukemias in rats exposed to varying doses of aspartame appears to link the artificial sweetener to a high carcinogenicity rate, according to a study accepted for publication today by the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP).
"Our study has shown that aspartame is a multipotential carcinogenic compound whose carcinogenic effects are also evident at a daily dose of 20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight (mg/kg), notably less than the current acceptable daily intake for humans," the authors write.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=34040
Aspartame Gate: When Donald Rumsfeld was CEO of Searle
As calls for US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to resign are prompting questions from Senators, about
possible breakdowns in the Pentagon chain of command leading to prisoner abuse in Iraq, Betty Martini founder of Mission Possible, an international 'Aspartame resistance' movement, writes to Senator Biden to explain that allowing torture of prisoners in Iraq
may not have been the only reprehensible action Rumsfeld should answer for.
http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/sep...te_when_donald_rumsfeld_was_ceo_of_searle.htm
all the time remembering that "the bastards" are working against us...
The sweet stevia herb has had a long, safe history of use as a food and medicine in South America and Asia, but in many Western countries it is illegal as a food or food additive but legal as a dietary supplement.
It's easy to grow, wonderful as a sweetener, contains medicinal properties, is non-caloric, safe to cook with, and has great potential in agriculture. It's widely used in South America and Asia. So why isn't stevia a household name in the rest of the world?
Julian Whitaker, MD, believes that the FDA "has been after stevia since 1986, coincidental with the growing popularity of aspartame".
According to a 1994 article by Rob McCaleb of the Herb Research Foundation, the FDA began visiting businesses selling stevia around 1987, saying it was an unapproved food additive. One FDA inspector reportedly told a company president that the manufacturer of NutraSweet® had made complaints to the FDA to try to stop the use of stevia.
The Stevita Book-burning Saga
In 1998, the Stevita Company and the US FDA received considerable media attention after it was reported that the FDA had ordered the burning of books sold by Stevita. These contained information on the herb along with stevia recipes.
http://www.nexusmagazine.com/articles/stevia.html