The dangerous effects of Diet Soda, and other foods containing Aspartame.

This article really hit home for me. I've never been much of a soda drinker, let alone diet soda yet I find so, so many people are and it's starting to get scary what this additive does to your body. What concerns me the most is that so many families do not understand that this product is found EVERYWHERE in the grocery store, and the effects of it are devastating especially to young children. There are thousands of case studies over the last 15 years to the FDA of the effects of Aspartame, yet the FDA still deems it "safe" and usable for consumption. Now, you tell me is something that can cause DEATH be deemed "safe"?

Just some of the products containing Aspartame: Children's Mulit-Vitamin's (WHY)?; Sugar Free Kool-aid, fruit juice, cookies, ice cream, basically folks anything that say's SUGAR FREE has some sort of ARTIFICIAL sweetener in it and these sweetener's all containing chemicals that make up the sweetener's themselves. Do you know how Aspartame was found? Accidentally. Yes, accidentally.

"Aspartame was discovered in 1965 by James M. Schlatter, a chemist working for G.D. Searle & Company. Schlatter had synthesized aspartame in the course of producing an antiulcer drug candidate. He accidentally discovered its sweet taste when he licked his finger, which had become contaminated with aspartame.[16] Upon ingestion, aspartame breaks down into natural residual components, including aspartic acid, phenylalanine, methanol,[25] and further breakdown products including formaldehyde[26] and formic acid, accumulation of the latter being suspected as the major cause of injury in methanol poisoning. Human studies show that formic acid is excreted faster than it is formed after ingestion of aspartate. In some fruit juices, higher concentrations of methanol can be found than the amount produced from aspartame in beverages.[12]~Wikipedia

Now, you can go and do the research yourself, but the bottom line is if you're ingesting this even just a couple time's a week, I would recommend listening to your body, and the symptoms you may be having and not even realizing that you could be poisoning yourself, or your family.

The scary thing is what the FDA is allowing, despite all of the case studies! If you or any of your family are having any of the symptoms as stated in the article, then PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE detox yourself and take everything back to the store you bought it from and tell them that this product is making you SICK. They will have to send the product back to the manufacture stating what you told them and they will get a refund for it, and in turn sending a message to the manufactures of this POISON that WE will NOT be purchasing things with ASPARTAME in it for ourselves or our families!!

The Gout Diet!

I have a very dear friend, and family member who was diagnosed with Gout earlier this year. He is living with it, and so can you!!

Gout Diet / Low Purine Diet:
Limit High Purine Foods
Written by Gloria Tsang, RD of HealthCastle.com
Published in December 2005




(HealthCastle.com) High levels of uric acid can cause gout. High purine foods in a diet can increase uric acid levels in the body. Therefore, the gout diet usually limits food with high purine.

Gout Diet / Low Purine Diet

Alcohol, especially beer, should be avoided. Limit alcohol consumption to 1 drink 3 times a week.
Drink 2 to 3 L of fluid daily. Adequate fluid intake helps dilute urinary uric acid. Avoid High-Purine foods (see below)
Consume a moderate amount of protein. Limit meat, fish and poultry to 4 - 6 oz per day. Try other low-purine good protein foods such as low fat dairy products, tofu and eggs.
Limit fat intake by choosing leaner meats, foods prepared with less oils and lower fat dairy products.

Avoid High-Purine foods

Sweetbreads
Anchovies
Sardines
Liver
Beef kidneys
Brains
Meat extracts (e.g Oxo, Bovril)
Herring
Mackerel
Scallops
Game meats
Gravy

Use in Moderation

Vegetables: asparagus, cauliflower, spinach, mushrooms and green peas
Lentils, dried peas and beans
Beef, pork, poultry, fish and seafood
Oatmeal, wheat bran and wheat germ
Aside from avoiding high purine foods, maintaining a healthy body weight is important for gout patients as well. Obesity can result in increased uric acid production by the body. Follow a well-balanced diet to lose excess body weight. Do not follow a high-protein low-carb diet as this can worsen gout conditions.




Research Update: A recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Mar 11, 2004 revealed that high intake of low-fat dairy products indeed reduces the risk of gout by 50%. It is unknown why low-fat dairy products offer a protective effect.

Unfortunately, no natural supplements are proven effective to prevent or alleviate onset of acute gout attacks. The most effective treatment for gout attack is medication.

Western diets turn on fat genes: Energy-dense foods may activate genes that ultimately make us obese

ScienceDaily (2009-12-01) -- Those extra helpings of gravy and dessert at the holiday table are even less of a help to your waistline than previously thought. These foods hit you with a double-whammy as the already difficult task of converting high-fat and high-sugar foods to energy is made even harder because these foods also turn our bodies into "supersized fat-storing" machines.

Superfood Smoothie!

Are you having some problems getting you little ones to eat their veggies? Here's a little recipe trick that you can work in at breakfast or snack!

1/2 banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 tbsp. natural organic peanut butter/almond butter
small handful washed baby spinach
1 cup vanilla soy/rice milk
6-7 ice cubes

*If you want, you can also add 1/2 cup yogurt and or 1/2 cup of lightly steamed beets for fun color and nutrient value for Vitamin A, and Betaine.

Enjoy!