If diet soda, sugar-free gum, Equal, Splenda, NutraSweet, Sweet-n-Low, energy drinks, and processed protein powders are part of your diet, than the answer is yes. If you do have your hand raised right now, I beg you to keep reading.

Some people choose artificial sweeteners instead of sugar because they feel they are doing themselves a favour by not consuming sugar and calories. Others have no idea that they are consuming artificial sweeteners because they are hidden in a plethora of processed foods. Food marketers are clever. They cottoned on early to the fact that they can replace sugar in their products with artificial sweeteners and then wack “diet”, “sugar-free”, and “low cal” claims all over the packaging. Of course that is going to make dieters rush to buy them.

However, the thing is that these artificial sweeteners are one of the worst things we can be consuming for our health. Why? They are both toxic and addictive, which is a highly dangerous combination.

Aspartame is the most common ingredient in artificial sweeteners. There are others, like sucralose (Splenda), neotame (made with aspartame), saccaharine (Sweet-n-Low), acesulfame-K (Sunnette) – and they are all dangerous. But today, let’s delve into the deception of aspartame (also known as its new name AminoSweet).

+ Aspartame, or more commonly known as NutraSweet or Equal, is an artificial sweetener that is currently found in over 4000 products worldwide.

+ Aspartame is a proven neurotoxin made up of 40% aspartic acid, 50% phenylalanine and 10% methanol. Sounds like a tasty concoction, right?

+ Neurosurgeon Dr Russell Blaylock says: “It is my opinion, and the opinion of many others, that aspartame is a dangerous neurotoxin and its use should be discouraged generally, but especially so in those harboring neurological diseases.”

+ It is responsible for over 75% of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. A few of the 90 different documented symptoms include: headaches/migraines, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, tachycardia, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss and joint pain.

+ Aside from the complaints, there are also around 10,000 documented reports of aspartame side effects and over 900 published studies on the health hazards.

+ The most alarming these days, when we are racing towards one in two of us being diagnosed with cancer, is the proof that aspartame causes cancer.

And here’s the real kick in the guts – artificial sweeteners have not even been proven to aid in weight loss. The opposite is actually true. A 10-year study by researchers at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio showed that those who drank two or more diet sodas a day had a 500% greater increase in waist size.

What was once thought to be a great alternative to sugar – especially for diabetics – has turned out to be nothing but a seriously dangerous deception.

What should we use instead? I highly recommend these natural sweeteners.

Do you still consume artificial sweeteners? Have you been doing so without knowing? Does this information make you want to stay away from them?

Positive affirmation for the day: Relax and let go. Life loves me.

http://www.thewellnesswarrior.com.au