Week 8: The truth about calorie free sweeteners – 52 Weeks of Wellness
Week 8 of our 52 Weeks of wellness entails the big three sugar free/ chemical sweeteners to avoid which are: aspartame (Nutrasweet), sucralose (Splenda) and high fructose corn syrup. These may be calorie free but they are NOT healthy or SAFE. All are derived from chemicals which adds more toxins to the body.
Combine the chemicals, additives, preservatives, hormones, antibiotics, over-the counter meds and pharmaceutical drugs that we subject our body to and we wonder why we don’t have energy, have stomach issues or other chronic disease. Because disease is just that, an accumulation of toxins.
When we flood our body with chemicals, how can it perform its normal function to help protect, heal and keep us healthy? Plus, we just aren’t designed to be consuming these chemicals or the large amounts of sugar found in processed foods these days.
Our hunter gather ancestors consumed the equivalent of 20 teaspoons of sugar per year, not per day.
The sweet chemicals do harm
Looking specifically at aspartame and sucralose, according to Neurosurgeon, Dr. Russell Blaylock, M.D. these have been labeled excitotoxins because they over stimulate neural (brain) cells to the point of killing them.
“What are excitotoxins? The word excitotoxin is derived from two words, excite and toxin. A ‘toxin’ is a poison. So excitotoxin is a poison that excites any brain cell it encounters until it dies. These substances are usually amino acids – sounds rather natural and harmless but when these react with specialized receptors in the brain in such a way as to lead to destruction of certain types of brain cells.” Quote source and much more excitotoxin info can be read here.
Splenda contains chlorine and high fructose corn syrup is now found in virtually everything, in such abundance that some correlate it to the obesity crisis in America.
“Products with HFCS are sweeter and cheaper than products made with cane sugar. This allowed for the average soda size to balloon from 8 ounces to 20 ounces with little financial costs to manufacturers but great human costs of increased obesity, diabetes and chronic disease.” Quote source and much more high fructose corn syrup info can be read here.
Week 8 Action Step: Read the ingredient labels of everything first! Check your bread (Arnold Sandwich Thins), cereals (Fiber One), yogurt (most all), to learn how many of these “foods” contain chemicals. What did you find or were surprised to find? Tell us in the comments below.
Remember, adults have a blood brain barrier to protect us from some of the influx of chemicals, but a child’s is not fully developed yet. This is why it is especially important to read labels and keep these away from our kids and ourselves.
Look for safer alternatives to replace these products for your family and post any questions you have if you need help.
I turned 50 years old the year I wrote this and after removing chemical additives from my diet, I think clearer, remain focused and sharpened my memory more than when I was in my 30’s. Let’s not get older, Let’s get better!
