Addiction comes in many forms . . . While sitting in Starbucks writing a blog post about my issues with addictions, a guy sat down at a table next to me. He had ordered what looked like an iced coffee. He piled a stack
of blue packets in front of him, the aspartame sweetener Equal. He then took at at least ten, tore off the tops and poured them in his drink. He took another pile of packets and repeated the process. Honestly, he put at least 20 packets in his drink. My mouth nearly dropped open and I held back a gasp. He looked to be in his 60’s, very chubby and not healthy looking at all. I couldn’t help thinking about what was going on in his body. If he poured that much sweetener in his drink here, what did he do at home. How much of this toxic chemical was he ingesting every day?
It made me think. Was he choosing it because he thought it was better than sugar? Was he diabetic? Was he trying to lose weight? I really wanted to ask him, but I didn’t have the nerve. He was with his granddaughter and they seemed to be having a really nice time together. What I really wondered, was he addicted? Did he use it as a replacement for sugar and it had begun addiction of it’s own.
I remember years ago, before I understood the toxic dangers of artificial sweeteners, I used it regularly. After all I was a professional dieter. Sugar was bad, sweetener was good. There were a host of artificial sweetened foods that I loved, not to mention all the diet beverages I consumed. Then, I attended the Whole Life Expo in Toronto in 1999 and I heard two presentations, “Sweet Poisons: Sugar and Aspartame” and “The Politics of Sugar and Aspartame” by Dr. Carolyn Dean. That information changed everything. After listening to her I understood just how toxic artificial sweeteners are to our bodies, and in particular, aspartame. I also learned about the politics and economics of these chemicals and how the US government and big corporations were not at all interested in the health or the well being of people. Money was the foundation of this poison. Immediately I stopped eating and/or drinking anything that contained any artificial sweetener. From that Expo in 1999 until his day I have not consciously ingested it. If I unintentionally eat something that has it as an ingredient I can taste it immediately! It has a distinct chemical taste and bitter aftertaste.
Now I understand it, artificial sweeteners in any form, are part of the toxic environment that our bodies are subjected to on a daily basis in today’s world. They are part of what is contributing to illness, addiction, inflammation, etc. It’s what people have to use detox programs to detox from! Most people, like this guy sitting next to me at Starbucks, use it freely and believe he’s probably doing some good for himself. This is what the manufacturers want you to believe, they advertise and promote it that way. Their bottom line is profit and building a consumer base, not health. They want you to keep buying their productions, the bottom line.
This got me thinking about brain chemistry. If you have a chemical imbalance in your brain and you use tons of artificial sweeteners (toxic chemicals) how does that effect it? Does it contribute to further imbalance? Or does it create imbalance? Does it become it's own addiction? I’m not sure. But, I'm really I stopped using it so many years ago! Geez, I've got enough issues.
Do you use it? Please consider giving it up! When you hear the word sugar-free take it as a warning - toxic danger! Below are some links I encourage you to use. If you don’t have time to read, then I suggest you watch the video. It’s a good one with lots of information about the dangers of sweeteners.
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