If you're like me, you drink a lot of zero-calorie and low-calorie beverages that tend to have artificial sweeteners in them. My preference is always towards those that use sucralose (also marketed as Splenda) because it is generally considered safe.
In case you were wondering, aspartame was recently identified in some studies from Italy as possibly increasing the risk of leukemia, lymphoma and breast cancer (CSPI's Nutrition Action cover story Chemical Cuisine: A Guide To Food Additives, May 2008). The problem is that it's getting harder and harder to find sucralose without another chemical paired with it known as Acesulfame Potassium (a.k.a Ace-K).
For awhile I tried to tell myself, it's okay if at times I drink something with Acesulfame in it, but when I took a good look at what I was drinking, I realized I was subjecting myself to the chemical a lot more than I thought. So out went the Powerade Zero I was drinking almost daily, all those powdered "flavor on the go" sticks for my bottled water, Lipton Diet Citrus green tea and so on.
And by the way, watch other food items that are prone to having sucralose paired with acesulfame potassium such as gum, diet soda, desserts and baked goods.
Like in most cases, the way to let the food manufacturers know that you want your zero-calorie and low-calorie drinks with sucralose, is to simply vote with your wallet, just like I did. If enough of us do it, they'll get the message. Let's just hope that sucralose doesn't give us any surprises down the line, because they used to say that aspartame was safe too.
And now I'd like to invite you to get a copy of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too! and get an invitation to a book customer-only private Q&A Teleseminar to get all your healthy eating and fitness questions answered personally by me live! Simply e-mail me a copy of your receipt using the e-mail address in the book, and you'll be invited to the next event! Go grab your copy today, and get one for a friend or loved one while you're at it who should be eating favorite comfort foods without sacrificing!
--Melanie R. Jordan, Author of Have Your Cheeseburger And Keep Your Health Too! Available 24/7 at http://www.HealthyEatingCoach.com
"Healthy eating with favorite comfort foods...it's deliciously possible!"
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Check out more of Melanie's empowering publications including her new book on the hot, knowledge-based field of infopreneuring What You Know Is Worth More Than You Know(TM) - Achieving The Life You Were Meant To Have By Making Money From What YOU Know! on work-at-home lifestyles, foreclosure investing and learn about her Marketing and Infopreneur Consulting and Coaching Services at http://www.SunLoverPublishing.com
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Melanie's podcast on infopreneuring--What You Know Is Worth More Than You Know(TM) at http://www.WhatYouKnowIsWorthMorePodcast.com
What You Know Is Worth More Than You Know - The Blog For Infopreneurs at http://www.WhatYouKnowIsWorthMore.com
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Please note that I do not have an affiliation with any of the companies featured in this post--they are simply products I am personally familiar with. The views expressed are my opinion only and you should decide, along with your healthcare professionals, on the appropriateness for your personal use.
Copyright SunLover Publishing LLC 2009
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