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| Posted : Apr, 2008 |
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More weight gain for diet soft drinks than regular ones: a wake-up call for soda drinkers |
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Diet soft drinks may lead to even more weight gain than regular ones. It's time to say "No" to both diet and regular sodas. |
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Soft drink consumption, obesity, diabetes and a whole range of other diseases are closely related. |
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| Many soft drink consumers opt for "Diet" versions to reduce weight gain. However, an 8-year study found that nearly all the obesity risk from soft drinks came from diet soda. Taking just one can of diet soft drink each day may increase obesity risk by 41%. |
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| Rats fed with artificial sweeteners gained more weight than those taking sugary foods. Artificial sweeteners have super-sweet taste but no calorie. Instead of being fooled, our body may have reacted by increasing the appetite to crave for the missing calories. Artificial sweeteners may also be related to diabetes and many other diseases. |
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| This article would discuss the following areas: |
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| I. |
Research studies linking diet soft drinks to obesity |
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| II. |
What are artificial sweeteners, and what is diabetes |
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| III. |
Possible physiological mechanisms linking soft drinks (both diet and regular) with obesity, diabetes and other diseases |
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| IV. |
Alarming data of soft drink consumption, obesity, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease in the US at a glance |
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| V. |
Toxic soft drinks for sale in all countries: An absurdity in the modern history of mankind |
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| VI. |
China and India : the next time-bombs for diabetes |
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| I. Research studies linking diet soft drinks to obesity |
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A study by the University of Texas, USA, on 1,550 people found that nearly all the obesity risk from soft drinks came from diet soft drinks. There was 41% higher risk of obesity for each can of diet soda consumed each day. |
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The Framingham Heart Study in the US on nearly 9,000 people showed that soda drinkers were at 48% higher risk for metabolic syndrome (e.g. overweight, elevated blood sugar levels etc.), with no significant difference between those taking diet and regular soda. |
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A study by the University of Minnesota, USA, on 9,500 people found that those who drank one can of diet soda a day had 34% higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome compared with those who drank none. |
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A study by the Purdue University, USA, found that rats fed with the artificial sweetener saccharin gained 20% more weight than those taking normal sugar in 2 weeks. |
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For artificial sweetners, the body is confused by the contradicting messages of having sweet taste but no calorie. |
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Have we fallen into this logical trap on artificial sweeteners? |
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| 1.1 |
An 8-year research: 41% higher risk of obesity for each can of diet soda consumed each day |
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In a study conducted by the University of Texas Health Science Center in the US, researchers collected data over eight years on 1,550 Americans aged 25 to 64. A total of 622 people had normal weight at the beginning of the study, and about a third of them became overweight or obese by the end of the period. |
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It was found that nearly all the obesity risk from soft drinks came from diet sodas. "There was a 41% increase in risk of being overweight for every can or bottle of diet soft drink a person consumes each day," said Dr. Sharon P. Fowler (MPH), the leading researcher in the study. |
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The risk of becoming overweight or obese was dependent on both the amount and type of soft drinks consumed. |
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| Amount of soft drinks consumed |
Risk of becoming overweight or obese |
| For regular soft-drink consumers |
For diet soft-drink consumers |
| up to 1/2 can each day |
26.0% |
36.5% |
| 1/2 to one can each day |
30.4% |
37.5% |
| 1 to 2 cans each day |
32.8% |
54.5% |
| more than 2 cans each day |
47.2% |
57.1% |
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According to Dr. Fowler, one possible explanation is that the sweet taste of artificial sweeteners may alert the body to look for the calories normally associated with such taste. When it turns out that there is no calorie available, the body reacts by increasing the appetite to crave for the missing calories. And some soft drink studies do suggest that diet drinks stimulate appetite. |
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The results and analysis of the research were reported in the annual meeting of the American Diabetes Association in 2005. (Related News: Jun 13, 2005; Press Release) |
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Metabolic syndrome is a collection of health problems leading to heart disease & diabetes. Photo: 3-D scan of heart |
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A large waistline is one of the criteria for metabolic syndrome. |
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Picture: how plague and blood clot develop in an artery (atherosclerosis). |
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Photo: Plague inside the coronary artery. (It supplies blood to the heart muscles) |
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Photo: Retina with severely damaged blood vessles in diabetic retinopathy |
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| 1.2 |
Framingham Heart Study: 48% higher risk of metabolic syndrome for both diet and regular soda drinkers |
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Metabolic syndrome refers to a collection of health problems leading to cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. For a diagnosis of metabolic syndrome, at least three out of the following five criteria must be present: |
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Abdominal obesity, i.e. a large waistline. |
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Elevated blood pressure. |
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Elevated fasting blood sugar ("fasting" means that measurement is taken after a period of no food intake) |
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Elevated fasting triglycerides, i.e. fat in blood (Triglycerides are the chemical form in which most fat exists in food and in human bodies. ) |
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Reduced levels of "good" cholesterol, i.e. the cholesterol bound to high density lipoproteins (HDL). (Note: Scientists belief that HDL carries fatty acids and cholesterol from the body tissues to the liver.) |
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In the Framingham Heart Study in Massachusetts, USA, investigators studied the soft-drink consumption among nearly 9,000 middle-aged men and women. The key findings are: |
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Overall, soda drinkers were at 48% higher risk for metabolic syndrome |
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The risks of metabolic syndrome were about the same for diet and regular soda drinkers. |
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Nutritionists say the study should be a wake-up call for soda drinkers, as zero-calorie beverage can't undo the damage of an unhealthful diet. The research report was published in the journal Circulation (a publication of the American Heart Association). (Related News: July 24, 2007) |
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| 1.3 |
A 9-year research: 34% higher risk of metabolic syndrome for taking one can of diet soda per day |
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The University of Minnesota in the US had conducted a prospective study called the "Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study". ("Atherosclerosis" means hardened and clogged arterial blood vessels). Researchers gathered dietary information on more than 9,500 men and women aged 45 to 64, and tracked their health for 9 years. |
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At the beginning of the study, none was diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. By the end of the study, nearly 4,000 participants (about 40%) had three or more criteria for metabolic syndrome. |
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Key findings on the risk of metabolic syndrome: |
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The risk of developing metabolic syndrome was 34% higher among those who drank one can of diet soda a day compared with those who drank none. |
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Overall, the risk was 18% higher among those with a Western dietary pattern, i.e. high intakes of refined grains, fried foods and red meat. |
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Those who ate two or more servings of meat a day, or about two burger patties, boosted their risk by 26% compared with those who only ate meat twice a week. |
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The one-third who ate the most fried food increased their risk of metabolic syndrome by 25% compared with the one-third who ate the least. |
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The report was posted online in the journal Circulation on Jan 22, 2008. (Related News) |
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Note on the close relation between diabetic retinopathy and heart failure |
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The disease with hardened and clogged blood vessels in the retina of the eyes is called retinopathy. It will lead to blurred vision and even blindness. Retinopathy occurs in about 40 - 45% of people with diabetes in the US (Source). Diabetic retinopathy is the most common cause of blindness among working-aged Americans. |
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A recent research showed that patients with diabetic retinopathy have more than double the risk of developing heart failure, when compared with other diabetic patients without retinopathy (Related News: Apr 14, 2008). |
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Diabetes, retinopathy, heart failure, and obesity are closely related. A likely reason is because soft drink consumption is the primary cause of all these health problems. Soft drinks upset the insulin balance, which in turn: |
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Upset the balance of blood glucose: causing diabetes |
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Upset the balance of blood lipids: causing plague to develop inside blood vessels, which become hardened and clogged. And if plague develops in the blood vessels of the retina (causing retinopathy), it is also likely to develop in the coronary arteries of the heart (causing heart failure). |
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Upset the balance of fat storage and energy consumption: causing overweight and obesity |
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Rats fed with artificial sweetener gained 20% more weight than normal in 2 weeks. |
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Fat is mainly stored in the fat cells of adipose tissue. For rats fed with artificial sweeteners, their percentage of body fat increased by more than 5% in 2 weeks. |
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| 1.4 |
Rats fed with artificial sweetener gained 20% more weight than those with natural sugar in 2 weeks |
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In a study conducted by the Purdue University in the US, researchers found that rats consuming saccharin-sweetened yogurt ate more food overall and gained more weight during a two-week period than rats consuming glucose-sweetened yogurt. |
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The saccharin-eating rats: |
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Ingested 5% to 10% more calories overall |
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Gained 20% more weight |
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Increased their percentage of body fat by more than 5% |
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"There's no reason to believe that humans don't do the same thing as the rats", according to Professor Susan Swithers, lead researcher of the study . The research report was published in the February 2008 issue of the journal Behavioral Neuroscience. (Related News: Mar 17, 2008) |
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The results of this study suggest that artificial sweeteners may confuse and upset our normal physiological system that regulates appetite, food intake and energy use. Though our taste buds are satisfied with the sweet taste of the artificial sweeteners, our body is not happy with the zero-calorie condition that comes with such taste. |
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"There's something about diet foods that changes your metabolic limit, your brain chemistry," said Dr. Marie Savard, the medical contributor of ABC News. Instead of being a healthy choice, artificial sweeteners may actually undermine weight-loss efforts. (Source: Feb 11, 2008) |
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Artificial sweeteners are artificial chemicals that happen to be extremely sweet. They do not exist naturally in nature. |
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Sucralose is made by replacing three (OH) group in normal table sugar with 3 chlorine atoms. It is a chlorocarbon compound, the same category as highly toxic chemicals of DDT and choloroform. |
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| II. What are artificial sweeteners, and what is diabetes |
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To explain the strange phenomenon of more weight gain for taking diet soda compared to regular ones, we need to understand more about the nature of artificial sweeteners. And we need to take a closer look at the pandemic of diabetes that goes hand in hand with obesity. |
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| 2.1 |
What are artificial sweeteners |
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Artificial sweeteners are artificially produced chemicals that do not exist naturally in nature. The majority of them were accidentally discovered in the laboratory. Some common artificial sweeteners used in soft drinks and other food products include: |
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| Common artificial aweeteners |
Trade names |
Sweetness compared to table sugar (sucrose) |
Remarks |
| Sucralose (E955) |
Splenda, Sugarite |
600 times sweeter (Source) |
Sucralose is a chlorocarbon compound, in the same chemical group as toxins of DDT pesticide and chloroform. Scientists found that exposure to chlorocarbon pesticides was related to Parkinson's disease (Source). |
| Aspartame (E951) |
Nutra-Sweet, Equal, Equal Measure, Spoonful, Canderal |
200 times sweeter (Source) |
After intake, aspartame breaks down quickly into toxic components such as methanol (a neurotoxin), formaldehyde (a carcinogen), formic acid ( a poison in ant venom), aspartic acid (an excito-toxin), and phenaylalanine. (Section 3.4.1 for details) |
| Acesulfame potassium (Ace-K; E950) |
Sunett, Sweet One |
180 - 200 times sweeter (Source) |
It is often added to diet soft drinks with other artificial sweeteners to mask each other's unpleasant aftertaste. |
| Saccharin (E954) |
Sweet'N Low |
300 times sweeter (Source) |
Currently banned in Canada due to cancer concern (Source). It was banned in the US from 1977-91 (Source), and a warning label is now required (Source). |
| Cyclamate (E952) |
Assugrin, Sucaryl, Sugar Twin |
30 times sweeter (Source) |
Banned in the US since 1969, as it caused cancer in lab rats. (Source) |
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The pancreas is located below the stomach, next to the duodenum. |
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Insulin is secreted by specific clusters of cells in the pancreas. Each cluster is called an islet of Langerhans (photo). ("islet" means island) |
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Patients without enough insulin in Type 1 diabetes need to take man-made insulin injections to survive. Photo: insulin crystals |
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In Type 2 diabetes, the fat cells and muscle cells become less sensitive to insulin. Photo: fat cells (3-D) |
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An increasing number of children are suffering from both Type 1 & 2 diabetes. |
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| 2.2 |
What is diabetes |
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Diabetes is a chronic disease in which the body cannot properly turn blood sugar into energy for usage. The blood glucose level becomes abnormally high. Some of the glucose is excreted through the urine. The body either does not produce enough insulin, or cannot properly use the insulin produced. |
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Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other foods into a usable energy form. It is secreted by the pancreas located below the stomach. Insulin signals the liver and muscle cells to take in glucose and store it in the form of glycogen. Insulin also instructs the fat cells to take in blood lipids (fat with fat-soluble nutrients), and turn them into triglycerides (the storage form of body fat). |
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The exact cause of diabetes is not yet known. It may involve both genetic and environmental factors such as diet, obesity, and lack of exercise. |
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Symptoms may include fatigue, frequent urination, increased thirst and hunger, weight loss, blurred vision, and slow healing of wounds or sores. In serious cases, diabetes may lead to kidney failure, blindness, heart diseases and even death. |
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How common is diabetes and pre-diabetes: Affect a quarter of the US population |
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Worldwide, it is estimated that 194 million (3%) people have diabetes nowadays, compared to just 30 million in 1985. The number of people with diabetes is expected to increase to at least 333 million by 2025. (Source) |
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In the US, around 20.8 million people (7%) have diabetes (Source). It is the sixth leading cause of death in the US, killing 224,092 people each year. (Source). |
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Pre-diabetes is a condition in which a person's blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but not high enough for diagnosis as diabetes. There are 54 million (18%) Americans who have pre-diabetes (Source). |
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These add up to 74.8 million (25%) people in the US having diabetes or pre-diabetes. If a quarter of the population is having problem in utilizing the available energy from food intake, it is impertinent to figure out what goes wrong. |
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| 2.4 |
Major types of diabetes: |
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| Major Types of Diabetes |
Existing knowledge on the cause and mechanism
(The exact cause is unknown) |
| Type 1 (5-10%): An auto-immune disease |
The body fails to produce insulin because its own immune system attacks and kills the insulin-producing pancreatic cells. The onset usually, but not always, happens in childhood. At least 14 genes play a role in Type 1 diabetes (Source). |
| Type 2 (most common, over 80%): Due to insulin-resistance |
The body gradually loses its ability to use insulin, because the body cells do not respond properly to it. So the confused pancreas churns out extra insulin until eventually its cells wear out. Therefore several years after onset of Type 2 diabetes, insulin production decreases. Type 2 diabetes is most common among overweight or obese people. So far, 16 genes have been found to play a role in Type 2 diabetes (Source). |
"Double Diabetes": Type 1 + Type 2 |
It is a new phenomenon in which overweight children who already have Type 1 diabetes are starting to manifest signs of Type 2 diabetes also. In the US, it affects around 25% of child patients. (Source) |
| MODY (probably 2% of all diabetes): With a defective single gene |
MODY stands for 6 different subtypes of diabetes. Each subtype is caused by defects in a single, different gene. Suspicions for such cases arise when patients are extra hard to treat, especially skinny people mistakenly diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, or young adults with diabetic relatives who abruptly seem to develop Type 1 diabetes. (Source) |
| Gestational Diabetes: occurs during pregnancy |
It affects about 2 - 5% of pregnant women, but usually disappears when a pregnancy is over. (Source) |
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There are sweet-taste sensing cells in the intestine that regulate the secretion of insulin and other appetite-related hormones. Photo: lining of small intestine |
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In our auto-immune system, the natural killer cells (one type of lymphocytes) remove those body cells not working properly, including the cancerous ones. |
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| III. Possible physiological mechanisms linking soft drinks (both diet and regular) with obesity, diabetes and other diseases |
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| How can we explain diet soft drinks resulting in more weight gain than regular ones? Some clues can be drawn from the super-sweetness of artificial sweeteners. The major artificial sweeteners are 200 - 600 times sweeter than sucrose, the normal table sugar. |
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| This section will discuss the following hypotheses, which have yet to be proven by further research, and a few additional research studies. They may provide us with more insights into the possible close links among soft drinks (with artificial sweeteners, preservatives, or high-fructose corn syrup), obesity, diabetes and a range of other diseases. |
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Hypothesis 1: |
The super-sweet taste of artificial sweeteners triggers excessive and panic secretion of insulin |
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Hypothesis 2: |
Repeated panic secretion of insulin under false alarm triggers the auto-immune system to kill the insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas, resulting in Type 1 diabetes |
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Hypothesis 3: |
Frequent high levels of insulin but no excessive blood sugar leads to decreased sensitivity of cells to insulin, resulting in Type 2 diabetes |
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Hypothesis 4: |
The metabolite of aspartame causes genetic damages in DNA, resulting in Type 1, Type 2, or MODY subtypes of diabetes (all with genetic defects) |
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Research 1: |
Sugary soft drinks contain high levels of potentially dangerous chemicals linked to diabetes, known as "reactive carbonyls" |
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Research 2: |
The preservative of sodium benzoate in soft drinks damages the DNA of mitochondria (power house of body cells). This speeds up aging and leads to degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer's. |
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Research 3: |
Middle-aged people with diabetes have significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life |
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| 3.1 |
Hypothesis 1: The super-sweet taste of artificial sweeteners triggers excessive and panic secretion of insulin |
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After food intake, elevated levels of blood glucose trigger the hormonal secretion of insulin, which converts the extra glucose into other forms to regain balance. To ensure metabolic equilibrium, our bodies often have multiple feedback mechanisms for essential functions. Besides blood glucose level, simply the sense of sweet taste may be sufficient to trigger the release of insulin. |
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In 2007, researchers in the Mount Sinai School of Medicine, USA, have identified sweet-taste receptors in the human intestines, namely the taste receptor T1R3 and the taste G protein gustducin. These receptors are present in gut taste cells that regulate secretion of insulin and others hormones controlling appetite. (Related News: Aug 21, 2007) |
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Imagine that artificial sweeteners are hundreds times sweeter than the sugar in normal food (section 2.1). What would be the response of our body to such an abnormally sweet taste? It's more likely to be a panic secretion of insulin to remove the so called "sugar". |
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When the insulin cannot find the "sugar" as expected, the body probably enters into another panic of "lack of sugar". This may trigger a series of physiological reactions as in situations of starvation, including: |
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Increase secretion of the hormone grehlin to increase appetite, hence eat more |
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Decrease activity and mobility to conserve energy, hence increase in fat storage in the body. |
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Bigger appetite and more fat accumulation pave the way towards overweight and obesity. In addition, under panic, the confused pancreas may churn out extra insulin until eventually its cells wear out. This wearing out of insulin-secreting cells, which leads to less insulin production, happens several years after the onset of Type 2 diabetes. |
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Persistently high levels of insulin in Type 2 diabetes will encourage tumour cells (photo) to grow in the pancreas. |
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Photo: X-ray showing pancreatic cancer |
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| 3.2 |
Hypothesis 2: Repeated panic secretion of insulin under false alarm triggers the auto-immune system to kill the insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas, resulting in Type 1 diabetes |
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The auto-immune system in our body is equivalent to the police that picks on the "bad guys", and where necessary, remove those who are not behaving properly in order to protect the body as a whole. |
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If the pancreas repeatedly secretes insulin in panic after taking artificial sweeteners in diet soft drinks, the body may sooner or later realize that the insulin-secreting cells are not working properly, because other feedback mechanisms are telling the body that no extra sugar is present. The auto-immune system may mistakenly assume that these cells in the pancreas are the "bad guys", and launches attack to remove them. |
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With a significant number of insulin-secreting cells being killed, the body cannot produce enough insulin after taking normal food. This would result in Type 1 diabetes. |
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Remark on the possible association among artificial sweeteners, diabetes and pancreatic cancer: |
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In a recent research conducted by the U.S. National Cancer Institute on 300,000 people, it was found that men and women who were severely obese were 45% more likely than normal-weight adults to develop pancreatic cancer over five years. |
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However, when the researchers factored in diabetes, the relationship between obesity and pancreatic cancer weakened. This suggests that diabetes is one key reason why obesity is linked to pancreatic cancer, according to the lead researcher Dr. Rachael Stolzenberg-Solomon. The report was published on the March 2008 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology. (Related News: Mar 13, 2008) |
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In the early stage of Type 2 diabetes, the level of insulin is persistently elevated. As insulin has growth-promoting effects, it's thought that too much of the hormone may encourage pancreatic tumor cells to grow and spread (Source). On the other hand, Type 2 diabetes frequently occurs in obese people. Hence, in the research above, obesity and pancreatic cancer seem to be closely associated. |
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| 3.3 |
Hypothesis 3: Frequent high levels of insulin but no excessive blood sugar leads to decreased sensitivity of cells to insulin, resulting in Type 2 diabetes |
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In type 2 diabetes, the body loses its sensitivity to insulin. Some scientists believe that this leads to persistently high levels of insulin in the body. |
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However, things may also happen the other way round, resembling the story of "The wolf is coming". When the super-sweet artificial sweeteners triggers panic secretion of high levels of insulin, the body cells (mainly muscle cells and fat cells) cannot find the sugar as expected. After repeated incidence, the body cells no longer "believe in" the signal from insulin, so do not respond to it. That is, the body develops insulin-resistance, ie. Type 2 diabetes. |
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Aspartame is one of the toxic food additives widely used in thousands of food products. |
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Aspartic acid, a metabolite of aspartame, is an excito-toxin that stimulates the nerve cells to death. Photo: nerve cells |
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All common artificial sweeteners can damage the DNA of body cells. These include aspartame, sucralose, saccharin and cyclamate. |
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People that developed Type 2 diabetes in middle age had significantly lower cognition assessment scores when they were a teenager. Photo: 3-D brain scan |
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A small change makes a big difference - remove all soft drinks and candies from the menu. |
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For probationers, no soft drinks equals to no more jail. |
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| 3.4 |
Hypothesis 4: The metabolite of aspartame causes genetic damages in DNA, resulting in Type 1, Type 2, or MODY subtypes of diabetes (all with genetic defects) |
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| 3.4.1 |
Toxicity of aspartame (E951) and other artificial sweeteners |
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Aspartame is one of the artificial sweeteners commonly used in many diet soft drinks, including Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi, Diet Snapple and Sugar Free Kool-Aid etc. In the US, aspartame was approved for use in solid foods in 1981 and in beverages in 1983. In Europe, its use in foods was approved in 1994. (Source) |
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In the past two decades of the history of aspartame, numerous physicians and researchers have raised concern over its safety, pointing to a large number of clinical cases with patients suffering from its adverse effects (Aspartame Disease; More; Related News: Feb 12, 2006). |
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Aspartame is broken down in our body into 3 components: methanol (10%), aspartic acid (40%), and phenylalanine (50%). (Source) |
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| 1. |
Methanol: Methanol is a neurotoxin. It is further broken down into formaldehyde (a carcinogen), which is absorbed by many types of body tissues (Source: Spanish Study 1 and 2). Formaldehyde is then broken down into formic acid. (Source) (Note: Formic acid is a poison secreted by red fire ants and bees, for defense and attack with their bites or stings. More info) |
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Aspartic acid: It is an excito-toxin that stimulates the nerve cells (neurons) to death (Source). (Note: the molecules of aspartic acid in natural foods are bound to proteins, hence would not have excito-toxic effects as in the case of diet soda. Source) |
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| 3. |
Phenylalanine: It is an amino-acid that occurs in natural food. But in isolated form, phenylalanine can cause seizure and convulsions in up to 15% of people sensitive to it (Source and Note 1), independent of the amount consumed. In addition, phenylalanine can cause irreversible brain damage and even death, especially when used in high quantities or during pregnancy (Source). (More info: Research in 1972 on feeding monkey infants with aspartame, code name as SC-18862, causing seizure and death) |
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Note: People with high blood pressure have higher levels of formic acid and alanine (an amino-acid) in their urine (Source: Apr 20, 2008). One possible reason is that these people have consumed a lot of soft drinks with aspartame, resulting in higher blood pressure and higher levels of aspartame metabolites. |
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A. Causing damages to DNA inside the nucleus of cells |
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In a research on 39 common food additives, scientists found that all common artificial sweeteners were genotoxic (i.e. can damage the DNA inside cell nucleus). The results for aspartame were poor; while those for sucralose, saccharin and cyclamate were bad. (Detail report: Jan 27, 2003) |
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The ability of aspartame to cause cellular mutations was also shown through studies by Shephard, et al. (Note 2). (Note 3: More info on DNA damages by formaldehyde) |
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Physicians and scientists believe that damaged DNA from aspartame consumption can lead to cancer and degenerative brain disorders such as Alzheimer and Parkinson's disease (Source). |
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B. Inhibiting the production of dopamine (neurotransmitter and hormone) by aspartame |
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Dopamine is one of the neurotransmitters (chemicals required in transmitting signals across brain cells) produced by the brain. It plays important roles in cognition, motor activity, motivation, sleep, mood, attention, and learning etc. Dopamine is also a hormone that inhibits the production of another hormone called prolactin. Prolactin would stimulate the breast to produce milk. |
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Aspartame inhibits the brain's ability to produce dopamine (Source; detail info). As a result, consumers with heavy intake of it may suffer from speech and motor problems, impaired cognition and memory, difficulty in learning, drastic mood swings, low motivation, poor sleep, abnormal breast enlargement or lactation. |
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There were clinical cases in which aspartame disease was being mistaken as Gulf War illness (multiple pains, extreme fatigue, memory loss) and Lou Gehrigs (degeneration of vital organs) (more info). |
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C. Causing cancer |
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In a long-term research on 1,900 rats conducted by the Cancer Research Center of the European Ramazzini Foundation of Oncology and Environmental Sciences in Italy, researchers found that aspartame induced a significant increase in cancers in rats, including lymphoma, leukaemia, and cancers in the kidneys and peripheral nerves. The results were first released online in July 2005. (Full report; Abstract) |
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Other artificial sweeteners of sucralose, saccharin and cyclamate are also potential cancer causing agents (section 2.1). |
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| 3.4.2 |
Genetic defects in diabetes |
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Scientists have found a range of genetic defects related to diabetes. At least 14 genes play a role in Type 1 diabetes. So far, 16 genes have been found to play a role in Type 2 diabetes. MODY stands for 6 different subtypes of diabetes. Each subtype is caused by defects in a single, different gene. (Source) |
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One of the hypotheses is that the genetic flaws in Type 1, Type 2 and MODY sub-types of diabetes are caused by DNA damages from heavy intake of artificial sweeteners (section 3.4.1-A) in diet sodas and other foods, especially aspartame. |
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| 3.4.3 |
Research linking cognitive impairment and Type 2 diabetes |
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In a research conducted by the Uppsala University in Sweden, researchers analysed the general cognition ability and reading comprehension of around 9,000 people at age 11. These people were tracked on their subsequent diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes. |
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It was found that those people with Type 2 diabetes by 42 years old had significantly lower assessment scores at age 11. The report was published in the March 2008 issue of the medical journal "Diabetes Care". (Related News: Mar 20, 2008) |
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According to the researchers, a possible explanation is that cognitive deficits present in childhood influence lifestyle factors that increase the risk of Type 2 diabetes. Another possibility is that poorly controlled blood glucose levels may influence both cognitive development and the risk of Type 2 diabetes. |
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However, based on Hypothesis 4 above (sections 3.4.1-A, 3.4.2), there is a third possible explanation: Artificial sweeteners damage the genes related to both cognition and diabetes. Therefore there is a close correlation between cognitive impairment and diabetes. |
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Another possible explanation is that artificial sweeteners in diet soft drinks upset the balance of insulin and blood lipids. Hence plague develops in blood vessels, which becomes hardened and clogged. When this happens in the brain, the affected brain cells die due to lack of oxygen and nutrients. The related cognitive functions become impaired. As artificial sweeteners also lead to diabetes (sections 3.1, 3.2, 3.3), diabetes and cognitive impairment occur in the same group of people who take a lot of diet soda. |
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One more possible explanation is that aspartame inhibits the production of dopamine, which plays an important role in cognition (sections 3.4.1-B). This results in cognitive impairment and other problems on attention, learning and motivation. |
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Note on school performance and soft drink intake: |
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Cognitive ability is closely related to school performance. Based on the 2003-2004 data in the US, the overall drop out rate from high schools stood high at 30%. The rates of completing high school in the US public school systems were: only 52% in the 50 largest cities, 74.9% in suburbs, and 73.2% in rural districts (Source). |
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In a health program joint by 65 schools in the Midwest of the US, soft drinks and candies were banned. Students were offered healthy foods like plain water, fruits, vegetables and whole grains. |
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This resulted in dramatic changes in student learning and behaviour. In 2001, drop-outs dropped to non-existent, and kids were happy and focused in the classroom. The pioneer of this program got the idea from probationers who were kept out of jail after taking soft drinks off their menu. (Related News: Sept 5, 2002) |
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Regular soft drinks contain high levels of dangerous compounds called reactive carbonyls, which may damage blood vessels. |
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| 3.5 |
Research study 1: Sugary soft drinks contain high levels of potentially dangerous chemicals linked to diabetes, known as "reactive carbonyls" |
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In a research conducted by the Rutgers University in New Jersey, USA, it was found that regular soft drinks sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) contained high levels of compounds called "reactive carbonyls". These compounds are potentially dangerous to our bodies, and are often found in the blood of diabetics. |
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Just one can of HFCS-sweetened soft drink contained about 5 times the amount of reactive carbonyls found in the blood of a person with diabetes. The reactive carbonyls in the blood of diabetics have been linked to complications of diabetes, such as tissue damage. |
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The researchers believed that the reactive carbonyls in these sugary soft drinks could increase the risk of diabetes, particularly in children. The research results were presented at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society in August 2007. (Related News: Aug 24, 2007) |
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The strong association between sugary soft drinks and diabetes is supported by a research jointly conducted by Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and Harvard Medical School. In analysing data of more than 90,000 women, the key findings were: |
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Those who drank one or more sugary drinks a day had 83% greater chance of developing Type 2 diabetes than women who drank less than one a month. |
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Over a 4-year period, weight gain was highest among those who increased their soda consumption from one or fewer drinks a week to one or more a day. |
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The research report was published in the Aug 2004 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. (Related News: Aug 26, 2004). A review of 88 studies on the same topic also indicated strong link between sugary soft drinks and diabetes. (Source) |
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In another research, reactive carbonyls in tobacco smoke was found to cause significant damage to the arteries and increased accumulation of lipid (low-density lipoprotein) inside the arteries (Research abstract). It is possible that the reactive carbonyls in sugary soft drinks have similar damaging effects to blood vessels, resulting in cardiovascular diseases common among people with diabetes. |
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The preservative of sodium benzoate used in regular & diet soda can severely damage the DNA of mitochondria (power house of cells). Photo: a mitochondrion |
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| 3.6 |
Research study 2: The preservative of sodium benzoate in soft drinks damages the DNA of mitochondria (power house of body cells). This speeds up aging and leads to degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer's. |
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Diabetes is a chronic disease in which the body cannot properly turn blood sugar into energy for usage. The body either does not produce enough insulin, or cannot properly use the insulin produced. However, there may be one more possibility: our body cells are defective and fail to use the body sugar available, instead of any insulin-related problems. |
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In normal situation, in order to get energy from blood sugar, a series of complicated biochemical reactions happen inside the mitochondria of each body cell. Therefore, mitochondria are also called the cell's power house. |
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Sodium benzoate (code: E211) is a common preservative used in many regular and diet soft drinks, including Coca Cola, Sprite, Pepsi Max, Fanta, Oasis, Dr Pepper, Diet Pepsi etc (Source). Sodium benzoate is derived from benzoic acid. It occurs naturally in berries, but is used in large quantities to prevent mould in soft drinks, prepared sauces, and dried pickles etc. |
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In a research conducted by the Sheffield University in the UK, it was found that sodium benzoate caused severe damage to the DNA of mitochondria, to the point that the mitochondria were totally inactivated. As mitochondria consume oxygen to convert glucose into energy for body cells, once they are damaged, the body cells cannot function properly and may soon die. (Related News: May 27, 2007) |
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Scientists belief that the damaged DNA of mitochondria is related to aging and a wide range of degenerative brain diseases, including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. |
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Scientists have found that neuritic plaques are associated with the earliest symptoms of Alzheimer's disease (Source). Neuritic plagues are clumps of dead and dying brain cells and protein. |
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Soft drinks may be one of the possible agents that lead to the formation of neuritic plagues. |
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| 3.7 |
Research Study 3: Middle-aged people with diabetes have significantly higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease later in life |
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Dementia is a category of degenerative brain diseases. Patients suffer from progressive decline in cognitive functions (such as memory, attention, problem solving etc.), speech or motor abilities beyond what happens in normal aging. Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia, affecting 24 million people worldwide (Source). |
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Vascular dementia, in which lesions occur in the blood vessels of the brain, is the second most common form of dementia. Parkinson's disease is one type of dementia related to movements. It is characterized by muscle rigidity, tremor, slowing or even complete loss of physical movement. |
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In a long-term research conducted by the Uppsala University in Sweden, scientists underwent testing at age 50 for diabetes on 2,269 men. They were followed up for a period averaging 32 years. It was found that: |
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102 men (4.5%) were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease |
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57 men (2.5%) had vascular dementia |
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235 men (10.4%) had other forms of dementia or cognitive impairment |
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Those people with low insulin levels at age 50 were nearly 1.5 times more likely to develop Alzheimer's than the others without insulin problems, regardless of other factors such as blood pressure, body mass index and education level. |
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The link between diabetes and Alzheimer risk was strongest in people who did not have the APOE4 gene, which is known to increase risk of Alzheimer's disease. |
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The research report was published in the April, 2008 issue of the medical journal Neurology. (Related News: Apr 9, 2008) |
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As discussed in earlier sections, the components of soft drinks may lead to: |
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Diabetes (diet soda: sections 1.2, 1.3, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4.2; regular soda: section 3.5) |
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Damages to the nucleic DNA of body cells that result in degenerative brain diseases (diet soda: section 3.4.1-A) |
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Damages to the DNA of mitochondria that result in degenerative brain diseases (both diet and regular soda: section 3.6) |
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Damages to blood vessels of the brain that result in degenerative brain diseases (diet soda: section 3.4.3; regular soda: section 3.5) |
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Inhibition of the brain's ability to produce dopamine, resulting in degenerative brain diseases. (for diet soda with aspartame: section 3.4.1-B) |
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If soft drink is the leading cause of both diabetes and degenerative brain diseases, then it is logical that these two types of diseases occur in the same group of people. |
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The human body has been designed to handle normal sugar, but not artificial chemicals that are hundreds of times sweeter. Photo: normal sugar |
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Obesity is a global epidemic, affecting adults and children alike in all countries. |
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| IV. If you do care about your health, stop taking diet soft drinks, not just regular ones |
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| Nature has its own rules. All things unnatural are by definition harmful. The human body has been designed to handle normal sugar, but not artificially made chemicals hundreds times sweeter. |
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| Many people shift to diet soft drinks from regular ones in order to curb weight gain. From the information above, this move is equivalent to seeking help from a bigger evil to quell a smaller one. In the end, things often not only get worse, but also become totally out of control. |
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| Alarming data in the US at a glance ( the situation in some countries may be as serious): |
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(% refers to that of the whole US population) |
| 1. Average number of soft drink servings per day per person |
: 2.39 servings in 2001 (Source) |
| 2. Proportion of Americans consuming diet soft drinks |
: 59% (Source) |
| 3. No. of cans of diet soda each person drinks in a year |
: on average 163 cans for everyone (Source) |
| 4. People being overweight or obese (Source for items 4- 6) |
: 66% in 2004; projected as 75% in 2015. |
| 5. Children and adolescents being overweight |
: 16% in 2004; projected as 24% in 2015 |
| 6. Children and adolescents at risk of becoming overweight |
: 34% in 2004 |
| 7. People with diabetes (Source for items 7 - 8) |
: 7%, 20.8 million in 2008 |
| 8. People with pre-diabetes |
: 18%, 54 million in 2008 |
| 9. People with diabetic retinopathy (40 - 45% of people with diabetes: Source) |
: 2.8 - 3.2%, around 9 million in 2008 |
| 10. People with Alzheimer's disease (Source for items 10 - 12) |
: at least 1.73%, 5.2 million in 2008, including 200,000 to 250,000 people under age 65. |
| 11. Estimate of American baby boomers who will develop Alzheimer's disease in their lifetime |
: 12.5%, 10 million |
| 12. Estimate of new cases of Alzheimer's disease each year |
by 2010: 500,000 cases; by 2050: nearly 1 million cases |
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| Note: Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, once exclusive for the elderly, are now affecting young and middle-aged adults at an alarming rate. The onset may be much earlier. For example, the famous American actor Michael Fox, reportedly a heavy addict of Diet Pepsi (Source), started to have Parkinson's disease at age 30. |
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Stop taking soft drinks (both diet and regular) and artificial sweeteners before they ruin your life. |
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| V. Toxic soft drinks for sale in all countries: An absurdity in the modern history of mankind |
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| The toxic components used in regular or diet soft drinks include caffeine, preservative of sodium benzoate, artificial sweeteners, and high-fructose corn syrup (with reactive carbonyls; other harmful effects). |
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| Despite a lot of evidence on the toxicity of these chemicals, soft drinks have been approved for sale in all countries, and have been consumed by almost everyone in every corner on earth. This is one of the most absurd phenomenons in the contemporary history of mankind. |
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| Regular intake of slow-acting toxins results in chronic diseases, multiple unknown pains, and extended period of sufferings before dying. |
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| What regulatory bodies have done is to set safety limits for these toxic components, so that consumers won't die immediately, and their harmful effects would take so long to show up that it would be too difficult to prove a definite causal relationship, or to justify for a total ban. The outcome is an epidemic of chronic diseases and unknown pain. (Examples on the safety limits for artificial sweeteners in the US and UK) |
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| What health authorities have also done is to declare that there is "not enough evidence" to prove any harmful effects of soft drinks, therefore it is safe for consumers to continue their consumption. For example: "We don't see any concerns at this stage," said George H. Pauli, associate director for science policy in the Office of Food Additive Safety of FDA (Food & Drug Administration) in the US. "We've gone through a humongous amount of data on aspartame over the years." (Source: Feb 12, 2006) |
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| What the soft drink industry has done is to fund a large number of scientific studies, all with the same result that the components of soft drinks were found to be safe. For example, in a review of research studies conducted on aspartame, 100% of the 74 industry-funded studies claimed its safety, while 92% of the 92 independently-funded studies identified at least one problem. (Source) |
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| What the media has done is to uncover the scandal behind the approval of aspartame in soft drinks (Example), and put up disturbing headlines like "Pesticide as Sweetener - Say no to Sugar" for sucralose in their news (Source). |
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| Doctors in hospitals and clinics have to face numerous patients everyday suffering from chronic diseases due to soft drink consumption. The only thing they can do is to scream aloud to arouse the attention of the regulatory bodies and health authorities (Example). |
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| In response to the lack of action from these institutions, involuntary organisations have been formed to advocate the harmful effects of soft drinks to the general public, especially on diet soft drinks with aspartame (Examples: in the US, Canada). |
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| In order to treat patients suffering from aspartame consumption, doctors have devised various aspartame detoxification programs (Example). Victims, shocked by their life being ruined by soft drinks, have resorted to tell their miserable stories over the internet (Examples) |
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| What kind of world is this? Is there still any justice and conscience somehow, somewhere? How long more this situation has to continue before someone put an end to it? |
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| Remark: Examples of other toxic products approved for sale globally include tobacco and monosodium glutamate (MSG, used for seasoning food). Both aspartame and MSG are excito-toxins, i.e. a toxin that stimulates the nerve cells to death, causing brain damages of varying degrees. (More info on excitotoxins) |
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| VI. China and India : the next time-bombs for diabetes |
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| In China, there are currently 40 million people with diabetes or pre-diabetes. Some researchers predict that developing countries like China and India are leading a global explosion in the diabetes epidemic (Source). This echoes with the rapid adoption of soft drinks (both regular and diet) by the general public in these countries in the past few decades. |
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| Prevention is better than cure. All countries should learn from the disastrous situation of obesity, diabetes, diabetic retinopathy and degenerative brain diseases in the US. And immediately take all possible measures to curb the widespread consumption of soft drinks (both diet and regular) and artificial sweeteners. |
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Government bodies in all countries should ban all food products with toxic components of artificial sweeteners, sodium benzoate and caffeine. |
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Companies should stop offering soft drinks as free beverages or in vending machines to their staff. Soft drinks would significantly decrease the productivity of their staff (more info), and enormously increase their expenses on medical insurance for staff. |
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Schools should include topics on the harmful effects of artificial sweeteners, sodium benzoate and caffeine in their general education classes for all students. |
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In the school cafeteria or vending machines, all soft drinks or caffeinated beverages should be replaced by other healthy items. |
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Parents should educate their children on the harmful effects of soft drinks, and play a role model in not drinking or purchasing them. |
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As good corporate citizens, all fast food chains and restaurants should stop the hard bundling of soft drinks with their set meals, and offer more healthy alternatives such as fruit juice or soup. It is actually a win-win strategy to build up a corporate image as a provider of healthy-eating choices. |
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Doctors should recommend their patients with chronic diseases and pain of unknown origins to refrain from taking any soft drinks or other caffeinated beverages. |
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For people with diabetes or hypoglycemia (low blood glucose level), all soft drinks and artificial sweeteners in other foods must be totally avoided (Source). |
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| The harmful effects of artificial sweeteners are more pervasive than we would like to know. In the market place, there are thousands of products laced with them. It is important to develop a habit of reading product labels carefully before purchase, especially for processed foods and drinks. Government bodies should implement mandatory labelling of all products with food additives. |
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| We need to face squarely the deep repercussions of soft drinks (both diet and regular) to the health, mental fittness and social behaviour of mankind as a whole. And it's time for us to go back to the good old days in which drinking water was just plain water, not sweet in taste. If a man can harness his tongue, both in words and for foods, he can bridle his whole body. |
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| (Info on how to overcome the withdrawal symptoms due to caffeine in quitting soft drinks) |
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| Footnotes: |
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| Note 1 : |
Waisman, H. A. and Harlow, B. F. (1965). Science 147, p. 685. |
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| Note 2 : |
Shephard, et al., Mutagenics Activity of Peptides and the Artificial Sweetener Aspartame after Nitrosation. Fd Chem Toxic 1993:31:323-29. |
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| Note 3 : |
Shaham D, et al. DNA-Protein Crosslinks: A Biomarker of Exposure to Formaldehyde. Carcinogenesis, Jan. 1996. |
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Ross WE, McMillan DR, Ross CF: Comparison of DNA Damage by Methylmelamines and Formaldehyde, Journal National Cancer Institute 67:217-21, 1981. |
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| Other Feature Articles |
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