By Dr. Mercola
Since
2002 an artificial sweetener called neotame has been approved for use
in food and drink products around the world, although so far its use
appears to be very limited.
Neotame
is a chemical derivative of aspartame, and judging by the chemicals
used in its manufacturing, it appears even more toxic than aspartame,
although the proponents of neotame claim that increased toxicity is not a
concern, because less of it is needed to achieve the desired effect.
Neotame is bad science brought to you by the Monsanto Company.
If
Monsano truly had nothing to fear with either of these artificial
chemical sweeteners, they would have funded rigorous independent testing
for safety. To date they have not, and they won't, because virtually
every independent analysis of aspartame not conducted by Monsanto
partners has revealed a long list of disturbing side effects, mostly
neurological in nature.
Monsanto
also has now sold the NutraSweet Company to someone else, but the
approval of neotame came under Monsanto's ownership, and was most likely
a result of Monsanto's cozy relationship with the FDA. More about that
in a minute.
My recommendation for neotame is the same as that for aspartame, which is: it should be avoided if you care about your health.
Why is Neotame Dangerous?
Hopefully by now you are aware of the dangers of aspartame, if you aren't, please review this previous article.
But
as if aspartame wasn't bad enough, NutraSweet (a Monsanto subsidiary at
the time of neotame's approval) "improved" the aspartame formula,
making neotame 7,000-13,000 times sweeter than sugar (sucrose) and 30-60
times sweeter than aspartame.
How did they do this?
In
1998, Monsanto applied for FDA approval for neotame, "based on the
aspartame formula" with one critical addition: 3-dimethylbutyl, which
just happens to be listed on the EPA's most hazardous chemical list.
So
not only is neotame potentially more devastating to your health than
aspartame, it is also approved for use in a wider array of food
products, including baked goods, because it is more stable at higher
temperatures.
For more information go to:
http://elementsofhealth.webs.com/artificialsweeteners.htm
