One note for all readers regarding diet soda[/b]: Last night, my parents saw someone on tv talking about how diet soda is worse for a person than regular soda is. I don't drink diet, so I don't remember what was said about it, but my brother does (and he drinks a lot of it). From now on, my parents are making him limit his intake of it. I just wanted to suggest that you diet drinkers look into this claim.
Dear, your parents are falling prey to an Urban Legend - the Aspartame scare has been ballyhooed (no relation to Bollywood) for years by nutrional wackos. (Aspartame is the main chemical in artifical sweeteners.)
Here is the
Urban Legends Site:
(Extracts)
Claim: The artificial sweetener aspartame is responsible for an epidemic of cancer, brain tumors, and multiple sclerosis.
Status: False.
Origins:
·
Is Aspartame Safe? (FDA):
To date, FDA has not determined any consistent pattern of symptoms that can be attributed to the use of aspartame, nor is the agency aware of any recent studies that clearly show safety problems.
·
Aspartame and the Internet (The Lancet):
Our research revealed over 6000 web sites that mention aspartame, with many hundreds alleging aspartame to be the cause of multiple sclerosis, lupus erythematosis, Gulf War Syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, brain tumours, and diabetes mellitus, among many others. Virtually all of the information offered is anecdotal, from anonymous sources and is scientifically implausible.
der willing-bebunker Brucer