The First Immortal,
Thanks for the comprehensive information.
Have you read the book,
Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills?
bob
http://www.lauralee.com/blaylock.htmExcitotoxins: The Taste that Kills
Nutrasweet (Aspartame) has been scientifically linked to brain tumors, brain cell damage and neurological conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. According to author Russell Blaylock, MD, a practicing, board-certified neurosurgeon, we are witnessing enormous damage to the brain and nervous system due to the ever-increasing amount of Nutrasweet and other excitotoxic subtances added to our foods.
With detailed accuracy citing well over five hundred scientific studies, Neurosurgeon Blaylock explores the "must-know" dangers of these substances being added indiscriminately to our food supply.
Mike Wallace of "60 Minutes" and his research team used the book Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, as one of their sources to report on the increasing evidence of a brain tumor connection. Their December 29, 1996, program didn't, however, delve into the enormous epidemic of illness caused by the increasing use of these substances. Dr. Blaylock's book exposes it all in detail--from the questionable history of "approvals" in the 1970s and the 1980s to the increasing body of evidence showing serious brain effects, government inaction, and industry propaganda and cover-up.
The use of aspartame, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, and monosodium glutamate in prepared foods and beverages continues to increase on a yearly basis. Dr. Blaylock clearly demonstrates that the neurotoxic potential of excitotoxins such as MSG and aspartame (NUTRASWEET ) is so overwhelming that it can no longer be ignored.
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So what are "excitotoxins"? Basically, they are a group of compounds that can cause special neurons within the nervous system to become overexcited to the point that these cells will die. That's right, they are excited to death. Excitotoxins include such things as monosodium glutamate (MSG), aspartate (a main ingredient in NutraSweet), L-cysteine (found in hydrolyzed vegetable protein) and related compounds.
What makes this all the more intriguing is that "excitotoxins" appear to play a key role in degenerative nervous system diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's, ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) and many others.
But the story doesn't stop there. It appears that an imbalance of these excitotoxins during critical periods of brain development can result in an abnormal formation of brain pathways; that is, a "miswiring of the brain." This may lead to serious disorders such as behavioral problems (hyperactivity, aggression, attention deficit disorders, learning disorders, poor learning ability, and ADD)-and a lifetime of endocrine problems such as menstrual difficulties, infertility, and premature puberty.
One of the earliest observations seen in animals exposed to large doses of MSG was gross obesity. Some neuroscientists have voiced concern that America's explosion of childhood obesity may be related to excitotoxins in food.
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MANIPULATING THE LANGUAGE (AND THE DATA)
The defenders of 'glutamate safety' have gone through an evolving litany of defenses. First, they denied that brain lesions could result from any dose of glutamate. Then, when the evidence became overwhelming, they claimed that these lesions only occurred when MSG was injected and not ingested. When this was disproved, they denied that human blood levels could reach concentrations that would be toxic to the brain.
When this was shown not to be true, even by one of their own defenders, they simply stated, "So what? It still cannot enter the brain because of the blood brain barrier." (This is a special "gatekeeper" that normally excludes toxic chemicals from entering the brain from the blood.)
But, as even shown by the government-sponsored FASEB report, the brain has several vital areas that have no barrier. (For example, the hypothalamus.) And it was shown that glutamate can pass into protected areas of the brain by seeping through the unprotected areas. Also, there are many medical conditions that cause the barrier to fail, such as hypertension, diabetes, brain tumors, brain trauma, heat stroke, vascular stroke, multiple sclerosis, neurodegenerate diseases, and with some medications. All of these people would be at great risk.
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BRAIN DAMAGE, NOT AN ALLERGIC REACTION
I often hear people say, "But I'm not sensitive to MSG. Chinese food doesn't bother me." This is a dangerous mistake.
The destructive effects of MSG and related compounds is not an allergic reaction, it is a toxic reaction that occurs in virtually everyone. Some are more sensitive to these destructive effects than others, but everyone is affected to some degree.
The MSG-symptom complex differs from the excitoxic reaction. The former is quite obvious to the person (headaches, pressure in the chest, heart palpitations, numbness in the arms and face, etc.), while the latter may remain clinically silent for many years.
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SILENT LESIONS
What makes "excitotoxins" so dangerous is the subtle way in which they damage the nervous system.
Often the damage goes on for years, even decades, before clinically recognizable disease is evident. For example, when an unborn child is exposed to MSG in the mother's diet, behavioral and learning difficulties may not become evident until the child starts school. Endocrine problems may not surface until puberty or when the person is trying to start a family.
Degenerative brain diseases, such as Parkinson's or Alzheimer's disease may take even longer.
It is the slow, unrelenting destruction of brain cells-secondary to exposure to food-born excitotoxins-that may lead to either the precipitation of these diseases or their aggravation. Most likely they are caused by excitotoxins in the food.
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SO WHY WON'T THE FDA COME OUT AND SAY MSG IS DANGEROUS?
For one thing, there appears to be a revolving door between the FDA and the manufacturers of and companies that use MSG. We often see that directors of the FDA on review panels suddenly appear some time later either working for the industry or with firms that support the industry. In the FASEB report, the FDA gleaned the wording that it wanted and packaged it so that it would say exactly what they wanted. For example, they reported that the study found no link between ingested MSG and neurodegenerative diseases. But in truth, what the report said was that no studies have been done to even see if there is a link. That is, no one is looking at these critical questions.
Second, the FASEB investigators took the industry's studies on daily intakes of MSG at face value. This is ludicrous. Why won't the food processors release the data on how much MSG and other excitotoxic additives they add to each food item?
What is interesting is that the FASEB study did say that they did consider concentration less than three grams a day as safe, which would imply that more than that is definitely dangerous. But even this is questionable.
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NUTRASWEET AND CANCER
Can NutraSweet cause brain tumors, uterine and ovarian cancer? Research from its own laboratories says it can. In fact, that was why it was first rejected by the FDA for human consumption. This study found that, in all concentrations examined, NutraSweet produced a very high incidence of brain tumors.
(The high dose NutraSweet caused a 47X increase in brain tumors over control animals.) Also found were uterine and ovarian tumors. The number of tumors produced seemed to be dose related. That is, the more NutraSweet consumed, the more likely tumors would develop. It appears that it is a breakdown product of NutraSweet called diketopiperizine (DKP) that is causing the tumors. Interestingly, with the passage of time more and more NutraSweet breaks down into DKP. This is why the soft drink companies have started to date diet colas. Heating NutraSweet also speeds up this process. This is why using NutraSweet in hot beverages and for cooking is especially hazardous.
There has been an enormous increase in the number of brain tumors reported over the last decade. No other explanation has been given for this incredible explosion of brain tumors. If the early experiments linking NutraSweet with brain tumors is confirmed, we should all be outraged, both at the industry and at the FDA, our federal watch dog.
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LongeCity
