And now he’s leaving to start a new job – with Coca Cola. Tosser.

Because there are a lot of people like Fletch and Hinamanu who are gullible and don’t understand how easy it is for crackpots to distort and misrepresent facts and make things look scary when they aren’t.

Fletch (3,771) Says:
January 21st, 2013 at 7:31 pm

But who know. I totally stay away from the stuff and I’m worried that phenolenaline (spelling?) now in stuff like Berocca, cough medicine, vitamin C tablets etc, as a sweetener

Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid. It is a natural part of the human diet and is found in the breat milk of mammals.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenylalanine
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essential_amino_acid

An essential amino acid or indispensable amino acid is an amino acid that cannot be synthesized de novo by the organism (usually referring to humans), and therefore must be supplied in the diet.

Other than those with phenylketonuria, why are people worried about it?

Its about as close to the dark side as I go these days, like I said, living on the edge

Magnuson, B. A.; Burdock, G. A.; Doull, J.; Kroes, R. M.; Marsh, G. M.; Pariza, M. W.; Spencer, P. S.; Waddell, W. J. et al. (2007). “Aspartame: A Safety Evaluation Based on Current Use Levels, Regulations, and Toxicological and Epidemiological Studies”. Critical Reviews in Toxicology 37

Aspartame is a methyl ester of a dipeptide used as a synthetic nonnutritive sweetener in over 90 countries worldwide in over 6000 products. The purpose of this investigation was to review the scientific literature on the absorption and metabolism, the current consumption levels worldwide, the toxicology, and recent epidemiological studies on aspartame. Current use levels of aspartame, even by high users in special subgroups, remains well below the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and European Food Safety Authority established acceptable daily intake levels of 50 and 40 mg/kg bw/day, respectively. Consumption of large doses of aspartame in a single bolus dose will have an effect on some biochemical parameters, including plasma amino acid levels and brain neurotransmitter levels. The rise in plasma levels of phenylalanine and aspartic acid following administration of aspartame at doses less than or equal to 50 mg/kg bw do not exceed those observed postprandially. Acute, subacute and chronic toxicity studies with aspartame, and its decomposition products, conducted in mice, rats, hamsters and dogs have consistently found no adverse effect of aspartame with doses up to at least 4000 mg/kg bw/day. Critical review of all carcinogenicity studies conducted on aspartame found no credible evidence that aspartame is carcinogenic. The data from the extensive investigations into the possibility of neurotoxic effects of aspartame, in general, do not support the hypothesis that aspartame in the human diet will affect nervous system function, learning or behavior. Epidemiological studies on aspartame include several case-control studies and one well-conducted prospective epidemiological study with a large cohort, in which the consumption of aspartame was measured. The studies provide no evidence to support an association between aspartame and cancer in any tissue. The weight of existing evidence is that aspartame is safe at current levels of consumption as a nonnutritive sweetener.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12180494

Butchko, H; Stargel, WW; Comer, CP; Mayhew, DA; Benninger, C; Blackburn, GL; De Sonneville, LM; Geha, RS et al. (2002). “Aspartame: Review of Safety”. Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 35

Over 20 years have elapsed since aspartame was approved by regulatory agencies as a sweetener and flavor enhancer. The safety of aspartame and its metabolic constituents was established through extensive toxicology studies in laboratory animals, using much greater doses than people could possibly consume. Its safety was further confirmed through studies in several human subpopulations, including healthy infants, children, adolescents, and adults; obese individuals; diabetics; lactating women; and individuals heterozygous (PKUH) for the genetic disease phenylketonuria (PKU) who have a decreased ability to metabolize the essential amino acid, phenylalanine. Several scientific issues continued to be raised after approval, largely as a concern for theoretical toxicity from its metabolic components–the amino acids, aspartate and phenylalanine, and methanol–even though dietary exposure to these components is much greater than from aspartame. Nonetheless, additional research, including evaluations of possible associations between aspartame and headaches, seizures, behavior, cognition, and mood as well as allergic-type reactions and use by potentially sensitive subpopulations, has continued after approval. These findings are reviewed here. The safety testing of aspartame has gone well beyond that required to evaluate the safety of a food additive. When all the research on aspartame, including evaluations in both the premarketing and postmarketing periods, is examined as a whole, it is clear that aspartame is safe, and there are no unresolved questions regarding its safety under conditions of intended use.

I drink up to 3L of water a day, depending on levels of training, heat etc. Rode an hour today on the track, and then an hours run. Still drinking, sweats pissing off me, but I will not stop until Ive passed the clear stream test before bed.

And my question to PEB – why would you knowingly put a man made chemical with dubious roots in to your body?

I also remember reading people talking about Michael J Fox and his Parkinsons in relation to him being having been a sponsor for Diet Pepsi in the 80s and downing cases of the product (supplied free) during the filming of Family Ties.

But who know. I totally stay away from the stuff and I’m worried that phenolenaline (spelling?) now in stuff like Berocca, cough medicine, vitamin C tablets etc, as a sweetener

And he wants a snort as well.

Thanks, that is interesting. I have never examined the nutritional label of a bottle of milk before. Good point about the kids drinking at night.

Perfectly logical really. As labrator says, it’s all about endorphins and adrenaline. Which is why the LSV scheme in NZ is such a bloody good idea, and why it should be extended to any adult offenders who want it (because the first rule of addiction is that treatment won’t succeed unless the addict wants to change).

And why we should be looking at taking people who repeatedly display high-risk behaviours, including so-called “hoon drivers”, and looking at giving them safe outlets at which they can boost their adrenaline, whether that be a closed race track, abeseiling, parachuting or whatever rather than posturing about crushing cars.

Costly, perhaps. But not as costly as the crime it’d be preventing.

hmmokrightitis (1,028) Says:
January 21st, 2013 at 11:16 am
DPF, seriously, ditch the diet and zero –

I keep reading and hearing this but I have yet to see anyone put in the ground and the mourners standing around saying “the Diet Coke fucked him”, I’ve been drinking 2 – 8 cans of Diet Coke a day since I gave the piss away years ago and its done me no harm at all .

And of an evening I kick back with Caffeine Free Diet Coke , I am aware that I am living on the edge but hell someone has to do it.

And the edits back, nioooooce

Lets face it, itstricky is a known beneficiary fraudster and has stolen money

Sigh, again. Pretty typical example of what I was on about i.e. the first four or five vommiting out “the commies are banning coke” comments before they’d even thought it through.

But past that there are some very good, articulate points made in this thread about the subject of addiction and weight loss/gain that are very interesting.

if it contains a blatant untruth it is perfectly fair to point that out without addressing anything else

What, you mean the coke versus milk calorie thing? Surely not?

(a) Coke is purely sugar (or chemicals for the diet stuff). Coke has no nutritional value. Milk does.
(b) Coke causes dental issues. Milk doesn’t. Well, at least I don’t think it does. I imagine all the calories in milk are fat, not sugar.
(c) Nobody sits down and sculls a litre of milk each day. People do that with Coke.
(d) Sugar is an addictive substance that is easy to market to teenagers. It’s much harder to market heroin to teenagers. Market milk to teenagers?
(e) I don’t imagine milk has put people into hospital before. I do imagine that Coke has. Think about all those taxpayer dollars that go into the health system for sugar related issues.

So, sure, the calorie count don’t stack up but Coke is bad for you. Milk isn’t. But continue to nit pick to boldly find the untruths if you like.

Incidentally, I find the article to really be about the statement that McCarten makes regarding CCA’s products “It’s not as if they are doing anything extraordinary or indeed remarkable. It isn’t even socially beneficial.” The outgoing makes a parting shot at the public for not supporting big business. The public say “well just not -your- big business”. Fair enough.

Has much research been done on “addictive personalities” as a driver of crime?

Yes… and no. Most of the research is on the correlation between addiction and criminal offending, which is of course incredibly high. The causation is assumed… I need money for drugs so I rob you… and while that’s broadly correct, there’s not enough (in my very humble opinion) done on intervention prior to offending.

And that’s because such interventions don’t only not generate votes, in many cases they would be likely to result in a large vote against the proponents; things like safe injecting rooms, state provision of heroin (not methadone, which is a nasty, even more addictive substitute) and so on.

Getting back to sugar, I do some work in an Aboriginal community where a quarter of a watermelon costs over $10 (I took photos to prove it to incredulous city dwellers) while Coke is the same price as anywhere else. There is no coffee bar or juice bar or sandwich shop or supermarket in the town, just the “General Store” with its outrageous monopoly prices, so I drive past the service station at 8am to see adults and children breakfasting on Coke, fried chicken and chips.

Yes they could get organised, car pool to the supermarket, buy the slightly cheaper healthy options (still dearer than the city and much moreso than junk food) but the problem isn’t just those practical things… they all tell me the pies and Coke taste better than cereal. And damnit they do, because they’re engineered that way by, amongst other bad things, the addition of large quantities of processed sugar.

It’s blindingly obvious the issue is a complex mix of addiction, habit, lack of choices, lack of education about right choices (for the adults at least) economic factors and yes, laziness. But simply yelling “stop eating that s**t, you weak willed losers” is not going to make one iota of difference to the problem, which needs to have all the factors addressed at once – just like crime.

If anyone thinks weak will is the primary cause, I invite them to come spend a holiday up there with me. Every time the local kids see my 4WD parked at the house now, there’s a bang on the door. The first time I opened it and saw a gang of them there I figured I’d be asked for money or a lift somewhere (which is invariably what the adults want when they call).

Instead they said “Mister, you got any fruit?”. I’m ashamed to admit my first thought was that they wanted me to open the security door so they could run through the house thieving, but I took a chance, went and got a bag of oranges and opened the door. They fell on the fruit like it was the most precious thing on earth, thanked me and left. Whenever I travel to the supermarket now, I buy extra fruit.

Millions of dollars goes into Aboriginal communities, but as far as I know no one simply drives a truck full of fruit in and opens the tray. Yet the potential that one action would have to change lives seems, at any rate, immense…