THE TIMES, OCTOBER 6, 2016 PAGE 6
Y
_ Splenda: !s it better
than an' other artificial
$
By PROF. RANDOLPH HOWES M.D., PhD
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Longtime medical columnist for The
Times, the author is an accomplished surgeon, medical inventor,
and Country music recording artist. Dr. I-Iowes grew up on his
parents' Ponchatoula strawberry farm. He is a graduate of St.
Joseph, Ponchatoula High School, Southeastern, Tulane - two
doctorates, followed by a residency at the Johns Hopkins HHospi-
tal in plastic surgery. He says he is "retired" now in Kentwood.
The doctor's column appears on facebook.com]theponchatou-
latimes and on facebook.colrdtheindependencetimes. It is also
available online at ponchatoula.com/ptimes)
The best-selling artificial sweetener around the
world is Sucralose, marketed as Splenda, and found
in tens of thousands of processed food products sold
in 90 countries.
It is several hundred
times sweeter than or-
dinary table sugar (su-
crose). Splenda is spe-
cifically marketed for
weight loss or to man-
age diabetes but studies
some show that it tends
to worsenboth of those
problems.
Sucralose was ap-
proved for use as a
sweetener in 1998. Be-
fore approving sucral-
ose, the FDA claimed to
have reviewed 110 hu-
man and animal stud-
ies, when in fact, only
2 of the studies were
on humans. Most of the
controversy surround-
ing Splenda is the way
it is advertised, "Made
from sugar, so it tastes
like sugar." This makes
it similar to aspartame
and saccharin and with
similar adverse health
effects. Actually, it
starts with cane sugar
but has three chlorine
molecules added to it,
which makes it "unnat-
ural" and not metabo-
lized by the body. The
fact that it is not me-
tabolized is what makes
Dr. Howes
sucralose non-caloric.
Reported symptoms in-
clude, seizures, dizzi-
ness, migraines, allergic
reactions, weight gain
and increases in blood
sugar, blurred vision
and gastrointestinal is-
sues.
After gaining approv-
al by regulatory agencies
in the U.S. and Canada
(and other countries)
in the 1990s, sucralose-
based Splenda over-
took aspartame-based
Equal and NutraSweet
and saccharin-based
Sweet'N Low as the
leading brand artificial
sweetener in the U.S.
market. The advan-
tages of sucralose over
regular sugar are many:
it is so sweet that it can
be used in much smaller
quantities than sugar,
it contains no calories,
it has no harmful effect
on teeth, it can be safely
consumed by diabetics.
However, study results
and opinions on safety
are varied.
A human tolerance
study published in the
journal Food and Chem-
ical Toxicology in 2000,
found "no indication
that adverse effects on
human health would
occur from frequent or
long-term exposure to
sucralose at the maxi-
mum anticipated levels
of intake". To the con-
trary, an in-depth 2013
scientific review of su-
cralose, published in
the Journal of Toxicol-
ogy and Environmen-
tal Health, reveals an
extensive list of safety
concerns, including tox-
icity, DNA damage, and
heightened carcinogenic
potential when used in
cooking. New research
shows that sucralose
starts breaking down at
119 degrees Celsius; 180
degrees Celsius causes
it to degrade completely.
At these cooking tem-
peratures it releases
chloropropanols, which
belong to a class of tox-
ins known as dioxins.
One of the selling points
of Splenda is that it
remains stable when
heated, making it well-
suited for cooking and
baking, but these find-
ings appear to refute
such claims.
In the America I love,
so-called expert opin-
ions are frequently at
odds with each other
and it is increasing dif-
ficult for consumers to
make rational choices.
Science can be ever so
frustrating
North Oaks receives recognition
Louisiana Department of Health and North Oaks Medical Center
officials joined together on Oct. 3 to celebrate the hospital's achieve-
ment of the state's highest breastfeeding quality designation, The
GIFT. Out of 51 birthing facilities in the state, North Oaks Medical
Center is the 27th out of 29 hospitals to achieve the designation. This
achievement demonstrates the hospital's commitment to offering
quality, patient-centered care and highlights how the North Oaks
Women & Children's Services team goes the extra mile to help give
mothers and babies a healthy start, as well as assures that mothers
who choose to breastfeed are supported. Participating in the presen-
tation are, from left: Breastfeeding Program Coordinator Betsy Dan-
cisak and The Gift Nurse Consultant for Southeast Louisiana Susie
Amick, both with the Louisiana Department of Health--Office of Pub-
lic Health--Bureau of Family Health. Representing North Oaks Medi-
cal Center are Lactation Nurse Tasha Daniel; Director of Women &
Children's Services Kimberly Woods; and Vice President of Patient
Services Kirsten Riney.
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