An INTERVIEW WITH Dr.Janet Starr-Hull regarding Aspartame:
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This aspartame interview was granted on 8/30/03 with
Rebecca Kang from Singapore:

Interview
Q: How often does an average person happen to consume
products with aspartame?

A; Daily in the United States. Aspartame is put into so
many different products, consumers are exposed to it without
awareness much of the time. Aspartame is in many products
NOT labeled sugar-free, such as gums, cereals, ice creams,
yogurts, and medications. I also have clients who consume
up to a 12 pack of diet colas daily. And keep in mind, that
children are consuming more and more aspartame laced
products at earlier and earlier ages, which means they will
develop health problems at earlier and earlier ages.
Henceforth, the onslaught of children's disease syndromes -
diabetes, ADD/ADHD, depression and behavioral disorders.

Q: What is the limit for safe aspartame consumption?

A: None. No human, nor any animal, should intake methanol
at any dose at any time - ever.

Q: Aspartame is a very controversial food additive and has
alleged harmful effects. However, is there any proof for that
accusation?

A: Numerous research studies. Reference Sweet Poison, as
I write about the independent research scientists with
tangible research results of harm to the fetes and adult
laboratory animals. One fact to note: independent researchers
have proven over and over again the dangers of aspartame,
while the research stating it is safe has been performed by
research scientists on 'corporate payrolls.' This is not
objective research but has the power of money behind it.
Independent researchers don't have the financial backing,
so they are pushed out of the spotlight and kept silent.

Q: Would you agree that the public in general is poorly
informed about aspartame? If so, what are the possible
reasons?

A: Absolutely correct. The reason is money and greed. The
pharmaceutical companies own most of the products
aspartame is found in, and they also own the advertising
entities, and the drugs prescribed for the health symptoms
caused by aspartame. Therefore, the same companies who
are causing the problem profit from the drugs to mask the
symptoms. They control the whole game, and have financial
interest in the government agencies responsible for public
safety.

Q: We recently did a survey on the awareness of Singaporeans
towards Aspartame. Results clearly show that a majority of
Singaporeans have no idea what aspartame is. And also a
considerable portion would not bother to find out what it is,
despite hints that it could be suspicious.

A: Apathy is a danger in modern societies. Too little time,
too much pressure at work, and too many conveniences with
too little physical effort to get them. People are becoming
lazy. The younger generations are becoming lazy, too. If
we all would learn from history and from our elders and
remember to get back to the basics of living as they once did,
the diseases and mental instability caused by the toxins
within our environments and our foods would be less today.
Money and 'things' have become too important. Our health
and mental stability are suffering because of it.

Q: As a nutritionist, would you agree that most Singaporeans
have little idea about what they eat? If so, what would you
advice us to do to increase this awareness in Singapore?

A: We must slow down, get back to the basics of life, and not
be sheep lead to the slaughter when it comes to modernized
foods and convenience products. Convenience and technology
is wonderful, but not to the degree that we can be so easily
manipulated and so easily lead down this road of imbalance.

Q: Would you, at all, advise Singaporeans on a need to find
out the safety of their food? Or would you trust that to the
health authorities?

A: I would not trust the authorities of any country who agree
to barter with corporations dealing financial gains at the
expense of the pubic. I once trusted our leaders to be fair and
truthful, but cannot and do not any more. As I wrote in
Sweet Poison, the FDA is not the bad guy in America, and for
the most part, governments as a whole are not at fault. It is a
chosen few individuals within the government agencies who
impose personal reward at the expense of millions of consumers.

If it weren't for the Internet, none of this information would be
public today. Neither you nor I would be sharing this information
right now. But as a professor, researcher and educator, I will
always believe that it is imperative that all people know both
sides of any issue. Truth is freedom. To manipulate the truth
is a crime. Make sure your political leaders are not willing to
'make a deal' with the larger corporations who profit at the
expense of the masses. And also make sure the truth behind
aspartame, and any issue, is allowed to be spoken publicly. In
America, the wealthy manufacturers pay-off or threaten those
who choose to air this information publicly. I have much proof
on this.

Q: If there is any other information you wish to add, feel free to
include it in the reply for the interview. We might have overlooked
some important points.

A: Please go back and reread Sweet Poison, as so much is
said within those pages. This issue is real, and not meant to
harm anyone (but the pocketbooks of those who gain millions).
This information is meant to teach individuals of all cultures
the hidden facts and dangers of a manipulated and very toxic
food chemical saturating the world's food supply. Money has
bought aspartame its position of power - not quality of goods.
People are getting very sick and weak from aspartame. That
is true and very real.

Good luck in your quest for perfection, truth, and understanding.
Our food supply is a web of confusion in modern times. Money,
greed and power are at the root of too many modern foods.
Politics interferes with human survival and health. Sad, but true.
What do we do? Get back to the basics of eating and drinking
so to feed our bodies and our minds what nature intended. Slow
down, take time to meditate and get to know yourself. Be happy
with who you are and don't strive for more than you need. To
open the door to future health, we must find the keys from the
past. There lie the answers of simplicity and health.

There is so much to say on this issue. The roots run deeply into
the self, politics, governments, and greed. All you can do is be
the best individual you can be, stay unattached to dependencies
and quick fixes. Look at the motives of those who push these
'drugs' on society and decide for yourself why this benefits you
above profit. If you can see no goodness or purity in a product,
put it back on the shelf.

And most importantly, teach the children how to get back to the
basics of life.....

Wishing you and Singaporeans well. Keep spreading the word
about aspartame and always stay open-minded.

Dr. Janet Hull

You say:
"Aspartame is made up of three chemicals:
Aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol."

This is misleading. Aspartame can *break down* into those three chemicals. It's not "made up of" them any more than it's made up of benzene or other chemicals with structures / functional groups.

You say:
"each person has different symptoms".
I'm no doctor but why _would_ they think that a whole range of patients with different symptoms were suffering from the same disease with the same cause? It seems like quite a stretch.

if you want to drink it, fine.

I prefer to err on the side of caution, i waont ever drink it or eat it ever again.

I didn't say I would choose to eat products containing aspartame. I read the article then pointed out one misleading statement and one that I thought was unreasonable.

If you want to err on the side of caution, Health Freak, I'd say start by not swallowing unreferenced articles on open publishing websites. Why trust self-appointed experts just because they aren't funded?