… I think I am killing myself.

I drink and eat aspartame like it’s water. My sweet tooth just can’t get enough of this stuff and sugar has never cut it for me.

Aspartame is defined as “an artificial sweetener made from aspartic acid; used as a calorie-free sweetener.” In 1976 FDA approved aspartame in the use of foods, and later discovered that the researcher who submitted the work, “had cut out tumors in animals that had been fed aspartame and neglected to report all of them or check for cancer. Also, animals that were “reported as dead, were later reported alive again” In fact, I have discovered that people can get aspartame toxicity from this deadly chemical… not just from several cans of diet coke. Reports have shown that people have gotten aspartame toxicity through one single piece of sugar-free gum.

Symptoms include:

Eyes

- Blindness in one or both eyes decreases vision and other eye problems such as blurred vision, bright flashes, squiggly lines, tunnel vision, decreased night vision, pain in one or both eyes, decreased tears, trouble with contact lenses, and bulging eyes.

Ears

- Tinnitus: ringing or buzzing in ears, severe intolerance to noice, marked hearing impairment.

Neurological

- Epileptic seizures, headaches, migraines, dizziness, unsteadiness, confusion, memory loss, severe drowsiness, sleepiness paresthesia, numbness in limbs, severe slurring of speech, hyperactivity and restless leg syndrome, and severe tremors.

Psychological/Psychiatric

- Severe depression, irritability, aggression, anxiety, personality changes, chest palpitations, tachycardia, shortness of breath, high blood pressure.

Gastrointestinal

- Nausea, diarrhea, sometimes with blood in stools, abdominal pain

Endocrine and Metabolic

- Loss of control of diabetes, mentrual changes, marked thinning or loss of hair, marked weight loss, gradual weight gain, aggravated low blood sugar, severe PMS.

Ok, so now that I have scared you into never picking up a diet coke for the rest of your life, I am pleased to present to you stevia! Stevia is a natural sweetener found in a herbal plant in South America.

Having up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar, this sweetener is sure to meet your sweet tooth. Careful though, no one warned me about this and I poured in the same amount as that of Splenda. One small pinch of this stuff and you are good to go.

Now for you Diet Coke addicts like me, Zevia is a new calorie free coke made from stevia… Hints the name!

ZEVIA is all-natural, has zero calories, zero net carbs, zero fat, and little or no sodium. Flavors range from Zevia natura coke, Zevia ginger ale, Zevia root beer, Zevia natural twist, Zevia orange, and Zevia black cherry. I have had the pleasure of trying all of these flavors and I must say that I enjoyed all of them, but my favorite is black cherry and orange.

But don’t take my word for it… check out some of these stores to try a few out: Whole Foods Market, Henry’s, Albertsons, or Vitamin City. Check out HERE for a local store near you.

Question

Have you ever tried Stevia? What did you think about it?

What Zevia flavor would you like to try?

Now you can enjoy all the jelly, jams, and fruit spreads that you want without all the added sugar and calories. I recently discovered Walden Farms Calorie Free Fruit Spreads while shopping at Sprouts.

These fruit spreads are made with concentrated fruit extracts, splenda, and natural flavors, but no calorie, fat, carbs, gluten or sugars of any kind. I know there is controversy with splenda, but at least it’s not aspartame! Where do you stand with splenda?

There was a variety of fruit spreads to choose from, including strawberry, raspberry, blueberry and apricot, and orange, but when I saw Apple Butter, I just couldn’t resist. Obviously since it was a fruit spread it didn’t have the rich creamy taste of REAL apple butter, but it did had a great cinnamon apple flavor.

The best part was that you can use this one ingredient to spice up any meal! Here were a few recipes I used with my Walden Farms apple butter:

- Spread on toast  or a biscuit with small amount of butter

- Mixed with low fat yogurt, a small amount of honey, and Fiber One Cereal

- Combine with oatmeal, almond milk, raisins, and chopped up apples and a little bit of cinnamon

- Mixed in with frozen yogurt

- Swirl it into some fat free cottage cheese, raisins, sprinkled with Grapenuts Cereal

- Mixed with fat free cool whip and spread on a rice cake… tasted just like apple pie for only 50 calories!

Here is a pic of one of the many yummy recipes I made durning my afternoon snack

I have to admit… I am a recovering frozen yogurt addict soley on the fact that frozen yogurt is a half hour away. Stating that I have an obsession with frozen yogurt would be a huge understatement. At one point I had it every day. Soon enough I just ended up getting a frozen yogurt machine to save me money.

Frozen yogurt has become the new starbucks craze for many areas. Many people are talking about Golden Spoon, Pinkberry, Yogurtland, Red Mango, and Mojos. Some are served for you, others you serve yourself, and the latest one I found had a coldstone feel where they mixed in your toppings for you. You can get sweet flavors, fruity flavors, or the tart ones.

I love how there are so many options at each place!

With all the talk of frozen yogurt, the best part is that there are so many health benefits to them. Here are some to name a few:

* Aids in digestion

* Boosts immune system

* Has Beneficial Metabolic effects

My dad and I always go to Golden Spoon when I come to visit!

* Lowers cholesterol

* Low in sodium

* Low in calorie

* Overcome lactose intolerance

* High in calcium for strong bones and teeth

* A good source of protein

* Stops acne

* Contains the vitamins B12 and riboflavin.

* Contain live and active bacteria cultures including S. thermophilus, L. bulgaricus, L. lactis and L. acidophilus

So, with all these health benefits, is frozen yogurt

any healthier than ice cream?

Frozen yogurt’s nutritional content is different for each place, so be careful. While most are fat-free, there are several out there that are not. Many frozen yogurts are high in sugar as well, so look for those sugar-free signs.

A normal serving of ice cream is anywhere from a half to a cup of ice cream,  but when it comes to frozen yogurt, many people are getting double to triple  the amount, especially with those self-serve places. A large frozen yogurt can  add up to anywhere from 225-325 calories! It might be the fact that frozen  yogurt has been coined “healthy” so people feel that they can eat more.

Personally I think the frozen yogurt industry has taken the word “yogurt”  and stretched it as far as it can to make people think that they are eating  natural yogurt, so people tend to over eat it and consume way too much

… speaking of myself, I can consume 32 oz of Golden Spoon in one sitting!

So, in conclusion, yes frozen yogurt has many health benefits and yes it is much lower in calories and fat in comparison to ice cream. But like everything, it is good in moderation… so swap that large cone for a small.

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Oh sugar… it’s a love / hate relationship!
I love it so much, but then hate it in the long run when it sticks to by hips and thighs.

Go look through your pantry and check out the sugar content on those nutrition labels… you will be shocked at some of your favorite foods you would think are low in sugar and aren’t!

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Granola Bars or just plain Granola

– Granola usually contains oats, raisins and almonds. Healthy right? Well all these different ingredients are held together by oil, significantly increasing the fat and calories. For half a cup of granola you can find a whooping 400 calories. Now add the yogurt and fruit you have on the bottom… those fruit parfaits don’t sound so exiting any more do they? As far as granola bars go, I enjoy the Special K granola bars that only have 90 calories. They are great as a snack or part of a breakfast on the go. Just be careful because they don’t fill you up till lunch.

Protein Bars / Shakes

- Protein bars aren’t meant to be downed after an hour workout. Instead, these bars are meant for those athletes that work out 4 hours a day. Put the nutrition label next to a candy bar and you soon be reaching for the candy bar… not to mention it tastes way better! The oatmeal raisin protein bar contains 230 calories, 2.5g of fat and 20 grams of sugar. You might as well be drinking a sugar jar!

Almonds / Nuts

– Almonds are a great source of fat and energy, but who just eats 10 small almonds in one sitting? I know I don’t. So be careful how many times you reach into that bowl of nuts at the next party.

Sports Drinks

– Sports drinks are just like protein bars. They are great for those that workout several hours a day and need to replenish their body with electrolytes, but an hour to hour and a half workout can easily be replenished by water, not to mention that they are full of sugar. In 12oz of Powerade, you will find 22g of sugar. Next time you want a sports drink go for PoweradeZero

Avocados

- Yes, we all know that avocado contain good fat, but careful because these fats and calories can add up super fast… and you normally don’t just eat the slice of avocado either. 1/5 of a medium avocado contains 4.5 g of fat and 50 calories, leading to 22.5g of fat and 250 calories in one avocado! So the next time you reach for an avocado think twice about proportion.

Low Fat Muffins

- You think they are low in calories but they are not. Starbuck’s low fat blueberry muffin contains 430 calories, 2.5g fat, and 57g of sugar… Step away from the muffins!

Yogurt

– Check the nutrition label on this so-called “healthy” foods. Yoplait’s yogurt contains a whooping 28g of sugar. You can find several yogurts made with splenda to cut down on the calories. Light yogurt is always a way to go too!

Tuna

– This food is a great source of protein. I love putting it on salads and on sandwiches, but be careful. Most people don’t eat it straight out of the can. They mix it with mayo, cheese and other dressings. Subways 6-inch tuna sandwich contains 530 calories, 31g of fat! WOW… I think I will get a turkey sandwich instead.

Fruit Juice and Smoothies

– These too are high in sugar… no wonder kids are always in a sugar high, they drink apple juice all day. I use to walk into Jamba Juice thinking I was being healthy for the day by getting a smoothies. Jamba Juice smoothies can run anywhere from 400-600 calories and 17g of sugar. Check the nutrition labels!!!!!!!