Here are 2 stickers we produced very quickly. Feel free to use them...

While I applaud anything that draws the death of the McDonalds Corporation nearer, there are other facts that should be taken into account here.

Stevioside - an extract of Stevia, also known as Steviosol - is not banned for any real reasons. There are no medical studies that show any side effects of it.

It is a sweetener which is fat free and carbohydrate free. It has been widely used in the world for many centuries. Most notably in Japan - a country whose food and drug laws are as stringent as in the US. It is thought to be A LOT safer than sugar (which is a known carcinogen).

Stevia was regarded by the FDA as a harmless herbal extract and dietary supplement. In the FDA's own parlance it was, "Generally recognized as safe". That is until Aspartame was invented. A trade complaint from the manufacturers of Aspartame (aka NutraSweet) led to the FDA banning the use of Stevia on the rather spurious logic that it was possible to react it in a laboratory and make a chemical that is likely to be carcinogenic. There was no evidence to suggest that particular reaction would or even could take place in the human body and the FDA refused and still refuse to release the results of the studies they are claiming to be basing their decision on. In fact, there have been many trials and studies which show that Stevia and it's extracts are unlikely to be at all harmful and may even be beneficial in diabetes as it is a sweetener which does not cause problems for diabetics and there is some evidence that it may even stimulate insulin production.

Aspartame on the other hand is a proven carcinogen, has recently been strongly linked with brain tumours, is known to convert partially to formaldehyde upon heating and damages the central nervous and immune systems. There are plenty of doctors who are starting to think that plenty of people thought to have MS may have been misdiagnosed and that they may actually have been damaged by apsartame poisoning.

Apparently it doesn't even taste as nice as Stevia.

Stevia appears to be a perfectly safe, natural sweetener which has been banned in the interests of Corporate American profits (so what else is new?) and where the FDA go, other countries follow. Interestingly, a major player in the company that developed Aspartame and bullied it onto the market is one Donald Rumsfeld. Now there's an unknown unknown for you!

I'm not going to post a load of links. Just type 'aspartame' or 'Stevioside' into Google and you'll see what I mean.

Having said all that though, McDonalds were still clearly in the wrong for using a banned substance in their foods in that country and anything which damages that particular company can only be a good thing. But I wouldn't be surprised if they replace the stevioside with aspartame and their food suddenly become even more harmful for the Hong Kong population.

Dear Afinkawan,

the point is that McDonalds has shown audacity by using a banned product in a particular place! Yes it is not an artificial substance but the FACT is that Hong Kong has banned it and McDonalds showed no respect! It might NOT be banned here or in the USA but the world is not just England or the USA! Please stop being so egocentric!

Yes, more research is needed and people are carrying that research out and there are some alarming bells. The initial article was put together after receiving information from people in Hong Kong and double checking it with Hong Kong Newspapers. Search under "stevioside Hong Kong".

Also, stevia is not the same as stevioside.Stevioside derives from stevia but it is not the same!

(see beyond the USA....)

Regards

Non Compos Mentis respecting different cultures

Do you actually read things before you reply to them?

I agreed that McDonalds were wrong to use a banned substance.

I never said stevioside was the same as stevia, I did in fact say that it was an extract of stevia.

You might want to look up the word egocentric in a dictionary as well.

Nothing I said implied that the world was UK or USA. In fact, what I implied was that the US Food and Drugs Administration had banned something used freely throughout most of the rest of the world, purely for economic reasons. I was placing the actions of the US in light of the global reality.

I did say that where the FDA goes, other countries follow. Like it or not, it’s a fact.

Being a Londoner, I find it very easy indeed to see beyond the USA, which is partly why I know some of this stuff – because I do take an interest in the things other countries do different to us.

I was also talking about a subject I know – as I’m a pharmaceutical quality specialist and a trained analytical chemist and have dealings with the FDA, as well as the British, Brazilian, Japanese, Argentinean, Russian, German and Italian pharmaceutical regulatory bodies, among others.

Yes McDonalds are evil for using banned substances, no there’s no real evidence that stevioside causes cancer or any other ill effects and from all the evidence available, if McDonalds start using aspartame in their sauce in Hong Kong instead of stevioside then that’s not necessarily a good thing just because one substance is banned and the other was bullied onto the market in the name of a big fat wedge of profit for Rumsfeld and his corporate cronies.

How about you try putting stevioside or aspartame into a search engine and seeing what you come up with? Read some facts and try to make an informed opinion.

Stevia and its extracts should be put to the same testing as any other food additive but the fact is that it seems to be pretty much harmless (certainly a less dangerous sweetener than either sugar or aspartame) and it’s only getting banned round the world because the FDA tend to force other countries to do what they tell them (or risk losing the American market) in favour of something that makes large profits for an American company.

Do you actually read things before you reply to them?

I agreed that McDonalds were wrong to use a banned substance.

I never said stevioside was the same as stevia, I did in fact say that it was an extract of stevia.

You might want to look up the word egocentric in a dictionary as well. Nothing I said implied that the world was UK or USA. In fact, what I implied was that the US Food and Drugs Administration had banned something used freely throughout most of the rest of the world, purely for economic reasons. I was placing the actions of the US in light of the global reality.

I did say that where the FDA goes, other countries follow. Like it or not, it’s a fact

Being a Londoner, I find it very easy indeed to see beyond the USA, which is partly why I know some of this stuff – because I do take an interest in the things other countries do different to us.

I was also talking about a subject I know – as I’m a pharmaceutical quality specialist and a trained analytical chemist and have dealings with the FDA, as well as the British, Brazilian, Japanese, Argentinean, Russian, German and Italian pharmaceutical regulatory bodies, among others.

Yes McDonalds are evil for using banned substances, no there’s no real evidence that stevioside causes cancer or any other ill effects and from all the evidence available, if McDonalds start using aspartame in their sauce in Hong Kong instead of stevioside then that’s not necessarily a good thing just because one substance is banned and the other was bullied onto the market in the name of a big fat wedge of profit for Rumsfeld and his corporate cronies.

How about you try putting stevioside or aspartame into a search engine and seeing what you come up with? Read some facts and try to make an informed opinion.

Stevia and its extracts should be put to the same testing as any other food additive but the fact is that it seems to be pretty much harmless (certainly a less dangerous sweetener than either sugar or aspartame) and it’s only getting banned round the world because the FDA tend to force other countries to do what they tell them (or risk losing the American market) in favour of one that makes large profits for an American company.

Afinkawan is pro vivisection and pro animal abuse. Just read other apoligist posts under the name Afinkawan. He/she talks sh*te and should just go back to the pro abuse hole he/she came from and rot there.

Thanks for your time everybody.

For anarchism and animal liberation,

Kropotkin's urchins