Some of us are unable to use normal sugar rather than artificial sweetners, ie Diabetics. We have no option other than to expose ourselves to possible issues with these products as there is no alternative other than to completley cut out sweet foods and drinks!

Sucrose

People with diabetes used to be advised to avoid sucrose (as sugar and in sugary foods) and to eat a sugar-free diet. It is now known that sugar does not raise blood glucose levels any higher than starch, provided the same amount of carbohydrate from sugar or starch is consumed. The current advice from Diabetes UK is that sugar can be included in the diet for people with diabetes provided that it is used in the context of a healthy diet and does not account for more than 10% of the total calories.(1)

The diet for people with diabetes is based on the same guidelines for healthy eating that apply to everyone; that is, a diet which is low in fat, salt and sugar and which contains plenty of fruit and vegetables, with meals that include some starchy carbohydrate foods such as bread, pasta, potatoes, chapatis, yam and plantain.[/endquote]

"We have no option other than to expose ourselves to possible issues with these products as there is no alternative other than to completley cut out sweet foods and drinks!"

Sounds like a free choice to me - take a risk or go without.

They still sell milk from cows fed on GM food though...

 http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2004/07/294383.html

And Lord sainsbury is a massive cash donor to the death loving Labour party.

So I still wont shop there.

If you want maybe try Agave syrup tastes sweet I have drunk a soft drink with it in and it tasted fine:



 http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en&q=Agave+syrup&btnG=Search&meta=cr%3DcountryUK%7CcountryGB

Also one I've heard of but never tasated in anything is Stevia.

There is Date syrup and raw molasses sugar which might not upset Diabetics' bodies much.

"Unlike sugar and other artificial sweeteners, it contains naturally high levels of fruit sugar, also known as fructose.

Fructose is a slow-release carbohydrate which is absorbed much slower into the body and does not need a lot of insulin - the chemical that triggers our sugary 'highs and 'lows' - to break it down.

The sweetener therefore raises blood-sugar levels gently, keeping sugar cravings at bay and helps people to burn , rather than store, fat. "

Source:

 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=406199&in_page_id=1770

If you like fizzy drinks one great alternative is Whole Earth canned drinks. They contain no added sugar or artificial sweeteners, and also they are organic. They are less sweet than the mass market versions but over time I have now found I prefer the cleaner fresher taste, and also they are healthier. They are made from just water, fruit juices and natural flavourings. They make Cola, Orange, Cranberry, Ginger, Lemonade and Elderflower.

Also as someone else mentioned, fructose (fruit sugar) is a natural alternative to glucose sugar which can be used just like normal sugar so you can make your own cakes / biscuits / ice cream / whatever. In fact you need less of it as it tastes sweeter. However it doesn't caramelise like glucose sugar so you can't make things like creme brulee.

In general, it's best to avoid the artificial sweeteners altogether (they taste terrible anyway) and just use sugar in moderation.

Finally let's remember that sweetened products are really a luxury. Some people don't even have enough basic food to stay alive.

Tesco is Britains biggest supermarket. Monsanto, who own Nutrasweet, developed aspartame using genetically-engineered bacteria. Companies sometimes just label it as E951 or 'contains a source of phenylalanine'.

 http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/sepp/2003/07/20/aspartame_and_gm_bacteria.htm

An american girlfriend warned me 15 years ago that aspartame caused brain-tumours but I would never have guessed it was in toothpaste. Sugar was my first addiction - my first words were 'ding dong' whenever I heard an icecream van. I've just drank 142kcal of Irn-Bru - I had no alternative as it is the only antidote to whisky poisoning.

"When this process of purification of sucrose was first invented, it was carried out by hand and only small quantities of table sugar could be made. It was so expensive, only royalty and other very rich people could afford to consume it as regular fare. Degenerative diseases were once the privilege of the rich. Now everyone can afford them."

 http://www.medical-library.net/sites/framer.html?/sites/_sugar_addiction.html

From: "elvira52"
>Reply-To:  DisabilityParty@yahoogroups.com
>To:
>,
>Subject: [DisabilityParty] Fw: New Aspartame Study, Hungary, and Second
>Ramazzini Study showing aspartame causes cancer at low doses. (Correction
>- April 23rd on the Ramazzini Study not October)
>Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 13:14:00 -0400
>
>Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum. Wrote:
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum."
>To:
>Sent: Monday, April 30, 2007 9:01 AM
>Subject: New Aspartame Study, Hungary, and Second Ramazzini Study showing
>aspartame causes cancer at low doses. (Correction - April 23rd on the
>Ramazzini Study not October)
>
>
> > (Note from Martini) An oncogene is a gene found in certain DNA tumor
> > viruses and is required for viral replication. Genes whose mutations
>can
> > permit or induce uncontrolled cellular proliferation and malignant
>change
> > are of 2 types: protooncogenes and tumor suppressor genes
> > (antioncogenes).
> >
> >
> http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Retrieve&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=17354619&query_hl=2&itool=pubmed_DocSum
> >
> > In Vivo. 2007 Jan-Feb;21(1):89-92.
> > Links
> >
> > The effect of aspartame administration on oncogene and suppressor gene
> > expressions.
> > *
> >
>Gombos
> > K,
> >
>Varjas
> > T,
> >
>Orsos
> > Z,
> >
>Polyak
> > E,
> >
>Peredi
> > J,
> >
>Varga
> > Z,
> >
>Nowrasteh
> > G,
> >
>Tettinger
> > A,
> >
>Mucsi
> > G,
> >
>Ember
> > I.
> >
> > Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Public Health University of Pecs,
>Pecs,
> > Hungary.  katalin_gombos@yahoo.com
> > BACKGROUND: Aspartame (L-phenylalanine N-L-alpha-aspartyl-1-methyl
>ester)
> > is an artificial sweetener with widespread applications. Previously
> > published results have shown that among rats receiving aspartame a
> > significant increase of lymphoreticular neoplasms, brain tumours and
> > transitional cell tumours occurred. The aim of our short-term experiment
> > was to investigate the biological effect of aspartame consumption by
> > determining the expressions of key oncogenes and a tumour suppressor
>gene.
> > MATERIALS AND METHODS: After one week per os administration of various
> > doses of aspartame to CBA/CA female mice, p53, c-myc, Ha-ras gene
> > expression alterations were determined in individual organs. RESULTS:
>The
> > results showed an increase in gene expressions concerning all the
> > investigated genes especially in organs with a high proliferation rate:
> > lymphoreticular organs, bone-marrow and kidney. CONCLUSION: Aspartame
>has
> > a biological effect even at the recommended daily maximum dose.
> >
> > PMID: 17354619 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
> > __________________________________________________________
> > Also on October 23, at Mt. Sinai Medical School, Dr. M. Soffritti,
> > European Ramazzini Foundation released a second study on aspartame that
> > confirmed the carcinogenicity of aspartame at low doses. His new study
> > suggests a danger to unborn babies and especially to children, including
> > the newly identified risk of breast cancer as the child ages. He also
> > says aspartame causes leukemia, lymphoma and pelvis and kidney tumors.
> >
> > Dr. Soffritti said that his study should be a WAKE UP call to the FDA to
> > seriously reconsider the use of aspartame. He was deeply concerned that
> > aspartame is in approximately 500 drugs.
> >
> > __________________________________________________________
> >
> > Dr. Betty Martini, D.Hum, Founder
> > Mission Possible International
> > 9270 River Club Parkway
> > Duluth, Georgia 30097
> > 770 242-2599
> > www.wnho.net and www.dorway.com
> > Aspartame Information List www.mpwhi.com
> > Aspartame Toxicity Center, www.holisticmed.com/aspartame
> >
> > _____________________________________________________
> >
> > Note: Dr. H. J. Roberts, author of the medical text, Aspartame Disease:
> > An Ignored Epidemic, www.sunsentpress.com or 1 800 827 7991 mentions
> > oncogenes in his peer reviewed journal article on brain tumors:
> >  http://www.dorway.com/betty/brainc.txt We are taking aspartame brain
> > tumors in New York and New Jersey. In Dr. Soffritti's first study it
> > showed that only the rats fed aspartame developed malignant brain
>tumors.
> >
> > A good discussion of the Ramazzini Study of 2005 is Dr. Russell
>Blaylock's
> > lecture, The Truth About Aspartame, www.atavistik.com He is the author
>of
> > Excitotoxins: The Taste That Kills, www.russellblaylockmd.com
> >
> > Aspartame Documentary, Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World, www.amazon.com or
> > Barnes & Noble.
> >

I don't know how that happened, but here are the links:-

The effect of aspartame administration on oncogene and suppressor gene expressions.

 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Gombos+K%22%5BAuthor%5D>Gombos
K,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Varjas+T%22%5BAuthor%5D>Varjas
T,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Orsos+Z%22%5BAuthor%5D>Orsos
Z,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Polyak+E%22%5BAuthor%5D>Polyak
E,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Peredi+J%22%5BAuthor%5D>Peredi
J,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Varga+Z%22%5BAuthor%5D>Varga
Z,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Nowrasteh+G%22%5BAuthor%5D>Nowrasteh
G,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Tettinger+A%22%5BAuthor%5D>Tettinger
A,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Mucsi+G%22%5BAuthor%5D>Mucsi
G,
 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=pubmed&cmd=Search&itool=pubmed_AbstractPlus&term=%22Ember+I%22%5BAuthor%5D>Ember
I.