Sugar Substitutes: Bitter Facts
Article of the Month:
Sweet Poison: The Harmful Effects of Sugar Substitutes
Sugar is portrayed as poison today, and rightly so. Many of us feel that it is safer to opt for the Sanjeev Kapoor and Bipasha Basu endorsed sugar substitutes, because face it – almost all of us have a sweet tooth at some point in time.
But are sugar substitutes really safer and healthier than sugar?
Aspartame is a very common sugar substitute used by companies such as Equal, NutraSweet, and Canderel. It is used in approximately 6,000 consumer foods and beverages sold worldwide, including (but not limited to) diet sodas and other soft drinks, instant breakfasts, breath mints, cereals, sugar-free chewing gum, cocoa mixes, frozen desserts, gelatin desserts, juices, laxatives, chewable vitamins supplements, milk drinks, pharmaceutical drugs and supplements, shake mixes, tabletop sweeteners, teas, instant coffees, topping mixes, wine coolers and yogurt.
So is aspartame really good for us? Lets find out. Here is the list of health problems Aspartame causes.
– Headaches, dizziness, and everything from confusion to ringing in the ears and slurred speech
– Brain Damage and Seizures, Brain Tumors
– Vision Impairment
– Multiple Sclerosis
– Diabetes Mellitus (it is also said to hasten the occurance of the diseases associated with Diabetes)
– Hypertension, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Most interestingly, aspartame may actually cause weight gain.
Here are some links that’ll help you learn more if you are interested:
Aspartame Dangers: A detailed article that covers many aspects of this artificial sweetener
Aspartame Warning: Links to many articles on Aspartame dangers, written by M.Ds and PhDs.
Aspartame Dangers & Side Effects: Articles on Aspartame dangers, information, case histories, side effects, and more.
Reiki Survey!
All of you who are practicing Reiki regularly, please do fill our Reiki survey form if you haven’t done so already.
Please Click here to fill a very easy 2-min survey about the impact of Reiki on your life.
http://www.reiki-bangalore.com/expform.shtml
New Moon Meditation
Let us all meditate on 12th June, Saturday Morning, at 10 AM, and pray for world peace and universal love. I suggest you set a reminder in your cell phone for the same. If it is not possible for you to meditate during this time, you could meditate at any other time more convenient to you.
The New Moon is a time for new beginnings, for introspection, and looking within. It is a wonderful time to start new projects, and to plant seeds. It is also a good time to acknowledge our emotions, especially the ones we tend to push aside. The simple act of allowing ourselves to feel those emotions, to sit with them rather than trying to fix them, can be very life affirming and healing. It is a time to be gentle with ourselves, allowing our emotions to speak to us and reveal their wisdom. You can sit quietly with yourself, light a candle, and allow yourself to express yourself in whatever way feels right. It is a good idea to meditate on the sensations in your body or the feelings you have at the moment. Merely observe, and let the feeling/ sensation pass on its own.
Visit this site to read more about a Reiki New Moon Meditation.
Channel-Talk
The practice of Reiki has definitely helped me heal the loss of my husband a lot faster and I can now look at things more practically. I also noticed that when I think of someone they call me, and when I think of something, it comes to me in some form or the other. I have also healed my daughters during stress and they feel much better.
I wish i had learned Reiki way earlier in life. It would have guided me through so much in life. Better late then never!! What I love most about it is in its basic sense it is a gratitude we offer to the universe for every moment we are here and that truly is the essence of the spiritual journey of our life. The material world is constantly changing but reiki you can truly focus on goodness of the universe and feel only gratitude for everything around you. If the whole universe practiced this we can make a huge difference.
Chitra B,
2nd degree channel, Bangalore
Author of ‘Healing Through Reiki’, Ashwita learned Reiki in 1997, and started teaching it in 2006. She now incorporates other forms of energy healing, as well as hypnotherapy and past life therapy in her work. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, crafts, reading and painting.
Buy her book at
