My medical records from diagnosis through high school were in this envelope.

Requesting my records had always been at the back of my mind, but I was never sure that they were still there (since a lot of hospitals destroy old patient records after 7 years or so). Finally, Chris urged me to get them, saying it couldn’t hurt to try– but he also said, “But don’t get your hopes up, just in case they’re gone.” I called Children’s Hospital and talked to a cheerful lady in the Records department. Imagine my excitement when she said, “We don’t destroy records.” HOLY SMOKES!

So now, here they are, after having traveled across the country. It’s a thick packet, about 100 pages, of my [very bumpy] journey with type 1 diabetes. There were things in there I already knew (such as my bg at diagnosis: 327), but the things that interested me the most were the clinic notes.

Those were really hard to read. I saw myself go from a totally compliant 9-year-old girl to a monstrous teenager who didn’t give a shit about good control. Hey, other teens did drugs, drank at parties, had unprotected sex…me, I fudged my blood sugars. I keep telling myself it could have been worse. :P

I found all my lab values and made a timeline:

07/08/1993 – 14.8 (a little over a month after diagnosis; I have no record of getting an A1c taken at diagnosis, so this is the closest one)
02/24/1994 – 11.8
05/19/1994 – 7.5
08/11/1994 – 8.9
09/15/1995 – 7.6
12/14/1995 – 8.5
05/24/1996 – 8.3
08/30/1996 – 7.8
11/22/1996 – 7.9
02/28/1997 – 8.3
09/19/1997 – 6.5
01/30/1998 – 6.4
08/07/1998 – 7.7
04/23/1999 – 9.9
08/27/1999 – 8.2
03/17/2000 – 9.8
06/09/2000 – 9.4
10/27/2000 – 11.8
06/01/2001 – 9.9

Seriously, WTF was I thinking? 11.8?! I fluctuated so much during my teen years…maybe it was a reflection of my raging hormones?

And on the WTF front, I thought I was being so slick testing a billion times the nights before my endo’s appointments, changing the date and time on my meter with each test (Mom and Dad, if you’re reading this…remember, I was 16!!!). I wasn’t fooling anybody: “She certainly has a marked discrepancy between her home glucose testing and her A1c values. What is quite remarkable in looking at her home glucose values is that there is very little deviation of her glucose readings around the average value at any particular time of day. This is quite unusual to see such a small spread between the highest and lowest numbers even on someone who is taking multiple daily injections. I would be a little suspect as to the validity of all these measurements.” AY!

My other favorite comment was: “We do not have any log books today, as Faye reports that she ran out of log books since it has been such a long time since her last visit.” Right, because I couldn’t buy a notebook myself, or even better, use a piece of paper?

Perhaps one comment that kind of struck me as weird (now, at least) was from the dietitian. I remember not being too fond of her; I guess the feeling was mutual: “She has had difficulty with compliance issues and is not maintaining as tight a control as we know she is capable of.” It’s funny because now, I think I’m pretty compliant, and working harder to get my A1c as low and stable as possible.

It was interesting looking back at the first 8 years of being diabetic. Even though Chris was the one who encouraged me to get my records, I’m a little hesitant to let him read them…I’m ashamed at what the last few years held. He said, “It’s okay. You were a teenager. The important thing is that you realized the importance of good control, and you’re doing a good job now.” :) I was glad he said that, because honestly, I was starting to feel like I was the worst patient ever at Children’s Hospital!

To end this post, here’s a picture of me at my First Communion, about a month before I was diagnosed (also the skinniest I’ve ever been in my life):

If I’m going to wear something all day long, every single day, it better look good. I found a ton of sites that had customizable jewelry, but nothing really stood out to me. I wanted something bold but discreet at the same time.

Finally, I hit the jackpot with My Flying Star, a San Francisco-based company (hey, Chris’ hometown!) that makes custom medical alert jewelry, and absolutely fell in love with the Red Big Dipper. It was pretty much exactly what I was looking for, a big red circle about the size of a quarter, with a steel Star of Life. Any normal person would just think it’s a red circle with a silver star, but this could save my life in an emergency.

The back of the pendant boldly displays that I have type 1 diabetes and wear an insulin pump. This is definitely a far cry from the thin, hard-to-read script on my old bracelet.

Aside from the beautiful jewelry, the thing I really appreciated about My Flying Star was its owner, Elizabeth. My necklace shipped out faster than I thought it would, but for some reason, USPS failed with matching the address on the package to my work address. They marked the package as “unable to deliver” and left a notice…only that notice was apparently left at someone else’s door, because my workplace never received one. Elizabeth followed up with me; she had been checking the outstanding tracking numbers and noticed this with my order. Customer service is a huge part of any company, and reaching out to someone (before they call you about a problem) wins major points.

P.S. If you guys are wondering about that blue bracelet in my pile of daily jewelry, it’s the JDRF Who’s Your Link? bracelet. Thanks Sarah for letting everyone know about it!

I asked my boss if he knew anyone, and he referred me to Dr. B. Dr. B specializes in the retina, and more specifically, he specializes in diabetic retinopathy. My first appointment with him absolutely freaked me out– he said he wasn’t worried about the retinopathy (“It’s normal for someone who’s had diabetes for 17 years”) but saw something else he was more concerned about. He told me to go upstairs to see Dr. T, a neuro-ophthalmologist, right away.

At this point, I was starting to have a panic attack. WTF was going on with my eyes?? You never get referred to another specialist that quickly unless something is wrong.

Turns out the nerves in my eyes are swollen. Dr. T said she couldn’t be sure if it was just how I was born or if it was truly a problem, so she scheduled me for an MRI (those things are freaky as hell, btw). The results ended up being that everything was fine, that’s how my nerves really look. Fat nerves, I guess.

Fast forward to yesterday, to my six-month follow up with Dr. B. He didn’t seem to agree with Dr. T’s assessment of the MRI scans. Then he said, “There is a little bit of hemorrhaging, but it’s hard to tell if it’s because of the diabetes, or because of your nerves.” He called it a pseudo tumor…and of course all I heard was TUMOR.

“Wait, what?! I have a tumor?!”

He assured me that it wasn’t a real tumor; that’s why they called it a pseudo tumor. And I thought, “Holy crap, can you call it something else?!”

Dr. B said that, at my next appointment with Dr. T, I needed to have a talk with her to see what was going on, what’s in the future, and what I should be doing.

So here’s my dilemma. One doctor says I’m okay; another says I’m not. One doctor is telling me that it’s hard to tell what’s going on with my eyes because of another problem. The other one is saying I’m fine. Who do I believe?

I saw my endo today and gave her an update on yesterday’s events and a quick recap of what happened six months ago. She agreed that the two conflicting opinions was a little strange, but everything seems okay otherwise. I don’t have floaters, or random flashes of light, or blurriness (aside from the blurriness due to my craptacular vision).

She also mentioned a study that I found kind of ironic: if a person goes from a high A1C and suddenly goes to a good one, it actually makes retinopathy worse. Makes no sense, but it is what it is. I told her that prior to going on the OmniPod, my A1C was in the mid 8′s. Six months after I switched, my A1C was 6.9, then it dropped to 6.5, hung out at 6.2 for a few months, and my most recent one is 6.1.

We’ll keep monitoring it. I’m hoping this really isn’t a serious issue, as both ophthalmologists are looking out for different things, but it’s really bugging me that two experts have conflicting assessments. Maybe I need to get a third opinion?

That being said, my endo visit today was a LOT better. My labs are good, my A1C is great (I’m still pushing for under 6, but hey, I’ll take 6.1), and everything is going well on the Ping. I do have a lot to work on in terms of getting in shape and losing weight before it’s time to think about a baby (and piling more weight on my body), so Lord help me with that. For some reason I think it’s easier to work on a stable A1C than it is to lose weight! O_o

Then I went to pee (sorry, TMI) and nearly yanked out my new site. Yikes!

Okay, so maybe there are a few things I still need to get used to. Usually my pump is tucked away in between my girls, and I never pull it out during the day to bolus (thank you, handy dandy meter remote). At night though, when I’m wearing my pajamas, the pump is clipped to my shorts. And sometimes I don’t remember it’s there.

Aside from the random yanking of tubing, I’m thankfully short enough that doorknobs don’t notice the tubing. (Side note: I had a site change today and I ripped off the old site, just to see how it would feel. Ouch.)

So far, so good. My bg’s have been completely awesome lately, ranging from 69 to 156. I’m trying out the angled and straight sets to see which one I like best, and also which ones work on different parts of my body. I learned the hard way that a site change requires multiple packages…I’ve been spoiled with the all-in-one packaging of the OmniPod and never had to worry about making sure I had infusion sets, tubing, and oh yeah, CARTRIDGES. I’m learning how to use the ezManager software and how amusing it is to hear La Cucaracha for my alerts.

We’ll see where this journey goes, but so far I’m loving the ride. :)

Art is not one of my strong points, and inspiration tends to hit me at random times. I’ve been in a dry rut ever since I found out about D Art Day, so I decided to cheat and use something I took back in March. Photography counts as art, right?!

I call this one “Keeping the Balance.” It’s dedicated to those days you’re chasing highs and lows, trying to find that happy medium between crashing lows and annoying highs. I had just been treating a low (funny how a childhood favorite is now something I turn to when I barely have any energy to move), and while I was waiting for the juice to kick in, I decided to clean out my meter case. Dumped all the test strips into the trash can. A few minutes later, I looked down and had to laugh at the irony. Bonus points for the flavor; reminds me of California ;)

So there it is, my lame contribution to D Art Day. Not that it only lasts a day, because I tend to look for the beauty in something as ugly as this disease every single day.

30 Things About My Invisible Illness You May Not Know

1. The illness I live with is: type 1 diabetes

2. I was diagnosed with it in the year: 1993. May 29, to be exact.

3. But I had symptoms since: a month or two prior. My mom caught it because I mentioned to her that I was having symptoms like Stacey in the Baby-Sitters Club. She scolded me and told me not to say stuff like that, but it prompted her to watch me closely. At diagnosis, my bg was 327, which was way lower than what some others are diagnosed at.

4. The biggest adjustment I’ve had to make is: having a manual pancreas.

5. Most people assume: that I ate too much sugar as a kid. Not true, actually.

6. The hardest part about mornings are: waking up to a high bg, or being tired from stalking wandering bg’s all night.

7. My favorite medical TV show is: House, MD. Hugh Laurie…man!

8. A gadget I couldn’t live without is: medically, my CGM (and by default, my OmniPod). Otherwise, it would most likely be my iPhone.

9. The hardest part about nights are: making sure I’m in range and pod sufficiently filled with insulin before going to bed.

10. Each day I take __ pills & vitamins. (No comments, please) 1 allergy pill, 1 birth control pill, 1 ACE inhibitor (not because of high bp, but for renal protection).

11. Regarding alternative treatments I: laugh and sorta roll my eyes. I’m all for praying for a cure, but in the end, God has given me the tools to take care of myself while I wait.

12. If I had to choose between an invisible illness or visible I would choose: invisible, for sure, although sometimes I think I’m more visible than I’d like to be with various robot parts peeking out of clothes.

13. Regarding working and career: I try to not let it get in the way of work. Sometimes I need to take a few minutes to test and treat, but for the most part I keep calm and carry on.

14. People would be surprised to know: that I hardly get burned out with this disease (I have though, and it was depressing not having anyone to talk to). I know each day is a new day, and each bg is just another picture in the album of life.

15. The hardest thing to accept about my new reality has been: that it really isn’t a new reality. It’s been part of me for so long that testing my bg and bolusing before each snack or meal is completely normal.

16. Something I never thought I could do with my illness that I did was: be okay. Be healthy. You hear all these horror stories about diabetes, and if it wasn’t for my stubborn nature, I’d definitely be one of those people who are too scared to test for fear of seeing a high number.

17. The commercials about my illness: piss me off. Not all diabetics have horrible control and will have amputated limbs.

18. Something I really miss doing since I was diagnosed is: uhh…I can’t even remember what life was like before orange-capped syringes and painful fingersticks. On second thought, I kinda miss when my dad used to bring me lunch at school every day (carefully balanced, of course).

19. It was really hard to have to give up: being able to eat whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.

20. A new hobby I have taken up since my diagnosis is: reading d-blogs!

21. If I could have one day of feeling normal again I would: be verrrrry weirded out. At this point, my definition of “normal” is pretty different from someone who does not have diabetes.

22. My illness has taught me: that I am stronger than I thought I could ever be. I haven’t let this get me down, and I don’t plan on letting it.

23. Want to know a secret? One thing people say that gets under my skin is: any ignorant comment really, but as of right now it’s “What the heck is THAT on your arm?!”

24. But I love it when people: ask me questions about diabetes, because it shows me that they really are interested in learning and not just assuming.

25. My favorite motto, scripture, quote that gets me through tough times is: “If God puts you through it, He’ll get you through it” and “Keep calm and carry on.”

26. When someone is diagnosed I’d like to tell them: don’t sweat it. You’ll be fine (and then introduce them to the DOC).

27. Something that has surprised me about living with an illness is: there are SO MANY of us out there.

28. The nicest thing someone did for me when I wasn’t feeling well was: run across the street to get juice for me (and please ignore the fact I didn’t have anything on me, haha).

29. I’m involved with Invisible Illness Week because: even though we have an invisible illness, we as people are very visible. We’re not just a statistic.

30. The fact that you read this list makes me feel: happy! :)

Since summer began, Starbucks has been giving out their very tempting treat receipts: buy a drink before 2pm, and you can buy a grande cold drink after 2pm for $2 (plus tax). Of course, this also marks that time of day where I’m squirming at my desk, trying to fight off the food coma from lunch. Perfect afternoon break!

One day, I noticed that familiar feeling of “I’m going to be low soon so I should get something.” Steph and I headed over, and I ordered a passion tea lemonade.

R, one of my favorites, made my drink, and as he was about to slide it across the counter to me, he stopped and said, “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure, what’s up?”

“What’s that on your arm?”

I looked at the back of my left arm and saw my pod peeking out from under my sleeve.

“Oh, it’s my insulin pump.” I turned to give him a better look.

“Oh, you’re diabetic? Wait…I made your drink sweetened. Is that okay for you? Do you want me to make another one with no syrup?”

I was truly touched at his genuine concern (and thankful he wasn’t one of those darn food police Storm Troopers) and assured him it was okay. I explained my bg was dropping and that I needed something to kick it back up. He, in turn, explained that he has a family history of diabetes and that he was getting regular check ups to make sure everything was okay. I commended him for staying on top of things, since most people don’t.

I left Starbucks feeling hopeful that not everyone out there will see my pod and say, “What the heck is THAT on your arm?!” (To which I want to respond, “What the heck is THAT coming out of your head? Oh, it’s your face.”) Or those who see my pod and say, “Wow, is that a nicotine patch?” (Um, not sure what kind of patches you’re using but that is a helluva lot of nicotine.) I love telling people about type 1 diabetes, but if you’re going to come at me with really dumb comments, it’s really hard for me to not be sarcastic.

Cheers to those who are curious and inquire in a respectful manner!

Since I’ve thankfully never had to use one of these, an expired kit meant I finally get to see what’s inside! I cleared off a space on my desk and got to work.

First, I popped open the vial of glucagon powder. It was a little harder to open than an insulin vial but it made that same satisfying snap.

Next, I removed the needle from the case and uncapped it…only to be greeted by this thing:

WTF. For crying out loud, why is the needle so damn big?!

After figuring out how the kit worked and marveling at the crazy bubbles coming back into the syringe, I posted my shock of the needle on Facebook and Twitter. Mike called it a harpoon, and he isn’t too far off the mark. I wouldn’t want someone coming at me with that, so I’m glad I’m [supposed to be] unconscious when this is used on me.

I had a completely different response on Facebook, and one of the comments made by a friend got to me: “I don’t know how you could do that!” It irks me, as it’s along the lines of “I could NEVER inject myself multiple times a day!” Well, let me ask…

If you were given a choice between daily insulin injections or death, which would you pick?

I know it’s a little extreme to put it that way, but not taking your daily injections/medication can and will lead to your untimely demise. It’s not easy having to prick my fingers multiple times a day and be hooked up to various pieces of technology that monitor my blood sugar and control my insulin. It’s not sexy, it’s not convenient, and it’s definitely not something I prefer. But do I have a choice? Sure I do, but the choice is pretty obvious to me: test, treat, inject/pump, make sure everything is on track. Rinse, lather, repeat. It’s become so much a part of my life that I don’t even think twice about doing it. I just do what is needed in order to not just live, but to live a healthy, and hopefully long, life.

This year, my co-pay for a visit to my doctor increases (from $25 to $30 for a specialist, from $20 to $25 for my PCP).

This year, my portion of the payment for durable medical equipment DOUBLES (coverage by my employer goes from 90% to 80%). Considering how much OmniPod supplies are, this is definitely not something I can afford.

Last year, I wrote about my experiences with wanting to switch to the Animas Ping, due to the amount of insulin I lost if a pod malfunctioned. I think I fell off the blogging bandwagon, because I never followed up. To make a long story short, my insurance company denied my appeal saying I was still under warranty and that Insulet should be replacing my pods. Not what I was arguing, but okay. I decided to give it a rest and just look for a new pump when my warranty expires in 2012.

However, due to this massive increase in my co-insurance for DME, I decided to try for the Ping again. The cost of supplies on my part will be way cheaper and easier for Chris and me to afford (keep in mind I’m the only one working a full-time job while Chris is in pharmacy school full time. We’re not exactly rollin’ in dough, haha).

An Animas rep called me back the day after I faxed over my paperwork. He said he had seen my paperwork from last year, and I explained what happened and what I was trying to do. Then he said, “So I guess you want to do AAP, right? It doesn’t go through your insurance.” Obviously I was confused and didn’t know what AAP was…

He explained– and apparently for me, the pump gods and the stars were aligned. It’s the Animas Access Program, and it lets you trade in your current pump for a recertified Ping for $200! Well, you pay $900 up front, and upon receipt of your current pump, Animas gives you $700 back. Oops, wrong info! You actually pay $200 up front, and if don’t send your current pump to Animas within 20 days of training, you’ll be billed $700. The warranty on your current pump also carries over (you’re covered for at least 2 years on the Ping, even if your current warranty is that long). Sounds like a pretty good deal to me! Insurance doesn’t pay for anything, and I get a “new” pump for $200!

My first reaction was “Why didn’t anyone tell me this last year?!” Turns out it’s only available during certain times (of the year, of the decade, I don’t know).

After talking over it with Chris (and asking him to do some research, because I was still in that “this sounds too good to be true” mindset), we agreed that we should push forward with this. My other option was to go back on MDI if I was denied again, but it looks like I won’t have to.

A pump consultant will be contacting me on Monday to go over next steps and what I need to do. I’ve already called my endo’s office to give them a heads up that a certification of medical necessity is needed soon. I know my endo is very on board with me switching pumps, given the issues I was encountering before, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

I’m trying not to get my hopes up in case something falls through, but I’m VERY excited!

In October of 2001, my sister started getting very sick.  She had stomach spasms and she was having a hard time getting around. Walking was a major chore.  It took everything she had just to get out of bed; she was in so much pain.

By March 2002, she had undergone several tissue and muscle biopsies and was on 24 various prescription medications.   The doctors could not determine what was wrong with her.   She was in so much pain, and so sick she just knew she was dying.

She put her house, bank accounts, life insurance, etc., in her oldest daughter’s name, and made sure that her younger children were to be taken care of.

She also wanted her last hooray, so she planned a trip to Florida (basically in a wheelchair) for March 22nd.

On March 19, I called her to ask how her most recent tests went, and she said they didn’t find anything on the test, but they believe she had MS.

I recalled an article a friend of mine e-mailed to me and I asked my sister if she drank diet soda?   She told me that she did.   As a matter of fact, she was getting ready to crack one open that moment.

I told her not to open it, and to stop drinking the diet soda!   I e-mailed her an article my friend, a lawyer, had sent.   My sister called me within 32 hours after our phone conversation and told me she had stopped drinking the diet soda AND she could walk!  The muscle spasms went away. She said she didn’t feel 100% but, she sure felt a lot better.

She told me she was going to her doctor with this article and would call me when she got home.

Well, she called me, and said her doctor was amazed!  He is going to call all of his MS patients to find out if they consumed artificial sweeteners of any kind.   In a nutshell, she was being poisoned by the Aspartame in the diet soda… and literally dying a slow and miserable death.

When she got to Florida March 22, all she had to take was one pill, and that was a pill for the Aspartame poisoning!   She is well on her way to a complete recovery.  And she is walking!   No wheelchair! This article saved her life.

If it says ‘SUGAR FREE’ on the label;   DO NOT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT!

I have spent several days lecturing at the WORLD ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCE on ‘ASPARTAME,’ marketed as ‘NutraSweet,’  ’Equal,’ and  ’Spoonful.’

In the keynote address by the EPA, it was announced that in the United States in 2001 there is an epidemic of multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus.  It was difficult to determine exactly what toxin was causing this to be rampant.   I stood up and said that I was there to lecture on exactly that subject.

I will explain why Aspartame is so dangerous:   When the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in ASPARTAME converts to formaldehyde and then to formic acid, which in turn causes metabolic acidosis. Formic acid is the poison found in the sting of fire ants.   The methanol toxicity mimics, among other conditions, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus.

Many people were being diagnosed in error.   Although multiple sclerosis is not a death sentence, Methanol toxicity is!

Systemic lupus has become almost as rampant as multiple sclerosis, especially with Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi drinkers.

The victim usually does not know that the Aspartame is the culprit.   He or she continues its use; irritating the lupus to such a degree that it may become a life-threatening condition.   We have seen patients with systemic lupus become asymptotic, once taken off diet sodas.

In cases of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, most of the symptoms disappear. We’ve seen many cases where vision loss re turned and hearing loss improved markedly.

This also applies to cases of tinnitus and fibromyalgia.   During a lecture, I said,  ’If you are using ASPARTAME (Nutriara Sweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc) and you suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms, spasms, shooting, pains, numbness in your legs, Cramps,
Vertigo, Dizziness, Headaches, Tinnitus, Joint pain, Unexplainable depression, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision, or memory loss you probably have ASPARTAME poisoning!’   People were jumping up during the lecture saying, ‘I have some of these symptoms.  Is it reversible?’

Yes!  Yes!  Yes!
STOP drinking diet sodas and be alert for Aspartame on food labels!   Many products are fortified with it!   This is a serious problem.   Dr. Espart (one of my speakers) remarked that so many people seem to be symptomatic for MS and during his recent visit to a hospice; a nurse stated that six of her friends, who were heavy Diet Coke addicts, had all been diagnosed with MS. This is beyond coincidence!

Diet soda is NOT a diet product! It is a chemically altered, multiple SODIUM (salt) and ASPARTAME containing product that actually makes you crave carbohydrates.

It is far more likely to make you GAIN weight!

These products also contain formaldehyde, which stores in the fat cells, particularly in the hips and thighs.   Formaldehyde is an absolute toxin and is used primarily to preserve ’tissue specimens.’

Many products we use every day contain this chemical but we SHOULD NOT store it IN our body!

Dr. H. J. Roberts stated in his lectures that once free of the ‘diet products‘ and with no significant increase in exercise; his patients lost an average of 19 pounds over a trial period.

Aspartame is especially dangerous for diabetics.   We found that some physicians, who believed that they had a patient with retinopathy, in fact, had symptoms caused by Aspartame.   The Aspartame drives the blood sugar out of control.   Thus diabetics may suffer acute memory loss due to the fact that aspartic acid and phenylalanine are NEURO TOXIC when taken without the other amino acids necessary for a good balance.

Treating diabetes is all about BALANCE.   Especially with diabetics, the Aspartame passes the blood/brain barrier and it then deteriorates the neurons of the brain; causing various levels of brain damage, Seizures, Depression, Manic depression, Panic attacks, Uncontrollable anger and rage.

Consumption of Aspartame causes these same symptoms in non-diabetics as well. Documentation and observation also reveal that thousands of children diagnosed with ADD and ADHD have had complete turnarounds in their behavior when these chemicals have been removed from their diet.

So called ‘behavior modification prescription drugs’ (Ritalin and others) are no longer needed. Truth be told, they were never NEEDED in the first place!

Most of these children were being ‘poisoned’ on a daily basis with the very foods that were ‘better for them than sugar.’

It is also suspected that the Aspartame in thousands of pallets of diet Coke and diet Pepsi consumed by men and women fighting in the Gulf War, may be partially to blame for the well-known Gulf War Syndrome.

Dr. Roberts warns that it can cause birth defects, i.e. mental retardation, if taken at the time of conception and during early pregnancy.   Children are especially at risk for neurological disorders and should NEVER be given artificial sweeteners.

There are many different case histories to relate of children suffering grand mal seizures and other neurological disturbances talking about a plague of neurological diseases directly caused by the use of this deadly poison.’

Herein lies the problem:   There were Congressional Hearings when Aspartame was included in 100 different products and strong objection was made concerning its use. Since this initial hearing, there have been two subsequent hearings, and still nothing has been done. The drug and chemical lobbies have very deep pockets.

Sadly, MONSANTO’S patent on Aspartame has EXPIRED!   There are now over 5,000 products on the market that contain this deadly chemical and there will be thousands more introduced.   Everybody wants a ‘piece of the Aspartame pie.’

I assure you that MONSANTO, the creator of Aspartame, knows how deadly it is.

And isn’t it ironic that MONSANTO funds, among others, the American Diabetes Association, the American Dietetic Association and the Conference of the American College of Physicians?

This has been recently exposed in the New York Times.  These [organizations] cannot criticize any additives or convey their link to MONSANTO because they take money from the food industry and are required to endorse their products.

Senator Howard Metzenbaum wrote and presented a bill that would require label warnings on products containing Aspartame, especially regarding pregnant women, children and infants.

The bill would also institute independent studies on the known dangers and the problems existing in the general population regarding seizures, changes in brain chemistry, neurological changes and behavioral symptoms.

The bill was killed.

It is known that the powerful drug and chemical lobbies are responsible for this, letting loose the hounds of disease and death on an unsuspecting and uninformed public. Please print this out or e-mail to your family & friends.

Thoughts?