Diet Milk with Aspartame, No Label Required, Really?

by Anne Gordon, R.N.

Green Med Information, 4 March 2013

The dairy industry has lost market share due to perceived healthier drinks such as 'rice', 'soy' or 'almond' milk, etc. So they hatched an idea. Why not create 'diet' milk products, adding aspartame, and selling it to children as a 'healthy' diet drink. That's right. Putting aspartame in milk to 'reduce' caloric intake, for healthier, less obese children.

Tasty flavored milk could be created to win back some of the market share, and since many want to reduce obesity, while adding professed nutrition, this could work to increase profits. Sounds good, doesn't it? Instead of sodas, people could consume an entire line of exotic new sweet milks, sour creams, made for less money.

However, there's just one more thing that is chilling here. Very chilling. Today, the FDA allows the dairy industry to use what is termed 'nutritive sweeteners' such as high fructose corn syrup or sugar. These are usually placed on labels for consumers to determine for themselves if they want to consume those.

Yet, the dairy industry is now petitioning the FDA to allow, 'non nutritive sweeteners' (chemicals) such as aspartame, without letting you know. What? At least the FDA has opened public comments until May 21 for anyone interested in 'submitting comments,' however, this short 'comment' period is not well advertised. Have you heard about it?

Aspartame failed FDA testing in the past, because it was shown to be dangerous to the central nervous system.¹ Donald Rumsfeld who had a political career, also worked for Searle, (who sold aspartame) and well, aspartame became okay to consume. Since then, aspartame has been utilized despite many scientists finding that it is a poison. Maybe a little aspartame is okay? Aspartame is used in a range of products from diet soda's to sauces, and soon, possibly milk, condensed milk, sour cream, etc.

Imagine fake strawberry milk, or chocolate milk and other exotic irradiated pasteurized drinks with aspartame? Ironically, raw milk, is the enemy of the dairy business, because it is thought to create illness. What about sneaking chemicals into your milk? Isn't that potentially a health issue? With all of the negative health information on aspartame, and its potential harm, why would the dairy industry want to hide it? Think about it.

Artificial sweeteners have been allowed in milk for some time, as long as they were properly labeled. So the issue is about 'hiding' what's in your milk, milk products, or other foods. What are we the consumers letting slip by regarding the foods we consume? No labeling of genetically modified foods, and now possibly aspartame in dairy products without a label? This is not right.

You could still make a difference until the 21^st of May, for public comments. Visit the FDA's Regulations.gov page for directions on how to comment on the issue, listed as Docket No: FDA-2009-P-0147. Do something....or something will be done, and you might never know it until you, or your children suffer from strange ailments.

The time is now.