Considering one soft drink maker's very deceptive ploy to promote 7-Up as 100 percent natural, companies will do anything to grab the attention of consumers, particularly teens. So much so, a Las Vegas firm has labeled its newest energy drink Cocaine, even though it contains absolutely none of the ingredients of the illegal drug.
Although a visit to the product's Web site reminds people to consume Cocaine responsibly (along with the expected legal disclaimers warning children and pregnant moms not to drink it), various news accounts say the energy drink is being advertised as a "legal alternative" to the real thing. Far from the "real thing," however, the only kick in a can of Cocaine is 280 milligrams of caffeine, still less than you'd ever get after drinking an expresso.
Understanding its main competition is Red Bull, Redux Beverages claims their new and improved energy drink is "350 percent stronger," hence, I suspect, where the origin of that ridiculous name came from... In my mind, even more dangerous than consuming this misnamed energy drink -- fortunately only available in New York and Southern California -- is a page on its Web site showing some suggested combinations of concoctions with alcohol, a toxic cocktail indeed. And, it's sweetened with dextrose, a component of that anything but natural sugar, Splenda too.
Thankfully, products in a can like Cocaine are transitory, and your health, if you make the right lifestyle choices, can last a very long time. Make an impact on your health that'll last a lifetime by staying away from specialty drinks and soft drinks.
Daily Mail September 21, 2006
ABC News September 18, 2006
MSN Video September 18, 2006 Free Video Link
Not only are the toxic compounds used to make cigarettes more addictive than reported, smoking "light" cigarettes with allegedly fewer contaminants are at least as deadly as the "real thing," and tobacco manufacturers knew about it too, thanks to a ruling from a Brooklyn federal judge.
Unlike other class-action lawsuits against Big Tobacco citing personal injury, however, this one differed in that it wanted to prove light cigarettes were fraudulent products dating 35 years back to when Philip Morris introduced Marlboro Lights. This could be a huge setback for the tobacco industry, as 45 percent of its customers smoke "light" cigarettes.
The response from the general counsel representing Altria, the reformed, renamed Philip Morris that produces 50 percent of America's cigarettes: The federal government -- not Big Tobacco -- was to blame for the belief "light" cigarettes were any safer than the real ones.
Light or not, cutting back on cigarettes -- even down to one a day -- won't lower your risk of cancer. Your best bet is to go cold turkey, with the help of an effective tool like the Emotional Freedom Technique.
New York Times September 26, 2006 Registration Required
Spartanburg Herald-Journal September 26, 2006
If you thought using an artificial sweetener like aspartame or Splenda as an insecticide was a bit far-fetched, consider this study about eliminating malaria using a sugar solution spiked with the deadly Spinosad.
Scientists used a combined solution of sucrose and Spinosad (an oral insecticide) to virtually eliminate the entire mosquito population in an oasis located in southern Israel. The few insects left after the initial spraying were new adults whose growth was controlled by the sucrose/insecticide mix.
Although this article doesn't explore the possibility, obviously, one could use Splenda to address the deadly problem of malaria, responsible for the deaths of an estimated 2 million people every year. (Some experts believe malaria may have killed half the people who ever lived!)
The major conventional approach for malaria is to kill mosquitoes with DDT. In many ways, however, Splenda is similar to DDT as it is a chlorinated hydrocarbon. Also, many do not realize Splenda was discovered by accident when researchers were working with compounds that were insecticides. One of the Indian researchers misunderstood his instructions and thought he heard taste the chemical, when it was test the chemical.
And, as they say, the rest is history...
Still, it would make a lot more sense to use Splenda rather than DDT as the anything but sugar concoction is clearly less toxic.
International Journal for Parasitology, Vol. 36, Nos. 10-11, September 2006: 1077-1080
Science Blog September 25, 2006
The (Lakeland, Fla.) Ledger September 22, 2006
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