Warning to Glenn Beck: Don't Drink Diet Coke

The popular Fox News host announced today he's taking a medical leave, because “There is something wrong with my voice, and we’re not sure what it is,”

That's not all. "Yes," he told an audience of 6,000 in Salt Lake City two weeks ago, "I (also) have a problem with my eyes,”

Like millions of Americans, he consumes a lot of Diet Coke and chocolate, reports the New York Times in a feature on Mr. Beck last month.

Whether or not you share Mr. Beck's political views, here's what makes this news for all of us:

Guess what's in Diet Coke?

The sugar substitute, aspartame. And today, because of Beck's stature across the USA, news services are reporting how the "sugar substitute" aspartame is likely making Beck blind.

"Coca-Cola began putting the “sugar substitute” aspartame in Diet Coke in 1982. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, aspartame accounts for over 75 percent of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. Many of these reactions are very serious including seizures and death."

"In 1999, the Independent...discovered that the maker of aspartame, Monsanto, uses genetically engineered bacteria to produce the “sweetener” at its U.S. production plants." See here.

Here's what Glenn Back needs to know:

"Aspartame is linked to blindness. It is made up of 50% phenylalanine, 40% aspartic acid and 10% methyl alcohol. Methyl alcohol inevitably affects vision. Back when the government imposed prohibition on the country, thousands of people went blind due to the use of wood alcohol/methanol in spirits."

Is it worth going blind over Diet Coke?

P.S. "In addition to blindness, a report produced by the Department of Health and Human Services lists over 90 symptoms related to aspartame, including: migraine headaches, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, tachycardia, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss, and joint pain. The following chronic illnesses are triggered or worsened by ingesting aspartame: Brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, mental retardation, lymphoma, birth defects, fibromyalgia, and diabetes." See here.