Chlorine is commonly found in nature, but almost always in combination with other natural building block elements. Chlorine's structure makes it very reactive because its Atomic outer shell is missing one electron, which makes it attractive to other atoms and molecules. Because it is so reactive, it is very useful to chemists, engineers and other people involved in making things we use every day. It has been exploited by manufacturers and is used in thousands of products, including such diverse items as cars, computers, pharmaceuticals, and military flak jackets. Chlorine is the ninth most copious chemical produced in the United States by volume.

When combined with other chemical building blocks, chlorine can change the nature of a substance, and build or improve a product. This is why chlorine was selected to be the substitute "atom" for the sucrose molecule in which to make Splenda.

But, should we EAT chlorine or simply use it for manufactured goods?

The most common industrial use of chlorine is the manufacture of a versatile plastic known as polyvinyl chloride, or PVC. PVC is a polymer, meaning on a microscopic level many small units of the same types of atoms are bound together to form long chains, similar to the linking of multiple paper clips. PVC pipes resist the pitting and corrosion common in metal pipes that often develop a slimy build-up of disease-causing microbes known as "biofilm." Elevated levels of chlorine disinfectant can destroy biofilms.

When combined with other chemical building blocks, chlorine can change the nature of a substance, and create a new product. To be used in manufacturing, chlorine must first be separated from the other elements with which it is combined. Manufacturers use a process known as "electrolysis," which breaks down salt water into basic components, including chlorine. Since opposite charges attract, the negative chloride ions collect at the positive poles and form molecular chlorine gas. The gas is dried, chilled and pressurized, or converted to liquid for storage and shipping.

Every time you drink a glass of water, read a newspaper, put on a vinyl raincoat, brush your teeth, drink a diet cola with Splenda, or drive your car, you are using chlorine in some form.

Hospitals to swimming pools use chlorine-based compounds such as bleach for disinfections. About 85 percent of the top-selling medicines are manufactured using chlorine chemistry. Chlorine also is used to manufacture flexible plastics such as vinyl (polyvinyl chloride). Crop-protection chemicals are based on chlorine, and chlorine helps ensure that products like disposable diapers and paper towels are strong and absorbent. And don't forget, chlorine is now found in hundreds of food products, including children's foods.

Chlorine vapors can irritate your lungs and pose a serious risk to people who suffer from asthma and other lung problems. Breathing the fumes of cleaners containing a high concentration of chlorine can irritate the lungs. This is especially true for people suffering from heart conditions or chronic respiratory problems such as asthma or emphysema. The risks are compounded when cleaners are used in small, poorly ventilated rooms. Cancer-causing chemicals like chlorine found in many household products are readily absorbed through the skin.

Chlorine is also a highly corrosive substance capable of damaging the skin, eyes, and other delicate membranes. Remember how your eyes burn after swimming in a highly chlorinated pool of water?

Pregnant women in their first trimester who drink five or more glasses of chlorinated tap water a day may be at a much higher risk of miscarriage than women who drink non-chlorinated water.

Just because a chlorine molecule is attached to one thing doesn't make it the same as something else containing chlorine. For example, consider the following four salts. They all contain chlorine, but they are not alike. Each contains a different set of building blocks and offers unique characteristics.

1. Iron (ferric) chloride (FeCl3): Used to make pigments, inks and dyes, in controlling odors and removing phosphates from municipal waste water, in photographic processes, and as medicine.

2. Calcium chloride (CaCl2): Used, when in a water solution, as antifreeze and refrigerating solutions, for the preservation of wood and stone, in the manufacturing of glues, cements and fireproof fabrics, and to speed-up the setting of concrete.

3. Sodium chloride (NaCl): Used in ceramic glazes, soap manufacturing, fire extinguishing solutions, and -- table salt.

4. Cupric chloride (CuCl2): Used in wood preservation, in the fabric dyeing process, and, when mixed with other copper salts, as an agricultural fungicide.

Drink up!!

http://www.janethull.com/newsletter/0704/chlorine-in-your-pool-and-diet-cola.php

Splenda Contains a potential poison

Splenda contains the drug sucralose. This chemical is 600 times sweeter than sugar. To make sucralose, chlorine is used. Chlorine has a split personality. It can be harmless or it can be life threatening.

In combo with sodium, chlorine forms a harmless "ionic bond" to yield table salt. Sucralose makers often highlight this worthless fact to defend its' safety. Apparently, they missed the second day of Chemistry 101 - the day they teach "covalent" bonds.

When used with carbon, the chlorine atom in sucralose forms a "covalent" bond. The end result is the historically deadly "organochlorine" or simply: a Really-Nasty Form of Chlorine (RNFOC).
Unlike ionic bonds, covalently bound chlorines are a big no-no for the human body. They yield insecticides, pesticides, and herbicides - not something you want in the lunch box of your precious child. It's therefore no surprise that the originators of sucralose, chemists Hough and Phadnis, were attempting to design new insecticides when they discovered it! It wasn't until the young Phadnis accidentally tasted his new "insecticide" that he learned it was sweet. And because sugars are more profitable than insecticides, the whole insecticide idea got canned and a new sweetener called Splenda got packaged.

To hide its' origin, SplendaTM pushers assert that sucralose is "made from sugar so it tastes like sugar." Sucralose is as close to sugar as Windex is to ocean water.

The RNFOC poses a real and present danger to all Splenda users. It is risky because the RNFOC confers a molecule with a set of super powers that wreak havoc on the human body. For example, Agent Orange, used in the U.S Army's herbicidal warfare program, is a RNFOC. Exposure can lead to Hodgkin's lymphoma and non-Hodgkins lymphoma as well as diabetes and various forms of cancer! Other shocking examples are the war gas phosgene, chlordane and lindane. (2) The RNFOC is lethal because it allows poisons to be fat soluble while rendering the natural defense mechanisms of the body helpless.

A poison that is fat soluble is akin to a bomb exploding internally. It invades every nook and cranny of the body. Cell walls and DNA - the genetic map of human life - become nothing more than potential casualties of war when exposed. Sucralose is only 25% water soluble. (3) Which means a vast majority of it may explode internally. In general, this results in weakened immune function, irregular heart beat, agitation, shortness of breath, skin rashes, headaches, liver and kidney damage, birth defects, cancer, cancer and more cancer - for generations! (1)

McNeil asserts that their studies prov e it to be safe for everyone, even children. That's little assurance. Learning from the VioxxTM debacle (and many others highlighted in my book Health Myths Exposed) which killed tens of thousands, we know that studies can be bought and results fabricated.
Some things are worth dying for. Splenda is not one of them. What people think of as a food is a drug or slow poison - little distinction there. It wouldn't be wise to bet your health on it. If safe, sucralose would be the first molecule in human history that contained a RNFOC fit for human consumption. This fact alone makes sucralose questionable for use as a sweetener, if not instantly detrimental to our health. Only time will tell. Until then, Ill stick to the safe and naturally occurring stevia plant to satisfy my occasional sweet tooth in 2007. Be forewarned though, as long as drugs can be legally disguised as sweeteners, watch out for drugs being disguised as vitamins...Oh wait, they are already doing that - think Lipitor.

About the Author

Shane Ellison holds a master's degree in organic chemistry and has first-hand experience in drug design. After abandoning his career as a medical chemist, he dedicated himself to stopping prescription-drug hype. He is an internationally recognized authority on therapeutic nutrition and author of Health Myths Exposed, The Hidden Truth about Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs and The AM-PM Fat Loss Discovery. His books and FREE Life Saving Health Briefs can be found at http://www.healthmyths.net

Sweet Deception by Dr. Mercola and Dr. Pearsall

Is Splenda® really as safe as they say it is? The giant food and drug corporations, as well as your own government, would like you to think so.

That's just one of the many questions answered in Sweet Deception: Why Splenda, NutraSweet, and the FDA May Be Hazardous to Your Health.

This well-researched and compelling book, written by Dr. Mercola and Dr. Kendra Degen Pearsall, reads like a good novel you can't put down - and exposes the tragic facts about artificial sweeteners.

You'll discover:

• Why artificial sweeteners can make you more prone to gaining weight - instead of helping you lose weight.

• How artificial sweeteners like Splenda® and Nutrasweet® have NOT been proven healthy or safe - even though big businesses tell you they are.

• Shocking industry secrets the food and drug companies don't want you to know - all for their own profit and greed… and at the expense of your health.

Fortunately, Sweet Deception will also show you how to establish a healthy

Lucy Brenton says...
This book is amazing! I have long known the dangers of artificial sweeteners, but lacked the ability to communicate why to my friends and family. This book explains in detail why you should avoid that stuff like the plague. It is given in a way that you can understand, apply and teach to your loved ones. I highly recommend it!

Dr Asturi says...
My name is Dr. Antonio Roberto Asturi. I have read your book and found it to be incredibly beneficial, constructive and effective for primary prevention. I have a PhD in biomedical engineering and was born and raised in Italy, and attended medical school in Rome for an additional 4 years. I speak, read and write Italian eloquently and in a very refined and literary fashion. I am a true bilingual and bicultural person. I have translated very technical papers in the past, and am in the process now of writing one on my own. If you would like me to translate your book, I would so mostly because of the true benefits people would enjoy from reading your book. Dr. Ing. Antonio Roberto Asturi 9722 Laurel Oaks Drive San Antonio, Texas 78240 phone + 210-877-2344 ingarasano@aol.com cardiovMD@juno.com ---------- ITALY ------------ Villa Adriana Via Galli 19 00010 Tivoli (ROMA) 011-39-388-177-9666 ingara@virgilio.it

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