Dr_Evil_Mouse Posted May 28, 2007 Report Share Posted May 28, 2007 Something, maybe, for the Idiocracy files. We're goin' down like Rome. Caution: Some Soft Drinks May Seriously Harm Your Health Expert links additive to cell damageBy Martin Hickman, Consumer Affairs CorrespondentPublished: 27 May 2007A new health scare erupted over soft drinks last night amid evidence they may cause serious cell damage. Research from a British university suggests a common preservative found in drinks such as Fanta and Pepsi Max has the ability to switch off vital parts of DNA.The problem - more usually associated with ageing and alcohol abuse - can eventually lead to cirrhosis of the liver and degenerative diseases such as Parkinson's.The findings could have serious consequences for the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who consume fizzy drinks. They will also intensify the controversy about food additives, which have been linked to hyperactivity in children.Concerns centre on the safety of E211, known as sodium benzoate, a preservative used for decades by the £74bn global carbonated drinks industry. Sodium benzoate derives from benzoic acid. It occurs naturally in berries, but is used in large quantities to prevent mould in soft drinks such as Sprite, Oasis and Dr Pepper. It is also added to pickles and sauces.Sodium benzoate has already been the subject of concern about cancer because when mixed with the additive vitamin C in soft drinks, it causes benzene, a carcinogenic substance. A Food Standards Agency survey of benzene in drinks last year found high levels in four brands which were removed from sale.Now, an expert in ageing at Sheffield University, who has been working on sodium benzoate since publishing a research paper in 1999, has decided to speak out about another danger. Professor Peter Piper, a professor of molecular biology and biotechnology, tested the impact of sodium benzoate on living yeast cells in his laboratory. What he found alarmed him: the benzoate was damaging an important area of DNA in the "power station" of cells known as the mitochondria.He told The Independent on Sunday: "These chemicals have the ability to cause severe damage to DNA in the mitochondria to the point that they totally inactivate it: they knock it out altogether."The mitochondria consumes the oxygen to give you energy and if you damage it - as happens in a number if diseased states - then the cell starts to malfunction very seriously. And there is a whole array of diseases that are now being tied to damage to this DNA - Parkinson's and quite a lot of neuro-degenerative diseases, but above all the whole process of ageing."The Food Standards Agency (FSA) backs the use of sodium benzoate in the UK and it has been approved by the European Union but last night, MPs called for it to investigate urgently.Norman Baker, the Liberal Democrat chair of Parliament's all-party environment group said: "Many additives are relatively new and their long-term impact cannot be certain. This preservative clearly needs to be investigated further by the FSA."A review of sodium benzoate by the World Health Organisation in 2000 concluded that it was safe, but it noted that the available science supporting its safety was "limited".Professor Piper, whose work has been funded by a government research council, said tests conducted by the US Food and Drug Administration were out of date."The food industry will say these compounds have been tested and they are complete safe," he said. "By the criteria of modern safety testing, the safety tests were inadequate. Like all things, safety testing moves forward and you can conduct a much more rigorous safety test than you could 50 years ago."He advised parents to think carefully about buying drinks with preservatives until the quantities in products were proved safe by new tests. "My concern is for children who are drinking large amounts," he said.Coca-Cola and Britvic's Pepsi Max and Diet Pepsi all contain sodium benzoate. Their makers and the British Soft Drinks Association said they entrusted the safety of additives to the Government. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paisley Posted May 28, 2007 Report Share Posted May 28, 2007 Coca-Cola and Britvic's Pepsi Max and Diet Pepsi all contain sodium benzoate.oh oh...ah hell... been toyin round with my DNA for kicks anywho Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davey Boy 2.0 Posted May 28, 2007 Report Share Posted May 28, 2007 (edited) this just in. everything everywhere is bad for you. and for the environment. and for other living creatures. come on mothership! Edited May 28, 2007 by Guest i wish they'd swoop down in a country lane late at night when i'm driving Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bradm Posted May 28, 2007 Report Share Posted May 28, 2007 this just in. everything everywhere is bad for you. and for the environment. and for other living creatures.Even celery?*Aloha,Brad* I claim this as a song title, including the question mark and possibly even this footnote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
\/\/illy Posted May 28, 2007 Report Share Posted May 28, 2007 Professor Peter Piper, a professor of molecular biology and biotechnology, tested the impact of sodium benzoate on living yeast cells in his laboratory. What he found alarmed him: the benzoate was damaging an important area of DNA in the "power station" of cells known as the mitochondria.I guess it's only me that finds this funny? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Evil_Mouse Posted May 29, 2007 Author Report Share Posted May 29, 2007 - now that you mention it. Here he comes, blowing the bittersweet notes of biochemistry to gather and lead us off the cliff of postmodern despair.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edger Posted May 29, 2007 Report Share Posted May 29, 2007 Yeah, I got a laugh out of that too.I've been saying for years now that I need to shake my diet coke addiction. Bad company to be supporting, and there can't be anything beneficial about its consumption. I started drinking about a can a day around the same time that I quite smoking. I guess I like to rotate my addictions...I wonder what qualifies as drinking "large amounts". I figure a daily dosage is probably considered chronic exposure eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry_llama Posted May 29, 2007 Report Share Posted May 29, 2007 I guess it's only me that finds this funny?nope, not just you... via boingboing:Professor Peter Piper, the molecular biologist who, according to the extract from the article in The Independent, found sodium benzoate had an effect on mitochondria, may be more familiar to BoingBoing readers for his work with pickled peppers. According to Goose, M., (no date) the question regarding the location of the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked remains unresolved. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nattyMatty Posted May 29, 2007 Report Share Posted May 29, 2007 (edited) Calcium carbide is always nice to flush down an unsuspecting Toilet. Edited May 29, 2007 by Guest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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