Re: Benzene in Soft Drinks and Other Beverages

[Guest guest]

NICE

>

> http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/benzdata.html

> Just wanted to point out this data from the FDA. It list soft

drinks

> and their concentration of benzene. Benzene is very toxic and

causes

> cancer. Crystal Light is also listed and it is rather high in

benzene.

> For your information Crystal Light is nothing but ascorbic acid

> (Vitamin C), aspartame (sweetener), citric acid for orange or

lemon

> flavored mixes, food flavorings, food colors, anti fungal and anti

> microbial agents, and anti caking agents.

> The 3 main ingredients can be found in drug and grocery

> stores. www.lorainnoils.com offers tons of flavorings. Perhaps

it

> is time to mix your own. Get water add some vitamin c, splenda,

and

> a few drops of some flavor.

> Katharina

> _________________________________________________________________

> Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

> German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

> Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

> _________________________________________________________________

> German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

> Phone: Fax:

>

[Guest guest]

I drink a diet drink rarely. I am trying to concentrate on water. I squeeze

some lemon (here in CA there is always someone trying to get rid of lemons from

their tree). I heard lemon also helps in prevent kidney stones.

Katharina davitt@...> wrote:

http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/benzdata.html

Just wanted to point out this data from the FDA. It list soft drinks

and their concentration of benzene. Benzene is very toxic and causes

cancer. Crystal Light is also listed and it is rather high in benzene.

For your information Crystal Light is nothing but ascorbic acid

(Vitamin C), aspartame (sweetener), citric acid for orange or lemon

flavored mixes, food flavorings, food colors, anti fungal and anti

microbial agents, and anti caking agents.

The 3 main ingredients can be found in drug and grocery

stores. www.lorainnoils.com offers tons of flavorings. Perhaps it

is time to mix your own. Get water add some vitamin c, splenda, and

a few drops of some flavor.

Katharina

__________________________________________________________

Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

__________________________________________________________

German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

Phone: Fax:

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Katharina,

I just wanted to comment on your post.

I went to the site and read the table about the softdrinks and other

beverages and the only Crystal Light flavored mentioned was the

Sunrise Orange.

Katharina, I think you are unintentionally frightening people,

because, though you seem so knowledgable about WLS and in so many

areas, it's scary to read that you can say that " Crystal Light causes

cancer " !

It scared me for a second, but if it causes cancer, it would be off

the market and would be pulled from grocery stores across the United

States.

Sorry, but it's just my opinion....

Hugs,

Cathy

a butterfly in training

>

> http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/benzdata.html

> Just wanted to point out this data from the FDA. It list soft

drinks

> and their concentration of benzene. Benzene is very toxic and

causes

> cancer. Crystal Light is also listed and it is rather high in

benzene.

> For your information Crystal Light is nothing but ascorbic acid

> (Vitamin C), aspartame (sweetener), citric acid for orange or lemon

> flavored mixes, food flavorings, food colors, anti fungal and anti

> microbial agents, and anti caking agents.

> The 3 main ingredients can be found in drug and grocery

> stores. www.lorainnoils.com offers tons of flavorings. Perhaps it

> is time to mix your own. Get water add some vitamin c, splenda,

and

> a few drops of some flavor.

> Katharina

> _________________________________________________________________

> Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

> German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

> Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

> _________________________________________________________________

> German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

> Phone: Fax:

>

[Guest guest]

This is the latest I could find on the subject. All entries have

happened in 2006:

In February, 2006, an unnamed former chemist at the FDA publicly

revealed that benzene may be created as part of a chemical reaction

during production of soft drinks, particularly those having an orange

flavor[18]. Full scale investigations immediately started at the Food

Standards Agency (UK) and in Germany to reveal exactly which amounts

of benzene, if any, were present, with several other organizations

awaiting their findings[19].

Of equal concern, the chemist told the media that the soft drink

industry and the Food and Drug Administration have known of this

problem for 15 years[20], and supports himself with document copies

explaining how benzene is a possible byproduct of these ingredients

that exist in over a thousand soft drinks. More than extremely small

trace amounts found after investigation would be of major concern, as

benzene is a very aggressive carcinogen even in small amounts, and may

among other things lead to leukemia.

The United Kingdom's Food Standards Agency released results on March

31, 2006 for 150 beverages[5]. Its results showed 43 beverages

contained benzene, four of which contained levels above the World

Health Organization drinking water standards (10 ppb). These four were

withdrawn from sale.[21][22]

In April 2006, the Korea Food and Drug Administration (KFDA) announced

that it had detected benzene in 27 out of 30 vitamin-enriched drinks

on sale in South Korea. It said the detected amount of benzene –

ranging from 5.7 to 87.8 ppb – was not harmful to humans but advised

manufacturers of beverages containing more than 10 ppb of benzene to

voluntarily recall their products.[1]

In April 2006, 7up announced that they would be changing the formula

of their product leaving out sodium benzoate and other laboratory-made

chemicals and marketing their product as " 7Up Natural " . While

healthier than its predecessor, critics charge that 7Up has no right

to call the product " all-natural " as it still contains high fructose

corn syrup.[23]

The FDA released preliminary results[16] in May 2006 for 100 beverages

showing that many soft drinks contained low levels of benzene (less

than 5 ppb, the federal drinking water limit) while four drinks

contained amounts above the standard. Two of these drinks contained

amounts 15-18 times above the drinking water standard. Many of the

products showed large variations in the amount benzene they contained.

The FDA stated that it is working with manufacturers to reformulate

products that contain benzene above the federal drinking water standard.

These test results are both lower and more accurate than a previous

long-term study by the FDA. In the Total Diet Study [24][25] that FDA

conducted from 1996-2001 to determine the amounts of volatile organic

compounds in various foods, FDA used an analytical procedure that

caused more benzene to form in the drinks during the test[26][27].

The FDA emphasized that most beverages contain levels below 5 ppb and

pose no risk to consumers. Furthermore, there are no standards for

beverages beyond drinking and bottled water. A watchdog organization,

the Environmental Working Group, had previously called on the FDA to

release its results. The EWG also criticized the FDA for not acting on

the Total Diet Study results showing the nearly 80% of the diet soft

drinks exceeded the federal drinking water standards.

On June 9, 2006, Health Canada released its study results of benzene

levels in beverages. Four products had levels above the Canadian

guideline of five micrograms per litre for benzene in drinking water. [28]

On August 24, 2006, two soft drink manufacturers agreed to settle a

class-action lawsuit that had been filed by a group of parents in the

District of Columbia Superior Court. The two companies, Zone Brands

Inc., maker of " BellyWashers " products, and TalkingRain Beverage Co.,

denied that their products were harmful, but agreed to change the

ingredients in their drinks.

> > > Katharina,

> > >

> > > I just wanted to comment on your post.

> > >

> > > I went to the site and read the table about the softdrinks and other

> > > beverages and the only Crystal Light flavored mentioned was the

> > > Sunrise Orange.

> > >

> > > Katharina, I think you are unintentionally frightening people,

> > > because, though you seem so knowledgable about WLS and in so many

> > > areas, it's scary to read that you can say that " Crystal Light

causes

> > > cancer " !

> > >

> > > It scared me for a second, but if it causes cancer, it would be off

> > > the market and would be pulled from grocery stores across the United

> > > States.

> > >

> > > Sorry, but it's just my opinion....

> > >

> > > Hugs,

> > > Cathy

> > > a butterfly in training

> > >

>

> The lawsuit is going on now. Many workers in the soft drink plants

> that use the 2 ingredients together have come down with cancer. The

> problem right now is the question what is dangerous. The levels in

> the dry mixed is above the law, yet it is acceptable once mixed with

> water. The is just no law really covering it. The link was from the

> findings of the government, not just some outsiders. That is the

> scarry part for me. Also benzine is something that does not get

> discarded by the body, it accumulates. Now is the question how much

> is safe over what time period. My suggestion is to stay away from

> products that use them, not just Crystal Light. There are so many

> wonderful herbal teas and fruit extracts without the sugar. Just mix

> them into water and you are way better off. We are going through so

> much work of getting the surgery, starting a healthier life, and yet

> we poison ourselves with all those chemicals. Let just stop the

> insanity. We don't need these overpriced chemicals, because we can

> do better without. Quite honest fruit and water should do.

> Katharina

>

>

> _________________________________________________________________

> Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

> German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

> Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

> _________________________________________________________________

> German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

> Phone: Fax:

>

[Guest guest]

For those without an inordinate amount of time to research could you

please boil it down to a quantifiable amount of Crystal Light

ingestion? Basically say something like Xoz of drink will increase

your risk of cancer X% or something along those lines. While I

suspect that's not possible from what I've read in your links it

would be the most valuable for me to adjust my life to avoid the

effects of benzene or any other things I take in. It's phrases

like " very toxic " that don't help much.

Mike in GR

>

> http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/benzdata.html

> Just wanted to point out this data from the FDA. It list soft

drinks

> and their concentration of benzene. Benzene is very toxic and

causes

> cancer. Crystal Light is also listed and it is rather high in

benzene.

> For your information Crystal Light is nothing but ascorbic acid

> (Vitamin C), aspartame (sweetener), citric acid for orange or lemon

> flavored mixes, food flavorings, food colors, anti fungal and anti

> microbial agents, and anti caking agents.

> The 3 main ingredients can be found in drug and grocery

> stores. www.lorainnoils.com offers tons of flavorings. Perhaps it

> is time to mix your own. Get water add some vitamin c, splenda,

and

> a few drops of some flavor.

> Katharina

> _________________________________________________________________

> Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

> German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

> Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

> _________________________________________________________________

> German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

> Phone: Fax:

>

[Guest guest]

Cathy,

I didn't read it that way. I never saw anything that said Crystal

Light causes cancer. There's not even anything that steps through the

contents of Crystal Light at any level causing cancer at any level. I

want numbers. I want to know exactly (or even a guess on) how much

Crystal Light will cause what percentage increase in cancer.

All that was presented was vague suppositions that maybe Crystal

Light and other drinks cause cancer because they contain what is

known to be a carcinogen at a " high " concentration. No numbers, no

studies, no correlation. It's trite and very boring, hardly something

to get excited over.

Mike in GR

> >

> > http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/benzdata.html

> > Just wanted to point out this data from the FDA. It list soft

> drinks

> > and their concentration of benzene. Benzene is very toxic and

> causes

> > cancer. Crystal Light is also listed and it is rather high in

> benzene.

> > For your information Crystal Light is nothing but ascorbic acid

> > (Vitamin C), aspartame (sweetener), citric acid for orange or

lemon

> > flavored mixes, food flavorings, food colors, anti fungal and

anti

> > microbial agents, and anti caking agents.

> > The 3 main ingredients can be found in drug and grocery

> > stores. www.lorainnoils.com offers tons of flavorings. Perhaps

it

> > is time to mix your own. Get water add some vitamin c, splenda,

> and

> > a few drops of some flavor.

> > Katharina

> > _________________________________________________________________

> > Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

> > German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

> > Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

> > _________________________________________________________________

> > German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

> > Phone: Fax:

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Great response but if that occured with everything that was

truly dangerous then there'd be no reason for people to wear tin foil

hats!

Mike in GR

> > Katharina,

> >

> > I just wanted to comment on your post.

> >

> > I went to the site and read the table about the softdrinks and

other

> > beverages and the only Crystal Light flavored mentioned was the

> > Sunrise Orange.

> >

> > Katharina, I think you are unintentionally frightening people,

> > because, though you seem so knowledgable about WLS and in so many

> > areas, it's scary to read that you can say that " Crystal Light

causes

> > cancer " !

> >

> > It scared me for a second, but if it causes cancer, it would be

off

> > the market and would be pulled from grocery stores across the

United

> > States.

> >

> > Sorry, but it's just my opinion....

> >

> > Hugs,

> > Cathy

> > a butterfly in training

> >

> >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Lots of stuff there but still nothing that tells me how much I can

drink and how much I can't.

" The FDA stated that it is working with manufacturers to reformulate

products that contain benzene above the federal drinking water

standard. "

Maybe you could have just posted that and gotten back to us later?

I'm curious. If I drink one 12oz drink that has 15-18 times the 10ppb

does that mean I've increased my chance of cancer? No? Then how many

of those would I need to drink? Would I have to drink some for only a

day or a week or maybe a month or year(s)?

Here's something to try when looking into these sorts of things.

Instead of copying and pasting from a website(s) put it into

Microsoft Word first and go in and remove all the countries,

governments, acronyms, doctor's names, hospitals, etc. After all

that's gone read it over again and see if it's nearly as impressive

without all the impressive superfluous words removed.

There is NOTHING in all of this " data " and sources that provides any

useable information. Try again.

Mike in GR

> > > > Katharina,

> > > >

> > > > I just wanted to comment on your post.

> > > >

> > > > I went to the site and read the table about the softdrinks

and other

> > > > beverages and the only Crystal Light flavored mentioned was

the

> > > > Sunrise Orange.

> > > >

> > > > Katharina, I think you are unintentionally frightening people,

> > > > because, though you seem so knowledgable about WLS and in so

many

> > > > areas, it's scary to read that you can say that " Crystal Light

> causes

> > > > cancer " !

> > > >

> > > > It scared me for a second, but if it causes cancer, it would

be off

> > > > the market and would be pulled from grocery stores across the

United

> > > > States.

> > > >

> > > > Sorry, but it's just my opinion....

> > > >

> > > > Hugs,

> > > > Cathy

> > > > a butterfly in training

> > > >

> >

> > The lawsuit is going on now. Many workers in the soft drink

plants

> > that use the 2 ingredients together have come down with cancer.

The

> > problem right now is the question what is dangerous. The levels

in

> > the dry mixed is above the law, yet it is acceptable once mixed

with

> > water. The is just no law really covering it. The link was from

the

> > findings of the government, not just some outsiders. That is the

> > scarry part for me. Also benzine is something that does not get

> > discarded by the body, it accumulates. Now is the question how

much

> > is safe over what time period. My suggestion is to stay away

from

> > products that use them, not just Crystal Light. There are so

many

> > wonderful herbal teas and fruit extracts without the sugar. Just

mix

> > them into water and you are way better off. We are going through

so

> > much work of getting the surgery, starting a healthier life, and

yet

> > we poison ourselves with all those chemicals. Let just stop the

> > insanity. We don't need these overpriced chemicals, because we

can

> > do better without. Quite honest fruit and water should do.

> > Katharina

> >

> >

> > _________________________________________________________________

> > Shop for German things: www.GermanPlaza.com

> > German Corner, our main site: www.GermanCorner.com

> > Heritage and History Site: www.GermanHeritage.com

> > _________________________________________________________________

> > German Corner, P.O. Box 70, Keno OR 97627-0070 USA

> > Phone: Fax:

> >

>

[Guest guest]

You mean this hat(crumbling up the tin foil) hasnt been necesary?

Why didnt someone tell me this before?

Donna in CO

> > > Katharina,

> > >

> > > I just wanted to comment on your post.

> > >

> > > I went to the site and read the table about the softdrinks and

> other

> > > beverages and the only Crystal Light flavored mentioned was the

> > > Sunrise Orange.

> > >

> > > Katharina, I think you are unintentionally frightening people,

> > > because, though you seem so knowledgable about WLS and in so

many

> > > areas, it's scary to read that you can say that " Crystal Light

> causes

> > > cancer " !

> > >

> > > It scared me for a second, but if it causes cancer, it would be

> off

> > > the market and would be pulled from grocery stores across the

> United

> > > States.

> > >

> > > Sorry, but it's just my opinion....

> > >

> > > Hugs,

> > > Cathy

> > > a butterfly in training

> > >

> > >

> > >

> >

>