Let me say that my choice of drinks is Diet Mt. Dew; non-imported beer, cappuccino, merlot, Jack Daniels or the famous vodka martini. I just enjoy the taste of lemon-lime, lime focus (this is why I prefer it to other citrus drinks). I have never had a problem with the Diet Mt category. Dew as relatively safe, perhaps even noble, drink. Even so, as someone who takes good care of health, I don’t do it, preferring filtered water most of the time. But I again heard a story that shook my diet Mt. A world of dew, and I thought I'd share it. It is about something called brominated vegetable oil.
It has been reported that the ingredient brominated vegetable oil found in Diet Mt. Dew and other citrus-flavored soft drinks are "dangerous" and "toxic." But what is it? Why is there a butter in my favorite drink? Brominated vegetable oil is an oil associated with the bromine element in order to prevent citrus flavoring oils from being given in oils from growth to the top of the liquid. This emulsifier is referred to as "the patented flame retardant for plastics that has been banned in food throughout Europe and in Japan." Another report states that bromine is a toxic chemical that is associated with damage to major organs, birth defects, schizophrenia and hearing loss. Sounds pretty sinister, huh?
Dr. John Spengler, a professor of family and community medicine at the Battif Wake Forest Medical Center, is not overly concerned. He claims that most animal safety studies use very high doses of brominated vegetable oil, which is 200 times higher than the amount allowed in US soft drinks. He states: “As the old saying in the field of toxicology says,“ the dose makes poison ”. Drinking too much water can cause water intoxication. ” (Note to yourself.)
Although he believes that brominated vegetable oil is safe, the Food and Drug Administration limits the use of BVO to 15 ppm in fruit-flavored drinks. Soft drinks that use BVO usually contain about half the concentration allowed by law.
In January 2013, after recent news articles and online petitions, PepsiCo said it would remove brominated vegetable oil from Gatorade. In an e-mail statement to WebMD, PepsiCo said: “Although our products are safe, we are making this change because we know that some consumers have a negative view of brominated vegetable oil. But we, Mt. Drinking dew has not yet come out of the forest: it is still unclear whether they will remove brominated vegetable oil from other products, including Diet Mountain Dew.
So, I think we are back to the old saying, “everything is in moderation”. I admit that I reduced the consumption of brominated vegetable oil to about 2 liters per week, which is about 9 ounces per day on average. Honestly, a big reason I drink less Diet Mt. Dew these days associated with aspartame and caffeine. I will leave the discussion of these issues for one more day. But for now, I'm thirsty with a little brominated vegetable oil.
