- NMSA 25-2-10 is clear on this matter: "a food shall
be deemed to be adulterated if it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious
substance which may render it injurious to health," and the responsibility
of the Attorney General or the District Attorneys, to institute prosecution
is made clear also, in NM 25-2-7.
-
- This is made further clear in NMSA 25-2-13: "Any
poisonous or deleterious substance added to any food, except where such
substance is required in the production thereof....shall be deemed to be
unsafe"
-
- ADDED LANGUAGE: It is the sense of the Legislature that
it is imperative for human health in New Mexico to declare forthwith that
the artificial sweetener, aspartame and all of its trade names, because
of the proven effects of its neurotoxic and carcinogenic metabolites, is
a poisonous and deleterious food additive and adulterant, and as such will
be prohibited from sale in New Mexico.
-
- The Legislature also finds that federal authorities have
not intended to or expressed an intention to occupy and preempt the areas
of concern herein, regarding prohibiting toxic, neurotoxic, carcinogenic,
poisonous, and deleterious food additives, and that therefore, the legislature
may take such an action regarding a prohibition of the sale of aspartame-containing
products, and all of their trade names, in order to protect and ensure
public health and safety for all New Mexicans.
-
- _____
-
- Legislature, Governor Could Ban
- Aspartame/Formaldehyde In 2006
- Via Pending Bill by Senator Ortiz y Pino
-
- The artificial sweetener, Aspartame, is a carcinogenic
neurotoxin since one of its metabolites is formaldehyde. The recent Ramazzini
Foundation of Oncology's study proves it to cause 6 kinds of cancer: this
report was posted on the National Institute of Health website in November
2005. Physicians and plaintiff's lawyers have been excoriating aspartame's
carcinogenicity since the 70's. The FDA refuses to rescind its approval,
so aspartame is found in coffee sweeteners, "diet" beverages,
"low-fat" yogurt, "sugarless" gum--- a total of 6000
products consumed by 70% of Americans and 40% of our children.
-
- On January 3, the New Mexico Environmental Improvement
Board postponed the 5 day hearing, originally scheduled for July 06, till
January 07, because they were still waiting for the Attorney General's
Opinion they had requested November 7, as is also the NM Pharmacy Board,
which requested it November 14 [Aspartame is in over 500 children's medications;
I have asked the Pharmacy Board for a ban in order to protect New Mexico's
children].
-
- Other Attorneys General, particularly Bill Lockyer of
California, Eliot Spitzer of New York, and Mike Hatch of Minnesota, comprehend
the level of consumer protection necessary to protect health. Lockyer is
suing 9 mega fast food corporations to require labeling every bag of French
fries stating: "This product contains a chemical which is known to
the state of California to cause cancer." Heating potato starch to
400 degrees turns it to carcinogenic acrylamide.
-
- I told New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer on June
1 about our aspartame/FDA efforts; he immediately replied: "the FDA
is a joke!"
-
- In March 2005, Minnesota AG Mike Hatch entered an amicus
curie brief in the case against Pfizer by a widow of a man who committed
suicide because the Zoloft was making him suicidal, in support of the widow.
The brief stated in that no company can hide behind the FDA approval of
their product when the product does harm under Minnesota's tort and product
liability laws. Judge Rosenbaum later agreed, rejecting Pfizer's request
for a Summary Dismissal on the basis of its FDA approval for Zoloft.
-
- Richardson stated in December that he is in favor of
states taking back some of the power given to the FDA, because "the
FDA doesn't do anything," and applied the same strong consumer protection
principles by putting a bill to ban Thimerosal/Mercury from vaccines on
the Agenda for this coming session. Seven other states have done this already.
No New Mexican of any age should be injected with these large amounts of
mercury: it is one of the most deadly neurotoxins of all and many flu shots
have it.
-
- I have asked the Governor to also place a bill on his
2006 Agenda banning aspartame from sale in New Mexico. This is long over
due; it would be a precedent for New Mexico to pass such a bill in 2006
and not have to wait for the 2007 long session. When it comes to toxicology
and the need to remove this deadly neurotoxin from foods and medicines,
six months or nine months or 18 months is an eternity.
-
- After EIB temporarily caved in to the demands of the
world's largest Aspartame and MSG manufacturer, the Ajinomoto Corporation
of Japan, I called US Senator Bingaman, asking him to read out sections
of the Italian study on the floor of the Senate, asking the FDA Commissioner
to immediately rescind the approval for aspartame. This happened in 1969
when President Nixon asked the FDA commissioner to rescind cyclamates approval,
after it became clear that it was causing cancer. Aspartame violates and
cyclamates violated the 1958 Delaney Amendment, which prohibits any chemical
causing cancer to be knowingly added to food products. The Italian study
proves the cancer causality beyond a shadow of a reasonable doubt.
-
- UK Parliament member from Wales, Roger Williams, has
asked for a total United Kingdom ban on aspartame. When Governor Richardson
puts this bill on the agenda, the FDA will immediately move toward rescinding
aspartame's approval. Industries should switch to Stevia or Xylitol, both
non-toxic natural sweeteners, and they wouldn't have to lose a dime of
their sacred profits!
-
- President Bush won't do anything about aspartame; the
FDA ignores letters and citizen's petitions; the New Mexico state EIB has
basically failed in a regulatory sense by postponing hearings till 2007,
so the Legislature and the Governor's agenda are truly the last hope for
protecting New Mexicans' health, and such a bill could go into effect in
July 2007.
-
- We have a NM Senate sponsor: the Honorable Gerald Ortiz
y Pino.
-
- Please write to Governor Richardson and encourage him
to put a bill to ban aspartame on his Agenda
- for 2006.
-
- Governor Richardson's fax # is 505 476-2226. Thank you!
-
- Respectfully,
-
- Stephen Fox
- 217 W. Water, Santa Fe, NM 87501
- 505 983-2002
- stephen@santafefineart.com
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