Date: Mon, 2 Feb 1998 18:24:59 -0500 (EST)
From: Felix Lemm <felix@noel.pd.org
To: bettym19@mindspring.com
Subject: Position paper (fwd)

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PROFESSIONAL OPINION OF H. J. ROBERTS, M.D., F.A.C.P., CONCERNING THE
CONTINUED LISTING OF SACCHARIN AS A CANCER CAUSING AGENT 

     A subcommittee of the National Toxicology Program's Board of
Scientific Counselors noted on October 31, l997, 4-3 to keep saccharin
on the federal government's list of cancer-causing substances.  As a
corporate-neutral physician and researcher, I emphatically disagree with
this decision.  Also, the committee demonstrated reluctance to remove an
unwarranted cancer scare that ??? on the labels of saccharin products. 
I regard this ??? (maybe view) as bureaucratic arrogance, especially if
largely based on small studies involving male rats that developed
urinary bladdaer tumor after receiving large amounts of saccharin.  They
are unconvincing in view of the following:

  *  This rat model was not appropriate.

  *  Humans lack a critical protein in the urine that causes saccharin
     to form  (?irritating jagged) crystals in the male rat bladder.

  *  There has been no convincing increase in the frequency of urinary
     bladder cancer since the introduction of saccharin over more than
     a century ago.

  *  A 23 year monkey study has failed to evidence a cancer causing
     effect of saccharin in primates.

Second side:

     On the other hand, I believe that this committee and the FDA ought
to recommend the removal of products containing aspartame (NutraSweet
(R); Equal (R)) as an "imminent public health hazard".  This is based on
the chemical's adverse neurotoxic, metabolic and probable carcinogenic
effects.  At the very least, aspartame products ought to carry labels
indicating their ipotential adverse effects, including brain tumors.  It
is pertinent that the FDA's arbitary approval in l981 had been delayed a
number of years because of the high incidence of brain tumors found in
animals given aspartame. 

     The details for the above observations and conclusions appear in
these publications I authored.

  *  ASPARTAME (NUTRASWEET (R)): IS IT SAFE? (Philadelphia, The
     Charles Press)

  *  SWEET'NER DEAREST:  BITTERSWEET VIGNETTES ABOUT ASPARTAME
     (NUTRASWEET (R)) (West Palm Beach, Sunshine Sentinel Press,
     P. O. Box 17799:  Telephone 561-832-2409, Fax 561-588-7628

  *  Two-cassette, audio tapes, IS ASPARTAME (NUTRASWEET (R)) SAFE?
     A MEDICAL PUBLIC HEALTH AND LEGAL OVERVIEW,(Sunshine Sentinel
     Press).  

      Additional documentation of my related publications can be found
on the Internet at http://www.dorway.com/sunshine.html and at http://
www.icanect.net/sunpress (Copyright(C) 1997 H. J. Roberts, M.D., F.A.C
.P., F.C.C.P.)