Home..........sweet home..............

Yesterday afternoon we all went home!  After a heart scan and a scan in the leg , where they confirmed that Aiyála has Thrombosis as a result of the operation, it was agreed that Aiyála could be released, as long as they could check her again on Monday morning.  
Hearing this, felt like heaven!

The last two weeks, we feel we have all held our breath, life simply stopped and everything we did, every thought we had, was just focused on this tiny little baby in hospital, as well as her mum and dad.

She is home and hopefully life will take on some kind of normality again.

I would like to thank the many many friends and family who have supported us in their different ways over the last few weeks. I know from friends, that people we have never met, were praying for us (and whilst I myself am not a ‘believer, I can’t help but feel, some ‘magic’ / ‘miracle’ has happened), researching and sending us information, constantly supporting and contacting us.  I am so grateful for the support during what seems like our darkest hours.  My cancer journey seems nothing compared to what this little girl and Kyla and Dan have been through.

The last two weeks, I have to admit, I had no time or interest to think about myself or my progress. I simply functioned, and living in Malaga for this time, we did eat out a lot. This meant I ate ‘normally’ again, as I have prior to me being diagnosed with cancer.  I struggled with this. The food around us, so often is not pure and healthy and the long term effects can’t be positive on our bodies.

I had scrambled egg ( not as lovely as the eggs my chickens produce J), but nevertheless I figured I could not go wrong with that. I did go wrong, the cook had added sugar to it.  Maybe in the past I would not have noticed, but not having had sugar in 9 months, I can now identify it quite easily. Why? Why would anyone add sugar or was it sweeteners?

This got me researching again. I spent nearly 30 years using ‘Canderel’ sweeteners in my tea and coffees. Probably 4 little pills per day. I always had a ‘sweet tooth’. One of the components in Canderel is Aspartame. Until I started looking into this, I have never heard of it.  

Aspartame causes cancer!

This Is Your Brain on Aspartame

If the prospect of cancer is not enough to deter you from drinking diet soda or consuming processed foods sweetened with artificial sweeteners, consider the effect that aspartame has on your neurons and your cognitive function. In a study published in Redox Biology, researchers found aspartame may essentially program your brain cells to die.40

These biochemical and mitochondrial changes alter the functional activity in your brain, resulting in altered neuron function and neurodegeneration. The researchers theorized the results were from the effects of methanol molecule or the metabolite, formaldehyde or formate. This study also demonstrated that long-term use of FDA approved levels of aspartame distort your brain function.41

Another compound found in aspartame, phenylalanine, is delivered in excessive amounts and depletes your brain of serotonin, possibly one of the factors responsible for the increased number of people suffering from depression who regularly eat foods sweetened with aspartame.

A study planned by Case Western researchers was designed to evaluate the effects of aspartame on the mental health of their participants.42

However, this study was halted early by the Institutional Review Board citing safety reasons and severity of reaction to individuals who suffered from depression when exposed to aspartame. Reports of neurological and behavioral disturbances after ingestion of aspartame include an increase in headaches, migraine headaches,43^,44,45,46 insomnia and seizures.47

Another study demonstrated that a high-aspartame diet resulted in more headaches, irritable mood, depression and poor performance on spatial orientation tests.48 A large concern is that the “high-aspartame diet” consisted of half the amount of aspartame the FDA considers safe for daily ingestion.

https://youtu.be/TB6L9S_jc5E

By Dr. Mercola

Artificial sweeteners such as aspartame are typically used to sweeten so-called "diet" foods and beverages in lieu of sugar or high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). The idea is that reducing your calorie consumption will result in weight loss.

However, research has completely demolished this notion, showing that artificial sweeteners actually have the converse effect; they actually lower appetite suppressant chemicals and encourage sugar cravings and sugar dependence, thereby raising your odds of unwanted weight gain.1^,2

Research has repeatedly shown that artificial sweeteners promote insulin resistance and related health problems just like regular sugar does, including3^,4,5 cardiovascular disease, stroke6^,7 and Alzheimer's disease.

While poor diet is a major driver of Alzheimer's in general (the primary culprits being sugar/fructose and grains, especially gluten), the key mechanism of harm here appears to be methanol toxicity — a much-ignored problem associated with aspartame in particular.

In a previous interview, toxicology expert Woodrow Monte, Ph.D., (author of the book "While Science Sleeps: A Sweetener Kills"8) explains the links between aspartame and methanol toxicity and the formation of toxic formaldehyde.