Non-Dairy Creamer, Dangerous?

I gave up non-dairy creamer about three months ago.  I know I shouldn't have been drinking it in the first place.  It was the last of my bad habits.  When I was in Washington state I had been really sick before moving.  My hormones were so messed up I had a really heavy period that lasted for 4 solid months.  Due to that I became extremely anemic and barely had the energy to keep up my part time job.  I was having really crazy mood swings.  Not to mention my chronic migraines.  One of my doctors did a number of blood tests to show that my body was maxed out on growth hormones due to the small amounts of dairy I was using in my coffee and cereal.  

I've never been one to just sit and drink milk.  My mom always bought non-fat milk, which I hated.  So I grew up not really liking milk.  After my test results, I started using non-dairy creamer in my coffee and unsweetened almond milk in my cereal.  Cause it had to be better than the growth hormones right?

So what is so horrible about non-dairy creamers?  I looked up the ingredients and this is what I found them to be for my favorite, Coffee-Mate's Hazelnut liquid creamer:

Ingredients: sugar, water, partially hydrogenated soybean and or cottonseed oil, sodium caseinate and less than 2% of propylene glycol, dipotassium phosphate, natural and artifial flavors, color added, sucralose

To start it has refined sugar in it.  You and I both know the first ingredient isn't raw sugar.  That alone can aggravate asthma, worsen arthritis, cause mood swings, change a person's personality, feed nervous system disorders, worsen diabetes, heart disease, and hypertension and help grow gallstones.   Yeah, yeah, yeah I've heard that a million times.  Basically what happens is by refining the sugar the manufacturers remove the vitamins and minerals that help your body process the sugar and allow it to pass through the body.  So refined sugars have to steal your body's stored vitamins and minerals to process this sugar.  The problem is how many of us just have an extra vitamins and minerals stored in our bodies?  Not many of us...  So what your body ends up doing with the refined sugars is shutting down the production of good cholesterol and fatty-acids to store sugar around your organs.  I always knew I was a sweet person.  :D

Next the partially hydrogenated soybean or cottonseed oil.  *sighs*  I should have stopped right here with my soy allergy.  But the real problem is that it's a trans-fat.  I know you've heard these words before and you've heard that they can cause diabetes, heart disease, obesity, cancer, weaken the immune system and cause sexual dysfunction.  I think without knowing the how, it's like hearing hearing about people that accidentally put diesel in their gas engine and wonder why it clogs up and refuses to run....well after the giant cloud of black smoke that escapes from under the hood.  No, no I've never done this before...really I haven't.  

I think the two are really similar though.  It would be nice if black smoke came out of my mouth to remind me that I ate the wrong oils.  So why are trans fatty acid bad compared to fatty acids?  Your body can't tell the difference and incorporates them into your cells.  Making them hydrogenated!  I know just smile and nod.  The process hardens your arteries and can lead to a heart attack.  Unfortunately for us we can't just drain your gas tank and replace your spark plugs, it's kind of hard to replace your arteries and clean out your heart.

Sodium Caseinate actually isn't bad for you.  It might sound familiar....It's also known as Casein.  As in the protein added to milk to cause it to coagulate when heated when making cheese.  Or maybe I'm just familiar with it cause I like to make my own cheese.

Onto the Chemicals.  Strange I don't usually wake up in the morning say wow a nice cup of chemicals sounds amazing.  But apparently that's what I have been doing.  Propylene Glycol, is a scary messed up chemical.  It's purpose is to allow chemicals to be absorbed into your bloodstream.  Any chemicals...If you check a lot of lotions, shampoos, conditioners, etc have this product in it.  To make the product able to be absorbed deeper into the skin.  One of the many reasons I started the no-poo system a couple of years ago.  The problem is other chemicals you're coming in contact with can be absorbed because of this product.

Dipotassium Phosphate is an acid salt.  I know that doesn't explain  it very well, lol.  Basically it's used as an emulsifier and also to slow the growth of bacteria in food.  The problem with this is that Phosphates are slowly absorbed into the body.  Which can cause vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy.  The chemical also can act in the body as either a base or an acid, messing up your body's natural ph.  

As for natural and artificial flavors as well as what kind of food coloring they are using.  They don't say what they are.  They could be harmless or harmful.  It just seems dishonest not to list them.  This is a great reason to stop using the product alone.

Sucralose, most people know it by the brand name Splenda.  It's basically a dextrose or maltodextrin sugar that has been modified by adding chlorine(bleach) atoms to it.  I remember when it first came out back in 1998 everyone thought it was amazing.  We would be able to eat all the sweets we wanted right?  >.>  According to the FDA eating small amounts of chlorine isn't fatal...um...wow I guess that makes it ok.  >.>  Sucralose side effects are skin rashes/flushing, panic like agitation, dizziness and numbness, diarrhea, swelling, muscle aches, headaches, migraines, intestinal cramping, bladder issues and stomach pains.

I've never really talked about my migraines cause a lot people think headache and you can see their eyes glaze over and they stop listening to anything you say.  I use to have migraines with auras at least twice a week even after I started my health kick.  If you're not sure what auras are, it's like you have a kaleidoscope strapped to your face.  After a little while  of having swirling multi-colored lights everywhere.  I would become too dizzy to be able to stand let alone try and focus on anything.  Basically making driving, reading, or just opening your eyes impossible.

One of the things I noticed recently is that a lot of my migraines would come after I drank a cup of coffee.  Seems off since the caffeine is supposed to help right?  In the three months being non-dairy creamer free.  I feel more alert, my aches and pains are gone, my energy levels have doubled and I haven't had a migraine.  Overall I feel about 10 years younger, just cutting that one thing out of my diet.  I only drank 1-2 cups of coffee a day with 2 tbsp of creamer in my coffee.   I never plan to drink non-dairy creamer again.

Health isn't about being "perfect" with food or exercise or herbs.  Health is about balancing those things with your desires.  It's about nourishing your spirit as well as your body.

-- Golda Poretsky