Cultural Analysis of "Chipotle Sued Over Anti-GMO Advertising"

I have decided to base my project on the article "Chipotle Sued Over Anti-GMO Advertising." In the following blog post, I will analyze the article for cultural messages.

"Cultural Globe" (via Practical Cultural Guidelines).

The most important cultural key words/ phrases in this article are- "anti-GMO,"  and "food with integrity." Culturally, The United States is evolving. As a people, we want to eat things that are good for us, and produced morally. Of course, there will always be people who don't care, but if given the choice, many people would choose a naturally grown cucumber, instead of one that was grown using hormones (if everything else was held constant).

The main thesis of this article is that Chipotle (and other companies that lie about GMOs) should be punished, because the consumer deserves to know about the food that they are eating.

The cultural key words help support the thesis, because the author uses them to strengthen the argument. If the reader assumes that the culture that they belong to values brand honesty, and naturally grown foods, maybe they will be more likely to agree with the author. These are broad cultural concepts, and even though the article is targeted at an American audience, more cultures than just America value the concepts.

Evaluation of Rhetorical Situations

In this post, I will evaluate three articles that are based on the topic of nutrition.

"Rhetoric is Everywhere" (via RhetoricalDelivery).

1. "Chipotle is Being Sued Over Its Anti-GMO Advertising. Serves Them Right."

The author, Alison Griswold, is not in the nutrition field, but business. She is an author for the Slate website, and has written many articles about controversies surrounding companies. She has a verified twitter account, and uses it to voice her opinion about current events.

This article is intended for people who eat at Chipotle (which is a lot). It is written in common language, and the article is nothing complex, like a science journal. It is meant for the aware consumer, who wants to stay up-to-date about companies.

The context of the article is that Chipotle has signs in their store that tell customers that the food is non-GMO, and doesn't have added hormones. This makes customers believe that even though they're eating on average an over 1,000 calorie burrito, that it is still good for them.

2. "Science: 'Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity May Not Exist"

The author, Greg Pollowitz, is a reporter for the National Review. He has not written for the National Review since the end of 2014. Unlike the previous author, he does not have a verified twitter, but he is also a lot older, which may explain his lack of social media.

This article is intended for the public, but is a bit more wordy, and science-based. Gluten is something that a normal person eats everyday, which means that learning about it would be relevant to just about everyone.

The context of this article is that there is a diet fad, in which people who have no medical need to not eat gluten, are avoiding it. The article gives background in which a study is done that proves that "gluten-sensitivity" is a thing. This allows the author to explain a new study that shows that it probably isn't real.

3. "Chowing Down On Meat, Dairy Alters Gut Bacteria a lot, and Quickly"

The author, Michaeleen Doucleff, is a science journalist for NPR. She has a twitter account, and she uses it to inform readers about science, specifically about food.

This article is intended for just about anyone (except for you, vegans). It is pretty easy to read, and in the form of QRG, but does lack photos.

The context of this article is that just about everyone eats animal products. There are very few people today who do not consume meat or dairy. The article uses scientific evidence to explain to the reader how their body can be altered by consuming these foods.

I read Jon's Blog and Zayla's Blog. I think that my classmates did a good job on leading the  reader to the interesting articles, and the not so interesting articles. After going back over my own post, I think that my blog post was in line with the ones that I read. I think that I gave my reader a good idea about the articles, even if they weren't to read them themselves.

Developing a Research Question

In this post, I will explore some current debates in the field of nutrition, and discuss some questions that will lead to finding more interesting debates.

"Tomato Nutrition Lab," (via WorldFoodScience).

People are always arguing about food! It makes sense, because it is a main factor in deciding our health. Some of the debates that are going on right now are GMOs, added hormones, diabetic nutrition, and gluten. With that being said, here are a few research questions that I would like to explore further:

1. What is the effect of Genetically Modified Organisms on the human body?
2. Is gluten good for people without celiac disease?
3. Why is dairy an essential part of today's diet, if our ancestors never consumed it before?
4. What is the impact of eating meat that is altered by added hormones?

I think that these are interesting research questions, because they all contain something that we all eat everyday. I am always interested in finding ways to improve my own diet, and staying away from harmful foods,

Reflection on Project 1

In this post, I will reflect on the process of completing my first QRG.

"Done," (via ELD).

The hardest part of the QRG assignment was definitely the sources. I had a hard time selecting sources because there were few helpful sources. Luckily, my teacher directed me to NPR, where I found two that I used in my project.

I thought I was successful in my formatting. After seeing the examples, I really caught on to the format, and it was easy for me to write in this new style. I can now say that I prefer QRG to typical essay format.

The articles about the studies done were most effective because studies are really hard to read. Maybe I'll be there one day, but as of freshman year, I would rather read a summary because that was the easiest way for me to get the message across to my readers.

What I have learned of essay writing was not helpful to my project. There isn't that boring aspect of long complicated paragraphs. There was no need to try to impress anyone with wordiness because you were trying to make it fun and easy to read.

This writing process was similar to other work that I've done in school because even if the essay was about something academic, I try to make all of my writing fun. I have always liked sentence variety, and the ease of reading.

It was different because I have never written a blog before. I have written more news paper like articles, but that is still a little different from QRG.

The skills that I learned during the QRG project are definitely helpful because it can help bring your assignment back to reality. You really have to understand the material that you're writing about in order to simplify it, and that is one of the best things you can do.

I read Stef's blog and Lia's blog. After reading my peers' reflections, I realized that the QRG genre is something that was new to everyone. Also, I found that my peers also enjoyed to QRG genre, and it is something that they would do again.

Final Project 1

PepsiCo Replaces Aspartame with Sucralose, but is Sucralose Safe for Consumers?

Olivia Wann

             “Soda,” 05/2013.

The popular soda brand Pepsi has listened to their customers. They have taken aspartame out of Diet Pepsi. Of course, when you take out one zero calorie sweetener, you must replace it with another. Pepsi chose sucralose. Although there is no artificial sweetener that is deemed perfect, there is controversy surrounding the company’s switch because of possible health hazards associated with consuming the artificial sweetener.  

So what is sucralose, anyway?

              “Sucralose,” 05/2015.

Sucralose was discovered on accident while researchers were trying to develop a new pesticide (not the most appealing background story). It is made by taking sugar (sucrose), and adding atoms of chlorine. You probably have heard it referred to as Splenda, which is just a brand that produces it.  

Humans do not have the genetic makeup to process sucralose, which means it is sweet to the taste, but passes through the body without being broken down. When something is not broken down, the calories are not absorbed. This is desirable because it allows people who must limit their calorie intake to consume things like “diet” soda and “diet” candy.  

Is it widely used?

              “Sucralose,” 10/2014.

Yes! If something is labeled as “light,” “low calorie,” or “diet,” it most likely contains sucralose, or one of the other artificial sweeteners. Even if it doesn’t have a label like that, it is common for brands to use both sugar and sweetener in order to keep calories and sugar content down. The FDA (a major figure because they determine if a food can be eaten) approved sucralose for general use in 1999, and it has been growing ever since.  

So if a lot of companies use it, why is it a big deal that Pepsi is switching over?

The reason why, is because there have been recent studies suggesting that it can cause harm to humans in ways that were not detected in the original safety trials.

In a recent study, researchers found that sucralose can reduce the amount of good microbiota in the gut, thus causing a glucose intolerance. Researchers find, “some individuals' blood sugar temporarily shot up to levels that are characterized as pre-diabetic within just a few days of introducing the artificial sweetener” (via The Salt).

Another study suggests that people who consumed soda containing sucralose were less satisfied. The study states, “Those who had the non-caloric sweetened drink were less satisfied with their cookie compared to those who had the sugary drink or the unsweetened drink” (via Huffington Post).

Pepsi is just one of many companies making the switch, but more attention is being drawn to the potential long-term effects.  

The great debate-

The companies that use sucralose stand by their decision. The CEO of PepsiCo, Seth Kaufman, explains that it was what consumers wanted, “It [aspartame] is literally the number-one complaint we’ve heard from diet-cola consumers as to why they’re drinking less and less diet soda” (via The Salt).

On the other hand, many natural-wellness advocates argue that the chemical is not safe for consumption. Natural Health Sherpa, a group of MDs and Nutritionists dedicated to blogging about wellbeing, argues, “Would you eat a substance that...was used for a chemical warfare agent?...Use common sense” (via Youtube).  

So now what?

We wait. The companies who use sucralose and other artificial sweeteners believe that they are giving consumers what they want (“guilt free” ways of having sweets). The health and wellness advocates believe that they are protecting consumers by telling them what they should and shouldn’t eat.

There is no right or wrong answer. It definitely won’t kill you- “Aspartame is one of the most exhaustively studied substances in the human food supply, with more than 100 studies supporting its safety” (via FDA).  Perhaps the best advice comes from The Salt, “Drink water instead.”  

 

“Dink More Water,” 07/2015.

Clairity, Part 2

I would like to introduce four more clarity topics. They can be used as guides to revise your own work, and are found in Rules for Writers.

"Clarity" (via Rochel Marie Lawson).

1. Find the Exact Words. Even if you think that you know what a word may mean, use a dictionary, because even if you are right, it still may be possible to find a better word. Also, avoid cliches because they can often make something seem less genuine. If you actually explain what you mean, you can reach your audience a lot better.

2. Choose Appropriate Language. When writing about a topic that is specific, for example science related, avoid jargon. Jargon is specific terms that practices use, for example, a doctor may say, "the patient's chem panel came back looking good," instead of "the patient's blood test results are normal."

3. Tighten Wordy Sentences. This means that you shouldn't use words that you don't need to. It is pretty self-explanatory, but I forget this a lot. Don't be repetitive, and don't say things that don't mean anything.

4. Provide some Variety. Using sentences with different lengths and structures helps keep your reader interested in what you are writing. Switch it up- try starting with a verb instead of a subject.  '

When revising my essay, I found that I needed to focus on a little bit of everything, and the four points were all useful when editing.

Example 1: below is my opening paragraph, I considered "provide some variety," and chose the short sentence to mix it up.

The popular soda brand Pepsi has listened to their customers, and has taken aspartame out of their diet cola. Of course, when you take out one zero calorie sweetener, you must replace it with another. Pepsi chose sucralose. Although there is no artificial sweetener deemed perfect, there is controversy surrounding the company’s switch because of possible health hazards associated with consuming the artificial sweetener.

Example 2: Below is a sentence that I revised to make it more simple and less wordy.

The companies that choose to use sucralose as an artificial sweetener certainly stand by it.

The companies that use sucralose stand by their decision.

Identifying Basic Grammar Patterns

Here is the link to my longest paragraph. Because of the QRG genre, the "longest paragraph" isn't really that long at all. I learned that even if you have a short paragraph, there are many parts that go into it. Something that is short usually isn't that simple when you begin breaking it down. I found this exercise a bit difficult because I tend to write some pretty tricky sentences. Maybe I should start focusing on simplicity.

"Keep It Simple" (via CurlyMade). 

Reflection on Project 1 Draft

I reviewed Zayla's draft and Jon's draft. My QRG draft has been peer reviewed, and I would like to provide analysis of what I have left to do to get my QRG all cleaned up.

"A Moment of Reflection" (via Travelledpaths).

This QRG was written for my instructor, my peers, and I may have my family read it as well. They all have different values, but I think that they all value their health, and want to avoid things that are bad for them. I'm sure that they expect to learn about pros and cons of sucralose, and why Pepsi is using it, which is what my article does.

I need to inform my audience of the basics, but not overload them with science material that could become boring. Not everyone knows what sucralose is, so it would not be insulting to give them a briefing.

A more relaxed tone is appropriate for QRG. Obviously, no curse words or slang, but it isn't exactly a scientific journal either. The tone is informative, which I try to convey throughout the QRG.

The format is QRG. This means plenty of blank space, images, short paragraphs, and subheadings. I would like to add a few more images, but other than that, the format of my draft is QRG.

The content requirements are a bit more lenient. There must be 6 direct quotes/ paraphrasing, which I have. There is no length requirement, but it must completely cover the topic. I would like to lengthen my QRG a bit more, just to add some more substance.

My QRG draft definitely reflects what I learned in class.....because I didn't even know what a QRG was before I started this class.

I have tried to resolve all grammatical errors, but will continue to proof read to look for any additional errors.

Paragraph Analysis

Here is the link to my paragraph analysis to my QRG. While doing this exercise I learned that I felt confident in my point sentences. I felt as though the point sentences under my subheadings allowed the reader to know what they will read in the paragraph. However, I did feel as though I could add some sentences at the end of paragraphs to allow for smoother transitions.

Clarity, Part 1

In this post, I will explain some writing topics that I found I could improve on. Hopefully my explanations will be beneficial to my readers.

"Sudden Clarity Clarence"

"Prefer active verbs." There are three types of verbs- passive, be verb, and active. It is important to choose the active verbs when you can, because they make writing more interesting to the reader. An example of a weak verb sentence is- "The purse was stolen by the robber." An example of an active verb sentence is- "The robber stole the purse." I often overlook opportunities to use active verbs in my writing.

"Balance parallel ideas." This means that when listing ideas, you can use the same phrase if it applies to all of them. For example, instead of saying, "My favorite classes are Spanish class, and English class," you would say, "My favorite classes are Spanish and English. This was an obvious example, but sometimes writers can tend to leave modifiers in a sentence when they can just be left out.

"Add needed words." This doesn't mean trying to reach a word count for an assignment. Instead, it means that sometimes  words are left out. For example, you would need to add "an" in front of apple in the following sentence- "My mom bought a banana and apple." It is easy to assume that people know what you mean, when really you need to add words to ensure correctness.

"Emphasize key ideas." The part in this section that I found most useful was about combining choppy sentences. I love sentence variety because it allows the reader to not be bored with sentences of the same lengths. With that being said, it is important to only make important sentences choppy. Choppy sentences are meant to add emphasis to the reader.

Reflection
After peer review, I learned that the most common things that could be changed were "prefer active verbs," and "emphasize key ideas." I didn't really find the other two topics helpful when peer reviewing the QRGs because they weren't things that applied to the paper.

This is an example from Zayla's blog where I suggested that she could "prefer active verbs"- In recent news China has created a new monetary institution . This could be changed to "China created." This was from her QRG rough draft.

Thoughts on Drafting

In this blog post, I will look back on my QGR drafting process. Not all typical writing conventions apply to QRGs, and I will explain why some drafting conventions from Student's Guide are helpful, and why some are not.

"Drafting"

Paragraph development and the PIE structure is definitely important when drafting a QRG. Even though the blog-style of this writing isn't exactly essay style paragraphs, it is still important to make sure you are logically explaining, and not leaving anyone hanging. My favorite part of the PIE structure is illustration, because in the QRG genre, this can even be literally an image as well as explanation.

Considering the QRG genre, the section about drafting a thesis statement may not be as helpful. Of course a QRG will still need a thesis, it may not be as easy as just one sentence. Since the QRG is meant to show different sides of a story, you most likely will be using topic sentences, with maybe your own thesis towards the end.

After reading Zayla's blog and Jon's Blog, I learned that my peers and I agreed on what is important to QRG and what is not. We agree that organization and flow is really important. However, my peers weren't  so sure on the PIE section, but I do think that it is important in logical organization.

Extra Credit: Putting Quotes in Context

In this blog post, I will go over the context of two quotes said by celebrities.

Quote 1: "I’m constantly amazed by the number of people who want to take my picture” (Ruth Bader Ginsberg)

This is what Ruth said in response to the question asked by reporter, Jeffery Rosen, "How do you feel about becoming an internet sensation?" The interview was with the website New Republic, and was published September 28th, 2014.

The context of Ruth responding to the question allows the reader to know that she doesn't just think she is the most popular woman. The article explains how she has a cult following, and it wasn't something that she asked for. If the quote was taken out of context, the reader could believe that she was being narcissistic. 

Knowing that Ruth was taken by surprise by her number of fans allows me to see her more as humble. Having her picture taken all the time was something that she didn't really expect, but it joyed by it. It allows me to see her as a simple woman who is just doing her job. 

Quote 2: "In general, I’m not afraid. I tend to be more reckless; I act without weighing the consequences. Sometimes that causes me headaches because an extra word slips out here and there” (Pope Francis).

This is what The Pope said when reporter Juan Berretta, from the website Aleteia, asked him what he was afraid of. The interview was conducted May 27th, 2015.

The Pope was asked what he was afraid of after explaining that he often has emotional topic to deal with as Pope. Knowing the context helps the reader understand that The Pope wasn't exactly talking about being a wild party animal, or anything like that.

Knowing the quote in context made me view The Pope as a man who doesn't think that he's perfect, and that's really how a man in that position should view himself. If, for example, Kanye West said that he was not afraid and reckless, you would think that he was cocky, but when The Pope says it, it's kind of a different story.

Draft of Quick Reference Guide

Here is the link to my rough draft of the QRG project. I am grateful of any suggestions that you may have, especially if there are any points on the rubric that I may have missed or need to clarify in order to receive credit. I am shooting for the best it can be, and I appreciate your help.

Practicing Quoting

This blog post includes two quotes from each side of the sucralose controversy. The legend is as follows: purple- quote boundaries, red- authority of speaker, yellow- context, blue- ellipsis and bracket.  

QRGs: The Genre

In this blog post, I will explore the genre of Quick Reference Guides. I will go over conventions, purpose, and usage.

Hispanic Market Advisors, August 2010.

Conventions of this genre include: subheading, photos/illustrations, short paragraphs, posed questions, hyperlinks, and social media.

The author makes the QRG their own by formatting the article in a certain way. The subheading could be a crazy color, bold lettering, italics, etc. The photos could be graphs, pictures at events, drawings, or stock images. The paragraphs can be broken up under subheadings, only one sentence, separated by photos, or put into bullets or numbers. Questions can predict what the reader was thinking, or they can be questions that the reader didn't know to ask.

The conventions can easily be over-lapped too. For example, your subheading may be a question, or your photos may be screen grabs of social media.

The purpose of a QRG is to appeal to a common internet audience. These are people who want to stay current and up-to-date, without reading a scientific journal. The QRG is a pretty informal way of posting an easy read.

The internet audience is a wide variety of people. Of course, different QRGs are read by different people. It tends to be the general population, and most of the time QRGs are read for pleasure, and that is why they are made into such visually appealing articles.

The QRGs often have many photos so that the text can be broken up, and also so that people can actually see photos of what the article is about. If you were reading a QRG about the Video Music Awards for example, it wouldn't be very interesting if you didn't  see who was there, what they wore, etc.

The QRG is a very common type of online article and is meant to inform the reader in a very appealing way.

I read Stef's blog, Chris' blog, and Carrie Belle's blog. I think that the review that we did in class was really worth it, because it seemed as though everyone knew the QRG genre pretty well! One thing that my classmates did that I didn't think of, was to talk about the QRGs that we looked at in class.

Cluster of My Controversy

In this blog post, I share a mind map of the sucralose in Pepsi controversy. Keep in mind that I have never used Coggle before, so bare with me!

In this cluster, I separated pro on one side, and con on the other. On the pro side, I explain research supporting sucralose, with the FDA and Pepsi as the main sucralose activists. On the con side, I explain research against sucralose, with science journals and natural health activists as the main people of anti-sucralose.

Hunter's mind map was very well organized, and he utilized the different colors that were available very well. Lia's was also very organized, but was a little bit harder to follow because there was so much information.  After looking at my peer's Coggle creations, I realized that mine had all the right information, but was a bit of an eye sore.

Annotated Bibliography in JAND Style

This blog post will serve as an annotated bibliography for my research on sucralose. The format is JAND, which is the style that Nutritional Science uses.

English 1

1. Akis E. Questions Remain About Splenda. Blogger Website. http://owannuofa.blogspot.com/2015/09/questions-remain-about-splenda.html. Published January 26, 2011. Accessed September 4, 2015. 

In this short article, reporter Eric Akis answers questions related to sucralose. He explains that it comes from sugar, but contains no calories. The article says that it was approved in Canada in 1991, but there is still some questions surrounding the sweetener. He advises to use sucralose cautiously when factoring it into a diet. 

2. Aubrey A. Diet Soda May Alter Our Gut Microbes And Raise The Risk Of Diabetes. NPR Website. http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/09/17/349270927/diet-soda-may-alter-our-gut-microbes-and-the-risk-of-diabetes. Published September 17, 2014. Accessed September 9, 2015.

This article discusses the results found in an Israeli research project in which mice were fed artificial sweeteners. The study suggests that when sucralose, aspartame, and saccharin were ingested, the population of gut microbes was reduced. The article also compares the results of a nutrition study in which humans consumed diet sodas. The study concluded that drinking diet sodas can create glucose intolerance, which can be considered pre-diabetes. The article concludes with a researcher's idea of just drinking water.

3. Aubrey A. PepsiCo Swaps Diet Drink's Aspartame For Other Artificial Sweeteners. NPR Website. http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2015/04/24/402031457/pepsico-swaps-diet-drinks-aspartame-for-other-artificial-sweeteners. Published April 24, 2015. Accessed September 9, 2015.

This article explains that PepsiCo replaced aspartame with sucralsoe and Ace K because of dropping sales. Consumers wanted the brand to move away from aspartame, and so the company listened. The article says that the old added sweetener is FDA approved, but some studies have been done that link aspartame to certain blood cancers. The article concludes mixed results regarding aspartame, but only time will tell if sucralose was a good decision for PepsiCo.  

4. Azoubel R, Rodero AD, Rodero LS. Toxcicity of Sucralose in Humans. Scilo Website. http://www.scielo.cl/pdf/ijmorphol/v27n1/art40.pdf. Published 2009. Accessed September 2, 2015. 

The article introduces sucralose with an in depth explanation of the molecule and makeup. It then describes the uses, which is as an artificial sweetener. It explores studies done on rats, which have mixed results. The major negative impacts are on the female rats, who can lose the ability to carry offspring when large amounts of sucralose are ingested. The article concludes that more long term research will need to be done to make any assumptions of the safety of sucralose. 

5. Ferdman RA. Why Pepsi's Decision to Ditch Aspartame isn't Good for Soda- or Science. Washington Post Website. http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/04/27/why-pepsis-decision-to-ditch-aspartame-isnt-good-for-soda-or-science/. Published April 27, 2015. Accessed September 2, 2015. 

Roberto Ferdman informs readers that all flavors of diet Pepsi will switch over to sucralose. He explains that it was Pepsi customer's number one request. He proposes the idea that listening to customer's demand will negatively impact the field of science. His reasoning behind this is that there is no proof of harm from aspartame, and having a company with such power listen to consumers will lead others to believe that aspartame is bad for humans. 

6. Laufer-Cahana A. Diet Soda: Builds Desire, Decreases Satisfaction. Huffington-Post Website. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ayala-laufercahana-md/diet-soda-builds-desire-d_b_5697408.html. Published August 24, 2014. Accessed September 9, 2015.

In this article, an experiment is discussed in which subjects drank diet soda, and were asked to make some decisions and express thoughts. The subjects were more likely to choose to eat high-calorie or sweetened foods if they had an artificially sweetened drink. Also, the people who had  the artificially sweetened drink were less satisfied after eating a cookie, compared to people who had a sweetened drink, or water. The article ends by stating that there is a lot that we still don't know about artificial sweeteners.  

7. Loop M. Is Your Artificial Sweetener Making You Fat? Youtube Website. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8jo9X6tHUo. Published September 26, 2008. Accessed September 4, 2015. 

Dr. Matthew Loop is on vacation during his blog video, but takes time to explain dangers of artificial sweeteners. He says that sucralose stops receptors in the brain that tell you to stop eating (causing you t gain weight). In Costa Rica (where he is vacationing), they do not eat fake foods. Matthew suggests adding honey to food for sweetness. 

8. Natural Health Sherpa. Splenda and Sucralose: The Truth About this Artificial Sweetener. Youtube Website. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRT8fvy2BQw&feature=youtu.be. Published January 31, 2012. Accessed September 4, 2015. 

This video deters viewers from consuming sucralose. It presents some frightening facts, for example, sucralose burns and reddens eyes if it comes in contact. The video claims that it is a toxic chemical that should not be consumed by humans. It offers the alternative of going natural with the sweetener stevia, or eating foods that are naturally sweet. 

9. Sullivan G. The Blind Spot in the Anti-Soda Crusade. Huffington-Post Website. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gail-sullivan/soda-health_b_7571906.html. Published June 13, 2015. Accessed September 9, 2015.

This article explores many studies. The studies done on both animals and humans suggest that artificial sweeteners (both sucralose and aspartame) cause changes in the metabolism. The artificial sweeteners can cause a human to have insulin resistance, and change how bodies handle real sugar. The article suggests that people avoid sugar, be it fake or real.  

10. Wong V. Diet Pepsi Ditched Aspartame, is Now Sweetened with Sucralose. But what is      Sucralose? Buzzfeed Website. http://www.buzzfeed.com/venessawong/what-is-  sucralose#.abGE2Q1qlo. Published August 12, 2015. Accessed September 2, 2015. 

Vanessa Wong explains that the popular soda brand, Pepsi, has listened to consumers and will replace aspartame with sucralose. She gives the chemical formual for the molecule, and a quick history. She explains that many companies are switching over to sucralose, but the safety of the sweetener is still unknown. She ends the article by posing the question of whether or not their decision will improve plummeting sales for the diet soda brand. 

After reading Jovanka's blog, which used MLA, and Stef's blog in MLA format, I learned something weird- Stef and I are in the same program (nutritional science), but she used a different format than I did. I used JAND, which is the official style through The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. I looked a little further into the type of citation, and I am confident in my usage of JAND. I think that my peers are fluent in MLA citation that they used. 

Ideology in My Controversy

In this blog post, I will discuss different groups related to the sucralose controversy. The questions that are answered are from the book, Writing in Public Lives.

Key Compounding

The main groups involved in the controversy are pro-sucralose and anti-sucralose. The pro team consists of manufacturers of artificial sweeteners, and companies that use them. The anti team consists of doctors and nutritionists who use experiments to prove that it has a negative effect on the body.

The major speakers of pro are the FDA, because they are the ones who approved it for use, and also companies (like Splenda), that try to convey safety to consumers. The major speakers of anti are scientific journals, who publish new information on the safety of artificial sweeteners.

The pros hold economic power because they are big companies. They don't want consumers to shy away from their products, because it would negatively impact their revenue. The antis hold scientific power, because if there is a new study out that proves something to be unsafe, they are able to publish it and spread knowledge to the community.

The same resources are generally available to both sides. The main one being science. Since science is supposed to be unbiased, if there are studies showing no harm, pro can triumph, and if they do show harm, anti can benefit.

The pro group values the ability to have diet products. No everyone can have sugar, but if companies can make it so diabetics can drink soda, they win. The anti group values natural foods. They are weary of chemicals, and don't want people eating unnatural things.

For the pro group, the FDA approval serves a lot of proof. They want to be able to tell consumers that their product is safe. The anti group relies on more recent scientific studies. They want to see sucralose negatively impact an organism, and that will serve as proof for them.

The power differential is that companies have advertising power. It is more simple for them to get diet soda into people's hands. Science is very powerful, but it takes so long to conduct studies, and scientists don't  really buy on air ad time.

The common knowledge between the groups is that sucralose is a more recent sweetener. It definitely won't kill you if you eat it, but there is uncertainty when it comes to long term effects.

I don't really think that there is any unacknowledged common ground between the groups. The pros want what is best for the company, and the antis want what is best for the people.

The groups don't really listen to each other. The reason why sucralose is in Pepsi now is because they listened to what the people want (which is not aspartame).

Evaluation of Social Media

In this blog post, I will analyze two social media sources on their take on the sucralose controversy. I will judge them based on credibility and who the post is coming from.

Pacific Crest

Source 1: Natural Health Sherpa

This video was posted by a group that calls themselves"Natural Health Sherpa." They are a team consisting of a MD, and some natural health writers, and their goal is to inform the public about the risk factors around us.

They are located in Wilmington, North Carolina. They are directly involved with the controversy because they are advocating against sucralose.

Their youtube channel has over 35,000 subscribers since they joined in 2010. They are considered to have institutional credibility, and so the majority of people who follow them just want to learn from what they have to say.

They refer to the 2006 Journal of Headaches, which is in fact a credible source. They also talk about how sucralose was discovered, and their facts are correct.

This is the only post that they have on artificial sweeteners. However, all of their posts are in the same genre, which is health and well-being.

This account is 5 years old. Their website is copyright 2015, and contains current and up to date articles.

This source is reliable. They have their own website, and utilize social media in order to post videos and connect with viewers.

Source 2: Your Health Expert

This video was posted by Dr. Matthew Loop. He is a MD, and also the author of the book "Cracking the Cancer Code."

After visiting his personal website, and youtube account, I have no idea where he is located. He has something to say about sucralose (that he doesn't think people should eat it), but I would not consider him directly involved.

His youtube channel has 600 subscribers. He is definitely not as big as Natural Health Sherpa.

He does not site any sources in his video. Since he is a MD, it may be fair to assume that he knows what sucralose is and why it's bad.

This post is the only video on artificial sweeteners. His format is more like a volg, so he just talks about what he feels like for the week.

The account was made in 2008. His most recent video is from 5 years ago, so it seems safe to assume that he no loner posts to his account.

The source is a bit questionable. He has published a book, and is a MD, but he seems outdated, which is the main reason for question.

My Thoughts on Comments

Credible Comment #1

 Badbob is afraid of how they will make this up to customers. This person values honesty. This commenter is reasonable because they are genuinely concerned about others, even if they didn't shop at whole foods.

Credible Comment #2 

This person is afraid of being over-charged for groceries. Insdr values fair prices, and fair stores. This commenter seems reasonable because they seem to have conducted their own kind of experiment on prices at WF.


Un-Credible #1

 Common Sense doesn't seem to have fears about WF, and doesn't worry  for others. It is unclear what he values. This person does not seem reasonable because he brushes off the whole situation, and does not come to defense of WF, or criticize them either.

Un-Credible #2

Just.a.guy is very afraid of WF's CEO. He values trusting other people. He does not seem reasonable because he brings up an incident that there is no proof of.


Reflection:
I enjoyed Stef's blog because I didn't  know that she was in the same area of study that I'm in. She did a good job of determining reliable and unreliable commenters. I also read Zayla's blog post about the Confederate flag. I thought that her analysis of comments was biased because she discredited any person who argued for the Confederate flag. 

Evaluation of Scholarly Sources

I have found two scholarly articles that discuss the safety of scralose. Below I will analyze the articles with questions centered around content and reliability.

"Open Sesame," Dave Simonds, The Economist. 

Article 1: Toxicity of Sucralose in Humans: A Review

The purpose of this article is to explain experiments done (like on rats), and their effects. The article explores multiple experiments done on rats, but states that further research needs to be done on the artificial sweetener to determine if it is safe for human consumption.

The article was published by The International Journal of Morphology, which is based out of Chile. The article is featured in vol. 27, issue no. 1.

The article cites over 30 sources in the reference section at the end. The majority of them are the studies done on animals that the article presents.

The authors are A.B Rodero, L.S Rodero, and R. Azoubel. These authors are from Chile, and have other scientific articles published in The International Journal of Morphology.

It is clear that this article was written for a scientific journal, which is read by the scientific community. Scientists who are looking for a summary of experiments would be the ones who read this.

I found this article online after performing a search in Google Scholar. It was one of the first results that came up because it was entirely about sucralose. Most of the articles are about the general topic of artificial sweeteners.

Article 2: Questions Remain About Splenda 

This article was written to answer the question of "how safe is Splenda." Splenda is simply a specific brand of sucralose.

This article was published by The Windsor Star. The Windsor Star is a newspaper company which is based out of Ontario, Canada.

This article only refers to one source, Truth About Splenda. This website is a very anti-Splenda campaign that argues that Splenda is an unnatural chemical.

The author of this article is Eric Akis, who is a reporter for The Windsor Star. He has written many articles about food, and has also written for The Victoria Times.

The intended audience of this article are readers of the newspaper. It would be more for a dietitian or a hospital employee to read, because I would assume many readers would be bored over the science behind it.

I found this article on LexisNexis. It was on the first page of the search I performed, and I chose it because it was only about sucralose. Even though this article is from a newspaper, which doesn't always constitute a scholarly source, it fits into the category because it discusses studies and scientific facts behind sucralose.

Questions Remain About Splenda

I do not own this article or write this article. I added the text to my blog so that I could link it to another post. 



Windsor Star (Ontario)
January 26, 2011 Wednesday
Final Edition
Questions remain about Splenda

BYLINE: Eric Akis, Postmedia News

SECTION: FOOD; Pg. C3

LENGTH: 464 words

Q I have a question about Splenda. My dietitian at the Cancer Agency said to use it, not sugar. A vegetarian friend told me Splenda was just chemicals, and was very bad for us. Do you have you information about Splenda? -- Vicki Sharp

A Splenda is the brand name for a group of products made from a non-nutritive (no-calorie) substance called sucralose. Sucralose is a synthetic compound stumbled upon by scientists in England that eventually came to be used in sweeteners, such as Splenda.

According to its Canadian website, splenda.ca,Splenda is made from sugar, tastes like sugar, but is not sugar.

It sounds a bit eerie, but to make sucralose you do start with sugar (sucrose). According to Marlene Koch's book, 375 Sensational Splenda Recipes, the sugar goes through a multistep process that selectively replaces three hydrogen-oxygen groups on the sugar molecule with chlorine atoms. The resulting product is exceptionally heat stable and intensely sweet and cannot be metabolized for energy because it lacks sugar's calories.

Sucralose was approved for use in Canada in 1991. Health Canada and the United States Food and Drug Administration have approved sucralose as a product that's safe for everyone, including children, pregnant women and the elderly.

It must be noted that studies tested sucralose, not Splenda, which contains more than just sucralose. For products such as Splenda granules, which are used for cooking and baking, and Splenda packets, which are used to sweeten such things as coffee, sucralose is mixed with maltodextrin and/or dextrose. Maltodextrin, which is made from vegetable starch, such as corn, and dextrose, a form of sugar, are commonly used food additives. They are added to the sucralose, which is much sweeter than sugar, to give Splenda a degree of sweetness and texture similar to those of sugar.

These ingredients, which are listed before sucralose on a package of Splenda, do have calories. However, because they contribute less than five calories per teaspoon serving, Splenda meets Health Canada's standards for no-calorie foods, and therefore some of its products can be labelled as no-calorie sweeteners.

Splenda does have its detractors, and not surprisingly one is the Sugar Association, which represents American sugar beet and sugar cane farmers. They call Splenda a non-natural, chlorinated artificial sweetener. The website says that no long-term human studies have been done on the safety of Splenda, but that issues have been raised about Splenda in a study from Duke University, which is linked from the association's website, truthaboutsplenda.com.

Whether you use a sweetener such as Splenda or sugar, as with many foods, moderate consumption and careful consideration of how to make them fit in a well-balanced diet seems paramount.

GRAPHIC: 
Colour Photo: Mario Tama, Getty Images Files; Sucralose is the key ingredient in Splenda.;

LANGUAGE: ENGLISH

DOCUMENT-TYPE: News

PUBLICATION-TYPE: Newspaper