No Need to Panic!

If you’ve never visited Asheville, I strongly recommend that if you’re the mood for an eclectic, beautiful family town then you should definitely check it out.

I went to Asheville to see one of my favorite bands, Widespread Panic. The concert was awesome but what was even more awesome was the town! There are so many places to eat, with restaurants of every different ethnicity, great shopping and beautiful landscapes. I really think this is a town I could spend some serious time in. I would love to check out the Biltomore next time I get up there.

While I was hanging out with some friends, one of my friend’s who’s a chef commented on the fact that he often sees overweight people chugging diet sodas at restaurants. He said he believed that it’s the diet sodas that are making these people fat. He believed it was the phenylalanine that was causing the weight gain. I sat there for a moment, considering my line of defense. Do I laugh in his face and ask him how something with no calories could possible cause someone to gain weight? Do I ignore him and hope he eventually sees the light?

I chose neither and began to explain to him the components that make up diet soda, including aspartame. Phenylalanine is found in aspartame. People who have a rare disorder called phenylketonuria can’t consume aspartame because it contains phenylalanine but overall, it’s safe for the general population. Phenylalanine is a naturally occurring essential amino acid that is commonly found in many protein containing foods such as chicken, hamburger, milk and vegetables, and is a component of aspartame.

Stepping off my pedestal now, I’m going to go get some work done and then head home to take a nap. This weekend was a little too Widespread with a little too much Panic.