How Does Aspartame Damage Your Brain

[shida]

"Consuming a lot of aspartame may inhibit the ability of enzymes in your brain to function normally, according to a new review by scientists from the University of Pretoria and the University of Limpopo."

http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/04/26/how-does-aspartame-damage-your-brain.aspx?source=nl

[yongrel]

The University of Limpopo?

[tmosley]

How much is "a lot"?

Just about anything is toxic if you take in too much of it. If it requires an intake of a half a pound of the stuff daily for weeks before toxicity shows up, then it's not really dangerous, as that would be something like 10 million times the dose from a typical zero-calorie drink.

[amy31416]

The University of Limpopo?

Don't dis Limpopo, I just bought two PhD's there a couple weeks ago and I'm fixin' to get a couple more.

[Zippyjuan]

Aspertame is a bad product. Monsanto makes it but that alone does not mean it is bad. I don't think any of the artificial sweetners are good for you. I don't even drink sodas so my sugar consumption is low. For those who do, the "diet" or sugar free sodas are not necessarily any better for you and possibly worse.
Info on it:
http://www.mercola.com/article/aspartame/dangers.htm

Aspartame is the technical name for the brand names NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure. It was discovered by accident in 1965 when James Schlatter, a chemist of G.D. Searle Company, was testing an anti-ulcer drug.

Aspartame was approved for dry goods in 1981 and for carbonated beverages in 1983. It was originally approved for dry goods on July 26, 1974, but objections filed by neuroscience researcher Dr John W. Olney and Consumer attorney James Turner in August 1974 as well as investigations of G.D. Searle's research practices caused the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to put approval of aspartame on hold (December 5, 1974). In 1985, Monsanto purchased G.D. Searle and made Searle Pharmaceuticals and The NutraSweet Company separate subsidiaries.

Aspartame accounts for over 75 percent of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the FDA. Many of these reactions are very serious including seizures and death.(1) A few of the 90 different documented symptoms listed in the report as being caused by aspartame include: Headaches/migraines, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, tachycardia, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss, and joint pain.

According to researchers and physicians studying the adverse effects of aspartame, the following chronic illnesses can be triggered or worsened by ingesting of aspartame:(2) Brain tumors, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic fatigue syndrome, parkinson's disease, alzheimer's, mental retardation, lymphoma, birth defects, fibromyalgia, and diabetes.

Aspartame is made up of three chemicals: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol. The book "Prescription for Nutritional Healing," by James and Phyllis Balch, lists aspartame under the category of "chemical poison." As you shall see, that is exactly what it is.

[amy31416]

Aspartame, sucralose, even stevia--it's likely that none of them are particularly good for you in large quantities, just like anything else. Then again, neither is sugar or high fructose corn syrup. Empty calories. Eat real food, drink real juice, wine etc. in moderation.

In my opinion, Monsanto is a shitty company, but not for aspartame--for the terminator seeds they produce and dominate the market with. That, in my opinion, is the true danger of Monsanto. If something should happen, and the majority of farms have terminator seed crops, there is no way of easily sustaining the food supply. For that reason alone, I will not buy anything put out by Monsanto.

I like to garden and tinker around with plants a bit, ala Gregor Mendel. If those are the only seeds available, I can't do it. I don't want a garden that is genetically engineered to survive RoundUp (tm). Nasty chemicals in that shit that will end up on food you eat and in the water supply.

There are better ways.

[tmosley]

Wow, I just read that Donald Rumsfeld was the CEO of Searle while they were getting it approved. Nasty dealings there.

You've convinced me. I don't think I'll be using aspartame any more (I liked it in my iced tea).

Looking a bit further into the subject, it looks like sucralose (Splenda) is much safer, with no apparent health concerns at moderate intakes (you might have some thymus damage if you eat more than a kilo of the stuff each day for a month).

Thanks for the info.

[DanConway]

My first thought on reading this was "How doesn't it?" :p

I like stevia, but I don't use too much of it. You don't really need too much, though. The best nutritional advice is probably "avoid anything your grandparents (or, for someone of my age, perhaps great-grandparents) wouldn't have recognized as food."

Terminator seeds are a terrifying thought.

[Dr.3D]

As I understand it, Aspartame turns to formaldehyde when left in high temperatures.

I remember an article of how a pallet of soda pop had been sent over to the troops and had been left out in the sun for a day or so and then when they started drinking it, they noticed it had a funny flavor. Further research found the Aspartame had converted to formaldehyde from the heat.

[yongrel]

As I understand it, Aspartame turns to formaldehyde when left in high temperatures.

I remember an article of how a pallet of soda pop had been sent over to the troops and had been left out in the sun for a day or so and then when they started drinking it, they noticed it had a funny flavor. Further research found the Aspartame had converted to formaldehyde from the heat.

My understanding is that its chemical structure upon heating resembles formaldehyde and takes similar properties, but it does not actually become formaldehyde. I'm not much of a chemist, so I can't tell you if that's significant.

[Dr.3D]

My understanding is that its chemical structure upon heating resembles formaldehyde and takes similar properties, but it does not actually become formaldehyde. I'm not much of a chemist, so I can't tell you if that's significant.

You can read about it for yourself and find out what is being said from these articles.

http://www.ethicalinvesting.com/monsanto/aspartame.shtml
http://www.rense.com/general41/beif.htm
http://www.dorway.com/
http://www.health-report.co.uk/aspartame-formaldehyde-poisoning.htm
http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/fm.html

[Working Poor]

As I understand it, Aspartame turns to formaldehyde when left in high temperatures.

Actually it turns into wood alcohol in the body which among other things makes it really hard on the liver and kidneys. The stuff is poison and ought to be banned.

I hope anyone here who uses it will consider stopping. It has also been linked to a condition in young athletes called Sudden Cardiac Death(SCD). The stuff is too dangerous for words. Could be a part of the long term population control plan....

[amy31416]

The first products that aspartame breaks down into are phenylalanine, methanol and aspartic acid.

http://fig.cox.miami.edu/~cmallery/150/protein/aspartame.jpg

Phenylalanine is not a problem, even good for you and a natural substance. Aspartic acid is a precursor to many amino acids, so no problem there either. For the methanol alone, I would avoid it. Liver problems are bad. But if you must have it, take milk thistle regularly--it repairs liver tissue with virtually no side-effects. It's used in Europe and Asia regularly and there's good research on it. Go with a quality supplement.

Formic acid, formaldehyde and diketopiperazine are secondary break-down products.
Formic acid is the venom found in ant stings along with a few other insects. Diketopiperazine is possibly carcinogenic. Formaldehyde--not good for you at all, but good for preserving dead tissue, if you should be so inclined.

Despite all this bad news, there hasn't been any study that correlates aspartame to higher levels of cancer or other illnesses, that I can find. So, once again, moderation if you're into artificially sweetened stuff. The majority of studies I read gave megadoses which are usually equivalent to drinking over 100 liters of artificially sweetened soda/day.

Google "aspartame safety" to read some studies--there's lots out there.

[Dr.3D]

Actually it turns into wood alcohol in the body which among other things makes it really hard on the liver and kidneys. The stuff is poison and ought to be banned.

I hope anyone here who uses it will consider stopping. It has also been linked to a condition in young athletes called Sudden Cardiac Death(SCD). The stuff is too dangerous for words. Could be a part of the long term population control plan....


True:

From the article on page http://www.rense.com/general41/beif.htm

p. 88 "The sweetening agent aspartame hydrolyzes in the gastrointestinal
tract to become free methyl alcohol, which is metabolized in the liver
to formaldehyde, formic acid, and CO2. (11)" Medinsky MA & Dorman DC.
1994; Assessing risks of low-level methanol exposure. CIIT Act. 14: 1-7.

Methyl alcohol is also known as wood alcohol.
Formic acid is what is usually associated with the poison found in many species of ants.
CO2 is just a gas we exhale.

[yongrel]

The first products that aspartame breaks down into are phenylalanine, methanol and aspartic acid.

http://fig.cox.miami.edu/~cmallery/150/protein/aspartame.jpg

Phenylalanine is not a problem, even good for you and a natural substance. Aspartic acid is a precursor to many amino acids, so no problem there either. For the methanol alone, I would avoid it. Liver problems are bad. But if you must have it, take milk thistle regularly--it repairs liver tissue with virtually no side-effects. It's used in Europe and Asia regularly and there's good research on it. Go with a quality supplement.

Formic acid, formaldehyde and diketopiperazine are secondary break-down products.
Formic acid is the venom found in ant stings along with a few other insects. Diketopiperazine is possibly carcinogenic. Formaldehyde--not good for you at all, but good for preserving dead tissue, if you should be so inclined.

Despite all this bad news, there hasn't been any study that correlates aspartame to higher levels of cancer or other illnesses. So, once again, moderation if you're into artificially sweetened stuff. The majority of studies I read gave megadoses which are usually equivalent to drinking over 100 liters of artificially sweetened soda/day.

Google "aspartame safety" to read some studies--there's lots out there.

Thanks. I'll look into milk thistle.

[angelatc]

Aspartame, sucralose, even stevia--it's likely that none of them are particularly good for you in large quantities, just like anything else. Then again, neither is sugar or high fructose corn syrup. Empty calories. Eat real food, drink real juice, wine etc. in moderation.




My best argument against aspartame is firsthand. Well, ok - thirdhand. I used to work with a guy who was a Harvard graduate. He went to school with the son of the man who discovered / invented aspartame. Based on my source, that man will not allow the people in his family to use it.

[amy31416]

My best argument against aspartame is firsthand. Well, ok - thirdhand. I used to work with a guy who was a Harvard graduate. He went to school with the son of the man who discovered / invented aspartame. Based on my source, that man will not allow the people in his family to use it.

I've heard that story before, though I don't recall where. If you ever work in an organic chem lab, you'll never want to eat anything made in a lab again.

But then, after a while, you realize that they replicated the active ingredient in willow bark tea in an organic lab and Bayer came up with aspirin.

You wouldn't want to eat meat after you took a tour through a slaughterhouse either. Yecch.

[mizrae]

Here's another article on aspartame: Nutrasweet, the History of this Toxic Chemical and It's Promotion (http://www.naturalnews.com/023128.html).

[thuja]

you guys are wonderful and doing a great job with the chemicals. i am really smiling to see so many people discovering the problems.
without chemicals and genetic engineering we can be just fine, but with them, our health is headed straight to hell along with the whole planet.
now that food shortages are in the news the path for certain chemical and GE companies is well lighted to prosperity and our demise if we don't reject it.

[constituent]

high fructose corn syrup is what we should really be worrying ourselves over.

jmo

[DrYongrel]

high fructose corn syrup is what we should really be worrying ourselves over.

jmo

agreed. But don't tell the Iowans that.

[freelance]

Aspartame, sucralose, even stevia--it's likely that none of them are particularly good for you in large quantities, just like anything else. Then again, neither is sugar or high fructose corn syrup. Empty calories. Eat real food, drink real juice, wine etc. in moderation.

In my opinion, Monsanto is a shitty company, but not for aspartame--for the terminator seeds they produce and dominate the market with. That, in my opinion, is the true danger of Monsanto. If something should happen, and the majority of farms have terminator seed crops, there is no way of easily sustaining the food supply. For that reason alone, I will not buy anything put out by Monsanto.

I like to garden and tinker around with plants a bit, ala Gregor Mendel. If those are the only seeds available, I can't do it. I don't want a garden that is genetically engineered to survive RoundUp (tm). Nasty chemicals in that shit that will end up on food you eat and in the water supply.

There are better ways.

What's wrong with stevia?

[SWATH]

I work in a genome science lab. My story is anecdotal but noteworthy. One of the phD students and I decided that we would both start drinking nothing but diet soft-drinks for a while (as part of a diet). During that time I remember feeling fatigue, mental haze, confusion, lack of motivation, irritability, and most commonly insomnia. I would lie awake in bed at night for hours before I could get to sleep. I didn't attribute it to the sodas so I didn't mention it to the phD student. One day, he just blurted out "I'm not drinking diet drinks anymore" I said "why?" He said "I think it is doing something to me, I feel weird and I can't sleep". I recognized the symptoms but asked "how do you know it's the diet drinks?" He said "I always feel weird after I drink one and when I went to visit my parents for a week I didn't have any and felt fine.

Then a couple of years later my wife started getting some artificially sweetened lemonade packets and would mix them with water and drink them for lunch. After a couple of weeks she said she wasn't going to drink them anymore. Immediately after drinking one she would feel really weird, and just kind of sit on the couch and stare into space. She finally quit when her eyes started to bother her after consumption. She said her eyes would kind of get blurry and she was unable to focus on things for any period of time. She has stopped drinking artificial sweeteners and has not had the problems since. We do not waste food but she threw the remaining boxes in the thrash and would not give them away.

[shida]

Pulled from the 'must see documentary' section in hot topics.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-566922170441334340

[amy31416]

What's wrong with stevia?

I read up on it a while ago and have used it on occasion, no ill effects, but I rarely crave sweet things so my personal experience is just about useless. Since it's easy, and has links to the research done, here's the link to wikipedia's information on the controversy about stevia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia#Controversies

In essence, some studies show mutagenic effects (likely, just as aspartame, by megadosing mice.) The studies are not entirely complete and some of the studies contradict each other. When I'm in the mood for tea or coffee to be sweet, I'd use it though, given that it's been used for many years in Japan with no ill effects recorded.

I also looked into sucralose, which I think appears to be the safest alternative sweetener, unfortunately it is not used in the majority of diet sodas and juices. But I've found plenty of generic brands that use it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sucralose#Safety

The only problem they found, so far, is shrinkage to the thymus and some DNA damage when megadosing mice and rats. (We're talking the equivalent of someone eating around 5-10,000 packets of the stuff/day.)

Anyways, of the three I'd rank aspartame as the worst, both for potential liver damage from methanol and formaldehyde. Sucralose as the best, only because it's had more thorough studies than stevia--which is to be expected from a 100% naturally derived sweetener. So that's my opinion, for what it's worth.

Oh, and I agree that high fructose corn syrup is the absolute worst--and that shit is in everything.

[angelatc]

I've heard that story before, though I don't recall where.

Might be from me. I've told it here before. ALthough I emailed my ex-co worker last night, and discovered he didn't go to Harvard, that was his brother. He went to Emory, in Georgia.

[amy31416]

Might be from me. I've told it here before. ALthough I emailed my ex-co worker last night, and discovered he didn't go to Harvard, that was his brother. He went to Emory, in Georgia.

Must be, because I googled it and couldn't find anything. Usually Snopes will have that sort of story on their site and there wasn't anything.