The Side Effects of Aspartame

That craziness about the aspartame is plot level, the same kind as people who think that 911 was done by government.

Aspartame has been around for 45 years and is THE most studied/investigated product ever. People wanted so much to find something with unfair association and tactics. But to the contrary, over the long run, aspartame HAS PROVEN TO BE SAFE.

Unless you abuse it, like about anything else.
 
San said:
a) I wrote that those claims and studies are controversial. Please use the full quote if you quote me.
b) There were studies that indicated that Stevia has those side effects. If you want me to find you details, give me while.
c) The side effects of Aspartame have never been proven on a human either, and most of the studies are as controversial and much discussed as the Stevia ones. Does that make them untrue? Just wondering....
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Actually, I did the research. I found a lot of the links for the stevia issues as well as aspartame, and both can be questionable as whether or not they have other interests in their studies that supersede the "scientific" basis.

I'm a big fan of informing and letting others make their own decisions.

My point is that yes, people can post aspartame is going to give you brain damage and that's bad, but it's as bad as also coming back and saying stevia is going to make you infertile, knowing full well that there is controversy in that research (as there is in the aspartame ones).

My personal opinion on this topic is that all our bodies are different. Some are going to tolerate aspartame well and people will live to their 100s without any side effects of the ingredient. The same applies to stevia or other sweeteners. And there are going to be people who feel awful with the aspartame (or other sweeteners) are going to have side effects and their bodies aren't going to tolerate the ingredient well at all.

Those people need to identify if it's the aspartame (or other sweetener) that's affecting them and eliminate it from their diet.

We can't all eat alike. Some foods are going sit better for our bodies than others. Some things we can eat (or do) are going to be great for us, but really detrimental for others.

It's more important -- in my opinion -- that we listen to our bodies and we figure out what works for us, rather than trying to be cookie cutter copies of each other.
 
Hey guys, I'm new here, and this was a new thread right at the top...so caught my eye and I'm jumping in.

I'm a premed student at the moment, and have always been very interested in health and fitness. Although to tell you the truth, I am actually switching to a science degree next year, as I realized it is not quite where I want to go with my life.

There ARE a fair few scientific studies done on Aspartame, indicating potential weight gain either due to a direct affect, or more often due to it not fulfilling the appetite as well as glucose etc...and so the person is inclined to eat more. an example can be found here: - Unfortunately you'd have to be part of a university to access it. (Though everyone is free to read the abstract to get the gist :) )

That said, there are also many almost contradictory studies indicating that it has no significant effect, such as this one:

It is not 'black or white'...science hardly ever is. Personally, I have sifted through many of the studies I could get my hands on, and decided that I personally prefer to avoid it. Not so much for weight issues (I have none personally) but more for general health reasons. Frankly, I also find actual sodas taste far better than diet sodas! :p That said, I agree with WineDeer. We have differences ultimately, and people can respond differently to the same thing. Though...many times we have enough similarities that we would be wise to throw out some things in general.

On the subject of Stevia, I honestly have not researched it anywhere near as thoroughly as aspartame, but I have not found quite so many 'adverse' studies about it. In fact, many people who are so 'anti aspartame' are actually in favour of Stevia.

P.S. Yes, the FDA is really a bit of a tool at times. Not too long ago there was a big issue with Coca-cola adding Stevia to their product, and the FDA ultimately gave in after saying they couldn't for a long time...when they announced they were anyway and were about to release it (probably to save their face).
 
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Ania138 said:
I learned about Aspartame in some of my college courses. It scared the be-jesus out of me! It is an carcinogenic agent that is commonly found in Diet Foods and Drinks. I can not understand how this is FDA approved.
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There's been around 166 studies carried out on the safety of aspartame - 74 have been fully or partially industry-funded and 92 have been independently funded. 92%of the independent studies concluded there was a risk of causing adverse side effects but 100% of the industry funded studies returned reports saying that it was safe to use.

Go figure..............
 
I think the point of listing the Stevia issues is that someone was making it seem as though Stevia was clearly a safer choice than aspartame. When in fact you can find 'scary' studies about both, despite the lack of any human studies which show either is dangerous in the quantities they're generally consumed in.

I'm a big fan of choosing for yourself - but if someone is going to choose they should have a fair comparison, not "Aspartame is a neurotoxin and causes brain damage, Stevia is 100% safe!!"

Personally I've cut out the majority of my sweeteners, artificial or otherwise, but my personal focus for the remainder involve 1) impact on my blood sugar/insulin and 2) taste.

Also, although I occasionally eat things sweetened with 'sugarized chlorine' I prefer to get the majority of my chlorine from sodium chloride, aka table salt :D
 
JaneKT said:
There's been around 166 studies carried out on the safety of aspartame - 74 have been fully or partially industry-funded and 92 have been independently funded. 92%of the independent studies concluded there was a risk of causing adverse side effects but 100% of the industry funded studies returned reports saying that it was safe to use.

Go figure..............
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*nods at JaneKT* That's an unfortunate reality in our world today, termed the 'dodo bird effect.' Studies require funding, and of course those more likely to supply the funding are those who have some interest in the matter. It's a sort of "don't bite that hand that feeds you" thing. It doesn't always mean they're "lying." Often it's actually a skewing of results...the industry selectively decides to publish the more favourable results and leave the less favourable ones in a pile of papers on someones desk. :)
 
Never Intended to Promote Fear or Mislead, Just Inform

First, my intention is not, nor ever has it been to scare anyone, or to provide misleading or false information. I'm just trying to share truthful information just like anyone else is here. Frankly, I don't understand the angst and hostility of some here.

Also, if anyone quote's me, if you don't mind, please use an actual quote from me. That being said, in comparing aspartame and stevia I did imply that stevia is much safer, and I stand by that claim. There has been some studies mentioned here that have used rats. I mentioned that while aspartame has been linked to 92 negative side effects (in humans), stevia has been used in South America ( Brazil, consumes 600 tons/year, Paraguay, consumes "in nature" about 150 tons/year, Argentina consumes about 60 tons/year-nearly the entire population) for 1500 years and in Asia (Japan consumes about 2,000 tons/year, South Korea consumes about 300-400 tons/year, Thailand consumes "in nature" about 30% of it's production--100 tons, and Tailand consumes small quantities "in nature") for decades and is also used in China, Russia, Indonesia, and Israel, yet there has been no report of negative side effects (in humans). Can this be said of artificial sweeteners?

Futhermore, "Although steviol showed a weak mutagenic activity in one very senstive strain of a bacterium, even high concentrations of oral steviol were harmless (up to 2 g/kg body weight)! ... although stevioside has been used for over 25 years,(in Japan)--stevioside has not had no effect on male or female fertility nor on the development and the state of the fetuses" (Prof. Jan M.C. Geuns Laboratory Functional Biology, KULeuvens, Leuven, Belgium).

On to the weight issue. To the person who says they have been using artificial sweeteners and has gained weight, good! But someone wanted "back up, " so here we go. Note these are words of doctors and one nutritionist, not me.

"Aspartame-associated weight gain can be viewed as an inherent metabolic defense mechanism by the 'wisdom of the body' when it is threatened by caloric deprivaton. Even relatively small amounts of aspartame products appear to be capable of initiating this biological hunger resoponse... The use of appreciable amounts of aspartame, in conjunction with drastic caloric restriction, tends to alter the perception of both taste and satiety. This may enhance consumption od excessive fluids, sugar and fat over the long term...a phenomenon known as the 'the slender trap" (Dr. H.J. Roberts, a world authority on aspartame).

Nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman wrote: "A six-year study study of 80,000 women shows that the higher the artificial sweetener consumption, the more likely the women put on the pounds. Aspartame, marketed under Equal and NutraSweet brand names, also has been shown to suppress production of serotonin--the remarkable neurotransmitter that helps control food cravings. When serotonin levels plummet, those sugar and carb cravings skyrocket. And this brings the likelihood of binging and added pounds." "The fact that aspartame fattens people is generally well known. The reason aspartame so strikingly stimulates the appetite, is it provides over half of its contents in a form of phenylalanine isolate," (Dr. James Bowen) which is also why a warning on the labels is required for Phenylketonurics--it can cause mental retardation for them. Dr. Bowen continues,"The aspartame also poisons your metabolism so you cannot burn calories. One of the major components of aspartame molecule is methyl alcohol. Methyl alcohol has long been recognized in medicine for its ability to block metabolism... NutraSweet is a very aggravated form of methyl alcohol poisoning...( Dr. Bowen's comment, not mine). When the FDA first looked at this molecule they held aspartame off the market for many years because it is a potent chelating agent which carries many heavy metals including arsenic in to the body. [This also] poisons your metabolism, blocks the burning of calories, and in the long haul this virtually irreversible poisonong from heavy metals will continue to encourage weight gain."

Dr. Sandra Cabot explains why aspartame can cause fat gain, not fat loss. She writes, "The liver breaks down or metabolizes aspartame into its toxic components--phenylalanine, aspartic acid, and methanol. This process requires a lot of energy from the liver which means there will be less energy remaining in the liver cells. This means the liver cells will have less energy for fat burning and metabolism, which will result in fat storing. Excess fat will build up inside the liver cells causing "fatty liver" and when this starts to occur it is extremely difficult to lose weight. In my vast experience,
any time that you ovreload the liver you will increase the tendency to gain weight easily."

Finally, Dr. Julian Whitaker adds,"Artificial sweeteners are marketed with the promise of weight control, and the vast majority who consume them do so to either lose or to avoid gaining weight. Folks, this is a fraud of giagantic proportions...(Dr. Whitaker's comments, not mine!) He continues, "I am convinced that our blind acceptance of the most popular of these artificial sweeteners, aspartame, plays a significant role in our current weight problems. Far from helping us to lose weight, aspartame has been proven to increase appetite, especially cravings for sweets. Imaging "diet" products that help you pack on the extra pounds! And aspartame's downside doesn't end with weight gain: this sweetener is associated with multiple health problems."

Again, my intention is not to scare anyone, certainly not to mislead, or provide falsehoods--anyone who knows me knows that. I try my best to honest in every way, so when I hear someone accusing me of not being honest, I take it as among the worst possible insults. But to those who feel it is "more immoral" to use "scare tactics," than to worn people of possible of possible danger:

Imagine that you and I are talking beside a road, and all of the sudden an out-of-control car crashes right into you, sending you to the hospital, and you know I saw that the whole thing was about to happen--I saw the car before it was a real danger for you, and could have warned you. You might rightfully ask me "Why didn't you tell me the car was coming?" And I answer, "Well, I thought that by telling you a car was coming, it would scare you."

I know this is a cude example, and I am not saying that aspartame poisoning and getting hit by a car are completely analogous, but the principle behind it is analogous.

I can't contol people's feelings, but if I feel I have knowledge to share what could potentially help others and warn others of possible danger, it is my moral obligation to do just that. I don't like watching people do things that may hurt themselves.

And you if you still feel I am using "fear tactics," then I guess I'm in pretty good company.

Let me be clear, I feel vehemently that anyone can use whatever they want, and I don't believe in others trying to force anything on anyone. I am a freedom lover and don't like it when food nazis tell me what to eat either. However, you can't really have freedom unless you understand your choices.

I hope all who read this will understand and feel the spirit in which it was given.
 
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When I was learning to drive, I'd take the trash out to the end of our drive (half a mile) in the pick-up. One day, my brother was in the truck with me and freaked out because he thought I was going to go into the ditch. His loud gasp/freakout caused me to over-compensate and I ended up jerking the wheel and going into the ditch on the other side. If he hadn't been there, I wouldn't have gone into the ditch. Not that this really applies to artificial sweeteners. :)

Now, don't get me wrong. In the last 6 months, I've probably had one diet soda with aspartame. I've drastically reduced my intake of zero/low calorie sweeteners, and sweeteners in general. Personally I'd recommend it.

On the other hand, mental stress can be really hard on the body. I don't see the need to get all stressed out over aspartame if you're not seeing negative effects. The studies about weight gain were done on rats. It's also suspected that the hunger affect would apply to any zero calorie sweetener - you're tricking your body into thinking you're eating calorie dense sweet foods, without the calories. It sometimes adapts by thinking that sweet taste isn't that calorically dense any more.

As for the seratonin - it seems to be again on non-humans, and I've seen differering studies, including which shows increased serotonin levels. Go figure.

Also, Snopes take on aspartame as poison:

If you don't want to use aspartame, don't use it, but I also wouldn't stress out that you're 'poisoning your metabolism' by having a diet soda now and again. But have water instead and you're better off than by having some of any non-caloric sweetener.

I don't feel particularly angsty or hostile, but I like a balanced view of things. And listing off all of the negative studies as though aspartame definitely does all of these things to the human body doesn't feel balanced to me, despite the fact that I avoid it myself!
 
moderation and other thoughts

As for artificial sweetners, from my internet reading, they seem safe in moderation. The same goes with sugar. Too much of anything is bad. I have never seen an example of someone losing considable weight by going from sugary drinks to diet. In my opinion, aspartame sweetened drinks contribute to me wanting to eat more than I normally would. I must say that I was drinking way too many diet sodas though. I gave them up as part of my new eating plan. I have been drinking 2-3 cups of coffee a day and have been eating fewer carbs. This has led to me not craving sodas.

As for regular sodas, I have read than High Fructose Corn Syrup shuts off the signal from your belly to your brain that you are full and this leads to you eating more. So either way, you can't win.

All this said, moderation is the key. I don't think 1-2 diet sodas a day will harm anyone. I was drinking way more than that thanks to the free soda fountain we have at work. Yikes.
 
You are spot on, intheworks - High Fructose Corn Syrup is one of the absolute worst artificial ingredients you can get. It really does interfere with the brain/gut/fat cell chemistry, shutting off the chemical messages that let the brain know when your stomach is full.

I agree that moderation in all things is the best rule for life but I personally try and avoid processed and refined foods as much as possible and concentrate on using fresh stuff I cook myself. The problem is convenience Vs. time - it's not an easy problem to solve.
 
Processed food means unhealthy food. I am not shocked by this news. We must be in doubt of all the processed foods in the market. All we need to do is consume them in moderation.
 
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