Well, I don’t chew gum or even ingest “sugar-free” candies. And I also do not drink soda - at all. Haven’t since 1995. If I want candy, I get a box of Mike-n-Ikes or Red Vines. If I want something else that’s sweet, I get a freshly baked cookie. As a matter of fact the stuff that was listed that could contain aspartame, I do not eat. So, no worries on my part.
Oh my god!!! Not evil Aspartame again! Gee, let’s see: Aspartame will give you a brain tumor, protein will blow your kidneys and steroids will cause your liver to fall out… Forget anything? Just love junk science!
Michelle, here is a study for you: Every time I ingest aspartame I don’t get a headache and neither do thousands of people who I have talked to that use aspartame products every day. I’m not saying this happens with everyone as I have talked to many people that do get headaches. I am just a strong believer in the scientific method which generally includes double blind placebo controlled studies which are much less bias than your opinion or mine. If you don’t want to take aspartame because you have an allergic reaction to it than don’t. Just don’t go around spreading false unsubstantiated rumors about how it causes cancer and a host of other medical problems.
as a ‘hey, check this out’ of general fyi post, its good. more knowledge is NEVER a bad thing. just as long as you are not a sheep and can think for yourself, ya know?
Ummm… Kenny? I DIDN’T spread rumors about it causing cancer, etc. In fact, I said “Yes, most studies are bullshit and based on outrageous quantities being ingested. Often lab test animals are fed the equivilent of 200 servings at a time… and anything in that quantity will give you some sort of cancer.” My point was, chemical sweetners and preservatives are NOT good for you and cause problems for many people - no they probably won’t kill you.
There is more methyl alcohol in a glass of orange juice than a can of diet soda. The “study” that made all the headlines a few years ago about aspartame causing brain cancer wasn’t a study at all. The guy looked at cancer data from the time of it’s introduction in the early 80’s until the mid 90’s. Well, there was a rise in cancer rates in the 80’s that dropped in the early 90’s and eventually went below baseline. Funny thing is that more aspartame was being consumed by the end of the period examined than during peak periods of brain cancer. Methinks, it was more likely excessive use of hair care products during the time period that caused the brain cancer, big hair and hair bands. : )
Michelle, I am sorry that I made it sound like I was making specific reference to you when I said to not spread rumors that aspartame causes cancer because I know that you didn’t. I was just making reference to Marie and others like her. My point is that aspartame and other additives are not bad for you. Food additives are extensively tested before the are approved for human consumption. The body deals with foreign chemicals all the time from so called natural foods that are excreted into the bile by the liver. If you didn’t have a liver you would die if you ate most fruits and vegetables. Here is a little gastrointestinal physiology for you on aspartame.
Source: Stegink LD. The aspartame story: a model for the clinical testing of a food additive. Am J Clin Nutr 1987 Jul;46(1 Suppl):204-15. Toxicology is based on the premise that all compounds are toxic at some dose. Thus, it is not surprising that very large doses of aspartame (or its components–aspartate, phenylalanine, and methanol) produce deleterious effects in sensitive animal species. The critical question is whether aspartame ingestion is potentially harmful to humans at normal use and potential abuse levels. This paper reviews clinical studies testing the effects of various doses of aspartame upon blood levels of aspartate, phenylalanine, and methanol. These studies demonstrate that blood levels of these compounds are well below levels associated with adverse effects in sensitive animal species.
This study also goes on to explain that aspartame is hydrolyzed in the intestinal lumen or the mucosal cell into methanol, aspartate, and phenylalanine before it enters portal circulation in the liver. So you are absorbing two amino acids (one of which is essential in the human diet, phenylalanine)and methanol in the blood and not the intact aspartame molecule. These amino acids are naturally present in all proteins and methanol is common in many fruits. If you are experiencing any problems from aspartame it is probably from one of these or from the placebo effect. For a more extensive review read the study mentioned above or the textbook "Groff JL, Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism, Third Edition, pp.545-547.
Oh no, not aspartame again!! I was finally getting over the great science of the 1950s with its findings that lifting weights leads to becoming musclebound.
True or myth, doesn’t matter much, sucrolose (aka Splenda) tastes better anyway. I think Pespi One is the only soft drink maker using it instead of aspartame.
To Michelle & Kenny: I don’t claim to have
any particular knowledge about the “aspartame
causes cancer” issue, so I won’t even go
there. But like Michelle, I too get some
pretty severe headaches from aspartame. One
person (who I have good reason to believe is
knowledgable about the topic) explained to me
the reason for this is neither the methyl
alcohol, nor the phenylalanine, but the
aspartic acid. So my thought was “well why
does this happen from the aspartic acid in
aspartame, but not from food?” And the answer
is because whole food souces of aspartic acid
are bound to many other amino acids. But
in aspartame, the aspartic acid is broken down
quickly so you have large amounts of free form
aspartic acid dumped into your blood stream.
And free form aspartic acid (in large enough
quantities) is excitotoxic to brain cells.
This is especially true in people whos BBB
(blood brain barriers) aren’t functioning
optimally. So I think that could explain it.
However, people vary in their sensitivity to
blood levels of aspartic acid, which is why
some people get headaches from aspartame,
while others don’t.
Yes, it is true the methanol (methyl alcohol) does convert to formaldehyde, which is a toxic substance. But as others have pointed out, the amount of methanol formed from the ingestion of aspartame is tiny - less than what you get from drinking an 8oz glass of fruit juice.
As others have pointed out, phenylalanine is an essential amino acid, and contrary to some false reports by aspartame bashers, it is not neuro-toxic - even in its free form state. So phenylalanine is completely safe.
So in summary, phenylalanine is fine. Methanol is unhealthy, but only if ingested in non-small quantities, which does not occur with aspartame. And aspartic acid can be unhealthy if ingested in large quantities, and only if it is in "free from" version. But aspartame is probably safe if ingested in small quantities - unless you are like me and have a particular sensitivity to free form aspartic acid. It's simple really: if you get headaches from aspartame, don't consume it! If not, don't worry about it!
Well said Free Extropian. Like I said the problems with headaches is coming from one of the three breakdown products of aspartame and you have some good scientific reasoning to believe that it is the aspartate moiety.
Here is my opinion…All these side effects usually occur at high dosages over long periods of time…unless you drink a 12 pack of diet coke a day then i seriously doubt you will have any of these side effects…that class your taking sounds like it sucks…i just graduated with a nutrition degree and did not agree with most of my professors on alot of things…and most of them were out of shape and obese…my point being most people don’t have a clue…go do your own research…good luck.
The other day, people sitting by me were using Equal, and I think I may have inhaled some of the powder! Oh fuck, I’m gonna die! Fuckin’ A. I was sore this morning – thought it was from training. Now I realize I have terminal cancer. Oh shit! I’m feeling faint… better post this before I kick the fucking bucket! Too weak to fucking type anymore…
The class I take does not suck–it’s great and it makes me feel wonderful. I will do my own research, thanks. People in the class often bring in stuff they’ve seen on the net or elsewhere and share with everyone. It’s up to each of us to do what we will with it. Some of it is worth noting, some isn’t. I hadn’t heard all the aspartame stuff before, so I found it quite fascinating. I hate the stuff mainly because it tastes like shit and try to avoid pop generally, but anyhoo…
Shiet,for a moment I thought everyone was gonna freak out over the post and I was getting freaked too since I recently decided adding aspatarme product into my oatmeal with cottage cheese,I add 2 packets 1 go.Anyway,
thank goodness the T-folk have made me feel betteR!