ASPARTAME.....Good or bad for you?

curvykim78 · September 2012

I hear all these things about aspartame being bad for you...and after suffering headaches 3-4 times a week for over a year now, I'm wondering if this is causing them for me. What's your thoughts about this fake sugar?

HelloSweetie4 · September 2012

try cutting it out and see if your headaches get better. I have heard that it isn't good to use long term, unless you have diet requiremnet, like diabetics. My unlce used to swear by diet products with aspartame, until he realized that's where his frequent headaches and heart palpatations were coming from. He's been fine since he cut it out of his diet.

digitalsteel · September 2012

Somtimes I will go a few months and have it every day, and sometimes I will abstain from it for a few months. I never noticed any difference in the way I felt. Most research I have read indicate it may react poorly depending on any pre-existing conditions. But it seems to be fairly nutral otherwise. I do have a kind of moral feeling that it is wrong to consume man made sweeteners, and that a more natural option such as stevia/truvia is better.

dls06 · September 2012

I stay away from anything artificial. I'd rather do without. That's just me.

beckajw · September 2012

try cutting it out and see if your headaches get better. I have heard that it isn't good to use long term, unless you have diet requiremnet, like diabetics. My unlce used to swear by diet products with aspartame, until he realized that's where his frequent headaches and heart palpatations were coming from. He's been fine since he cut it out of his diet.

^^ This.

Anything could be causing your headaches. To find out if it is aspartame, only cut out aspartame (for example if you're getting aspartame through diet soda, you should find a way to replace the caffeine you are no longer getting). If the headaches stop then it was probably the aspartame. If they didn't, then look at other things you are eating/doing.

Aspartame is neither good nor bad for you. Anything that you eat too much of will be bad, but in moderation it is fine. Some people have a sensitivity to it. Some do not.

janettemarion · September 2012

i stopped all aspartame on 2/25/12 and all of my tummy issues I had had for over five years went away within a month ( gas, diariha, bloating, horrible gas pains in the middle of the night) My doctor was going to do a bunch of tests and i cancelled all of them.

SideSteel · September 2012

Aspartame is broken down into two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine. These amino acids are found in chicken and bananas naturally. Methanol is a digestive byproduct of aspartame and that's also in certain fruits/fruit juices.

Aspartame is not good or bad. It just is. There are some people who get headaches from aspartame and if you're one of these people you should obviously not consume it. If you're NOT one of these people then the dosage levels at which anyone would experience negative effects from aspartame, are so high that you'd have to consume a BUTTLOAD of it to have problems.

In short, enjoy your diet soda if it doesn't give you headaches.

janettemarion · September 2012

i only had one diet soda per day but when you start looking aspertane is hidden in a lot of foods

linz1125 · September 2012

It really depends how your body reacts to it. I cannot tolerate aspertame, so I am enclined to tell you it is horrible! It doesn't bother some people...but if you think it could be contributing to any of your ailments, try cutting it out for at least a month. You will go through "withdrawl" at first, but after you get over that you will begin to feel how you normally do without it. It's worth a shot.

belladonna786 · September 2012

Bad. Anything tampered with by scientists in a lab is not good for our bodies, we are designed to eat natural things not process chemicals.

Ila1227 · September 2012

I have tried cutting it since I hear it is bad for you. Also heard it slows down weight loss. Sweeten with stevia if you need to sweeten. Diet cokes etc. are super bad if thats how you are getting aspartame.

drmerc · September 2012

Bad.

One time some aspartame robbed me at gunpoint. True story

astrampe · September 2012

Bad.

One time some aspartame robbed me at gunpoint. True story

True...seriously....and it might give you three headed babies.....

FredDoyle · September 2012

SideSteel:
"Aspartame is broken down into two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine. These amino acids are found in chicken and bananas naturally. Methanol is a digestive byproduct of aspartame and that's also in certain fruits/fruit juices.

Aspartame is not good or bad. It just is. There are some people who get headaches from aspartame and if you're one of these people you should obviously not consume it. If you're NOT one of these people then the dosage levels at which anyone would experience negative effects from aspartame, are so high that you'd have to consume a BUTTLOAD of it to have problems.

In short, enjoy your diet soda if it doesn't give you headaches. "

Thank you for a scientific explanation.
There have been no peer reviewed scientific studies showing that aspartame is dangerous.

belladonna786 · September 2012

Bad.

One time some aspartame robbed me at gunpoint. True story

LMAO!

lmr9 · September 2012

BAD!

pstaceyca · September 2012

BAD BAD BAD!!!!! And most likely the cause of your headaches!! Give it up for a few weeks and see what happens!

hamncheese67 · September 2012

As someone said, cut it out for awhile and see if your headaches go away. If they do, great. If they don't, then look into something else. Maybe see a doctor.