Aspertame

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  • talprofs
    talprofs Posts: 5 Member
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    You have already stated in this thread that you have decided to stay away from Aspertame as an artificial sweetner based on the the replies by other posters.

    The controversersy about Aspertame really kicked off in 2006 in the wake of an Italian study as to whether Aspertame was a carcinogen and induced the growth of cancerous tumours in rats, as then reported in The New York Times:
    http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/12/business/yourmoney/12sweet.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

    The European Union health agencies, I believe take a dim view of Aspertame (often marketed as NutraSweet), but you can find the full SP from the European Safety Agency here:
    http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/faqs/faqaspartame.htm

    Curiously, I also understand that the official position of the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) is that "There is no clear evidence that the artificial sweeteners available commercially in the United States are associated with cancer risk in humans.":
    http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/artificial-sweeteners

    I have little doubt that the final word has yet to be said on the risks/benefits associated with Aspertame and other aritificial sweeteners.

    I am a simple layman and take an equally simple view that 'natural' is better than 'artificial' in terms of being healthy and life-enhancing.

    For this reason, I try to eat as little refined sugar as possible (there is a hughe quantity in processed foods sold in the UK, where I live), and I do not, as a rule add sugar to my food -- the sole exception being if I drink Italian espresso coffee, to which I occasionally add half-a-teaspoonful of raw, brown, cane sugar.

    talprofs
  • kenzietate
    kenzietate Posts: 399 Member
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    I don't know if I am intolerant to it or allergic to it because I have never gotten that far! The taste is so bad to me that I can't get past the first tiny sip. But it isn't limited to aspartame for me. It is any sweetener that isn't cane sugar or honey. I know that my mom gets really bad head aches from diet sodas.
  • icyeyes317
    icyeyes317 Posts: 226 Member
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    I am incredibly intolerant to aspartame, as well as other artificial sweeteners. It is a severe migraine trigger for me, makes my mouth feel funny, and makes me kinda dizzy. I avoid anything with the word "diet" in it, because they use artificial sweeteners.
  • cjcolorado
    cjcolorado Posts: 49 Member
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    I don't tolerate it well in larger amounts (that is, the amount in diet soda)--I get nauseated and a low, throbbing headache. While I don't have the same reaction to Splenda, as it's processed differently, I can taste it immediately--it tastes like chlorine to me. I later learned that it is processed using chlorine, which might explain it. If I want sweet, I stick with plain old sugar or honey. I have read a handful of studies that address the nature of artificial sweeteners piqueing one's taste for sweet foods or more food, in general, which can be challenging when one is limiting calories.
  • Athijade
    Athijade Posts: 3,280 Member
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    I can not have it due to the fact that it is known to aggravate a condition I have. I actually have to stay away from all artificial sweeteners for the same reason (and a lot of other foods). I use either regular sugar or honey when I need to sweeten things up.

    That said, unless you have an intolerance to it or a medical condition that makes it so you shouldn't consume it, it will not harm you.

    Oh, I also can't stand the taste of it.

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