Why Aspartame Isn't Scary

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  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
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    Seriously though. Does anyone have an actual reason to avoid aspartame other than the general desire to avoid anything that sounds like it has a name you might not be able to pronounce.

    That's all I wanted from the start...

    Perhaps they should rebrand it "chicken-wine"
  • So_Much_Fab
    So_Much_Fab Posts: 1,146 Member
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    Why would anyone want to ingest something that needs a defense like that?

    The substance doesn't need a defense like that, the people running around screaming "POISON! POISON IN THE SODA!!!" need it, although as we have seen, even facts won't sway some people.

    And this is probably true. I never jumped on the aspartame bandwagon and I likely never will, despite what science says about it. It's just not something I need. I don't drink much pop as it is, and when I do, I like the regular stuff. Same with sugar - I want the real stuff. On occasion I'll use it in iced tea if I don't want to dump 10 teaspoons of sugar in it to sweeten it up. You get the point.

    I don't feel like I'm missing out without it, and rational or not, that's my choice to make. However, you won't see me in the threads trying to convince others to not use it.
  • ALekaeHay
    ALekaeHay Posts: 37 Member
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    I don't drink/eat the no calorie sweeteners because they taste bad. If I'm going to have it, give me the real stuff! Diet Coke/Pepsi/whatever tastes awful to me and the idea of tea sweetened with Splenda .. just say no. Luckily I'm not a pop/soda drinker, so I've never had the need to curb that by drinking diet versions. However, my husband and his sister both LOVE Diet Coke; I'll have to show them this!
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
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    In...

    ...for later...

    ...because science.
  • 0somuchbetter0
    0somuchbetter0 Posts: 1,335 Member
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    I don't have time to read the thread but I just wanted to say it's scary to me because it tastes bad and the bad taste just lingers for hours and my tongue gets very sad.

    My taste buds are the best. I have not a clue what this bad taste is and never have. Just yumminess to me.

    Must be an acquired taste then. I prefer just plain old fashioned cane sugar.
  • EvanKeel
    EvanKeel Posts: 1,904 Member
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    I don't have time to read the thread but I just wanted to say it's scary to me because it tastes bad and the bad taste just lingers for hours and my tongue gets very sad.

    That is a legitimate reason to avoid aspartame imo.

    Seriously, your request won't get what you want for one reason:
    legitimate

    I suspect everyone thinks their reasons are legit, and within their own frameworks they frequently are. Sadly, people don't usually use the same framework. Often, they're incompatible.

    You ask for legit reasons>> Some posts a fear mongering blog article explaining the evils of aspartame >> you take apart the article >> They reply that they'd rather not risk it.

    That's all this topic ever generates. Sometimes an actual article is produced and then we have discussion of context and dosage, and one party says they still don't want to risk it.
  • redversustheblue
    redversustheblue Posts: 1,216 Member
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    I wish these kinds of articles would not get posted. Neither pro nor con.
    I have never had problems with artificial sweeteners, but largely avoid them ( as I do most sugar ) because I don't like sweet stuff very much. So I am fine. A friend of mine gets awful migraines ( the have to stay in a dark room kind ) and another one gets impaired vision.....
    That is why I don't like those generalized articles, because any food item ( natural or artificial ) is fine for most people while health and even life threatening for others. Blanket statements do not help....

    What article?

    This is an honest question, I'm actually curious. Maybe someone could explain, like the people who know the science, why aspartame would cause impaired vision as a side effect or something. To me, this sounds like someone just blaming this on aspartame without actually knowing that's what's caused it. Any insight?
  • Woodspoon
    Woodspoon Posts: 223 Member
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    Why even risk it? After all, it still is a possible carcinogen.

    You have also just described the sun.
    +1

    ^^ this
    Awesome
  • luminary_nova
    luminary_nova Posts: 1
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    What about the other delicious sweetener in my cherry coke zero, acesulfame potassium?
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
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    I wish these kinds of articles would not get posted. Neither pro nor con.
    I have never had problems with artificial sweeteners, but largely avoid them ( as I do most sugar ) because I don't like sweet stuff very much. So I am fine. A friend of mine gets awful migraines ( the have to stay in a dark room kind ) and another one gets impaired vision.....
    That is why I don't like those generalized articles, because any food item ( natural or artificial ) is fine for most people while health and even life threatening for others. Blanket statements do not help....

    What article?

    I was referring to the OP....maybe it's not called an " article "....as a non-native speaker of English I am not always sure.
  • epadmeister
    epadmeister Posts: 102 Member
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    Bump to read later - this is great stuff :) I can't really go for sugary drinks at all cos of my beetus, so this makes me feel less guilty about grabbing the occasional fanta zero!

    like another person said, everything in moderation :):drinker:
  • redversustheblue
    redversustheblue Posts: 1,216 Member
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    I don't have time to read the thread but I just wanted to say it's scary to me because it tastes bad and the bad taste just lingers for hours and my tongue gets very sad.

    My taste buds are the best. I have not a clue what this bad taste is and never have. Just yumminess to me.

    Must be an acquired taste then. I prefer just plain old fashioned cane sugar.

    Probably, I actually grew up mostly using sweet n'low to sweeten things instead of sugar. I'm not dead yet, and I'm not worried about it.

    I've found a lot of things that people complain about aftertastes with (besides artificial sweeteners), I just don't taste. It's kinda nice.
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,711 Member
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    That is why I put "toxic" in quotes, because yes as you say water is not toxic. What is the LD50 of aspartame, I was unaware that there was a lethal dose of aspartame.

    Putting something in quotes doesn't removing the misleading aspect of the statement.

    The LD50 is around 10g/kg in what I've seen. These levels are unattainable in normal human consumption though and based on rats/mice studies.

    The establishment of LD50 though still does not imply safe consumption at relative levels. To give a comparison the levels of arsenic found in apple juice a while ago wasn't even enough to reach the LD50 in an adult drinking gallons over their entire lives, but we know that arsenic causes nerve damage and isn't considered safe in any dose. There is an LD50 of sodium is 1.1 g/kg which the average American consumes every month. The differences between sodium, arsenic, and aspartame is that two of them are really well understood and been studied for centuries.

    Quite frankly even decades of research around a particular substance doesn't guarantee safety. We are learning about chemicals and compounds all the time. Think of how long it took for smoking to be recognized as unsafe. In fact the American Medical Association was a big paid advertiser for tobacco for many years. So just because we have a few studies over the decades that say it's safe doesn't mean it doesn't warrant more investigation.

    P.S. The NIH spends about 30 billion per year so I don't think their funds are running dry anytime soon.

    I grew up with Saccharine, which was " absolutely 100% " safe....until it wasn't anymore......these days it's considered dangerous.....who would have thought it 50 or more years ago.
  • FireOpalCO
    FireOpalCO Posts: 641 Member
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    I just want to know why it gives me migraines. I'm not normally prone to them, but accidental ingestion of aspartame? Just kill me now. It won't be hard, I won't be moving from this spot.
  • rose313
    rose313 Posts: 1,146 Member
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    I don't drink/eat the no calorie sweeteners because they taste bad. If I'm going to have it, give me the real stuff! Diet Coke/Pepsi/whatever tastes awful to me and the idea of tea sweetened with Splenda .. just say no. Luckily I'm not a pop/soda drinker, so I've never had the need to curb that by drinking diet versions. However, my husband and his sister both LOVE Diet Coke; I'll have to show them this!

    I actually prefer the taste of Diet Coke over the non-diet sodas. It's the high carbonation in regular Coke that gets to me. Maybe I'm just not used to it. Luckily I'm not a huge soda drinker either but I do have a Diet Coke once every couple weeks, it's just fun to sip while I'm at work, I like the sweetness of it. But I totally agree about not liking the taste of no calorie sweeteners. For some reason I don't notice it in Diet Coke, but there was a food I have sometimes (I forgot what it was) that I got the sugar free version of on a whim (flavored with Splenda instead) and it tasted sooo bad to me.

    Edit: It may have been Nilla Wafers, but it was almost a year ago so I'm not sure.
  • greengoddess0123
    greengoddess0123 Posts: 417 Member
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    I'm drinking a Diet Dr. Pepper while reading this thread. :drinker:
  • tjl2329
    tjl2329 Posts: 169 Member
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    I agree with you. However my doctor disagrees. I have cut way back on it and diet coke and i am way less hungry. May be a coincidence. But i thonk its okay in moderation. Feel much better since i gave up doet coke. Moght be sodium though
  • PinkyFett
    PinkyFett Posts: 842 Member
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    It doesn't scare me, but headaches aren't fun.

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