ASPARTAME ----IS IT REALLY BAD FOR YOU ??

From Wikipedia:
"The artificial sweetener aspartame has been the subject of several controversies since its initial approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1974. The FDA approval of aspartame was highly contested,[1] with critics alleging that the quality of the initial research supporting its safety was inadequate and flawed and that conflicts of interest marred the approval of aspartame.[2][3][4] In 1987, the U.S. Government Accountability Office concluded that the food additive approval process had been followed properly for aspartame.[2][5] In spite of this, critics like anti-aspartame activist Betty Martini have promoted undocumented claims that numerous health risks (such as multiple sclerosis, systemic lupus, methanol toxicity, blindness, spasms, shooting pains, seizures, headaches, depression, anxiety, memory loss, birth defects and death[6]) are associated with the consumption of aspartame in normal doses. These health risk claims have been examined and debunked by numerous scientific research projects, and are also generally dismissed by governments and major health and food safety organizations.[2][7][8]"

"Publicity of this controversy has been spread through an elaborate health scare[9] and "internet smear campaign"[10] involving hoax[9][11][10] e-mails repeating Betty Martini's widely circulated conspiracy theory. Her undocumented claims are still repeated by thousands of self-published websites."

"Aspartame has been found to be safe for human consumption by more than ninety countries worldwide,[12][13] with FDA officials describing aspartame as "one of the most thoroughly tested and studied food additives the agency has ever approved" and its safety as "clear cut".[4] The weight of existing scientific evidence indicates that aspartame is safe as a non-nutritive sweetener."

I hope it is not because it is my BEST friend!!

My neurologist told me not to worry about aspartame because tomatoes have more aspartame in them than a diet coke. This is when we were trying to figure out my migraines. She said they've ruled aspartame out as a cause for migraines and many other things, too.

So, I'm sticking with my diet coke. There are worse things in the world, and I trusted my neurologist - one of the few doctors I've met with that actually seemed to know what she was talking about.

Aspartame is bad for you. There are many articles out there on the subject. Stevia is an herb that is a healthy alternative for sweetener.

Here are a couple of websites to read through (the second is from Dr. Joseph Mercola's site - he is an excellent health information resource):

http://www.lovethetruth.com/truth_about_aspartame.htm

http://aspartame.mercola.com/

I don't care for the taste but will use it if I'm out of stevia (sp?)

uh, Splenda really makes me sick.

I can chew on some sugar cane.

or

I can pop some chemicals in my soda and magically make it calorie free!!



I like the idea of sugar cane much, much better.

In all my nutritional training it's like flipping a coin... if your looking to consume less CALORIES and just can't kick the sweets but need to lose X amount of weight, then yes the artificial sweetener is going to be the best way to go.. if you're looking at an over all health perspective artificial sweeteners tend to contribute greatly to water retention, which can lead to other health issues.. not to mention weight loss will be very very slow.

True story about Aspartame. My mom, when she was 35 yrs old had consumed only Nutrasweet (which is aspartame) in her tea, cereal, etc. because it was the big diet-sugar replacement back in 1990, started having memory loss issues, to the point of not knowing where her keys were (in her hand) and talking to her purse like it was one of us kids. Not to mention she couldn't remember which of our names went to which face. Scary when you're 5 yrs old and your mom can't remember who you are. She had developed Alzheimer's at 35 years old. Her doctor told her to stop the N.S., even chewing gum which contained it. And within ONE month, she was back to normal. it had started to mess with the chemicals in her BRAIN. I don't know about you, but something that is nothing but a manmade chemical shouldn't go into my body. After seeing how it almost killed my mom's brain I try to avoid it like death itself.

I studied this extensively in school, and at the end of my research, I do not believe that Aspartame is safe. Just becuase something doesn't cause immediate death does not mean its appropriate to eat/drink. However it is approved by the American FDA and Health Canada (where I live), which is why there is so much confusion.

I believe people need to research on their own and advocate for their own health. Not everything approved is "safe" which we can see by the amount of things that get pulled off shelves after class action lawsuits.

BTW: Tomatoes do not contain Aspartame. Aspartame is a synthetic man-made product. Tomatoes contain Methanol, which is also found in Aspartame. The main difference is that tomatos also have a natural antidote called lycopene, which protects you from the toxic effects of methanol. Aspartame does not have that.

Here's a link for some good information, but you will find much better research if you visit university libraries.
http://rationalwiki.org/wiki/Aspartame

YES YES YES YES YES
It is very bad for you- PERIOD. It causes CANCER and other irrevesable health issues. It will most likely cause headaches right off the bat too. No Good at all-

Doesn't everything these days cause cancer?

Everything in moderation is my motto.

My thought exactly. EVERYTHING causes cancer nowadays. Mouthwash, deodorant, pringles, facebook, talcum powder, cell phones, red meat, tooth whitener, hair dye, soup. Just enjoy your aspartame.

However it is approved by the American FDA and Health Canada (where I live), which is why there is so much confusion.

I believe people need to research on their own and advocate for their own health. Not everything approved is "safe" which we can see by the amount of things that get pulled off shelves after class action lawsuits.

Correct. Just because something is approved by the FDA, doesn't mean that it's safe.
Look at another thread about Alli - It's FDA approved.
I know someone who also had brain problems because of her drinking a 2L bottle of diet coke every day.

Here is a link to a pdf of the most recent aspartame cancer study:

http://www­.janethull­.com/newsl­etter/0206­/bella_ita­lia_the_so­ffritti_as­partame_st­udy.php

And here is an abstract:

http://www­.ncbi.nlm.­nih.gov/pu­bmed/17805­418

(By the way, Soffritti conducted three long-term studies that found a link between aspartame and cancer in recent years).

Many studies with dubious funding sources (Anjinamoto, Searle, etc.) will attest to the safety of aspartame. Non-industry funded studies are listed at this following link:

http://tinyurl.com/2awqfhv

i think its ok occasionally, but i wouldnt give it to my kids

I hate to be so down right ugly, because that's not who I am at all. I believe everyone is entitled to their own opinion and shouldn't be persecuted for it, however here is what I have to say.

Toxins have no place in your body! If it's man-made it's a toxin.

Here is a nice analogy to help put it in perspective:

Your body speaks English, and toxins speak Chinese.
If you consume a Chinese speaking toxin, your body is thinking..."HUH???"
So then your body just thinks whatever I'm just going to do this with it.
Sometimes it's as harmless as creating fat cells to store it. (which how harmless is getting fatter really, seeing as it creates more problems)
Worse yet sometimes it brings on diseases in your body, like worse case scenario cancer.
If we continue to feed our body toxins, well guess what, cancer cells are enjoying an endless buffet and start multiplying! Whippee!

So to all the naysayers, this is the ugly comment you were looking for, QUIT BEING BLISSFULLY IGNORANT!

I don't want to frighten anyone but, my step dad was involved in the development of aspartame in the early 80's. He was a microbiologist working in the food industry in England. During his research he dropped dead of a huge combustion of all his internal organs, at work in 82. He was 30 years old. Needless to say we do not have it in our house, ever.
Aspartame is 10% poison, says it all to me.