Aspartame is an artificial, non-saccharide sweetener used as sugar substitute in some foods and beverages. In the European Union, it is codified as E951. Aspartame is a methyl ester of the aspartic acid/phenylalanine dipeptide – WHAT????
Okay – to make this easier, let’s look at the main ingredients in aspartame. It is compromised of 50% phenylalanine, 40% aspartic acid and 10% methanol. So what are these ingredients and why should I care?
Phenylalanine
Even a single use of Aspartame raises the blood phenylalanine levels. High blood phenylalanine can be concentrated in parts of the brain and is especially dangerous for infants and fetuses. Because it is metabolized much more efficiently by rodents than humans, testing and research on rats alone is not sufficient enough to denounce the dangers of Aspartame for human consumption. Excessive levels of phenylalanine in the brain cause serotonin levels to decrease, leading to emotional disorders like depression.Aspartic Acid
Aspartic acid is considered an excito-toxin, which means it over stimulates certain neurons in the body until they die. Much like nitrates and MSG, aspartic acid can cause amino acid imbalances in the body and result in the interruption of normal neurotransmitter metabolism of the brain.Methanol
Becomes Formaldehyde better known as embalming fluid. The most prominent danger of Aspartame is that when ingested, the methanol (wood alcohol) is distributed throughout the body, including the brain, muscle, fat and nervous tissues, and is then metabolized to form formaldehyde, which enters cells and binds to proteins and genetic material (DNA). Methanol is a dangerous neurotoxin and a known carcinogen, which causes retinal damage in the eye, interferes with DNA processes, and can cause birth defects.
Aspartame is best known by their brand names; NutraSweet, Equal, Sweet One and Spoonful and is consumed by over 1 billion people. There have been many claims that aspartame has been linked to cause weight gain, seizures, migraines, heart attacks, strokes and cancer. Health Canada debunks allegations that aspartame has no negative health implications and that it can be “safely consumed by most healthy individuals”. http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/addit/sweeten-edulcor/aspartame-eng.php
Over 200 studies have concluded that aspartame is relatively safe to consume without any serious side-effects. Who do we believe? What studies are accurate? I believe that we are not meant to put chemicals into our bodies – anything that is created in a laboratory can’t be good to ingest. From personal experience – I remember how drinking artificial beverages such as; Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Diet-Coke, Diet-Pepsi, Coke Zero, etc…have made me feel – I definitely suffered migraines. I also know that drinking diet-soda was not an effective tool for weight loss.
My advice – do a study yourself. Eliminate diet-soda and artificial sweeteners for a month (you may have a bit of anxiety and irritability due to the withdrawal) – take note of how you feel. Are you more alert, do you have more energy, etc…After a period of about two-months, re-introduce your body to the artificial sweeteners and record how you feel after a day, a week, a few weeks, a month etc….have you noticed anything different? Have you suffered weight-gain, headaches, mood swings, dizziness etc….Don’t rely on anyone else to let you know what your body is telling you. The best source to indicate whether or not something is good for you – is your body. Listen to it, what is it telling you?
Sources:
COALITION OF POSITIVE ENERGY 