Aspartame - Best Avoided

[Linda Sones]

Lots of driving today! My car was due a service so off to Inverness, as I like to do as many things as possible when I drive down I had my hair cut and did the shopping as well. All very tiring I am not very fond of driving it's more necessity than pleasure as far as I am concerned.

I received a very informative email the other day about Aspartame which is an artificial sweetner found in drinks labelled 'sugar free'. I remember some time ago a doctor that I worked with telling me what an unpleasant substance it was and I have avoided products containing it ever since. My email concerned a woman in America who became very ill after consuming this regularly in diet sugar free drinks. Her symptoms were very severe and it was thought that she had multiple sclerosis, she was wheelchair bound and was convinced that she was dying. Her sister had read an article about aspartame and urged her to stop drinking sugar free drinks. Within 36 hours her symptoms had improved. Apparently this was by no means an isolated case.

Aspartame is dangerous because when the temperature of this sweetner exceeds 86 degrees fahrenheit the wood alcohol in aspartame converts to formaldehyde and from thence to formic acid which in turn causes metabolic acidosis. Methanol acid mimics among other things the symptoms of multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus. Many people have been diagnosed in error and although multiple sclerosis does not generally kill people methanol toxicity can.

So if you drink diet drinks or use artificial sweetners such as nutra sweet and you suffer from symptoms such as fibro myalgia, spasms, shooting pains, numbness in your legs,cramps, vertigo, headaches, tinnitus, blurred vision or memory loss it is at least worth considering that aspartame may be the cause. From what I have heard I would suggest that you try and avoid products containing this sweetner.

[Nikki - Web Mums]

Gosh - I use sweetener in tea.......and I have diet coke - I think I need to make some changes!!! I can never remember a thing so if it helps that alone it would be fantastic!

[Yvette Segal]

Funny you should mention this because a friend was just saying to me recently about trying to avoid giving my son anything with this in to help his behaviour. I didn't realise it can be so damaging as you have said. I have been wondering what this can be found in. I don't give my son anything lower fat or fizzy drinks so will do some further research on what else it can be found it. Thanks for the reminder.

[Linda Sones]

Hi Yvette,
Almost any drinks labeled 'sugar free' and probably lots of other things that use sweetners instead of sugar. Apparently the patent has now expired which means it is now being more widely used. I googled aspartame out of interest and was surprised at the amount of information that came up.

[Yvette Segal]

Thanks Linda, I will have a search. My son only drinks water and milk so can't be in his drinks but will check foods.