Aspartame
Killer Aspartame and Diet Drinks
Aspartame, the common sweetener in low-calorie diet drinks, has not
had an easy run since it was approved by the American Food and Drug Administration in 1981. Today, over 100 million people consume aspartame daily in over 1,500 food products. However, the famous "Nancy Markle e-mail" blames aspartame for some 92 conditions ranging from headaches, fatigue, multiple sclerosis, and systemic lupus erythematosis to dizziness, vertigo, diabetes, and coma. Aspartame is produced by combining two common amino acids— phenylalanine and aspartic acid. These amino acids are, like the other 18-or-so common amino acids, found in the proteins we eat and are part of our regular food intake. In aspartame, the pheny- lalanine has been modified by the addition of a methyl group chemical. The job of the gut iS to prepare food so that it can enter the bloodstream. Because the aspartame molecule is too big to get into the bloodstream, the gut breaks it down into three smaller chemicals—phenylalanine, aspartic acid, and methanol.
Like all good myths, this one has a germ of truth to it. Under certain circumstances, two of these chemicals (phenylalanine and methanol) can be poisonous. The first chemical is the natural amino acid, phenylalanine. It is claimed that the phenylalanine is poisonous on the grounds that cans of diet drinks have a health warning: "Phenylketonurics: Contains Phenylalanine."
Phenylalanine is in fact toxic to people with phenylketonuria, a very rare disease which affects one in 15,000 people. These people are usually diagnosed soon after birth with the Guthrie "heel prick" test. In these people, phenylalanine is not broken down and can rise to toxic levels, causing brain damage. Phenylketonurics, placed on a special restricted diet to minimize their intake of phenylalanine, can live normal lives. There is more phenylalanine in "regular" foods than in diet drinks. For example, a can of diet drink has 100mg of phenylalanine, an eg 300mg, a glass of milk 500mg, and a large hamburger 900 mg. These are foods that phenylketonurics are taught to avoid. However, the other 14,999 people out of every 15,000 don't have to worry about the toxic effects of phenylalanine.
The second chemical is the alcohol called methanol. (There are many chemicals in the alcohol family. Ethanol is the one that is good for us in small quantities—which is amazing for a chemical that can strip stains off a floor, and pickle and perfectly preserve small animals.) It is true that methanol in large doses is toxic. However, a can of diet drink will yield 20 mg of methanol, a very small dose, and easily handled by the body. Like phenylalanine, this chemical is found in our regular diet. A glass of fruit juice will give you 40mg of methanol, and an alcoholic drink 60—100 mg. There's one final argument against the toxicity of diet drinks. None of the peer-reviewed medical literature shows a relationship between the consumption of diet drinks, and any of the 92 conditions that aspartame supposedly causes. And what of Nancy Markle? She has never been found.
Aspartame is a low-calorie sweetener, which was invented in 1965. Weight for weight, it is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It goes under many names—"Equal," "NutraSweet," "Spoonful," "E951," etc. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, the ADI (Acceptable Daily Intake) is about 25 mg/lb. of body weight per day. For a 165 lb. person, this is the equivalent of 20 cans of diet drink per day. It has remarkably few adverse reactions. Repeated studies have shown that it does not cause allergic reactions, headaches, cancer, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, or Alzheimer's disease. It does not affect vision or cause changes in mood, behaviour, or thought processes. It does not increase hemorrhagic risk, and it has no bad effects on dental health. On the other hand, some studies show that diet drinks with artificial sweeteners stimulate the appetite, which can lead to eating when you're not hungry—which defeats the whole purpose of diet drinks.
Killer Aspartame and Diet Drinks
Aspartame, the common sweetener in low-calorie diet drinks, has not
had an easy run since it was approved by the American Food and Drug Administration in 1981. Today, over 100 million people consume aspartame daily in over 1,500 food products. However, the famous "Nancy Markle e-mail" blames aspartame for some 92 conditions ranging from headaches, fatigue, multiple sclerosis, and systemic lupus erythematosis to dizziness, vertigo, diabetes, and coma. Aspartame is produced by combining two common amino acids— phenylalanine and aspartic acid. These amino acids are, like the other 18-or-so common amino acids, found in the proteins we eat and are part of our regular food intake. In aspartame, the pheny- lalanine has been modified by the addition of a methyl group chemical. The job of the gut iS to prepare food so that it can enter the bloodstream. Because the aspartame molecule is too big to get into the bloodstream, the gut breaks it down into three smaller chemicals—phenylalanine, aspartic acid, and methanol.
Like all good myths, this one has a germ of truth to it. Under certain circumstances, two of these chemicals (phenylalanine and methanol) can be poisonous. The first chemical is the natural amino acid, phenylalanine. It is claimed that the phenylalanine is poisonous on the grounds that cans of diet drinks have a health warning: "Phenylketonurics: Contains Phenylalanine."
Phenylalanine is in fact toxic to people with phenylketonuria, a very rare disease which affects one in 15,000 people. These people are usually diagnosed soon after birth with the Guthrie "heel prick" test. In these people, phenylalanine is not broken down and can rise to toxic levels, causing brain damage. Phenylketonurics, placed on a special restricted diet to minimize their intake of phenylalanine, can live normal lives. There is more phenylalanine in "regular" foods than in diet drinks. For example, a can of diet drink has 100mg of phenylalanine, an eg 300mg, a glass of milk 500mg, and a large hamburger 900 mg. These are foods that phenylketonurics are taught to avoid. However, the other 14,999 people out of every 15,000 don't have to worry about the toxic effects of phenylalanine.
The second chemical is the alcohol called methanol. (There are many chemicals in the alcohol family. Ethanol is the one that is good for us in small quantities—which is amazing for a chemical that can strip stains off a floor, and pickle and perfectly preserve small animals.) It is true that methanol in large doses is toxic. However, a can of diet drink will yield 20 mg of methanol, a very small dose, and easily handled by the body. Like phenylalanine, this chemical is found in our regular diet. A glass of fruit juice will give you 40mg of methanol, and an alcoholic drink 60—100 mg. There's one final argument against the toxicity of diet drinks. None of the peer-reviewed medical literature shows a relationship between the consumption of diet drinks, and any of the 92 conditions that aspartame supposedly causes. And what of Nancy Markle? She has never been found.
Aspartame is a low-calorie sweetener, which was invented in 1965. Weight for weight, it is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It goes under many names—"Equal," "NutraSweet," "Spoonful," "E951," etc. According to the US Food and Drug Administration, the ADI (Acceptable Daily Intake) is about 25 mg/lb. of body weight per day. For a 165 lb. person, this is the equivalent of 20 cans of diet drink per day. It has remarkably few adverse reactions. Repeated studies have shown that it does not cause allergic reactions, headaches, cancer, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's disease, or Alzheimer's disease. It does not affect vision or cause changes in mood, behaviour, or thought processes. It does not increase hemorrhagic risk, and it has no bad effects on dental health. On the other hand, some studies show that diet drinks with artificial sweeteners stimulate the appetite, which can lead to eating when you're not hungry—which defeats the whole purpose of diet drinks.
This series of allegations by Ms. Markle are almost entirely without foundation. They are rabidly inaccurate and scandalously misinformative.
Scandalously misinformative, in the webernet age, is damn near close to Gospel. Scandalously misinformative, if it is done right, will sell more than rational thought and scientific fact any day of the week.
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