Reasons to Avoid Aspartame

[Guest guest]

http://drbenkim.com/articles-artificialsweeteners.html

Reasons to Avoid AspartamePosted By Dr. Ben Kim on Dec 07, 2009 Health

WarningsWhen Tim Gullickson, former professional tennis player and coach to Pete

Sampras, died in 1996 from complications related to brain tumors, I distinctly

remember reading about Tim's fondness for diet Coke; according to one close

friend, Tim was addicted to the stuff - he always seemed to have a can in

hand.When I began private practice a year later, within a few months, I

encountered three patients who had brain tumors and drank several diet sodas a

day. These findings were easy to notice and group together in my mind, as I took

a detailed dietary survey during each new patient evaluation.From that point on,

I shared my suspicions about aspartame with family, friends, and patients. And

over time, I learned about the ways in which aspartame injures nervous tissue on

a cellular level - most of my education on this issue has been from the work

of Dr. Russell Blaylock, a

retired neurosurgeon who has long maintained that aspartame and MSG are harmful

to human health.Aspartame, the technical name for popular brand names

NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure, has been documented by the

United States FDA to be a cause of the following symptoms:Inability to

concentrateShort-term memory lossHeadachesDizzinessTrouble sleepingDepression

and irritabilitySeizuresNauseaNumbnessMuscle spasmsFatigueDifficulty

breathingHeart irregularitiesJoint PainWhy is Aspartame Harmful to Your

Health?To put it simply, aspartame is toxic to your nervous system. Enough

exposure to aspartame can lead to nerve cell death.Aspartame - also know as

1-aspartyl 1 phenylalanine methyl ester - is made up of the following

components:Wood Alcohol (methanol) - about 10%Phenylalanine - about 50%Aspartic

acid - about 40%Problems with Wood AlcoholThe United States Environmental

Protective Agency says that the average person can consume 7.8 milligrams of

wood alcohol per day without negative effects - some cans of diet soda have

been found to have double this amount.Although wood alcohol naturally occurs in

some of the foods that we eat, it doesn't come naturally bound to amino acids as

it does in aspartame. Rather, in nature, wood alcohol typically comes attached

to fiber that allows it to pass through the digestive tract without being

absorbed into the bloodstream.Since wood alcohol that comes with aspartame

doesn't have fiber to keep it out of your bloodstream, just about all of it gets

absorbed into your blood, where it can spontaneously convert to formaldehyde, a

poisonous substance that is an established carcinogen.Metabolism of formaldehyde

in your body can lead to the production of formate, a waste product that, if

accumulated in large amounts, can cause metabolic acidosis and ensuing

blindness, kidney damage, and even death. Clearly, this could only potentially

happen if you consume extremely

large quantities of aspartame and your body's buffering mechanisms fail to

prevent metabolic acidosis.Problems with PhenylalanineWhen exposed to high

temperatures or simply stored for a long period of time, aspartame breaks down

into a few different compounds, one of which is aspartylphenylalanine

diketopiperazine (DKP).There is some evidence to suggest that DKP can undergo a

nitrosation process in the stomach, which can lead to the production of a

chemical that may cause brain tumors.Since many food products and beverages are

exposed to extremely high temperatures during distribution and storage,

especially in areas of the world where the climate is hot year-round, the

presence of and potential harmful effects of DKP become more worrisome in

regions and countries that are closer to the equator.Also, it's worth noting

that whenever your body is exposed to a sudden surge in phenylalanine, the break

down of phenylalanine to a larger-than-normal supply

of neurotransmitters (L-dopa, norepinephrine, and epinephrine) may create

imbalances in nerve signaling that may cause any number of symptoms,

including:Anxiety attacks and nervousnessSeizuresHeadachesHeart

palpitationsProblems with Aspartic AcidLike phenylalanine, aspartic acid is an

amino acid that naturally occurs in foods. When your body obtains these amino

acids along with other naturally occurring amino acids, enzymes, vitamins, and

minerals, your cells can put phenylalanine and aspartic acid to use for normal

metabolic activities.When you introduce abnormally large amounts of

phenylalanine and aspartic acid (synthetically bound together by an ester bond)

into your bloodstream - which is exactly what happens whenever you drink a can

of soda that is sweetened with aspartame - your cells can be

overwhelmed.Specifically, a surge in aspartic acid can lead to over-stimulation

of nerve cells and sometimes even nerve cell death - this overstimulation is

what Dr. Blaylock refers to as excitotoxicity.The risk of experiencing nerve

cell death from ingesting too much aspartame is higher in people who smoke, have

high blood pressure, or have diabetes, as all of these factors potentially

increase the permeability of the blood-brain barrier that is supposed to protect

your nerve cells against excitotoxins. It's safe to assume that the more your

overall health is compromised, the more susceptible your nerve cells are to the

toxic effects of aspartic acid.Pregnant and nursing moms should know that babies

in the womb and newborns are particularly susceptible to having aspartic acid

cross the blood-brain barrier, so it's especially advisable to avoid aspartame

during these times.If you'd like to avoid aspartame, please keep in mind that

it's a common ingredient in many packaged foods and beverages, particularly

those that are marketed as being sugar-free or low in calories. Examples include

sugar-free or low

calorie:YogurtChewing gumSoft drinksCookies and candy bars that are made for

diabeticsFrozen dessertsArtificial sweetenersCough candies, drops, and

syrupsChewable vitaminsBe sure to read through the list of ingredients on all

packaged foods and avoid those that list aspartame, NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful,

and Equal-Measure.If you're relatively healthy, your body can likely handle some

exposure to aspartame without experiencing irreversible damage. Still, it's hard

to justify hurting your health, even just a little, by knowingly ingesting

aspartame.The great danger with aspartame is in regularly consuming it - the

most common example is the person who drinks a few or more diet sodas every day.

If you know anyone who belongs in this category and is open to looking into this

matter, please consider sharing this post.If you happen to be one of those

people who just can't do without the " bite " that sodas provide, one healthy

alternative is to combine fruit

juice with sparkling water. Too much fruit juice isn't good for your blood

sugar-regulating mechanisms, but every once in a while, a glass that combines

three-quarters fruit juice and one-quarter sparkling water should satisfy your

need for a biting beverage.

Muhammad Ahmad Al-Masry

 

64, Muhammad Korayem Street,

 

Gomrok, Alexandria, Egypt

 

Tel: 0020-03-4800555

 

Fax: 0020-03-3082667

 

Web: massrii

 

massrii