Aspartame, Natural News, but June 2005

[Guest guest]

<http://www.naturalnews.com/index.html>NaturalNews.com printable article

 

Originally published June 27 2005

 

 

Aspartame promotes grand mal seizures, say health experts

 

by Dani Veracity

 

A nursing infant developed convulsions after his

mother drank an aspartame-sweetened soft drink. A

19-year-old woman went into grand mal convulsions

within minutes of chewing a piece of

aspartame-flavored gum. A small amount of toxin

can push the human body into near-fatal

conditions, regardless of whether the toxin is

considered " safe " and sold on grocery and

convenience store shelves around the world.

Aspartame, the artificial sweetener that often

flavors sugar-free drinks and foods, has been

known to induce convulsions and grand mal

<http://www.naturalnews.com/seizures.html>seizures

in certain individuals. So why is it still on peoples' shopping lists?

 

In 1987, scientists and aspartame-sensitive

seizure patients made the government aware of the

link between the consumption of aspartame and the

onset of seizures and convulsions, reports Dr.

H.J. Roberts in Aspartame

(<http://www.naturalnews.com/NutraSweet.html>NutraSweet):

Is It Safe. On November 3, 1987, the U.S. Senate

held a hearing entitled " 'NutraSweet' -- Health

and Safety Concerns. " In this hearing, people

from a wide variety of occupations, including an

Air Force pilot, told the Senate about their

aspartame-induced grand mal seizures. These

individuals reported that their seizures

disappeared after abstaining from aspartame consumption.

 

By all ethical standards, the testimonials

provided during this 1987 hearing -- combined

with the strong scientific evidence demonstrating

the health dangers of aspartame -- should have

led to the banishment of aspartame-sweetened

products from grocery shelves forever; yet,

aspartame products are still abundant in our grocery stores and restaurants.

 

 

 

How aspartame damages human health

 

Aspartame is a synthetic chemical composed of the

<http://www.naturalnews.com/amino_acids.html>amino

acids phenylalanine and aspartic acid. Each time

you drink a diet soft drink or chew sugarless

gum, you are feeding unhealthy doses of these

amino acids into your system, according to Dr.

James Howenstine in A Physicians Guide to Natural Health Products that Work.

 

These amino acids can bypass the blood-brain

barrier, enabling them both to directly alter

your neurological function. Your brain naturally

contains phenylalanine, but phenylalanine in its

solitary form without its companion amino acids

is not normally a part of the human diet. Debra

Lynn Dadd, author of Home Safe Home, believes

this is where the

<http://www.naturalnews.com/health_problems.html>health

problems posed by aspartame begin. Aspartame

consumption provides phenylalanine in excess of

your brain's normal level. According to James A.

May in Miracle of Stevia, this state of excess

phenylalanine lowers the seizure threshold,

thereby making convulsions more likely.

 

Researchers know that a raise in brain

phenylalanine levels ultimately increases the

risk of seizures. This is true even for people

without a history of non-aspartame induced

seizures, such as the Air Force pilot who

testified in the 1987 hearing. However,

researchers are still debating the exact role of

increased brain phenylalanine levels in inducing

seizures. Although many researchers believe that

increased brain phenylalanine levels directly

cause seizures and convulsions, Dr. Blaylock

writes in Excitotoxins that it is " more likely …

the direct excitatory effect of the aspartate

itself. Phenylalanine may act to potentiate this

irritability. " Regardless of the precise method,

the combined neurological effects of excess

phenylalanine and aspartic acid make aspartame a dangerous ingredient.

 

 

 

Aspartame marketing gimmicks

 

Advertisements for aspartame commonly portray

aspartame as a " healthy " alternative to sugar.

Such

<http://www.naturalnews.com/advertising.html>advertising

makes aspartame even more dangerous to consumers

who are ignorant of the artificial sweetener's

potential

<http://www.naturalnews.com/side_effects.html>side

effects. Because of this deceptive advertising,

people concerned about their health and the

health of their families regularly use

aspartame-sweetened products. Rather than

switching to a truly healthy diet and exercising

more often, people concerned with weight loss may

use

<http://www.naturalnews.com/sugar-free.html>sugar-free

foods sweetened with aspartame to refrain from extra calorie consumption.

 

True, they're " watching their calories, " but they

are also putting themselves at risk of suffering

from several aspartame-associated health

consequences, including insomnia, dehydration,

migraines, seizures and brain tumors. Dr. Roberts

illustrates with an anecdote about the malignant

consequences suffered by consumers because of

this deceptive advertising: " A two-year-old with

fever suffered seizures within 10 minutes after

chewing aspartame-sweetened

<http://www.naturalnews.com/acetaminophen.html>acetaminophen

… This consideration may be significant to

health-conscious mothers who elect to give their

infants

<http://www.naturalnews.com/health_products.html>health

products containing aspartame rather than

<http://www.naturalnews.com/sugar.html>sugar

(such as vitamins) in an effort to prevent

<http://www.naturalnews.com/tooth_decay.html>tooth decay. "

 

Imagine the guilt of a poor parent who gives his

or her child aspartame-sweetened medication in an

effort to make the child healthy or keep the

child's teeth free of cavities only to have the

child suffer or even die from a grand mal

seizure. Aspartame's deceptive advertising is truly inexcusable.

 

If you've been drinking diet sodas and chewing

sugarless gum for decades and you haven't been

experiencing convulsions, then consider yourself

lucky that you apparently lack the biological

tendency that puts you at risk for

aspartame-induced convulsions or grand mal

seizures. Other individuals have not been so

lucky. Seizures aside, however, you may not turn

out to be as lucky in avoiding the other health

problems commonly associated with aspartame. You

can read about these other possible side effects

along with stevia, an alternative to both

aspartame and natural sugar, at NaturalNews's

<http://www.NaturalNews.com/aspartame.html>aspartame

and

<http://www.NaturalNews.com/stevia.html>stevia

archives. Don't gamble with your body – you're only given one.

 

 

 

The experts speak on aspartame

 

Aspartame or Nutrasweet is composed of two amino

acids, phenylalanine and aspartic acid. The

aspartic acid is as powerful as an exitotoxin as

is glutamate. Phenylalanine is known to produce

seizures and act as a neurotoxin in

<http://www.naturalnews.com/the_brain.html>the

brain. … When a sweetener contains high amounts

of these isolated amino acids the brain level

may, after ingestion, become high enough to cause

brain cell death, seizures and death.

A Physicians Guide To Natural Health Products

That Work By James Howenstine MD, page 33

 

A 35-year-old male anesthetist had three grand

mal seizures, severe headaches and visual

difficulty while drinking 4-6 diet colas daily,

but none for two years after stopping aspartame.

He told the U. S. Senate hearing on

" NutraSweet " ­Health and Safety Concerns, held on November 3, 1987:

Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 14

 

To test this, scientists used

<http://www.naturalnews.com/chemicals.html>chemicals

that are known to precipitate seizures in

animals, such as pentylenetetrazol and flurothyl.

Pinto and Maher found that aspartame, when given

orally in doses of 1000 to 2000 milligram per

kilogram, did potentiate the convulsant action of

these two chemicals.They also found that

aspartame decreases the time of onset of seizures

and increases the number of animals showing

tonic-clonic convulsions when exposed to pentylenetetrazol.

Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 197

 

CONVULSIONS ARE AMONG THE most serious reactions

attributable to aspartame products. There are

various classifications of convulsions­also

referred to as epilepsy, seizures and " fits. " In

this series of 551 persons with adverse reactions

to aspartame products, 80 (14.5 percent) suffered

typical generalized (grand mal) convulsions, and

18 (3.3 percent) experienced so-called temporal lobe seizures.

Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 81

 

The problem with aspartame lies in

overconsumption and the fact that phenylalanine

alone (without its companion amino acids) is not

a normal part of the diet. Large doses of

phenylalanine are toxic to the brain and can

cause mental retardation and seizures in people

with phenylketonuria (PKU), a genetic disorder...

Home Safe Home by Debra Lynn Dadd, page 249

 

Aspartame products may render young children more

vulnerable to seizures. For example, a

two-year-old with fever suffered seizures within

ten minutes after chewing aspartame-sweetened

acetaminophen (a commonly used substitute for

aspirin). This consideration may be significant

to health-conscious mothers who elect to give

their infants health products containing

aspartame rather than sugar (such as vitamins) in

an effort to prevent tooth decay.

Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 85

 

Aspartic acid acts as an " excitatory "

neurotransmitter in the brain. It functions as a

chemical messenger, stimulating the neurons in

the brain to " fire. " Too much aspartic acid, as

well as too much phenylalanine, entering the

brain will cause the brain to get out of balance

with the inhibitory amino acids, therefore

interfering with normal brain function and

possibly causing severe brain damage. Dr. Julian

Whitaker suggests, " This is a likely reason why

aspartame lowers the threshold of seizures, mood

disorders, and other

<http://www.naturalnews.com/nervous_system.html>nervous

system problems. This altered

<http://www.naturalnews.com/brain_chemistry.html>brain

chemistry may also be responsible for the addictive nature of aspartame.

Miracle Of Stevia by James A May, page 160

 

The unknowing consumption of aspartame, whether

by in-gestion or the chewing of gum, predictably

triggered subsequent grand mal seizures. The

amount of aspartame ingested in some patients was

remarkably small. This is illustrated by an

infant who developed convulsions when his nursing

mother drank an aspartame soft drink...

aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 83

 

Aspartame has been proven to cause seizures in

research studies on human subjects. The

simultaneous ingestion of Crystal Light and

NutraSweet has often caused seizures. One man who

had an abnormal vein deep in his brain stopped

having seizures when he stopped using aspartame

and Crystal Light. The lowering of the seizure

threshold seen with aspartame may permit seizures

to appear in persons with small brain scars from

a difficult childbirth or brain injury who would

have lived their lives seizure free without the aspartame usage.

A Physicians Guide To Natural Health Products

That Work By James Howenstine MD, page 34

 

....In addition, the two amino acids that comprise

aspartame, phenyl-alanine and aspartic acid, can

bypass the blood-brain barrier and enter the

brain, upsetting the balance of neurotransmitters

and brain chemistry. High intake of aspartame has

been linked with a number of adverse effects,

including headache, vision loss, seizures, mood

disorders, and other nervous system problems.

Reversing Diabetes by Julian Whitaker MD, page 126

 

Those who oppose

<http://www.naturalnews.com/excitotoxins.html>excitotoxins

used as food additives frequently cite that they

can either precipitate seizures in persons known

to have a history of seizures, or they can

actually cause seizures. This became especially

prevalent with the introduction of the artificial

sweetener aspartame or, as it is better known, NutraSweet®.

Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 191

 

Another physician informed me about a commercial

pilot who had lost his license because of

unexplained convulsions. Deducing they probably

were triggered by aspartame beverages, he

abstained from such products... and became

seizure-free. In an attempt to document such

specific intolerance and regain his pilot's

license, he purposefully rechallenged himself

with an aspartame soft drink. Another seizure promptly ensued.

Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 90

 

A study was performed at the University of

Wisconsin on the affects of aspartame on rhesus

monkeys Monkeys, being close in their

physiologies to humans, are excellent subjects

for study. These monkeys, treated with aspartame,

all experienced grand mal epileptic seizures

after day 200 of a 52-week study. Blood samples

from these primates revealed extremely high

levels of phenylalanine in their blood serum. The

researchers, noting that 50 percent of aspartame

consisted of phenylalanine, attributed those

seizures to aspartame ingestion. After the study

ended and the aspartame was removed from the

animal's diets, no further seizure activity was observed.

Milk The Deadly Poison by Robert Cohen, page 264

 

A 29-year-old businessman sought consultation

because of recurrent grand mal seizures over an

18-month period. He had begun drinking

considerable amounts of diet soft drinks and

eating other aspartame products six months before

the first convulsion. He suffered five major

attacks even while on relatively large doses of

phenytoin and carbama-zepine. The patient had no

further seizures for six months after stopping all aspartame products.

Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 87

 

Seizures occur in 15% of people sensitive to

aspartame, most of whom suffered their first

convulsions after consuming a diet product. A

single dose of aspartame can trigger a seizure in

susceptible patients. Children who have

unexplained seizures should be questioned

regarding their ingestion of aspartame and glutamates.

The Enzyme Cure by Lita Lee with Lisa Turner & Burton Goldberg, page 210

 

A 19-year-old woman had convulsions that were

finally attributed to aspartame. She remained

seizure-free for 11 months by avoiding such

products. She then was handed a piece of

" sugar-free " gum at a ball game. Multiple grand

mal convulsions recurred within minutes after chewing it.

Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 77

 

No other underlying cause could be found in most

of these patients, despite extensive tests such

as CT (computerized tomography, formerly CAT)

scan, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), EEG

(electroencephalogram), and even an angiogram of

the cerebral blood vessels. Aspartame-caused

seizures disappear or dramatically decrease when

aspartame is avoided, even without antiepileptic drugs.

The Enzyme Cure by Lita Lee with Lisa Turner & Burton Goldberg, page 210

 

A young Air Force pilot told the Senate hearing

held on November 3, 1987 that he suffered a grand

mal seizure while consuming up to one gallon of

an aspartame beverage daily. There had been no

recurrence over the ensuing two years of abstinence.

aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 14

 

 

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______________More information on aspartame on

www.mpwhi.com, www.dorway.com and

www.wnho.net Aspartame Toxicity Center, www.holisticmed.com/aspartame

[Guest guest]

Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld was chairman and chief

executive officer

of G. D. Searle & Co., Monsanto purchased the company in 1985.

Rumsfeld personally made at least $12 million USD from the transaction

 

Aspartame (also known as Nutrasweet or Equal) is perhaps the most famous

example

of blatant special interests overriding science.

When Donald Rumsfeld was CEO of Searle, the conglomerate that

manufactured aspartame, he was frustrated that the FDA wouldn't

approve his sugar substitute.

 

 

So what did he do? He fired the FDA Commissioner.

 

Rumsfield was on President Reagan's transition team,

where he only waited a single day after the new president was in office

to oust

Jere E. Goyan from his position as FDA Commissioner.

 

 

Goyan had refused to approve the use of aspartame due to studies

documenting

increase of cancers in rats.

 

Rumsfeld appointed Arthur Hull Hayes in his stead,

who in spite of the FDA's Board of Inquiry (which found aspartame to

be unsafe),

overruled Goyan's ban and approved Aspartame.

 

 

Hayes then embarked on a lucrative career working for the PR Agency of

the manufacturer.

Aspartame is now used in Diet Pepsi, Diet Coke, tabletop packets, and

countless other

foods in spite of reputable studies linking it to serious health risks

including the

development of cancerous tumors.

( it is still used to this day )

 

 

, " Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum. "

<bettym19 wrote:

>

>

>

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/index.html>NaturalNews.com printable

article

>

> Originally published June 27 2005

>

>

> Aspartame promotes grand mal seizures, say health experts

>

> by Dani Veracity

>

> A nursing infant developed convulsions after his

> mother drank an aspartame-sweetened soft drink. A

> 19-year-old woman went into grand mal convulsions

> within minutes of chewing a piece of

> aspartame-flavored gum. A small amount of toxin

> can push the human body into near-fatal

> conditions, regardless of whether the toxin is

> considered " safe " and sold on grocery and

> convenience store shelves around the world.

> Aspartame, the artificial sweetener that often

> flavors sugar-free drinks and foods, has been

> known to induce convulsions and grand mal

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/seizures.html>seizures

> in certain individuals. So why is it still on peoples' shopping lists?

>

> In 1987, scientists and aspartame-sensitive

> seizure patients made the government aware of the

> link between the consumption of aspartame and the

> onset of seizures and convulsions, reports Dr.

> H.J. Roberts in Aspartame

> (<http://www.naturalnews.com/NutraSweet.html>NutraSweet):

> Is It Safe. On November 3, 1987, the U.S. Senate

> held a hearing entitled " 'NutraSweet' -- Health

> and Safety Concerns. " In this hearing, people

> from a wide variety of occupations, including an

> Air Force pilot, told the Senate about their

> aspartame-induced grand mal seizures. These

> individuals reported that their seizures

> disappeared after abstaining from aspartame consumption.

>

> By all ethical standards, the testimonials

> provided during this 1987 hearing -- combined

> with the strong scientific evidence demonstrating

> the health dangers of aspartame -- should have

> led to the banishment of aspartame-sweetened

> products from grocery shelves forever; yet,

> aspartame products are still abundant in our grocery stores and

restaurants.

>

>

>

> How aspartame damages human health

>

> Aspartame is a synthetic chemical composed of the

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/amino_acids.html>amino

> acids phenylalanine and aspartic acid. Each time

> you drink a diet soft drink or chew sugarless

> gum, you are feeding unhealthy doses of these

> amino acids into your system, according to Dr.

> James Howenstine in A Physicians Guide to Natural Health Products that

Work.

>

> These amino acids can bypass the blood-brain

> barrier, enabling them both to directly alter

> your neurological function. Your brain naturally

> contains phenylalanine, but phenylalanine in its

> solitary form without its companion amino acids

> is not normally a part of the human diet. Debra

> Lynn Dadd, author of Home Safe Home, believes

> this is where the

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/health_problems.html>health

> problems posed by aspartame begin. Aspartame

> consumption provides phenylalanine in excess of

> your brain's normal level. According to James A.

> May in Miracle of Stevia, this state of excess

> phenylalanine lowers the seizure threshold,

> thereby making convulsions more likely.

>

> Researchers know that a raise in brain

> phenylalanine levels ultimately increases the

> risk of seizures. This is true even for people

> without a history of non-aspartame induced

> seizures, such as the Air Force pilot who

> testified in the 1987 hearing. However,

> researchers are still debating the exact role of

> increased brain phenylalanine levels in inducing

> seizures. Although many researchers believe that

> increased brain phenylalanine levels directly

> cause seizures and convulsions, Dr. Blaylock

> writes in Excitotoxins that it is " more likely …

> the direct excitatory effect of the aspartate

> itself. Phenylalanine may act to potentiate this

> irritability. " Regardless of the precise method,

> the combined neurological effects of excess

> phenylalanine and aspartic acid make aspartame a dangerous ingredient.

>

>

>

> Aspartame marketing gimmicks

>

> Advertisements for aspartame commonly portray

> aspartame as a " healthy " alternative to sugar.

> Such

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/advertising.html>advertising

> makes aspartame even more dangerous to consumers

> who are ignorant of the artificial sweetener's

> potential

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/side_effects.html>side

> effects. Because of this deceptive advertising,

> people concerned about their health and the

> health of their families regularly use

> aspartame-sweetened products. Rather than

> switching to a truly healthy diet and exercising

> more often, people concerned with weight loss may

> use

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/sugar-free.html>sugar-free

> foods sweetened with aspartame to refrain from extra calorie

consumption.

>

> True, they're " watching their calories, " but they

> are also putting themselves at risk of suffering

> from several aspartame-associated health

> consequences, including insomnia, dehydration,

> migraines, seizures and brain tumors. Dr. Roberts

> illustrates with an anecdote about the malignant

> consequences suffered by consumers because of

> this deceptive advertising: " A two-year-old with

> fever suffered seizures within 10 minutes after

> chewing aspartame-sweetened

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/acetaminophen.html>acetaminophen

> … This consideration may be significant to

> health-conscious mothers who elect to give their

> infants

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/health_products.html>health

> products containing aspartame rather than

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/sugar.html>sugar

> (such as vitamins) in an effort to prevent

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/tooth_decay.html>tooth decay. "

>

> Imagine the guilt of a poor parent who gives his

> or her child aspartame-sweetened medication in an

> effort to make the child healthy or keep the

> child's teeth free of cavities only to have the

> child suffer or even die from a grand mal

> seizure. Aspartame's deceptive advertising is truly inexcusable.

>

> If you've been drinking diet sodas and chewing

> sugarless gum for decades and you haven't been

> experiencing convulsions, then consider yourself

> lucky that you apparently lack the biological

> tendency that puts you at risk for

> aspartame-induced convulsions or grand mal

> seizures. Other individuals have not been so

> lucky. Seizures aside, however, you may not turn

> out to be as lucky in avoiding the other health

> problems commonly associated with aspartame. You

> can read about these other possible side effects

> along with stevia, an alternative to both

> aspartame and natural sugar, at NaturalNews's

> <http://www.NaturalNews.com/aspartame.html>aspartame

> and

> <http://www.NaturalNews.com/stevia.html>stevia

> archives. Don't gamble with your body – you're only given one.

>

>

>

> The experts speak on aspartame

>

> Aspartame or Nutrasweet is composed of two amino

> acids, phenylalanine and aspartic acid. The

> aspartic acid is as powerful as an exitotoxin as

> is glutamate. Phenylalanine is known to produce

> seizures and act as a neurotoxin in

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/the_brain.html>the

> brain. … When a sweetener contains high amounts

> of these isolated amino acids the brain level

> may, after ingestion, become high enough to cause

> brain cell death, seizures and death.

> A Physicians Guide To Natural Health Products

> That Work By James Howenstine MD, page 33

>

> A 35-year-old male anesthetist had three grand

> mal seizures, severe headaches and visual

> difficulty while drinking 4-6 diet colas daily,

> but none for two years after stopping aspartame.

> He told the U. S. Senate hearing on

> " NutraSweet " ­Health and Safety Concerns, held on November 3, 1987:

> Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 14

>

> To test this, scientists used

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/chemicals.html>chemicals

> that are known to precipitate seizures in

> animals, such as pentylenetetrazol and flurothyl.

> Pinto and Maher found that aspartame, when given

> orally in doses of 1000 to 2000 milligram per

> kilogram, did potentiate the convulsant action of

> these two chemicals.They also found that

> aspartame decreases the time of onset of seizures

> and increases the number of animals showing

> tonic-clonic convulsions when exposed to pentylenetetrazol.

> Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 197

>

> CONVULSIONS ARE AMONG THE most serious reactions

> attributable to aspartame products. There are

> various classifications of convulsions­also

> referred to as epilepsy, seizures and " fits. " In

> this series of 551 persons with adverse reactions

> to aspartame products, 80 (14.5 percent) suffered

> typical generalized (grand mal) convulsions, and

> 18 (3.3 percent) experienced so-called temporal lobe seizures.

> Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 81

>

> The problem with aspartame lies in

> overconsumption and the fact that phenylalanine

> alone (without its companion amino acids) is not

> a normal part of the diet. Large doses of

> phenylalanine are toxic to the brain and can

> cause mental retardation and seizures in people

> with phenylketonuria (PKU), a genetic disorder...

> Home Safe Home by Debra Lynn Dadd, page 249

>

> Aspartame products may render young children more

> vulnerable to seizures. For example, a

> two-year-old with fever suffered seizures within

> ten minutes after chewing aspartame-sweetened

> acetaminophen (a commonly used substitute for

> aspirin). This consideration may be significant

> to health-conscious mothers who elect to give

> their infants health products containing

> aspartame rather than sugar (such as vitamins) in

> an effort to prevent tooth decay.

> Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 85

>

> Aspartic acid acts as an " excitatory "

> neurotransmitter in the brain. It functions as a

> chemical messenger, stimulating the neurons in

> the brain to " fire. " Too much aspartic acid, as

> well as too much phenylalanine, entering the

> brain will cause the brain to get out of balance

> with the inhibitory amino acids, therefore

> interfering with normal brain function and

> possibly causing severe brain damage. Dr. Julian

> Whitaker suggests, " This is a likely reason why

> aspartame lowers the threshold of seizures, mood

> disorders, and other

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/nervous_system.html>nervous

> system problems. This altered

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/brain_chemistry.html>brain

> chemistry may also be responsible for the addictive nature of

aspartame.

> Miracle Of Stevia by James A May, page 160

>

> The unknowing consumption of aspartame, whether

> by in-gestion or the chewing of gum, predictably

> triggered subsequent grand mal seizures. The

> amount of aspartame ingested in some patients was

> remarkably small. This is illustrated by an

> infant who developed convulsions when his nursing

> mother drank an aspartame soft drink...

> aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 83

>

> Aspartame has been proven to cause seizures in

> research studies on human subjects. The

> simultaneous ingestion of Crystal Light and

> NutraSweet has often caused seizures. One man who

> had an abnormal vein deep in his brain stopped

> having seizures when he stopped using aspartame

> and Crystal Light. The lowering of the seizure

> threshold seen with aspartame may permit seizures

> to appear in persons with small brain scars from

> a difficult childbirth or brain injury who would

> have lived their lives seizure free without the aspartame usage.

> A Physicians Guide To Natural Health Products

> That Work By James Howenstine MD, page 34

>

> ...In addition, the two amino acids that comprise

> aspartame, phenyl-alanine and aspartic acid, can

> bypass the blood-brain barrier and enter the

> brain, upsetting the balance of neurotransmitters

> and brain chemistry. High intake of aspartame has

> been linked with a number of adverse effects,

> including headache, vision loss, seizures, mood

> disorders, and other nervous system problems.

> Reversing Diabetes by Julian Whitaker MD, page 126

>

> Those who oppose

> <http://www.naturalnews.com/excitotoxins.html>excitotoxins

> used as food additives frequently cite that they

> can either precipitate seizures in persons known

> to have a history of seizures, or they can

> actually cause seizures. This became especially

> prevalent with the introduction of the artificial

> sweetener aspartame or, as it is better known, NutraSweet®.

> Excitotoxins by Russell L Blaylock MD, page 191

>

> Another physician informed me about a commercial

> pilot who had lost his license because of

> unexplained convulsions. Deducing they probably

> were triggered by aspartame beverages, he

> abstained from such products... and became

> seizure-free. In an attempt to document such

> specific intolerance and regain his pilot's

> license, he purposefully rechallenged himself

> with an aspartame soft drink. Another seizure promptly ensued.

> Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 90

>

> A study was performed at the University of

> Wisconsin on the affects of aspartame on rhesus

> monkeys Monkeys, being close in their

> physiologies to humans, are excellent subjects

> for study. These monkeys, treated with aspartame,

> all experienced grand mal epileptic seizures

> after day 200 of a 52-week study. Blood samples

> from these primates revealed extremely high

> levels of phenylalanine in their blood serum. The

> researchers, noting that 50 percent of aspartame

> consisted of phenylalanine, attributed those

> seizures to aspartame ingestion. After the study

> ended and the aspartame was removed from the

> animal's diets, no further seizure activity was observed.

> Milk The Deadly Poison by Robert Cohen, page 264

>

> A 29-year-old businessman sought consultation

> because of recurrent grand mal seizures over an

> 18-month period. He had begun drinking

> considerable amounts of diet soft drinks and

> eating other aspartame products six months before

> the first convulsion. He suffered five major

> attacks even while on relatively large doses of

> phenytoin and carbama-zepine. The patient had no

> further seizures for six months after stopping all aspartame products.

> Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 87

>

> Seizures occur in 15% of people sensitive to

> aspartame, most of whom suffered their first

> convulsions after consuming a diet product. A

> single dose of aspartame can trigger a seizure in

> susceptible patients. Children who have

> unexplained seizures should be questioned

> regarding their ingestion of aspartame and glutamates.

> The Enzyme Cure by Lita Lee with Lisa Turner & Burton Goldberg, page

210

>

> A 19-year-old woman had convulsions that were

> finally attributed to aspartame. She remained

> seizure-free for 11 months by avoiding such

> products. She then was handed a piece of

> " sugar-free " gum at a ball game. Multiple grand

> mal convulsions recurred within minutes after chewing it.

> Aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 77

>

> No other underlying cause could be found in most

> of these patients, despite extensive tests such

> as CT (computerized tomography, formerly CAT)

> scan, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging), EEG

> (electroencephalogram), and even an angiogram of

> the cerebral blood vessels. Aspartame-caused

> seizures disappear or dramatically decrease when

> aspartame is avoided, even without antiepileptic drugs.

> The Enzyme Cure by Lita Lee with Lisa Turner & Burton Goldberg, page

210

>

> A young Air Force pilot told the Senate hearing

> held on November 3, 1987 that he suffered a grand

> mal seizure while consuming up to one gallon of

> an aspartame beverage daily. There had been no

> recurrence over the ensuing two years of abstinence.

> aspartame - Is It Safe by H J Roberts MD, page 14

>

>

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> ______________More information on aspartame on

> www.mpwhi.com, www.dorway.com and

> www.wnho.net Aspartame Toxicity Center, www.holisticmed.com/aspartame

>