In Health Alert 187, you read about health foods like sports drinks and energy bars that are loaded with unnatural and fattening high fructose corn syrup. You may have thought to switch to the “diet” varieties of these same health foods. Before you do, I've got more to share with you.

Most modern foods labeled as diet health foods contain aspartame. Aspartame, also known as NutraSweet and Equal, has been added to diet foods since the early 1980s. It's in over 5000 products including foods that are supposedly healthy like green tea, sports drinks, protein bars and yogurts.

Yet aspartame has a questionable history that most Americans are unaware of. In fact, all of the non-industry sponsored studies conducted to approve aspartame identified one or more problems with its use.1 What's more; most people do not associate their symptoms with the long-term use of aspartame.

The latest research links aspartame to serious health problems including: brain tumors, blindness, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, lupus, Alzheimer's, Lou Gehrig's disease, multiple sclerosis, Lyme disease, Graves disease, Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, and heart ailments.2

*What is Aspartame?*

When you digest aspartame, it releases a chemical called asparate, which is an excitatory neurotransmitter. It can cross the blood-brain barrier. Asparate is not normal and when too much of it gets into your brain, it leads to the death of cells in the brain and spinal cord. There is evidence to link this toxin to serious nervous systems disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's dementia, Huntington's disease and ALS.3

In addition, people suffering from depression are very vulnerable to the effects of aspartame. Researchers at Northeastern Ohio University attempted to conduct a study on this population but after 7 days of taking aspartame 13 out of 40 people experienced severe reactions and they had to call off the study.4 Another researcher reports that 40% of Aspartame is aspartic Acid, which caused holes in brains of laboratory animals.5

Dr. Jeffery Bada from the University of California explained that it breaks down into methanol. It then further breaks down into formaldehyde (embalming fluid), formic Acid and diketopiperazine (DKP).6 Methanol poisoning causes headaches, ear buzzing, dizziness, nausea, gastrointestinal disturbances, weakness, vertigo, chills, memory lapses, numbness and shooting pains in the extremities, behavioral disturbances, and vision problems. Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen. It causes retinal damage, DNA replication errors and birth defects.7

Studies demonstrate that aspartame has a reverse affect on weight. People eating and drinking diet drinks will get hungrier. The FDA doesn't even allow manufacturers to label aspartame products as weight reduction products. Instead the products say “diet drink” or “diet food.” A study involving 80,000 women who use artificial sweeteners found that the women gained instead of losing weight.8

*Avoid the Dangers of Aspartame*

Considering what you know about aspartame, you may want to avoid it entirely. Start by reading labels. Yet, labeling regulations make it easy for manufacturers to hide this ingredient. This trickery makes eliminating aspartame harder. The easiest thing to do is to eliminate all “diet” products from your diet. You may want to stop drinking diet sodas and drink water instead. Avoid putting artificial sweeteners in your coffee.

You can avoid processed foods altogether. Whole foods don't come with Aspartame or any other experimental ingredients – just what Mother Nature has already tested over eons.

Al Sears MD

1 Aspartame (Nutra-Sweet) Toxicity Information Center, http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/.
2. Rebecca Ephraim, RD, CCN, The Western A. Price Foundation. Aspartame Diet-astrous Results. http://www.westonaprice.org/modernfood/aspartame.html
3. Russell L. Baylock. Exotoxins: The Taste That Kills. Health Press. Santa Fe, NM,1995
4. Possible Neuralgic Effects of Aspartame - a Widely Used Food Additive, http://www.dorway.com/wurtman1.html
6. Bada, Jeffrey 1987. Letter from Dr. Jeffrey Bada to the Office of Senator Howard Metzenbaum. The statement was put in the record before the U.S. Senate Committee on Labor and Human Resources, November 3, 1987 regarding "NutraSweet Health and Safety Concerns." Document # Y 4.L11/4:S.HR6.100, page 456-458.
7. The Bitter Truth about Artificial Sweeteners. http://www.curezone.com/foods/aspartame.html
8.Aspartame Dangers.http://www.naturodoc.com/library/nutrition/aspartame.htm