Aspartame is an artificial and zero calorie sweeteners. Being a zero calorie sweetener, it is used as a sugar alternative in diet foods. It is widely used by the packaged food industry in making many sugar free foods such as chewing gum, breath mints, coffee, tea, frozen desserts, juice beverages, milk drinks, soft drinks, and confectionaries.


It is also added in pharmaceutical drugs and nutritional supplements.

It is commonly sold under the brand names such as NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, Equal-Measure, Sugar Free, or Canderel. It is labeled as E951 in Europe.




Over the years, numerous consumers have complained of various side effects of this artificial sweetener. Most commonly, it adversely affects the brain function and produces effects such as: seizures, headaches, migraines, depression, irritability, insomnia, dizziness, confusion, memory loss, drowsiness, tremors, vision loss, and hearing loss to name a few. Many gastrointestinal (stomach) problems have also been reported: nausea, diarrhea, stomach pain, etc. It is reported to cause skin problems such as allergic reactions, rashes, and itching.




It has been reported this artificial sweetener may trigger or cause many chronic diseases. Following are some of them:
* Brain Tumors
* Alzheimer’s Disease
* Epilepsy
* Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
* Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
* ALS
* Fibromyalgia
* Lupus
* Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

There is an increasing amount of scientific evidence that suggests that this artificial sweetener is responsible in triggering or causing many illnesses. Dr. H. J. Roberts (1) published one such study of 551 individuals in the Journal of Applied Nutrition in 1988 in which he found that 18% of people had seizures due to Aspartame reaction. MIT researcher Richard Wurtman (2) has also confirmed these seizure inducing effects.

Headache is the number one complaint of aspartame consumers. Dr. Roberts found in his study that as much as 45% people had headaches or migraines. Dr. Richard B. Lipton of Montefiore Headache Unit in New York found that 8.2% of his patients had headaches.

Renowned neuroscientist Dr. John Olney (3) reported in 1996 that brain tumor rates had risen for 17 years with a sudden 10% increase three years after aspartame was introduced in the market. Dr. Olney appeared with his shocking findings on a famous TV program "60 Minutes" on CBS in the USA. Dr. Betty Martini of Duluth, Georgia, USA has made a lot of efforts in bringing the brain tumor risk to the attention of the general population.

U.S. Air Force's magazine "Flying Safety" and the U.S. Navy's magazine, "Navy Physiology" has warned their readers by publishing articles about the health dangers of this artificial sweetener. Articles published in May 1992 in "Flying Safety" note that the consumption of aspartame may make pilots more susceptible to seizures and vertigo.


Wishing you Health, Wealth, Love and Happiness,
Pankaj Kotak


REFERENCES

1.    Roberts, HJ. Reactions attributed to aspartame-containing products: 551 cases. Journal of Applied Nutrition. 1988;40: 85-94.

 

2.    Wurtman, RJ. Aspartame: Possible effect on seizure susceptbility. Lancet, volume 2. 1985;1060.

3.    Olney JW, et al. Increasing brain tumor rates: is there a link to aspartame? Journal of Neuropathology and Experimental Neurologyy November 1996;55:111

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