Do you think Aspartame is any worse for you than sugar?

[Quixote1818]

I lean toward it being safe. I once checked into all the websites saying it will kill you and they were mostly quoting the same one or two scientists. It also seemed like there had been one hell of a lot of research on it to see if it was safe. Then again, who knows? It's hard to trust anyone these days.

[graywarrior]

1. It contributes to depression.

It's bad shit.

[Why Syzygy]

4. and causes headaches . eom

[Rainscents]

110. I listen to this Dr talk about Aspartame...

91 disease is link to this shit. This shit is real bad. You ever notice, people who drink diet drink, they're all over weight? Aspartame make you gain weight, instead of losing it.

[pitohui]

137. "they're all overweight"? don't think so!

i drank it for 15 years and i am certainly not overweight

i probably shouldn't have been drinking it and probably had no business drinking any "diet" drink but i assure you that there are plenty of body types, even anorexics, who drink sodas containing aspartame

i no longer drink it but i don't see how it could make you gain

i think a lot of weight gain caused by substances is caused by steroids, anti-depressants, and female hormones -- all necessary drugs in some cases

if aspartame made you gain, wouldn't it be a safer alternative to steroids or marijuana in chemotherapy cases where patients need to build up their weight?

[Rainscents]

143. I don't believe ALL of them gain weight...

When I go grocery stores, I always watch carts and see what people buy and I do notice the trend. My friends, who drank nothing but diet drinks are over weight, they now have, bad case of MS.

[Jackpine Radical]

2. It may not kill you, but I think it's harmful.

It seems to trigger cravings by activating insulin production just as if it were sugar. Also, there is no evidence that I know of showing it actually helps in weight loss--maybe because it increases cravings, as I suggested.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

30. My doctor,

in a talk on health at her Foundation, said that drinking aspertame-sweetened drinks actually has been shown to make people GAIN weight--I'll have to ask her for her sources--knowing her, she has them with full citations.

[roseBudd]

33. When some people drink diet pop it leads to justyifying eating more

some people don't overeat while drinking diet pop and coffee. I personally use it because I like really sweet coffee and I don't want to consume that much sugar. Another benefit is it doesn't cause cavies.

[Jackpine Radical]

37. I think that's correct.

[Quixote1818]

76. I lost 17 lbs after switching to diet coke

I use to drink 4 or 5 cokes a day though. I never had cravings for sugar when I drank coke but now that I drink diet I tend to eat a candy bar every couple of days.

[uppityperson]

3. gives me major headaches

[boobooday]

5. It is not permitted in Europe . . .

They don't think it is safe, as I understand it. I am a diabetic, and have ingested gallons of the stuff, but I started having joint pain, and my mom suggested I give it up -- it helped! Anecdotal, to be sure, but that's my experience.

I've been going with Splenda, and I do think I feel better.

[Quixote1818]

11. I haven't heard anything bad about Splenda yet.

Maybe I will switch just to play it safe.

[boobooday]

52. From what I understand, it's made from sugar

And then it is de-calorified somehow . . .

[kestrel91316]

93. IIRC there are hysterical nuts ranting and raving about Splenda, too.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

12. What isn't? Sugar?

Because aspartame's been approved in Europe and has been in use for years.

[moc]

18. Huh? Where'd you get that idea? Here's a chart of ingredients for Coke Zero in other countries:

http://www.answers.com/topic/coca-cola-zero

Yes, aspartame is used over in Europe.

[muriel_volestrangler]

22. And: European Food Safety Authority assesses new aspartame study and reconfirms its safety

Last updated: 26 September 2006
Publication Date: 4 May 2006

The AFC Panel<1> of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has evaluated the new long-term study on the carcinogenicity of aspartame conducted by the European Ramazzini Foundation<2> in Bologna, Italy. In its opinion published today, the Panel concluded, on the basis of all the evidence currently available, that there is no need to further review the safety of aspartame nor to revise the previously established Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) for aspartame (40 mg/kg body weight). The Panel also noted that intakes of aspartame in Europe, with levels up to 10 mg/kg body weight per day, are well below the ADI.

http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/press_room/press_release/press_releases_2006/1472.html

[Quixote1818]

57. Thanks for posting this!!!! nt

[boobooday]

54. Well shit, I read it somewhere

My mom sent me a ton of stuff. She became convinced that it was causing problems for her.

But if there is a more organic alternative, I'm switching, cause I consume mass quantities of diet pepsi. :-)

[cgrindley]

105. It's perfectly safe and legal in Europe

http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/press_room/press_release/press_releases_2006/1472.html

[BlueJazz]

6. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it. I've been taking it for years...

...and I What?...97 Ford can't dance
take the chalk please.
She went out the other window.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

7. Sugar is worse for you than aspartame.

Sugar causes diabetes, cavities, obesity, and a host of other problems.

[ginnyinWI]

24. Excuse me but sugar does not cause diabetes.

To get diabetes you need both a genetic predisposition and a trigger, such as overweight. And obesity can be caused by too much of any food, not only sugar.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

26. I didn't say the only cause of diabetes was sugar...

[kestrel91316]

94. Oh, but those are all perfectly ok. But aspartame MIGHT contribute to

headaches in people who get migraines, so it's EVIL and no one should be allowed to use it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Madspirit]

8. It's an amino acid

So it could cause problems for some but for most, it is probably harmless. I prefer sugar myself.
Lee

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

9. Well, technically...

It's two aminoacids. Stuck together via a peptide bond.

Making it a dipeptide.

There's also a methylated C-terminus.

[moc]

20. Ack! Running screaming into the woods.....

My parents are both chemists (dad in organic chem; mom in biochem). You're giving me flashbacks to my childhood. ;-) The "chemistry gene" skipped me.

[Evoman]

10. Almost every scientific regulartory body has found it safe for consumption as far as I've read..

I took an interest in this 3 or 4 years ago, and had a bunch of links but I've since got a new computer, so I don't have them. It has been studied extensively and has not been found to be dangerous. If I remember correctly, most of the links that were anti-aspartame were "fear-mongering" type sites that seemed to fear science (although I do remember one or two legitimate sites).

I wish I still had them, but I cleaned out my old comp and gave it away.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

14. There's always snopes.

It's debunked over there.

[Quixote1818]

17. When I switched from Coke to Diet Coke I did the same research you did

I spent hours looking into every angle. I came to the same conclusion you did.

[Sapere aude]

13. does the amount matter? one packet a day is dangerous?

Personally, I think that worrying excessively about these kinds of things is worse for you than taking the thing itself.

I'm not saying something is unsafe, I really don't know. I have been using artificial sweetener for years and maybe I attribute the side effects to something else.

I don't really know.

[DeepBlueC]

142. the amount does matter

I saw something recently on on of the science channels about aspartame & formaldehyde. Seems that there have been alllegations that aspartame CONTAINS formaldehyde. It does not. On the other hand, formaldehyde is one of the by-products created by metabolizing it in the liver. It is a small amount on the one hand. On the other, formaldehyde is a known carcinogen. So the answer to the question is an assessment of the acceptable level of risk. Scientists think it is minimal. For most people it is probably an acceptable risk, but for some people who have had or are at high risk of getting cancer it might not be work the risk at all when there are other acceptable alternatives. After I saw that show I realized that it might not be benign for me so I avoid it entirely.

[kineneb]

15. Hubby has diabetes

we don't have much sugared stuff in the house. What ever he drinks must be "diet". On the rare occasions I have a soda, I prefer diet drinks because the sugar in "regular" makes my teeth feel icky. I usually just drink black coffee or tea.

Americans have gotten used to highly sweetened foods. This is the problem, not the artificial sweeteners.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

31. Agreed

and my hubby is diabetic too--skinny as a rail, but has a genetic disposition to diabetes and overdid sweets. But my doc told him to absolutely NOT use Nutra-Sweet or any form of aspertame--so he drinks Pepsi One, which is flavored with Splenda.

What can help stop sweet cravings is to drink fresh squeezed vegetable juice. We prefer cabbage, but I read in a book that cucumber juice was very beneficial for diabetics.

[kineneb]

80. other problems

Hubby is on a fluid-limited diet because he is a dialysis patient. Most of the vegetables I once could get him to eat are on the "limited/forbidden" food list for renal patients. We don't worry too much anymore about the "diet" drinks, because he has them so rarely.

Right now, because he has been sick, he is living on toast, milk, turkey bologna sandwiches and eggs. We are focusing on his protein intake and short-term nutrition. Long term, unless things change, he probably has about 5 years left to live. His health is very fragile.

Diabetes sucks.

[Mojorabbit]

16. Ditto on the headaches

I also was having major muscle cramps which disappeared when I quit using it.

[gravity]

19. I would argue safer

Sugar isn't good for you either, and its been directly linked to diseases like diabetes.

[Lethe]

21. the best thing about aspartame is, if you drop a can of coke in the lake

it will float.

cans of soda with sugar will sink.

at least that's what i always heard.

:shrug:

[cui bono]

27. You could try it in the bathtub.

Your rubber duckie might like it.

[roseBudd]

34. It's true the huge amount of sugar displaces liquid in a nondiet pop

[cui bono]

23. I tend to assume all artificial sweeteners are bad for you.

And refined sugar as well. I must say I don't really know what aspertame is, I always assumed it was another cancer causing chemical but seems I may be wrong.

I use organic raw cane sugar at home. Mostly the cookies I eat are sweetened with cane sugar, and they're vegan and YUMMY!!! Unfortunately I haven't broken my addiction to Coca-Cola which is bad for at least two reasons. :(

[Qanisqineq]

25. gives me headaches and nausea

almost instantly when I eat it. I recently bought some Yoplait yogurt and had to throw it all out because I didn't know that line of yogurt (I think it was the "lite" Yoplaits) had artificial sweetner. I have diabetic friends that have been warned by their doctor about aspartame and its side effects.

[muriel_volestrangler]

28. No, but more because of sugar's proven link to diabetes

than because of any certainty that aspartame is totally safe. If in doubt, cut down on both.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

29. I believe what my doctor says

that it is absolutely horrible and should not be used--causes depression and other changes in brain chemistry. Oh, and my MD is a REPUBLICAN, so there's not politics involved.

[Evoman]

38. And my mothers doctor, who also teaches in a hospital, said it was okay.

And he isn't a republican.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

42. Then I think we can say that the medical community is split

on this. Of course, you didn't say if your mother's friend specializes in diet or not. My doc is a holistic physician and has done a great deal of study on diet.

Since my doc saved my husband's life, I tend to take her word for things.

BTW, the reason I put the Republican remark in there is because Rumsfeld has a big financial interest in aspertame, I've heard.

[Raine]

45. I heard that about Rummy too

so I wouldn't go near that aspartame shit if they paid me.

[Conan_The_Barbarian]

32. I don't know

I'm not a chemist, and there is a mixture of conflicting information. I figure aspartame is at the bottom of the list of things I'm worried about.

[ikojo]

35. I get migraine headaches from

aspartame.

[KamaAina]

36. Bet you can't guess who was head of the corporation that got it approved.

If you said "Donald Rumsfeld, primary architect of the soul-sucking quagmire that is Iraq", you're right!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Rumsfeld#Private_career

From 1977 to 1985 Rumsfeld served as Chief Executive Officer, President, and then Chairman of G.D. Searle & Company, a worldwide pharmaceutical company based in Skokie, Illinois, whose products included, among others, Metamucil, Dramamine, and the oral contraceptive pill Enovid. During his tenure at Searle, Rumsfeld led the company's financial turnaround that in turn earned him awards as the Outstanding Chief Executive Officer in the Pharmaceutical Industry from the Wall Street Transcript (1980) and Financial World (1981). Rumsfeld is believed to have earned around $12 million from Searle's sale to Monsanto.

It was under Rumsfeld that Searle got the Food and Drug Administration's approval for the controversial artificial sweetener, aspartame, which it marketed as NutraSweet.

[Quixote1818]

39. But it's approved all over the world

Not just in the US.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

40. Ah, but guess who's in charge of the Tri-lateral commission?!

You guessed it- Roy Disney.

[bbinacan]

41. I voted other.

Go natural. When margarine was all the rage, we now know it's bad. I kept with the butter.

[Bryn]

43. Aspartame is far

worse than Sugar, my dear friend

[Raine]

44. Rummy the dummy had something

to do with aspartame getting on the market, that says it all for me. I wouldn't go near that crap. x(

[Duppers]

51. You said it! RUMSFELD was CEO of Searle in 1981

In 1981, the newly appointed FDA Commissioner, Arthur Hull Hayes, ignored the negative ruling and approved aspartame for dry goods. As recorded in the Congressional Record of 1985, then CEO of Searle Laboratories Donald Rumsfeld said that he would "call in his markers" to get aspartame approved. Rumsfeld was on President Reagan's transition team and a day after taking office appointed Hayes. **No FDA Commissioner in the previous sixteen years had allowed aspartame on the market.**


http://www.newswithviews.com/NWVexclusive/exclusive15.htm

[DemBones DemBones]

140. That was what did it for me and Aspartame!

I saw his mug on the Searle site and knew anything he had anything to do with was something I wanted to avoid!

Of course, YMMV.

[JerseygirlCT]

46. I know I can't eat it -- makes me sick nt

[ecstatic]

47. I'll err against the side of obesity

Which is where I'd find myself if I stopped drinking diet drinks and began consuming sugary drinks again.

[arikara]

141. Make the switch...

to plain water! No calories, no Sulphite Ammonia Caramel, Phosphoric Acid, Sodium Citrates, Aspartame, Acesulfame Potassium, Sodium Benzoate, flavour or caffeine either.

Sodas... diet or sugared... are simply not healthy, although to be fair they can be put to some good use if you're a farmer.

Things “Grow Better” With Coke (as pesticide)

Indian farmers have come up with what they think is the real thing to
keep crops free of bugs.

Instead of paying hefty fees to international chemical companies for
patented pesticides, they are reportedly spraying their cotton and
chili fields with Coca-Cola.

In the past month there have been reports of hundreds of farmers turning
to Coke in Andhra Pradesh and Chattisgarh states.

But as word gets out that soft drinks may be bad for bugs and a lot
cheaper than anything that Messrs Monsanto, Shell and Dow can offer,
thousands of others are expected to switch.
...

http://www.organicconsumers.org/toxic/pop.cfm

Welcome to the Zero Coke movement...

Waste, pollution and questionable nutrition are at the centre of Coke's business model.
Drinks don't need cheesy theme songs, a posse of trucks, or plastic/aluminium containers.

But thanks to companies like Coke, land is cleared and waste & pollution are created just to make sure people have sweetened, chilled beverages.

All this in a world where one person in five has ZERO access to clean drinking water.

http://www.thezeromovement.org/

[Greyhound]

Other, they are both detrimental to your health.

Refined sugar has a wide variety of less than desirable effects, there is one easy test to verify this that anyone can conduct on themselves, for themselves.

Before you consume any sugar on a given day, find the maximum weight that you can lift from your side with your arm held straight.
Eat a teaspoon of sugar
Now try to lift the same weight in the same way, you can't do it.
Can a substance that saps that much strength that quickly be beneficial?

The saga of corruption and shenanigans that Searle reads like an organized crime novel, bad science, negative results discarded or covered up, an astounding number of happy coincidences for Searle immediately preceding unexplainable appointments to plum positions in Searle or other firms that work for Searle. At least two Grand Juries that were convened but never allowed to do their work, and on and on and on...

[HughMoran]

48. LOL - the "yes" answer doesn't mention Aspartame

Very clever indeed!

[karlrschneider]

49. I have never heard of one single documented case of cancer or other

serious illness, let alone death, attributed to it. This is no different than the marijuana hysteria.

[AX10]

50. Sugar is natural. Artificial substitutes can cause problems...

for some people. I prefer the real thing, sugar. I personally have never experienced side effects from aspartame or Splenda. My mother and and two Uncles get headaches from aspartame.
I don't too much of either though. Too much of anything is not good for one's health. However, natural cane sugar does have certain nutrients that Aspartame/Splenda do not.

[Lex]

53. Opium's natural too.

Lots of stuff that's bad for you is "natural."

[AX10]

55. Give it a break. I never said that everything that is natural...

is good for you.

[Lex]

56. And, I never said you said that.

nt

[GodHelpUsAll2]

58. Hmmmm

This is a really interesting discussion. I'll be right back to watch it unfold. I need a gooey sugar laden cinabon cinnamon roll and a diet coke to wash it down. Then I can continue the discussion while I wait for the pizza delivery guy. I'll probably be dead by morning!

[karlrschneider]

60. Don't bother to set your alarm tonight...

:D
:rofl:

[GodHelpUsAll2]

63. Good idea

More hysteria. I rank this right up there with the hysterical posts about all the people dieing in line waiting for their flu shots to protect them from the flu that was going to kill us all. I expected to be dead by morning then as well since there were only enough shots to protect the elderly and he sick. Well not all of them but some. . Gee....I'm still here. And so are you. However did that happen?

[karlrschneider]

66. By the way, there seems to be a revival of the "marijuana will kill you" theme.

Everyone's nuts but you and me and I ain't so sure about you. :D :D :D :silly:

[GodHelpUsAll2]

70. Well

I don't think I am nuts. Unless you consider drinking Diet Dr Pepper on a daily basis for years and not panicking about not getting a flu shot (which I NEVER get anyway) and thinking that marijuana will NOT kill, just cause you to eat large amounts of cheese puffs and consume mass quantities of soda. I just don't get hysterical over this stuff.

Brussel sprouts cause me to vomit profusely. Should I be demanding the MSM cover the bad health effects of brussel sprouts? I think they may be the cause of bulimia.

[karlrschneider]

74. HAHA...I'm convinced. You aren't nuts...I can't stand brussels sprouts either

those and parsnips are the only veggies I really hate. :D

I've put aspartame in my coffee every morning since it came out. The doc who gives me my twice a year flight physical says I'm twice as healthy as he is...and he's 25 years younger. :-)

[karlrschneider]

62. Alcohol is natural, as well.

Animals often get shitfaced drunk from eating fermented fruit.

[karlrschneider]

61. Uh, sugar has no nutrients. It's pure 100% carbohydrate.

...

[kestrel91316]

95. Um, carbohydrates are nutrients.

Just like proteins and fats.

That said, sugar is devoid of any other nutrients. At least honey has some potassium and other minerals, and molasses has iron.

[karlrschneider]

102. Okay, that's technically correct...I meant to say sugar is just empty calories

with no vitamins, minerals, fiber or anything of nutritional value. :-)

[ChoralScholar]

59. Here's an interesting article

about saccharin vs. NutraSweet....

http://www.janethull.com/askdrhull/article.php?id=022

[qanda]

79. Hmmm

That was very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

[niyad]

64. aspartame makes me deathly ill, sugar does not.

[GodHelpUsAll2]

65. Define

"deathly ill"

[niyad]

68. heart palpitations, throat closing up, blood pressure skyrockets, trouble breathing

there, does THAT answer your question.

[GodHelpUsAll2]

71. It does

And it sounds like an alergic reaction. Just almost the very same reaction I get when I drink beer. I am alergic to hops. But I don't think the government has some conspiracy to poision the entire country via Budweiser because I happen to be alergic to an ingredient in it that causes horrible effects.

[karlrschneider]

75. So don't eat it. Peanuts kill some people too, shall we ban them as well?

:eyes:

[Swamp Rat]

67. Yer either with Aspartame or yer agin' it!

:rofl:

[fudge stripe cookays]

69. Two letters- M.S.

I'm convinced that Equal is how I got this fucking disease.

[Lex]

73. But MS pre-dates Equal, doesn't it?

I'm not disputing you, just wondering.

My SO has MS too, btw, but never was a consumer of artificial sweetners to speak of.

:shrug:

[fudge stripe cookays]

77. It does, but I still think it had something to do with mine,

despite what Snopes has to say.

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/aspartame.asp

I used to consume Aspartame like mad. In EVERYTHING. My ex stepmonster told me it was OK. I believed him. The fucker.

Why do you suppose we've experienced such a MASSIC avalanche cases the last 20 years or so? I think there's way more to it than "family predisposition."

[Tektonik]

122. awesome link

glad that my bio teacher in HS told us how ridiculous the saccharin tests were back then

my opinion about aspartame is that its fine in moderation, as are most foods in the world.

[flaminbats]

72. not if you have diabetis...

unless a diabetic has low bloodsugar, then one package of sugar does far more damage than a package of aspartame does! if something is bad about aspartame..is that it also raises a person's bloodsugar, but just not as much as sugar does.

[kineneb]

81. understood

For diabetics, sugar is just plain bad. Take care of yourself. Hubby didn't get diagnosed soon enough and is now in dialysis.

[qanda]

78. I can't even have a taste of the stuff without getting a major headache

Someone gave me a piece of candy a few weeks ago and I immediately knew that it was laced with that poison but it was too late. Within the hour, I had a a major headache. I wouldn't give that stuff to anything living.

[LifeDuringWartime]

82. I don't care.

It makes me sick to my stomach and it's just about the most foul-tasting thing I can imagine. Sugar works for me.

[Blackhatjack]

83. Headache here too. Not always properly disclosed ... just like MSG n/t

[Paula Sims]

84. It's not the sugar, it's the high fructose corn syrup

I understand that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) isn't processed the same throughout the body and that could be a contribution to the rise in obesity and diabetes. The other day I was looking at SlimFast and it has HFCS in it. What's the point?

The ONLY place I can find sugar filled soda is Whole Foods -- all the mainstream stuff have high fructose corn syrup. Frankly, I LIKE the sugar stuff but can't handle the HFCS stuff nor the Aspartame or other sugar substitute stuff. It's hard (and expensive) to drop HFCS but once I did I felt so much better, and once I dropped diet drinks I no longer have joint pain. Granted, anecdotal stuff, but you don't have anything to lose by dropping it.

Paula

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

100. I agree - HFCS is EVERYWHERE

I don't mind sugar, and aspartame is easily avoided, but HFCS is very hard to avoid - harder than avoiding trans fats. It's in everything. Organic products help, but it is a pain in the ass trying to cut HFCS out of one's diet.

[Bridget Burke]

85. I don't know, but I hate the taste.

When I want to indulge my sweet tooth, I'll use pure cane sugar. Or honey. Or maple syrup.

But I don't have a huge sweet tooth. Unsweetened coffee & tea are fine with me.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

86. Yes, it's bad, and Splenda has chlorine in it, which is poisonous.

[kestrel91316]

96. The presence of chloride ions in a chemical is not the same as the

presence of free chlorine, lol.

Don't ask me for details - my chemistry education was too long ago. But I know you are wrong in this. Free chlorine or sodium hypochlorate or whatever bleach is, isn't found in foods. It's not on the list of generally recognized as safe additives, lol.

[Homer Wells]

87. Damn right I do!

In 2002, my late wife was diagnosed with a form of brain cancer called Astrocytoma.
At that time, there was a big controversy regarding Aspartame and the falsification of the tests done on it.
It seems the company responsible for making the stuff was allowed (by the FDA) to perform their own tests and the FDA stood by by those results. (I don't have all the facts in front of me right now, but I recall it was Monsanto who developed the stuff for mass consumption.)

When I asked the oncologist in charge of Teresa's treatment if the fact that she was a very heavy consumer of Diet Pepsi (containing Nutrasweet (aspartame))could have contributed to her cancer, she felt that it was highly likely that was the cause. Teresa died November 26, 2003.

[davepc]

88. I just wish they had honest to god CANE SUGAR instead of high fructose corn syrup

The best coke-a-cola I ever had was in italy. Made with real sugar.

But I make a point to try to limit my soda intake to one or two a week.

Drink water, its better for you.

[DemBones DemBones]

135. Amen to that! Both on the real cane sugar

and on the better Cokes in Italy, where they are amused/puzzled by those who want "Diet Cokes."

In my opinion, they ruined the flavor of Coke when they introduced New Coke back in the Eighties. They claim to have returned to the original flavor but it doesn't taste like it. Local water differences make a difference in Coke flavor, too.

I've read that the amount of High Fructose Corn Syrup and other sugars in one can of soft drink equals 16 teaspoons of sugar.

As you said, drink water! The phosphoric acid in soft drinks is not good for your bones.

[donheld]

144. I wanted to answer the poll, who uses sugar anymore

it's all god-dammed high fructose corn syrup, and it is not the same thing.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

89. aspartame is bad for you in larger continous quantities

lots of side effects (see FDA)

[Akoto]

90. In my completely unscientific opinion ...

If it's poisonous, then clearly, it's not so deadly that it'll kill most people in a drink or two. Moderation is key, just like with alcohol.

I drink two or so cans of diet Pepsi a week, but mostly, water is my drink of choice. I have family members who drink a LOT more and are just fine.

[marions ghost]

91. I thought this was a good article on problems of aspartame....

Neurosurgeon Russell Blaylock M.D. commented: "The new study released in the European Journal of oncology by Morando Soffritti and co-workers should terrify mothers and all those consuming aspartame sweetened products. This was a carefully done study which clearly demonstrated a statistically significant increase in several types of lymphomas and leukemias in rats. Both of these malignancies have increased significantly in this country since the widespread use of aspartame.

"This study confirmed the previous study by Dr. Trocho and co-workers, which also found the formaldehyde breakdown product of aspartame to be damaging to cellular DNA and that this damage was accumulative. The type of damage was a duplicate of that associated with cancers. Along with this most recent study, this means that drinking a single diet cola sweetened with aspartame every day could increase one's risk of developing a lymphoma or leukemia.

More at: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/youropinions.php?opinionid=6177

[flaminbats]

97. why?

"The new study released in the European Journal of oncology by Morando Soffritti and co-workers should terrify mothers and all those consuming aspartame sweetened products."

sorry, but panic and fear doesn't work on me. I have asked my doctor repeatedly about the risk of using Equal or drinking diet Pepsi, he says the medical risk is insignificant. Drinking Diet Pepsi or putting Equal in your coffee isn't unhealthy, smoking cigarettes or using speed is!

[marions ghost]

103. you might want to get a second opinion

the medical community is very reluctant to bless aspartame, you can be sure.

[flaminbats]

106. I have..

both of my Endocrinologists have told me aspartame isn't dangerous. And as I pointed out earlier, one has even explained that medical tests have shown that microwaved food is far more likely to cause cancer than aspartame.

[kestrel91316]

92. I've used it almost daily for nearly 30 years, since it came out.

I am disgustingly healthy. I get headaches infrequently, and only with PMS. I cringe to think what I would weigh if I had consumed sugar calories instead of aspartame all those years.

I was one class away from a minor in chemistry in college, and am reasonably certain that two amino acids hooked together is not a harmful thing, lol.

If it's so bad, where are the published research articles in referred legitimate scientific journals proving it's bad? Just curious.

We get this same hysterical nonsense from the anti-drug and anti-vaccine crowd, and it's all just ANTI-SCIENCE IMHO. No better than the fundies denying evolution.

[Junkdrawer]

98. How anyone who knows the history of Aspartame's FDA approval...

would drink the stuff is beyond me....


....

Rumsfeld had one pesky problem as Searle's aspartame bully boy; the pointy-headed fellows in lab coats at the FDA (hereafter: scientists) had done some testing of their own, and were convinced that Searle had cooked the books on the safety of aspartame. Ooopsy! Mea culpa, mea culpa pleaded Rumsfeld to the task force that was about to tread on his stock options...how can Searle "mend fences" on this issue?

U.S Attorney Sam Skinner to the rescue! Appointed by the FDA in January 1977, Skinner was to convene a grand jury to decide on whether Searle "willfully and criminally withheld data that cast doubt on the safety of aspartame". Skinner met with Searle's Chicago law firm of Sidney & Austin in February 1977 to conduct an investigation, but left the employ of the U.S government and joined the law firm of...Sidney & Austin? Good career move, Sam! The next U.S. Attorney to conduct the investigation, William Conlon, must have decided that Skinner had the right idea, as he stymied efforts to convene a grand jury as well. Searle had falsified aspartame test data, of that there is no question, including excising tumors from the brains of the rats used in the study. Conlon left the government and joined Sidney & Austin in January of 1979.

Americans and the truth on NutraSweet were held hostage in 1979 and 1980. The American hostages were in Iran, of course, but evidence on aspartame's toxicity lay imprisoned within Searle's reports and the FDA's own findings. Ronald Reagan, elected amidst the morass of the Iranian hostage crisis, included Donald Rumsfeld as part of his transition team. The day after Reagan took office in 1981, Searle re-applied to the FDA for approval of aspartame. The new commissioner of the FDA, a Reagan-Rumsfeld appointee named Arthur Hayes Hull, Jr., named a five-person Scientific Committee to review the earlier findings. When the vote went 3-2 against approval of aspartame, Hayes did what any fair-minded citizen might do, and appointed a sixth committee member. The committee voted 3-3, leaving Hull to cast the deciding vote, approving aspartame for use in dry products. Aspartame was then approved for use in soft drinks in 1983.

....



http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1706934

[flaminbats]

99. maybe those people are just plain arrogant!!!

slap them around a little then they might get the point.

after all my doctor says that microwaving food is far more likely to cause cancer than using aspartame is! let's take microwaves off the market, make smoking illegal, and deny healthcare to everyone who doesn't watch their diet.

then we might convince a person or two to stay healthy!

[Junkdrawer]

101. Go for it...Bottoms Up.. n/t

[cgrindley]

104. It's harmless read SNOPES

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/aspartame.asp

Jeez. Some idiots will believe almost anything.


PS we trust the scientists who publish in the refereed journals.

[Quixote1818]

107. Thanks for posting that. nt

[Name removed]

108. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[demrabble]

109. Much, Much, Much Worse

Something as dangerous as aspartame is on the market only because of the money the Big Corporations (including the soft drink and "snack food" industries) have paid to corrupt officials in the Bush regime.

[flaminbats]

112. time to ban the microwaves..

and ban cigarettes, alcoholic beverages, cars, butter, candy, ice cream, hot dogs, loud music that can destroy our hearing, and mayonnaise! Time to mandate sunglasses, a national diet dictated by the FDA, and lock up everyone who isn't Amish! :crazy:

thank God for BIG BROTHER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[jerryme1]

130. Dissent

Thomas Jefferson seemed to dissent more in theory than in practice.

[marions ghost]

147. OK I agree with

banning cigarettes --yes outright elimination of the cigarette industry. There is no benefit to health or justification for the deaths caused by cigarettes. There is no amount of smoking that is not harmful. The more you smoke, the more you want to smoke. It is as addictive as heroin.

The rest of the things on your grab-bag list can be done in moderation, with a little self-discipline. Use of aspartame can also be limited to a low dose, but people usually overdo it on that. The nutrasweet sodas are just expensive chemical-water. If you want to pay for that, OK, it's not addictive. But the jury is out on the health effects. There are a lot of guinea pigs out there now drinking the stuff, so the definitive word on it will emerge someday. The people I know in health care do not ingest aspartame.

While we don't mandate sunglasses, we do mandate seatbelts and helmets, and in Australia it is required that children wear hats at school because of the loss of the ozone layer there. Governments have a responsibility to protect people against known environmental dangers. A govt that really cares about its citizens does that. I don't think anyone thinks there should be big penalties for non-compliance. But people only take it seriously if there's a strong message that something is not good for you.

[Junkdrawer]

111. NYT: Rising Incidence of Brain Tumors Is Drawing Attention and Concern...

...

New studies of epidemiological data from this country and abroad indicate that the rise is especially dramatic among the elderly, but scientists say that even among the young, the rate of at least one rare form of brain cancer is surging.


http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9C0CEFDF153DF932A05754C0A966958260

....

U.S Attorney Sam Skinner to the rescue! Appointed by the FDA in January 1977, Skinner was to convene a grand jury to decide on whether Searle "willfully and criminally withheld data that cast doubt on the safety of aspartame". Skinner met with Searle's Chicago law firm of Sidney & Austin in February 1977 to conduct an investigation, but left the employ of the U.S government and joined the law firm of...Sidney & Austin? Good career move, Sam! The next U.S. Attorney to conduct the investigation, William Conlon, must have decided that Skinner had the right idea, as he stymied efforts to convene a grand jury as well. Searle had falsified aspartame test data, of that there is no question, including excising tumors from the brains of the rats used in the study. Conlon left the government and joined Sidney & Austin in January of 1979.

....

http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1706934

[Quixote1818]

113. Sorry, this data is from years before Aspartame had been on the market.

>>>>The incidence of brain tumors more than doubled from 1968 to 1985,


FDA further approved aspartame for use in carbonated beverages, and for use in other beverages, baked goods, and confections in 1993. In 1996, the FDA removed all restrictions from aspartame allowing it to be used in all foods.

That NY Times article came out before Aspartame was even on the market. Published: July 31, 1990


Your NY Times report would have ZERO relevance to the use of Aspartame.

[Junkdrawer]

114. Reagan's FDA approved aspartame in 1981...for soda in 1983...

http://www.everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1706934

[Quixote1818]

115. Whoops, you are correct

However it only overlaps the study by 2 years. Hardly relevant.

[Junkdrawer]

116. From your OWN cite...

In 1981, U.S. President Ronald Reagan appointed Arthur Hull Hayes as FDA commissioner. Citing data from a Japanese study that had not been available to the members of the PBOI, Hayes approved aspartame for use in dry goods.<3> In 1983 FDA further approved aspartame for use in carbonated beverages...



On edit: OK you agree...

Now, the NYT article was from 1990 (aspartame in the environment for 7 to 9 years) and doctors then were becoming concerned...

After I learned about how Rummy got the stuff approved, I stopped using it. But to each his own...

[flaminbats]

117. so what else should be banned?

surely banning aspartame is just the first step...what else should we lock people up for?

[oblivious]

119. We should lock up people who inject industrial silicone into their clients' faces and bodies.

And the ones who inject Crazy Glue and saline should also be locked up.

And that's just the second step.

[flaminbats]

121. what about those who pay to have this injected?

yes lock everybody up, then all our problems will be solved!!

[oblivious]

124. I think it safe to say they have suffered enough.

No one's saying lock anyone up for Aspartame. Or did I miss something above?

[flaminbats]

127. then who would we lock up and why?

if my Doctor says Aspartame is safe, then why lock up those who sell it?

[Quixote1818]

126. Silicon is safe

Why did the FDA first rescind then give back approval for breast implants?
Implants were first introduced in 1962 and since then over 250 types have been created. The FDA only began regulating medical devices in 1976. In the 1980’s allegations that silicone gel implants could be linked to cancer, autoimmune and connective tissue disorders (such as lupus) were brought to the public’s, implant makers' and lawyers' attention. Numerous lawsuits were filed and millions of dollars were paid to settle the resultant lawsuits. The FDA requested more stringent safety data. It just wasn’t available (the way it should have been) and hence the FDA banned the general use of gel implants for augmentation, with the exception of women who required breast reconstruction subsequent to breast cancer and mastectomy. However, law suits don’t define science. The FDA revised this ban in 1993 and allowed gel breast implants to be used in controlled clinical studies for which appropriate data would be supplied. And finally 14 years after the first ban, in 2006, “core studies” by the Mentor company in which 1007 women were followed for 3 years (with MRI results 1 and 2 years after implantation) and similar studies by Allergan (601 women were followed for 4 years) were deemed sufficient; the FDA gave a qualified approval for silicone gel implant stating that women who opted to use them should be advised that:

* The implants will not last forever.
* If the implants are removed the breasts will not return to their original shape and there is a chance they will manifest dimpling, wrinkling and sagging. (In other words you may have to have reduction surgery or have new implants inserted to make them look okay.)
* When the implants are replaced there is a higher risk of complications compared to the first time.
* Mammograms are more difficult to read and may require additional views and specialized facilities for analysis.

They also required that the two companies provide on-going, follow-up of the initial women who participated in the core studies for 10 years and also provide a separate 10 year post-approval study on approximately 40,000 silicone implant patients and a control group of women with saline implants.

And finally, they recommended that the best way to screen for rupture or leaks was to undergo MRI exams starting 3 years after implantation and every 2 years thereafter.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16990292/

[oblivious]

131. This is what I'm talking about.

...Another unlicensed injector arrested in 2004 had a five-gallon bucket of industrial silicone, the kind used to seal furniture or lubricate car engines, that she injected in her clients' faces and bodies, detectives said. The woman also kept a tube of Krazy Glue in a night stand next to her syringes.

"Sometimes they use Krazy Glue to plug up the holes they have injected into," the undercover detective said. "But some of them tell us they mix Krazy Glue with saline and inject that. I don't think the public is aware of the consequences of being injected with unknown substances in unsanitary apartments."

The most frequent side effects from these beauty treatments are lumps and bumps and lopsided or grossly exaggerated facial features. More serious consequences, ranging from infection to death, have also occurred. Vera Lawrence, a 53-year-old secretary, died in 2001 after having silicone injected into her thighs and buttocks in an apartment in Miramar, Fla. One of the people who gave the injections, Mark Hawkins, is serving a 30-year prison term for his actions in the case. Most illicit beauty treatments in South Florida are offered by immigrant practitioners who live in the state, or foreign practitioners who fly in regularly to treat clients, police detectives say....

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/16/fashion/thursdaystyles/16skin.html?ei=5070&en=3958397b2f27bb44&ex=1172293200&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1172131137-WFTwS7XBalpZqeS0+hZ5WQ

[Junkdrawer]

120. The original FDA vote was 3 to 2 AGAINST its approval....

Then Rummy's FDA commissioner put in a ringer, tied the vote and then broke the tie...

Searle bought off TWO US prosecutors to escape from the crime of hiding brain tumors in the animal drug trials....

Doesn't that give you just a bit of a pause?

[flaminbats]

123. no I agree...

make Diet Pepsi and Diet Coke illegal, and lock up anyone who dares to participate in a black market this would create!

[Quixote1818]

128. So then why did Canada and most other countries approve it?

European countries have a more strict approval process for foods than the US does.

This Snopes.com site has a lot of good references.

http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/aspartame.asp

[Quixote1818]

118. My mistake but your article is still not relevant

>>>>In one study, a new analysis of data collected by the National Cancer Institute's nationwide cancer surveillance program, researchers at the National Institute on Aging in Bethesda, Md., have determined that among people over the age of 75, the incidence of brain tumorsmore than doubled from 1968 to 1985.


The use of Aspartame started in 1985 only two years into that 17 year study. I doubt if very many 75 and 80 year olds were drinking diet soda's with Aspartame plus 15 years of the study was not done while Aspartame was on the market.

I would say the influence of Aspartame on the study you cite is not even worth mentioning.

[sendero]

125. Some folks...

.. don't tolerate Aspartame well, and others don't tolerate sugar.

I haven't been able to eat sugar for decades. I can eat Aspartame, no problem. Sucralose (Splenda) makes me itch all over, so no thanks on that one either.

[GoneOffShore]

129. Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.

And don't eat anything your great-great-grandmother wouldn't recognize as food.

It's a chemical, produced in a factory. Don't eat it. Real simple.

[flaminbats]

134. actually my great-grandmother never threw away food..

she taught my grandfather to eat the leftovers and to always invite others without food over for dinner.

and I believe my great-grandmother's mother wouldn't have a problem with aspartame, and I know my grandfather doesn't!

[RB TexLa]

132. Don't care, it doesn't have calories

[DemBones DemBones]

138. True, but people are fatter since diet drinks and diet foods came on the

market. If you routinely rationalize that because you're having a diet soft drink, you can have a cheeseburger and fries, for example, you'll gain weight. If you think you can eat several low-calorie or low-fat cookies without them "counting," you'll gain weight.

Unfortunately, many people do think that way, though I'm NOT saying you do, just pointing out a problem with no-calorie and low-calorie foods. Advertising misleads people.

[dysfunctional press]

133. of course it's worse than sugar...unless you mean REFINED sugar.

then it could go either way.

[pitohui]

136. i voted "i don't know" but i don't drink it any more

the hysteria was too much and destroyed my enjoyment of it so why spend the money

i'll drink water or to be honest, at the moment, a nice glass of wine

[DemBones DemBones]

139. Wine is good for you, as is water.

Americans would be better off drinking wine with meals than drinking soft drinks with meals. Of course excessive drinking is a problem, like excessive eating.

[Spider Jerusalem]

145. I think that anything is bad, in excess.

Moderation is the key in all things. But most people lack the self-control necessary for that.

[leftstreet]

146. SUGAR BLUES. Get it. Read it.

Blood Sugar Blues : Overcoming the Hidden Dangers of Insulin Resistance, by William Dufty

[Lurking Dem]

149. Excellent recommendation!

Doesn't he state that if sugar were discovered today, the FDA would have to ban it because of its negative effects on health?

[Odin2005]

148. The only problem I know with it is that it can make you hungry for sweets.

When you taste something sweet you body prepares itself to absorb sugar. If the sweet thing in an artificial sweetner the body doesn't get the sugar it expects, leading to a craving of somethings sugary.

[chefgirl]

150. Other..

I really have no honest idea if its worse for you or not, but in my profession I've come to believe strongly that any natural food product (or should I say less processed) is going to have less chance of doing harm than something chemically enhanced.

Just my $.02

-chef-

[noonwitch]

151. It depends. I think some people are sensitive to it and some aren't.

I'm not sensitive to it, I think it's improved the taste of diet pop. Sweet and Low was nasty, as was Tab.

If you are a diabetic, nutrisweet is better for you.

I use sugar for cooking/baking, though, and on unsweetened cereal.