Actual RESEARCH (not hearsay) on Aspartame and Safety

I am not so concerned about long term effects of these sweeteners which are difficult to associate with cancer or other disease. However there is much thought by nutritionists and physicians who focus on diabetes, that the sweet TASTE triggers the same chemical response by our body. So insulin spikes with the resulting detrimental consequences. Thus I no longer consume any diet drinks sweetened with the chemical sweeteners. Aside from that…look around. People consume diet drinks by the gallon and we’ve gotten FATTER not thinner. The only reason I could see not to drink sugar sweetened drinks is tooth decay. The weight loss argument simply doesn’t seem to be credible.

Has that concern been addressed to your satisfaction?

I think I’d rather trust the National Enquirer than anything from the FDA or the USDA. One need only look at how those two government agencies have demonized an amazing natural and “whole” food like raw milk to see that their agenda has NOTHING to do with protecting the health of our citizens and EVERYTHING to do with maximizing the profits of mega corporations. Which likely includes organizations like the National Cancer Institute– which would go out of busine$$ tomorrow if a “cure” for cancer were discovered.

I still believe that “follow the money” is the best practical advice.

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT SPLENDA. I REALLY DISLIKE THE AFTERTASTE OF STEVIA AND SOME OTHERS. SPLENDA SEEMED TO BE THE BEST TASTING BUT I THOUGHT IT WAS REALLY BAD. I USE IT ONCE A DAY IN A CUP OF COFFEE AND THAT’S ALL. IF IT’S ALRIGHT TO CONSUME I MIGHT USE A SLIGHT BIT MORE.

Joel,
If anyone of those naysayers had the respect to read my response yesterday, I believe that my 48 year experience with the use of artificial sweeteners is a much better indication of what I would recommend. I am only one person, as I realize, but I do train regularly, and intensely, and watch very carefully what I eat (though people would be surprised how “normally” I eat) as a Type 1 Insulin Dependent Diabetic for those 48 years.
I also realize that there are those that will hold to their “opinions” regardless of the sound information they receive. You and I as trainers know this all too well. There may be some differences of opinion on certain issues, but what works can’t be questioned.
People are going to use sweeteners or they’re not. It’s as simple as that. Just don’t be denying me of my free agency when it’s not affecting me in any negative way. As a matter of fact, I would challenge any of those to meet my level of fitness, inside and out. I have my doctors and endocrinologists tell me they wished they had my blood work results.
Thank you for all the great info you provide, Joel and for posting this interesting subject.
I pray there are those that will receive their answers in a satisfactory manner.
By the way, I plan to be the first Type 1 Insulin Dependent Diabetic to be a centenarian, or older. And I’ll still be using sweeteners and training like a warrior.

hello there. I am a registered nurse and have been for about 15 years. I have heard many rumors about artificial sweeteners and health concerns, but have never actually seen any published studies to confirm most of the rumors. I have seen many studies in medical journals that indicate that aspartam in large quantities ( how much is never stated that I have seen) can cause MS like symptoms. This is not to be confused with actual MS, just symptoms that can mimic MS in some people.

here is another viewpoint. Research on what causes cancer, done by companies who make billions on cancer, in my opinion can’t be trusted as real research either.

@ Laurel:
I would like more data about the effects it can have on other issues as well. It is always safer to just eliminate manufactured foods or sweeteners from your diet.

Artificial sweetener tricks your mind into thinking you’re getting sugar, then when you don’t actually — you end up craving sweets more. Insulin is released and nothing of nutrivitve value is there, so food cravings result. Weight GAIN actually usually occurs with use of these artifiical sweeteners.

In addition, Splenda consists of covalently-bound chlorines, which are not meant for our consumption; unlike the harmless ionically-bound chlorines of table salt.

I’m really surprised you would promote the use of this!

@ Tim:
Rat poison is indeed safe in small amounts…we use it as a medicine called Warfarin, which thins the blood and is life-saving for those who have problems with clots.

I’m a physician, and Joel’s logic is absolutely perfect. Even the safest things can be dangerous if you consume too much…it’s actually pretty easy to kill yourself by drinking too much water, for instance.

@ Laurel:
If you had heart trouble & blood issues and this was the way of the rest of your life that is non weight related, then I’m sure you’d take a closer look… What is more important than a life to live…

great article loved it, now i know its actually okay to drink diet coke on cheat days :)

I am extremely disappointed that you are posting this information. Aspartame is a CHEMICAL manufactured by Monsanto Chemical Corporation, the same corrupt and evil company responsible for poisoning the food supply with GMO’s, poisoning people with Agent Orange and PCB’s, not to mention pests and weeds. Do you really think they have your best interests in mind when they create a chemical sweetener for human consumption? Chemicals have consequences. This one is also responsible for the majority of adverse reactions, such as headaches and allergies, reported to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Aspartame breaks down into methanol that converts to formaldehyde. Formaldehyde has been shown to denature and mutate DNA. Classified as a human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, formaldehyde is deemed a probable cause of cancer by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. This information was put out by the National Cancer Institute on their formaldehyde fact sheet.

This kind of information is what is keeping our nation sick and unhealthy. You need to do more research and read between the lines. Otherwise, maybe just stick to giving exercise advice.

So, I am a scientist and I have conducted a vast number of studies across a number of areas and while I haven’t done one on aspartame, scientific studies tend to follow the same paths.

It’s true, scientific studies do have an agenda – to test a product and see if it’s safe for human consumption. How many of you who doubt the validity of scientific studies take an annual flu shot or any form of vaccinations? How many of you take cold medicine or pain killers? At one stage or another, these were all part of a scientific study conducted by drug companies to ensure that they were safe to be consumed.

There are extremely strict guidelines that studies have to follow in order to be valid. And it is incredibly difficult to fake results. Plus, lets face the simple truth, companies aren’t going to be selling a product if its going to cause major damage. They are out there to make a profit and having someone get sick from their product and then possibly sue them for it, is sure going to eat into their profits and their the credibility.

Also, Joel only mentioned a small number of studies out there. If you actually bothered to look, you would find that there are countless numbers of studies that have been conducted.

Thanks for the info on the cancer related studies. I hadn’t been aware that there was a concern about aspartame and cancer. I have heard that aspertame affects brain function. Are you aware of any studies on this subject?

I’m a bit turned off of the first two review papers, as they were funded by NutraSweet and a Japanese aspartame manufacturer, respectively.
This also makes me a bit wary:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2430255/

However, it does seem that the bulk of studies indicate aspartame’s safety. I’ll continue to not use it, however, simply because I don’t like the taste.

tj wrote:

how does it effect insulin?

That’s what I was wondering too. Or does it increase your insulin resistance? With the developments in epigenomics it would make for an interesting study to see what affect long term use has on an individual’s epigenome. (yes I work on the Wash U Med Center campus home of the human genome project)

wow! great post, yet again.

I didnt realize the recommded intake was so high..

Although, as you said, I still wouldnt recommend taking in that much.

I typically stick to about 1 packet a day spread out over 2 coffees

The only reason I won’t drink non-nutritive sweeteners is because, to me, they ALL taste like complete crap! For me it’s either sweetened with sugar or not sweetened at all.

I personally just can’t stand the aftertaste that Splenda (and other artificial sweeteners) have. And stevia makes me nauseated, so that’s out too. I just try not to consume large quantities of sweet stuff, since natural sugar and honey are the only sweeteners I can stand.

I have never been concerned that aspartame might cause cancer. My concern is that it attacks the central nervous system, and causes Lou Gherics disease and other nervous disorders.

Yesterday you stated that those of us who objected to the use of aspartame are lazy because we’ve done no actual research into the subject and are merely basing our objection on ignorant hearsay. Excuse me? One thing no one can dispute is that 10% of aspartame is a product called methanol – which breaks down in the body into formaldehyde aka embalming fluid. Now that’s something any intelligent person would have to pass on with their morning coffee. Are you aware that there have been more adverse reactions reported in regards to aspartame than all other adverse reactions combined? I have no doubt that you’re an excellent fitness guru but that doesn’t qualify you to pass out advice on a subject about which you obviously know nothing. Of course you can find “scientific research” reports in support of this poison but if you dig a little deeper you might find that they’re not so scientific – there’s plenty of evidence around today that shows how many of the negative results of this research were suppressed. And then you have to look at who’s sponsoring the research. Anyone can get any result they want from research, it just depends on their agenda as to what result they’re after. There is so much scientific evidence available on the dangers of aspartame and I think it would behoove you and your readers to check out the real truth about the subject from reputable physicians, scientists, neurosurgeons, nutritionists etc. Here’s a good starting point – aspartame.mercola.com. Or NaturalNews.com. Or try googling Dr Russell Blaylock – aspartame. Or just google “dangers of aspartame”. You might actually learn something.

@ Dani:
Around 15 years ago I started drinking diet coke and chewing gum with nutrasweet or aspartame or amino sweet as they call it now and 6-12 months later started having epileptic seizures,I had never had any history of this before, I was put on to tegretol a nasty drug to stop seizure events but refused to take because of it’s nasty side effects and using my intuition worked out it must have been the diet coke consumption, doing research I discovered the stuff breaks down over time into methyl (wood)alcohol and formaldehyde nasty chemicals that my body obviously couldnt handle. Anyway happy to share that since stopping consumption of the nutrasweet I have not suffered one seizure event, these were life threatening, biting tongue violently and passing out for minutes, blood on pillow many times. Take the stuff if you feel your body can handle it but if you suffer seizures etc stop now. I use Stevia now and it is awesome stuff and totally natural, thank god for nature once again.

Interesting information. I have remained undecided about these sweeteners myself. One question I have is do you know how aspartame affects blood sugar? I have heard that it is bad for your blood sugar, but I know diabetics use it, so that doesn’t make sense to me.

The debate is getting a bit heated, but the decision is very easy for me… I spend countless hours trying to refine my diet to include whole foods and natural ingredients. I travel to farmers markets and various produce sections to avoid the heavily chemically sprayed fruits and vegatables. Why would I then KNOWINGLY buy and/or consume something that is clearly a chemical surrounded by controversy and biased research? For the record I use Stevia and Agave. If terrible things start being found about Stevia, I would go back to sugar way before using the other stuff.

Wow. I haven’t seen any real science in all of this discussion. No, I do not trust hardly any “scientific studies”, especially when they are sponsered by the individuals at risk to lose billions and billions of dollars. C’mon, are you kidding? I’ll tell you some science and a little history and then you can use your common sense. James Schlatter, Ph, D., was conducting research for G. D. Searle company on a drug to treat ulcers. He mixed a substance in a container with methanol (wood alcohol). Some of the substance spilled to the outside of the flask. When Dr. Schlatter picked up the flask, it got on his fingers. A few minutes later he licked his fingers to pick up a piece of paper and noticed a strong sweet taste. Aspartame was discovered. Nearly thirty years ago top researchers from Searle laboratories addressed their genuine concern over safety questions discovered while while studying this chemical.
Aspartame breaks down into its component chemicals, including methanol, aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and DKP. Each of these is a known toxin. Methanol, often used as a paint thinner, was not even included in the initial description of aspartame provided by Searle when the company applied for FDA approval. In the human body it breaks down into formaldehyde. You may look up methanol’s use, toxicity, and effects on the human body in a medical dictionary. Its staggering. I will stop here with the science though there is much more.
If there were room here I would tell you the story of how aspartame got FDA approval. It is laughable. When it was up for approval to be added to soft drinks, it became a multi-billion dollar deal. If you think integrity was a priority, I’ve got some ocean front property in Arizona I’d like you to look at. Am I saying you’re going to suffer horrible symptoms or death if you use aspartame? Not necessarily. I think it is pure stupidity to knowingly put an EXTREMELY toxic substance like methanol in your body. Joel, I believe you to be an honest man. I just don’t think you have all the facts.