Aspartame Poisoning - My Story

[sweetierufus]

I saw on channel 4 a program 'Are you addicted to sugar?'. It showed sugar as this drug that causes obesity. All I could think if manufacturers are forced to reduce sugar then they will just turn to sweetner instead. Just crazy.

 

[lickthelid]

Technically alcohol is a poison but I should imagine that plenty of us consume that. Aspartame is only a poison to those with an intolerance by definition as a poison is any substance, normally chemical, that when absorbed by a living organism causes illness, paralysis or death.

Any substance when consumed in large amounts, even water, could fit this definition. Anyone remember the girl (Leah Betts) who died through drinking too much water after taking ecstasy? It was the water that killed her due to brain swelling. Drinking too much water can also reduce the electrolytes in your blood and cause you to become sluggish and and reduce muscle effectiveness, essentially ill. Granted you would have to drink gallons and gallons. But its possible.

Aspartame has been proven safe to use. In foodstuffs and drinks. In reasonable quantities. Yes if you consume ridiculous amounts OR if you have a particular sensitivity then it may cause you a problem. My daughter has a nut allergy. So I don't give them to her but I don't go around telling everyone else they are dangerous and to not eat them. Not do I not eat them. Clearly that only applies to those who either eat large amounts and get sick or those who also have an allergy.

Surely this applies to everything, whether chemical, animal, vegetable or mineral? Everything in moderation.

 

[lickthelid]

lickthelid a question for you as you are very knowledgeable.

Why if the ingredients in other products are 'ok' for us here other countries are banning them?

Marmite, Irn-Bru and Bovril banned in Canada after they fall foul of food additive rules - Americas - World - The Independent

I saw this and thought it was insane. But then each country will have its experts and their beliefs that shape policy. I should imagine that it's no different to varying approaches to education (which ultimately shapes this kind of stuff at the end of the day. Different countries have different laws on drugs and alcohol as well and this is similar. Like the ages of 18 versus 21 in the states and not drinking at all in certain Arabic countries. What we are brought up to believe and champion either through parental input, education or media depends upon culture. Discovering certain properties about food is ongoing and each culture react differently according to what they believe the effects are or MAY be.

I feel sorry for the guy who lost £10k importing British goods. Whoever died from eating marmite? I mean don't get me wrong, I hate marmite but I am fairly sure the worst thing that would happen from eating it is I'd throw up!!

 

[lickthelid]

Oh and thanks for the compliment

I think of myself as more opinionated than anything haha.

 

[AnnaFaraday]

Apart from the Irn Bru (the colouring is being removed from it anyway) the Canadian authorities seem to have an issue with the addition of vitamins and minerals to manufactured foods.

"According to the CFIA’s letter to the shop-owner, Marmite, Ovaltine, Lucozade, Penguin Bars and Bovril “are enriched with vitamins and minerals” and therefore illegal."

That's up to them, although it is hard to see why. But it doesn't mean that they are dangerous.

 

[sweetierufus]

Technically alcohol is a poison but I should imagine that plenty of us consume that. Aspartame is only a poison to those with an intolerance by definition as a poison is any substance, normally chemical, that when absorbed by a living organism causes illness, paralysis or death.

Any substance when consumed in large amounts, even water, could fit this definition. Anyone remember the girl (Leah Betts) who died through drinking too much water after taking ecstasy? It was the water that killed her due to brain swelling. Drinking too much water can also reduce the electrolytes in your blood and cause you to become sluggish and and reduce muscle effectiveness, essentially ill. Granted you would have to drink gallons and gallons. But its possible.

Aspartame has been proven safe to use. In foodstuffs and drinks. In reasonable quantities. Yes if you consume ridiculous amounts OR if you have a particular sensitivity then it may cause you a problem. My daughter has a nut allergy. So I don't give them to her but I don't go around telling everyone else they are dangerous and to not eat them. Not do I not eat them. Clearly that only applies to those who either eat large amounts and get sick or those who also have an allergy.

Surely this applies to everything, whether chemical, animal, vegetable or mineral? Everything in moderation.

Very good point. So much food demonised fat, sugar, sweetners, salt, wheat etc. Everything in moderation.

I don't believe sugar is an addiction and it alone causes obesity. We all know why we are overweight and its never down to one food. However as the country has an 'obesity crisis' I think all foods will be under constant scrutiny.

 

[lickthelid]

Very good point. So much food demonised fat, sugar, sweetners, salt, wheat etc. Everything in moderation.

I don't believe sugar is an addiction and it alone causes obesity. We all know why we are overweight and its never down to one food. However as the country has an 'obesity crisis' I think all foods will be under constant scrutiny.

Maybe its a problem with our ability to take responsibility for ourselves. It HAS to be something causing it. God forbid its our own faults. It's our sugar/sweetener/caffeine/additive/enumber "addiction" that someone else in a lab caused, not us, nuh-uh, no way

 

[Nanny Doreen]

Just checked my squash, its sainsburys basics double strength summer fruits squash and it doesn't contain aspartame, it says all their squashes are sweetened with sucralose, so if anyones wanting an aspartame free juice this is the one x

I have just looked at my Tesco double strength blackcurrant squash and find it has Aspartame and Sodium Saccharine.

So glad you pointed us towards Sainsbury Rochelle. Was your a sugar free one?

 

[Jael]

I have sweeteners in small volumes, usually stevia. It's a. It of false equivalence comparing aspartame to nut allergies. Nuts come out of the earth and have been food to homo sapians for thousands of years. Most sweetener comes from a laboratory and isn't found in nature, so not really the same thing. It might well be in the future we find these 'poisons' are like tobacco. They don't cause an instant reaction but long term use can make you ill. They used to say tobacco was good for your lungs!
That said, we need more evidence either way. Most are anecdotal or very small, short studies. A longer term randomized trial with a large number of participants would be needed

 

[lickthelid]

I have sweeteners in small volumes, usually stevia. It's a. It of false equivalence comparing aspartame to nut allergies. Nuts come out of the earth and have been food to homo sapians for thousands of years. Most sweetener comes from a laboratory and isn't found in nature, so not really the same thing. It might well be in the future we find these 'poisons' are like tobacco. They don't cause an instant reaction but long term use can make you ill. They used to say tobacco was good for your lungs!
That said, we need more evidence either way. Most are anecdotal or very small, short studies. A longer term randomized trial with a large number of participants would be needed

Surely the origins are of no matter if the consequence is the same. I wasn't actually comparing nuts to sweetener literally but was using it as an anecdotal example of how one person may be affected by something to varying degrees yet others may not and it's not necessarily a cause to avoid them if you know that others 'may' be affected. The subject matter is irrelevant. Also only peanuts come out of the ground because technically they are a legume rather than a nut. Nuts grow on trees, which granted DO come out of the ground

Ps serious hair envy.

 

[lickthelid]

Also aspartame was licensed for inclusion in food in the 1970s and is contained in thousands of foodstuffs consumed by millions if not billions of people worldwide every single year. There are some people who react to it. But they are in the minority as a percentage. I'd say that's a fairly comprehensive study over a long period of time.

Tobacco was considered good for your lungs when medical science wasn't as advanced as it is today. I don't deny that they may discover different but testing is far more intense than ever and simply basing opinion on anecdotal evidence by others is...well...not exactly scientific.

Its a preference thing. Down to what you want to put in your body. Vegetarians often don't eat meat for a variety of reasons, one of which being that they don't want to consume it. That's an opinion thing, I don't eat lamb for that reason. I don't not eat lamb because someone else had a reaction to it once. That's smacks of scaremongering.

 

[babycake]

Technically alcohol is a poison but I should imagine that plenty of us consume that. Aspartame is only a poison to those with an intolerance by definition as a poison is any substance, normally chemical, that when absorbed by a living organism causes illness, paralysis or death.

Any substance when consumed in large amounts, even water, could fit this definition. Anyone remember the girl (Leah Betts) who died through drinking too much water after taking ecstasy? It was the water that killed her due to brain swelling. Drinking too much water can also reduce the electrolytes in your blood and cause you to become sluggish and and reduce muscle effectiveness, essentially ill. Granted you would have to drink gallons and gallons. But its possible.

Aspartame has been proven safe to use. In foodstuffs and drinks. In reasonable quantities. Yes if you consume ridiculous amounts OR if you have a particular sensitivity then it may cause you a problem. My daughter has a nut allergy. So I don't give them to her but I don't go around telling everyone else they are dangerous and to not eat them. Not do I not eat them. Clearly that only applies to those who either eat large amounts and get sick or those who also have an allergy.

Surely this applies to everything, whether chemical, animal, vegetable or mineral? Everything in moderation.

Oo I remember her. Wasn't there a girl that died just before her wedding by overdosing on water while on lighter life?


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[Jael]

Thanks for hair comment! Yours is lovely though

it is an issue because people are not usually meaning allergies with aspartame. They are meaning it is toxic to humans. Allergies are a separate matter. Where it comes from is precisely the issue. It is not a food we evolved to eat. It isn't a food at all. Us designating a laboratory created substance a food in the 1970s doesn't make it so.

I am am not against sweeteners. I use them. I occasionally use aspartame. But I'm far from convinced it's either perfectly safe or the demon it's made out to be from either side. I've read several of the studies. They are poor. I'm not saying I've read them all, maybe three, but if there were a large, long term, randomised trial, it would be brought up when sweeteners are criticised.

Science has advanced and will continue to advance. Every year studies advance our knowledge. Unfortunately so does corporate greed.

 

[lickthelid]

I agree with you on the point that we are talking toxicity so surely my point stands that its self inflicted and that knowledge about the potential risks should centre around the levels we consume, which in most peoples cases is so minimal compared to the levels required for the compound to become toxic in our blood? Aspartame is just another ENumber (albeit one that had been vilified) and picking up any food at random, unless it's an apple, it will likely contain a myriad of lab-created enhancements to improve taste, longevity, consistency and so on. The funny thing being that the compound in aspartame that causes the most immediate effect is phenylalanine which can cause laxative effects. Phenylalanine is actually a naturally derived amino acid essential for building protein. We normally get it from eating eggs and cheese. So although its a man made additive aspartame has organic roots and the one thing about it that can cause "harm" is natural.

My argument is not that we should all ignore our concerns but that our concerns should be rooted in experience of our own consumptive habits rather than blacklisting something that, in all reality won't affect us because the levels we take in are minuscule. Medical tests are inconclusive where they have tried to prove it is harmful whereas the general test is happening every single day successfully. if people want to avoid it do it because you are genuinely concerned based upon hard evidence. Not because someone tells you it made them ill because they had too much.

 

[Sazanne]

Thank you for sharing this, I stopped using all sweeteners about 6 months ago but since starting SW I have been having Pepsi max again and muller lights ect, I have felt bloated and crave chocolate more, after reading your story I've decided to stop the sweeteners again they are poison and should be banned in this country. xXx

 

[Gwella]

Think I'm going to wean myself off the diet drinks over the next few days and stay off them a while and see if they make a difference to how I feel, as at the moment it's not good. I've had a lot more this week than I used to, and definitely feel it's becoming an unhealthy habit, like my usual quantities aren't enough, and I can now happily down 2 pints of diet Coke in a row. Over this weekend, I've had nearly 2l of the stuff, and a Mullerlight which I don't usually have. And I feel DREADFUL, and there is something in me that's flashing a warning sign and making me feel cautious around it. (A bit like when something gives you food poisoning and you know what it was because just thinking about that thing makes you want to throw up).

I feel dizzy, my eyes go black in front of me when I stand up (dizziness on standing has got to be more of a problem for me lately). I am getting headaches which is very unusual for me. I feel jittery, nervous, panicky (have longstanding anxiety issues but this is much worse). I can't settle to anything and my concentration, motivation and mood are rubbish. My ears are ringing a bit, so that chopping vegetables or clattering plates are torture. My guts are not happy. My knees ache and my shoulders are clicky and twitching.

Now I KNOW there are many things that could cause these symptoms, from low calories to low iron to drinking caffeine (not aspartame) to a bug. But I'm really intrigued to see what effect cutting out the aspartame over a few weeks has. Will let you know if anything interesting happens!

 

[Robbirich]

Hi, I was so pleased to read your story. I joined SW last May and I have reached my target. I really went to town on the Mullerlights, as I have a sweet tooth - sometimes three a day. I started to notice an unpleasant taste in my mouth. My Doctor sent me for routine blood tests and the results came back to say that my liver function is slightly low. I'm not a drinker or a smoker, so I couldn't understand it, so I asked Google if aspatarme could damage the liver, and the reply came back 'YUP!' So I stopped the Mullerlights and the the nasty taste seemed to disappear. Then I started on the Scanbran challenge, and it came back. So I asked Google again if aspatarme is in Scanbran, as it doesn't say so on the label, and came up with your story. So, it's out with the Mullerlights and the Scanbran and I have to have the blood test repeated. Can't do it yet because I've just had the flu. So I hope that when I do repeat the blood test my liver will be back to normal. Thank you so much for sharing your story and convincing me that aspatarme really is dangerous.

 

[hexe]

For everybody who is not allergic, moderation is the key. I am not particularly keen on artificial sweeteners (don't like the aftertaste), but I find them hard to avoid when on SW. I mainly use agave nectar (synned) and erythritol (great, but sooo expensive), but again, all in moderation. If people resort to drinking gallons of coke or sweetened fizzy drinks per day and have dozens of fat free yogurts, I think the aspartame will be the least of their worries. x

 

[Mrsbod]

I never used to drink diet drinks, my mum was completely against artificial sweeteners. Last year I did start to drink much more pepsi max, probably some every day. I was on my own one night as my hubby was away, and had 2 gins and slimline...within an hour I was throwing up, dizzy, hardly able to stand. After that night, any time I had something with sweetener in it, I had the same reaction, it was awful.

I stopped all sweetener, thankfully I take coffee and tea with no sugar, but losing my wee G&T was tough. After a few months I allowed myself maybe one day a week when I would have diet drinks, and that seems to be alright, but I definitely couldn't risk any of the desserts on SW with all the sweetener they have.

Your story is awful, and I'm so glad they managed to work out what was wrong, and it is important for people to know that there is a possible risk...although that could be said about so many things like Lickthelid said.

My sister has Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and if she has anything with MSG or some specific sweeteners, she has a serious reaction that sets her back days.

 

[AnnaFaraday]

There is no sweetener in Scanbran - no aspartame or any other sweetener. If there were, it would have to - by law - say so on the label.

The ingredients are wheatbran, rye and salt.

GG Bran Nutritional Facts High Fiber, Low Carbs, Low Glycemic Index, Kosher, F-Factor Diet Approved

There is sweetener in Scanbran cakes, which are SW recipes using Scanbran mixed with other ingredients to give an approximation of a cake.