Aspartame: What You Should Know
By Sara Butler
You may have never heard of aspartame before, but you’ve almost certainly heard of sugar substitutes such as NutraSweet, Equal, and others. Years ago these sugar substitutes with zero calories were thought of as a breakthrough for the health conscious everywhere, but it is now known that these sweeteners are wreaking some serious havoc on people’s health. Here is what you need to know about aspartame so you can decide if you want to include it in your diet.
Reactions to Aspartame
The Food and Drug Administration has reported that about 75 percent of the negative reactions people have had to food additives have been to aspartame. These reactions have included:
- Dizziness
- Seizures
- Headaches
- Migraines
- Heart palpitations
- Insomnia
- Muscle spasms
- Anxiety
- Fatigue
- Depression
- Vision problems
- Vertigo
- Breathing problems
- Memory loss
- Joint pain
- Weight gain
What is Aspartame Made Of?
Several things go into aspartame. They include:
- Phenylalanine – This comprises about half of what aspartame is made up of. The problem with this ingredient is how it builds up in the bloodstream over time, which can contribute to some of the negative side-effects experienced by some people.
- Aspartic Acid – This comprises about 40 percent of aspartame. This ingredient has been linked with some neurological disorders and it also releases free radicals that can damage your cells when you ingest it. It’s not recommended that women who are pregnant, children or the elderly ingest this ingredient.
- Methanol – This comprises the remaining 10 percent of aspartame. When this ingredient is ingested it turns into formaldehyde, a known neurotoxin. It can cause vertigo, numbness, ringing in the ears, digestive upset and dizziness.
What Contains Aspartame?
Anything that is reduced calorie or calorie-free can potentially contain aspartame. You can typically find it in things such as:
- Soft Drinks – Flavorings for coffee, powdered drinks, sweetened iced tea, fruit juice, vegetable juice, flavored waters and even hot chocolate mix.
- Diet Soda – Most of the diet sodas available on the market contain aspartame instead of high fructose corn syrup.
- Desserts – Sugar-free or low sugar desserts probably have this ingredient. You can find it in ice cream, ice cream toppings, cookies, and pies and even Jell-O mixes or pudding.
- Yogurt – Drinkable yogurts that are sugar-free or fat-free usually contain aspartame.
- Condiments – Again, any low sugar condiments probably has aspartame in it such as barbecue sauce, maple syrup, jelly, jam, fruit spreads, ketchup or chocolate syrup.
Whether or not you eat things containing aspartame is up to you. It has been deemed safe by the FDA, but educating yourself and choosing if you want to include it in your diet is a choice only you can make.