Aspartame is an artificial, non-saccharide sweetener used as a sugar substitute in some foods and beverages. It was first sold under the brand names NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure. It was discovered by accident in 1965 when James Schlatter, a chemist of G.D. Searle Company, was testing an anti-ulcer drug. Aspartame is made up of three chemicals: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methanol. The book "Prescription for Nutritional Healing," by James and Phyllis Balch, lists aspartame under the category of "chemical poison." As you shall see, that is exactly what it is. It can be found in over 5,000 products. These include diet soft drinks, sports drinks, gum, coffees, teas, Kool-Aid type drinks, children's vitamins, antibiotics, frozen dairy desserts such as ice cream and yogurts, and much more. It is very difficult to live without consuming aspartame.
Aspartic acid is a neuroexcitatory amino acid that plays a role in stimulating the nervous system, caused "holes in the brain". Dr. Russell L. Blaylock, a professor of neurosurgery at the Medical University of Mississippi, recently published a book thoroughly detailing the damage that is caused by the ingestion of excessive aspartic acid from aspartame. Blaylock makes use of almost 500 scientific references to show how excess free excitatory amino acids such as aspartic acid in our food supply are causing serious chronic neurological disorders and a myriad of other acute symptoms.
Phenylalanine is an amino acid normally found in the brain. Persons with the genetic disorder phenylketonuria (PKU) cannot metabolize phenylalanine. This leads to dangerously high levels of phenylalanine in the brain (sometimes lethal). It has been shown that ingesting aspartame, especially along with carbohydrates, can lead to excess levels of phenylalanine in the brain even in persons who do not have PKU. This is not just a theory, as many people who have eaten large amounts of aspartame over a long period of time and do not have PKU have been shown to have excessive levels of phenylalanine in the blood. Excessive levels of phenylalanine in the brain can cause the levels of seratonin in the brain to decrease, leading to emotional disorders such as depression. It was shown in human testing that phenylalanine levels of the blood were increased significantly in human subjects who chronically used aspartame.
Methanol/wood alcohol is a deadly poison. Some people may remember methanol as the poison that has caused some "skid row" alcoholics to end up blind or dead. It is well-known in the literature for doing damage to the eyes, liver, brain, and other organs of the body. Methanol is gradually released in the small intestine when the methyl group of aspartame encounter the enzyme chymotrypsin. The absorption of methanol into the body is sped up considerably when free methanol is ingested. Free methanol is created from aspartame when it is heated to above 86 Fahrenheit (30 Centigrade). This would occur when aspartame-containing product is improperly stored or when it is heated.
by Dr. Mercola
Woodrow C. Monte, PhD, a food scientist, researcher, and Professor Emeritus of Food Science and Nutrition at Arizona State University, has just published a comprehensive book, “While Science Sleeps, a Sweetener Kills,” which is now available on Amazon.com.
ReplyDeleteThe book presents Dr. Monte’s lifetime of research into the nutritional causes of the major diseases of civilization. His own research, along with the research of hundreds of other scientists, is presented in language the average reader can understand and apply to very easily avoid many of the worst diseases that currently kill the majority of people in the civilized world. Dr. Monte has carefully and thoughtfully pieced together the scientific evidence found in hundreds of scientific studies to show convincingly that the single culprit is methanol – a molecule found primarily in canned fruits and vegetables, tomatoes, cigarette smoke, smoked foods, and the artificial sweetener aspartame. Methanol is converted by the enzyme known as Alcohol Dehydrogenase Class 1 (ADH1) into formaldehyde inside the body’s most sensitive tissues.
It is methanol that makes the aspartame taste sweet, and within ten minutes of consuming it, the methanol is released from its chemical bond. Each liter of diet soda contains the amount of methanol found in a pack of cigarettes, and evidence is mounting that diseases traditionally associated with smoking – most recently, heart disease and stroke – are now being associated specifically with aspartame consumption.
The human body converts dietary methanol into formaldehyde in the stomach, liver, veins and arteries, lungs, pancreas, skin, breast, and brain. Dr. Monte makes a compelling case that it is this process, and the disease that results, that is responsible for the epidemics of a variety of cancers, heart disease, diabetes, autoimmune diseases like Lupus and Multiple Sclerosis, autism, and Alzheimer’s disease that have exploded over the past thirty years since the introduction of aspartame in the summer of 1981.
The book also contains information and documentation showing that the product’s manufacturers and their friends in the Food & Drug Administration knew the dangers posed by aspartame, yet buried the evidence and released it for public consumption despite the risk. Furthermore, they knowingly marketed it to those research had demonstrated were particularly vulnerable to its harmful effects – diabetics and pregnant mothers. Since that time, adult onset diabetes has more than doubled worldwide, with diabetics dying from the major diseases of civilization at a much higher rate than the average population.
Deaths from Alzheimer’s disease, in which formaldehyde inside the brain destroys memory function, have increased 10,000% since 1981. Neural tube birth defects are up around 70% in the same period of time despite efforts to compensate with recommended folic acid.
Dr. Monte has decades of experience in food science and nutrition as a researcher, teacher, inventor, industry consultant and consumer advocate who is committed to food additive safety and the prevention of food borne diseases. He is a dedicated scientist with both a Ph.D. and M.S. in Food Science and Nutrition and a B.S. in Biology. He has been a Registered Dietician, Certified Nutrition Specialist AIN, professional member of the American Chemical Society and emeritus member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1985, he was chosen by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars as a Senior Fulbright Scholar. His testimony before Congress was instrumental in the prevention of Sulfites from receiving status of US FDA GRAS (Generally Regarded As Safe) and the implementation of mandatory labeling for most foods that contain this dangerous additive. More information about Dr. Monte and his work can be found on his website: www.WhileScienceSleeps.com.