When the temperature of this sweetener exceeds 86 degrees F, the wood alcohol in it converts into Formaldehyde and then to Formic Acid, which in turn causes something called Metabolic Acidosis. Formic acid incidentally, is the poison found in the sting of fire ants! This 'methanol toxicity' as it is sometimes called, mimics among other conditions, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus and many people have been diagnosed in error as a result!
Systemic lupus has become almost as rampant as multiple sclerosis, especially with Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi drinkers. Any unfortunate consumer, who is unfortunately susceptible to this, usually does not know that the Aspartame is to blame. He or she therefore continues using it; irritating the lupus to such a degree that it some cases it can actually become an almost life-threatening condition!
Patients with systemic lupus often become asymptomatic (symptoms disappear) alarmingly quickly, once taken off diet drinks and products containing Aspartame.
In cases of those diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, (when in reality, the culprit is methanol toxicity), most of the symptoms disappear. Cases where vision loss returned and hearing loss improved dramatically are numerous,
This also applies to cases of tinnitus and fibromyalgia (chronic muscle soreness).
If you are consuming any product containing Aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, Canderel, etc.) and you suffer from fibromyalgia symptoms, spasms, shooting pains, numbness in your legs, cramps, vertigo, dizziness, headaches, tinnitus, joint pain, inexplicable depression or muscle pains, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, blurred vision, or short/long term memory loss, then the possibility most definitely exists that you might well be suffering to a greater or lesser degree, from the presence of Aspartame in your diet.
An excellent example occurred in 2002, when six people in Quebec, who were all fanatically heavy Diet Coke addicts, were all diagnosed with MS, at times very close to each other! Incredible coincidence? I don't think so! ! The six people involved all became asymptomatic (stopped having symptoms) in a very short time, once the very heavy Diet Coke intake was stopped!
Diet Coke is not a diet product! It is a chemically altered, multiple Sodium (salt) and Aspartame containing product that actually makes you crave carbohydrates. It is therefore, far more likely to escalate weight gain!
These products also contain formaldehyde, which subtly accumulates in fat cells. In women particularly, gradually over time, the result can visibly 'pad out' the outer hips and thighs. Formaldehyde is an absolute toxin and is used primarily in laboratories to preserve animal and human tissue specimens.
Granted, many products we use every day do actually contain tiny, minuscule amounts of formaldehyde, but we shouldn't actually store even more of it in our bodies if we can possibly avoid it! Dr. H. J. Roberts in Indiana stated in one of his lectures, that once free of the heavy intake of "diet products", with no significant increase in exercise; some his newly 'ex' Diet Coke patients actually lost an average of 12-19 pounds over a trial period in one of his test projects. It was the heavy Aspartame content in the Diet Coke that was a dramatic contributive factor.
Aspartame is especially precarious for diabetics. Some physicians, who believed that they had patients with retinopathy (serious eye condition), in fact, had symptoms caused by Aspartame! Aspartame also encourages unstable blood sugar levels, so diabetics may actually sometimes suffer memory loss due to the fact that aspartic acid and phenylalanine are neurotoxic (destroy brain cells) when taken without the other amino acids necessary for good biochemical balance. With successful treatment and management of all diabetic conditions, it is essential that this sound biochemical balance is pursued and achieved as much as possible. Aspartame hinders those efforts!
Especially with diabetic conditions, Aspartame passes the blood/brain barrier where it quietly encourages small but nevertheless, significant levels of deterioration in the neurons of the brain; thereby increasing the possibilities of subtle levels of brain damage, seizures, manic depression, panic attacks of varying degree and sometimes even serious anger and mood changes. Yes, we do have many millions of neurons, but losing some of them in this fashion is dangerously unacceptable and Aspartame intake can even cause these same symptoms to occur in some non-diabetics as well.
Documentation and observations also reveal that hundreds of children diagnosed with ADD and AHD in the USA, Canada and Europe have demonstrated very significant changes in their behaviour when these chemicals were removed from their diet. In some cases, so called "behaviour modification” prescription drugs like Ritalin were no longer required, but if truth be known in many cases, they were probably never needed in the first place!
Most of these children were being 'contaminated' on a daily basis with the very foods that were "better for them than sugar." It is also now very strongly suspected that the high Aspartame content in thousands of pallets of Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi consumed by men and women fighting in the Gulf War, may be very significantly implicated in some of the blame for the well-known disorder 'Gulf War Syndrome'. This being achieved, by high Aspartame intake rendering the service personnel more vulnerable to the neural agents they were exposed to in the conflict.
Dr. Roberts warned that it could also cause birth defects, i.e., mental retardation, if taken at the time of conception and during early pregnancy. Children are particularly at risk and should never be given artificial sweeteners. There are numerous case histories to relate, of children suffering grand mal seizures and other neurological disturbances due to the use of Aspartame. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to convince people that Aspartame is blameworthy for their child's illness. Stevia, which is a sweet herb, not a manufactured additive, helps in the metabolism of sugar and is suitable for diabetics, in addition to which the FDA in the USA has now approved it as a dietary supplement.
A very 'enlightening' read is:
EXCITOTOXINS: THE TASTE THAT KILLS written by Dr. Russell Blayblock
(Health Press 1-800-643-2665) AND: DEFENSE AGAINST ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE- written by Dr. H. J. Roberts, who is also a very well regarded diabetic specialist.
These two medics will soon be publishing a paper containing actual case histories involving the specific toxic effects of Aspartame.
There were Congressional Hearings in the USA at the time when Aspartame was first included in just 100 different products and strong objections were voiced concerning its use. Since this initial hearing, there have been two other subsequent hearings and still, nothing has been done! The chemical and pharmaceutical lobbies have very fat wallets and sadly, Monsanto's patent on Aspartame has now expired, so absolutely anyone and everyone can produce and use it in any product! There are now around 10,000+ products on the British market that contain this chemical and in truth, even that figure is now probably a somewhat conservative estimate, because the number is growing at an alarming rate. It's absolutely everywhere, in sports drinks and even in some so called 'healthy' yoghurts and the warning signs are often 'low sugar' or 'no sugar', so keep a very sharp eye out for it in any product you purchase.
'Monsanto', the American multinational corporate giant who created and first marketed Aspartame, knows perfectly well how damaging it is. And isn't it an interesting 'coincidence' that Monsanto funds, amongst others, the 'American Diabetes Association', the 'American Dietetic Association' and the 'Conference of the American College of Physicians'! This has even been exposed in the 'New York Times,' where these 3 'eminent' organisations could not and did not, criticise any additives or convey their links to Monsanto, because they were literally accepting money from them and indirectly endorsing their products through their constructed silence and total unwillingness to professionally comment!
Senator Howard Metzenbaum in the USA wrote and presented a bill that would have required label warnings on all products containing Aspartame, especially regarding pregnant women, children and infants. The bill would have also instituted independent studies on the known dangers and the problems existing in the general population regarding seizures, changes in brain chemistry, neurological changes and behavioural symptoms. The bill was somehow stifled! Doubtless once again, the deep pockets of the drug and chemical lobbies have worked their particularly unsavoury style of 'magic'!
Please keep clear of this product/additive as much as you possibly can. Be particularly careful with children under 7 years of age whose immune systems are not yet up to full capacity, as all the multiple problems and traumas that have emerged so far through use of it, can surely only be a dire warning of even more 'negatives' yet to be discovered.
Author Profile
This article was written by Exercise, Injury and Nutritional Consultant Alan Gordon MSc. BSc. (Hons 1st). He is an advanced expert and one of the training coaches for the 2012 Paralympics. He belongs to 'The British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences', 'The International Society of Biomechanics' and 'The Clinical Exercise Physiology Association'. One of the highest qualified in the UK and Europe, he has 40 years of experience in his field, whilst being the only personal trainer specifically recommended by the national private health/medical organisation, 'The Nuffield Hospital Trust'. Alan is also author of the stretch technique book 'Bodywise Flexibility'.
