10.3 C
New York
Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Comment by ilene

View Single Comment

  1. ilene
    February 11th, 2011 at 12:46 am

    Here’s an abstract of a study I found in pubmed.  Pharmboy doesn’t appear to take this very seriously (from what I can tell via an email). I happen to get very severe headaches from diet soda with aspartame – about 6 oz will do it.  So whatever the effects, I’m very sensitive to that particular one (according to the abstract below: "changes in regional brain concentrations of catecholamines, which include norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine"). 

    Direct and indirect cellular effects of aspartame on the brain.

    Humphries PPretorius ENaudé H.

    Department of Anatomy, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.

    Comment in:

     

    Abstract

    The use of the artificial sweetener, aspartame, has long been contemplated and studied by various researchers, and people are concerned about its negative effects. Aspartame is composed of phenylalanine (50%), aspartic acid (40%) and methanol (10%). Phenylalanine plays an important role in neurotransmitter regulation, whereas aspartic acid is also thought to play a role as an excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. Glutamate, asparagines and glutamine are formed from their precursor, aspartic acid. Methanol, which forms 10% of the broken down product, is converted in the body to formate, which can either be excreted or can give rise to formaldehyde, diketopiperazine (a carcinogen) and a number of other highly toxic derivatives. Previously, it has been reported that consumption of aspartame could cause neurological and behavioural disturbances in sensitive individuals. Headaches, insomnia and seizures are also some of the neurological effects that have been encountered, and these may be accredited to changes in regional brain concentrations of catecholamines, which include norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine. The aim of this study was to discuss the direct and indirect cellular effects of aspartame on the brain, and we propose that excessive aspartame ingestion might be involved in the pathogenesis of certain mental disorders (DSM-IV-TR 2000) and also in compromised learning and emotional functioning.



Stay Connected

157,360FansLike
396,312FollowersFollow
2,290SubscribersSubscribe

Latest Articles