No matter what the topic, nobody likes being told they've been lied to, especially by people and institutions they inherently trust. When confronted with truth, people get defensive. That's why I approach this topic with care. While the products I've reviewed so far are either sugar free or low sugar, none of them contain artificial sweeteners like sucralose or aspartame. You won't see any in the future either.
This blog was established to promote healthy food and products to help prepare it, and that does not include poisons that harm and destroy the human body. So let's take a look at a product that's been available commercially for the past thirty years. And despite the studies that prove its toxic effects, it remains on the market right now. Today's offender is aspartame.
What's Wrong with Aspartame?
The first time I heard about the harmful effects of aspartame was when I was a kid. When I asked about it, my father told me that it caused health problems. Apparently, my mother tried it and would get severe headaches and tremors. Years later, my husband mentioned his mother suffered many health problems that resulted from years of consuming Nutrasweet products. And upon further investigation, I found aspartame to be linked with plethora of medical problems, including birth defects, diabetes, brain tumors, and seizures, just to name a few.
Other common side effects include migraines, drowsiness, severe depression, insomnia, irritability, and a host of others.
But is aspartame really the cause of all of this? Let's take a closer look at its chemical composition to see just what this “safe” product is contributing to our food.
What Is Aspartame Made Of?
Aspartame this made of the following three chemicals: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methyl ester (methanol). Once the body breaks down the sweetener, these chemicals are released into the bloodstream. If this doesn't mean much, perhaps we should take a closer look at each of the chemical components and ask ourselves if we want to be consuming this product, let alone feeding it to children.
Aspartic Acid (40% of aspartame): A common amino acid that can be found in a number of fruits and vegetables. In its isolated chemical form, it is an excitotoxin (a chemical that causes brain neurons fire so rapidly they burn out and die). The blood brain barrier normally protects the brain from such chemicals, it doesn't protect all areas of the brain and can be penetrated under the following conditions: childhood, when it is not fully developed; acute and chronic illnesses; and excess consumption of aspartic acid even when fully intact. Dr. Russell Blaylock published a book that elaborates on the effects of excessive consumption of aspartic acid: Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills.
Phenylalanine (50% of aspartame): An amino acid normally found in the brain. Consuming aspartame can lead to an excess of phenylalanine in the blood. High levels of phenylalanine in the brain can cause a decrease in serotonin levels, leading to emotional disorders such as depression.
Methyl Ester (Methanol) (10% of aspartame): Methanol is wood alcohol and defined by Merriam Webster as “a light volatile pungent flammable poisonous liquid alcohol CH3OH formed in the destructive distillation of wood or made synthetically and used especially as a solvent, antifreeze, or denaturant for ethyl alcohol and in the synthesis of other chemicals.” If that definition doesn't speak for itself, consider this. When the body metabolizes aspartame, you wind up with a small amount of wood alcohol in your system that breaks down first into formic acid (fire ant poison) and then into formaldehyde (embalming fluid). The body can't eliminate this chemical, so it accumulates.
Just for the Taste of It?
The information above gives just a small sample of the problems caused by aspartame. Many studies have proven its toxic effects, and yet, against all logic, it is still on the market as a sweetener and is included in popular diet foods and beverages to cut back calories. Why would the hoax of such a product persist if corporations didn't stand to profit from it?
In my next post, I'll review a documentary that covers aspartame, its side effects, and history more fully. When you find out how aspartame obtained approval, you'll realize it wasn't “just for the taste of it” at all.
This blog was established to promote healthy food and products to help prepare it, and that does not include poisons that harm and destroy the human body. So let's take a look at a product that's been available commercially for the past thirty years. And despite the studies that prove its toxic effects, it remains on the market right now. Today's offender is aspartame.
What's Wrong with Aspartame?
The first time I heard about the harmful effects of aspartame was when I was a kid. When I asked about it, my father told me that it caused health problems. Apparently, my mother tried it and would get severe headaches and tremors. Years later, my husband mentioned his mother suffered many health problems that resulted from years of consuming Nutrasweet products. And upon further investigation, I found aspartame to be linked with plethora of medical problems, including birth defects, diabetes, brain tumors, and seizures, just to name a few.
Other common side effects include migraines, drowsiness, severe depression, insomnia, irritability, and a host of others.
But is aspartame really the cause of all of this? Let's take a closer look at its chemical composition to see just what this “safe” product is contributing to our food.
What Is Aspartame Made Of?
Aspartame this made of the following three chemicals: aspartic acid, phenylalanine, and methyl ester (methanol). Once the body breaks down the sweetener, these chemicals are released into the bloodstream. If this doesn't mean much, perhaps we should take a closer look at each of the chemical components and ask ourselves if we want to be consuming this product, let alone feeding it to children.
Aspartic Acid (40% of aspartame): A common amino acid that can be found in a number of fruits and vegetables. In its isolated chemical form, it is an excitotoxin (a chemical that causes brain neurons fire so rapidly they burn out and die). The blood brain barrier normally protects the brain from such chemicals, it doesn't protect all areas of the brain and can be penetrated under the following conditions: childhood, when it is not fully developed; acute and chronic illnesses; and excess consumption of aspartic acid even when fully intact. Dr. Russell Blaylock published a book that elaborates on the effects of excessive consumption of aspartic acid: Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills.
Phenylalanine (50% of aspartame): An amino acid normally found in the brain. Consuming aspartame can lead to an excess of phenylalanine in the blood. High levels of phenylalanine in the brain can cause a decrease in serotonin levels, leading to emotional disorders such as depression.
Methyl Ester (Methanol) (10% of aspartame): Methanol is wood alcohol and defined by Merriam Webster as “a light volatile pungent flammable poisonous liquid alcohol CH3OH formed in the destructive distillation of wood or made synthetically and used especially as a solvent, antifreeze, or denaturant for ethyl alcohol and in the synthesis of other chemicals.” If that definition doesn't speak for itself, consider this. When the body metabolizes aspartame, you wind up with a small amount of wood alcohol in your system that breaks down first into formic acid (fire ant poison) and then into formaldehyde (embalming fluid). The body can't eliminate this chemical, so it accumulates.
Just for the Taste of It?
The information above gives just a small sample of the problems caused by aspartame. Many studies have proven its toxic effects, and yet, against all logic, it is still on the market as a sweetener and is included in popular diet foods and beverages to cut back calories. Why would the hoax of such a product persist if corporations didn't stand to profit from it?
In my next post, I'll review a documentary that covers aspartame, its side effects, and history more fully. When you find out how aspartame obtained approval, you'll realize it wasn't “just for the taste of it” at all.
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