This is a little quick something from wiki:

quote:

The head of the FDA, Jere E. Goyan, who had not approved legalization of aspartame, due to the brain cancer in rats issue, was fired on the first day Ronald Reagan was president of the U.S. (1981). Reagan hired Arthur Hayes MD (FDA Commissioner 1981-1983), who legalized aspartame a year later. Reagan supporter Donald Rumsfeld was president and later CEO of G. D. Searle & Company from 1977 to 1985.[75][76] Arthur Hull Hayes MD was a defense contractor before he was head of the FDA. In November 1983 Hayes was under fire for accepting corporate gifts. He quit and joined Searle's public-relations firm as senior medical advisor. Searle lawyer Robert B. Shapiro, renamed aspartame NutraSweet. Monsanto purchased Searle. Rumsfeld received a $12 million bonus. Shapiro later became Monsanto president. Several members of the FDA board left their jobs after Stevia (aspartame's main competitor then) was banned in 1991. They were all hired at Nutrasweet in higher paying jobs, according to national records. Dr. Michael Friedman quit the FDA when Jane Henney was selected to become the permanent FDA commissioner (1999). Friedman elected to sign with G. D. Searle as a senior vice president at a purported $500,000 a year. He later accepted a position with Monsanto. In February 2007, Page to Pantry, a radio program on the public radio station KPFK 90.7FM in Los Angeles, reported that aspartame was refused approval by the FDA for eight years before finally being approved under the leadership of Arthur Hayes. Immediately after, Hayes left the FDA and went to work for the artificial sweetener industry. This so-called "Revolving-Door" policy seems to be very common in the food additive industry.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspartame_controversy

Apparently the methanol from aspertame is poisonous. A little sniplet on the chemical composition:

quote:

Aspartame is the methyl ester of the dipeptide of the natural amino acids L-aspartic acid and L-phenylalanine. Under strongly acidic or alkaline conditions, aspartame first generates methanol by hydrolysis.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspertame

Apparently there's also a documentary on aspartame called "Sweet Misery" that came out in 2004. Here's the trailer in case anyones curious:


In case some of you don't know what aspartame is, it's an artificial sweetner. And yes, it's used in diet sodas and all sorts of stuff.

Anyways, what are your thoughts?

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Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me— and there was no one left to speak out for me." -Martin Niemöller

Oh shit, I just consumed a can of Full Throttle Sugar free energy drink before clicking this thread !




Well I guess moderation is the key ? Alcohol is bad, ciggs are bad, caffeine is bad, pizza is bad...cell phone radiation is bad...but anything consumed and/or used in moderation is OK. It is the duty of the government to issue proper warning and brand poison as poison, and not something else. But as we all know, there are far more food items and additives that should carry a warning label but don't. Lobbying and business is what drives the government I guess. Sorry but that's the true state of affairs. The only thing we can do, is be aware of the harmful effects of these substances and try to use them in moderation or simply stop using them.

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Originally posted by twilightki : It feels like something you'd listen to at 4 in the morning, or listen to in your car while you're going in a tunnel.

it's used in a lot of sports supplements, weight gainers, creatines, and the like. yeah, not good.

I've been aware of the controversy for a while... but I'm not sure if I believe all they say or not.

Hey methanol is great just don't drink too much or you could damage your eyesight. Well methanol is fairly toxic in actuality. Here's the MSDS precautions we have from the lab.

Toxic by inhalation, ingestion or skin absorption. May be a reproductive hazard. Ingestion may be fatal. Risk of very serious, irreversible damage if swallowed. Exposure may cause eye, kidney, heart and liver damage. Chronic or substantial acute exposure may cause serious eye damage, including blindness. Irritant. Narcotic.

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yeah but I wonder just how often aspartame hydrolises into methanol and in what quantities. Methanol is present in most alcoholic beverages in minute amounts.

I know I try and stay clear of it.
Anything that was banned 30 years ago that suddenly (ok not THAT sudden) starts showing up everywhere raises my eyebrow.

My wife can't touch the stuff; gives her instant headaches...

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The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all change to silver glass...and then you see it...
...white shores...and beyond...the far green country under a swift sunrise."

That's how the FDA works.

With most things denied by the FDA, we can assume it is because the company attempting to market did not pay a high enough sum of cash. Exceptions exist in the case of any chemical that is found to be able to produce illicit substances, in which they're immediately cancerous (because if you inject thousands of times the normal amount of anything into a rat, it will develop cancer).

PS: Sweeteners should not incorporate chlorine molecules.

quote:

Originally posted by Zild Hey methanol is great just don't drink too much or you could damage your eyesight. Well methanol is fairly toxic in actuality. Here's the MSDS precautions we have from the lab. Toxic by inhalation, ingestion or skin absorption. May be a reproductive hazard. Ingestion may be fatal. Risk of very serious, irreversible damage if swallowed. Exposure may cause eye, kidney, heart and liver damage. Chronic or substantial acute exposure may cause serious eye damage, including blindness. Irritant. Narcotic.

These are the same precautions for ethanol, a widely used beverage.

If you were to dilute methanol and drink it like we drink ethanol, you would not damage your eyesight any more than if you were to drink ethanol.

As a matter of fact, if you drink low quality alcoholic beverages, you will be consuming a certain percentage of methanol, because it is a natural output of the creation process (bacterial conversion, aka excretion, of sugars). Think about that next time you imbibe cheap russian vodka's called Kamchatka and the like!

On the plus side, methanol gets you more drunk with less quantity, because it seems to pass the "blood brain barrier" readily. Or at least that's the explanation we use for now medically, since we don't really know why it does what it does so well. (I'm not suggesting anyone ever drink methanol, by the way)

Last edited by DJ Shibby on Jun-17-2007 at 06:46

Unless you're consuming close to your own body weight in aspartame daily, you're fine. This is a classic example of extremes increasing the risk of cancer. It would be hard to find any one substance that in ridiculously huge amounts wouldn't cause some sort of medical issue.

I'm not sure where the chlorine concern comes in, considering aspartame is C14 H18 N2 O5.

Ethanol crosses the blood brain barrier just as easily, in fact even more easily than methanol. The amount of methanol produced by aspartame metabolism is incredibly small and the small amount produced is more than likely completely excreted before even coming close to the brain. Other, "natural" foods also have methanol as a metabolic product. So again, unless you're either eating your body weight in aspartame or doing shots of methanol, the fear is unwarranted.

But hey, if you're scared of aspartame, don't consume it, no one is forcing you to. But while you're at it, you might as well stop consuming these as well.


Milk - Too many bad things to list. Apparently it's white poison. (cancer, arthritis, heart disease to name a few)

http://www.notmilk.com/


Soy Milk - Cancer, decreased thyroid function, blood clotting, decreased hormone production.

http://www.healingcrow.com/soy/soy.html


Carbonated Beverages - Bone loss, diabetes, cancer and obesity.

http://www.mindconnection.com/libra.../softdrinks.htm


Juice - Weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease.

http://healthtipswithdrlen.com/2006...-unhealthy.aspx


Tea - Cancer. (see a common theme?)

http://www.findarticles.com/p/artic..._n56/ai_9164614


Coffee - Heart disease.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3759948.stm


Sports Drinks - Dissolves your teeth.

http://www.health24.com/news/Dental/1-902,35689.asp


Alcohol - Cancer. (among other things)

http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/he...ol/howdoweknow/


As you can see, just about everything causes cancer. I guess you should just stick to water (although not too much) and pretty much avoid everything else and you'll be fine.



Or you can simply realize, as stated before, than in moderation aspartame, along with pretty much all normally consumed food items or substitutes, are perfectly safe.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono Unless you're consuming close to your own body weight in aspartame daily, you're fine.

Umm, that's not what I've read/heard. Apparently one glass of crystal light is over the safe amount to drink in one day.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono This is a classic example of extremes increasing the risk of cancer. It would be hard to find any one substance that in ridiculously huge amounts wouldn't cause some sort of medical issue.

Yeah, true, it's a multifaceted issue like many others, although I wouldn't call it extreme with out going beyond pharmaceutical industry funded/financed/influenced (in both direct and indirect ways) school text books/publication companies, med schools, and medical industry.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono I'm not sure where the chlorine concern comes in, considering aspartame is C14 H18 N2 O5. Ethanol crosses the blood brain barrier just as easily, in fact even more easily than methanol. The amount of methanol produced by aspartame metabolism is incredibly small and the small amount produced is more than likely completely excreted before even coming close to the brain.

That's quite the opposite of what I've heard from critics, the amount of methanol produced is far from negligible and I forgot the exact details of the methanol molecule, but if I remember correctly, it contains one carbon atom which are bodies don't exactly cope very well with.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono Other, "natural" foods also have methanol as a metabolic product. So again, unless you're either eating your body weight in aspartame or doing shots of methanol, the fear is unwarranted.

Yes, but the molecular structure is different which makes them safe for our bodies, since the carbon atom are in 2s and 3s (supposedly).

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono But hey, if you're scared of aspartame, don't consume it, no one is forcing you to.

Yeah, that's a responsible personal decision.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono But while you're at it, you might as well stop consuming these as well. Milk - Too many bad things to list. Apparently it's white poison. (cancer, arthritis, heart disease to name a few) http://www.notmilk.com/ Soy Milk - Cancer, decreased thyroid function, blood clotting, decreased hormone production. http://www.healingcrow.com/soy/soy.html Carbonated Beverages - Bone loss, diabetes, cancer and obesity. http://www.mindconnection.com/libra.../softdrinks.htm Juice - Weight gain, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease. http://healthtipswithdrlen.com/2006...-unhealthy.aspx Tea - Cancer. (see a common theme?) http://www.findarticles.com/p/artic..._n56/ai_9164614 Coffee - Heart disease. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3759948.stm Sports Drinks - Dissolves your teeth. http://www.health24.com/news/Dental/1-902,35689.asp Alcohol - Cancer. (among other things) http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/he...ol/howdoweknow/ As you can see, just about everything causes cancer. I guess you should just stick to water (although not too much) and pretty much avoid everything else and you'll be fine.

Well, I actually do almost completely avoid everything on that list or consume it in moderate amounts, especially carbonated beverages, with the exception of fruit juices. I try to keep my diet as natural and organic as possible.

quote:

Originally posted by NeoPhono Or you can simply realize, as stated before, than in moderation aspartame, along with pretty much all normally consumed food items or substitutes, are perfectly safe.

I agree that moderation is essential when it comes to diet, and generally speaking, in just about everything and that comes down to individuals being disciplined and responsible. The only problem is that moderate amounts of aspartame are so small that you might as well not use it at all, according to the critics who's research isn't funded or done by shady corparate instituions like NuetraSweet.

If you're interested in some further reading from alternate sources, you might want to check out Aspartame (Nutrasweet) Toxicity Information Center:

quote:

Detailed scientific and general documentation regarding the toxicity of nutrasweet, Equal, diet coke, diet pepsi, and other aspartame containing items. Web page includes real life reports of acute and chronic toxicity due to long-term ingestion. Also included is extensive scientific and general information and resources.

___________________
"The Greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge." -Stephen Hawking
"First they came for the communists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a communist;
Then they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a socialist;
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out— because I was not a trade unionist;
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out— because I was not a Jew;
Then they came for me— and there was no one left to speak out for me." -Martin Niemöller

quote:

Originally posted by shaolin_Z Well, I actually do almost completely avoid everything on that list or consume it in moderate amounts, especially carbonated beverages,

My body simply hates carbonated drinks. I just tend to bloat and feel like crap if I do drink them.

quote:

with the exception of fruit juices. I try to keep my diet as natural and organic as possible.

MMMMMmmmm....High Glucose Corn Syrup....
(which could easily be a whole other thread).

___________________
"...End? No, the journey doesn't end here. Death is just another path...one that we all must take.
The grey rain-curtain of this world rolls back, and all change to silver glass...and then you see it...
...white shores...and beyond...the far green country under a swift sunrise."