This is David Schakett's story about his personal involvement with aspartame (a poison and brain cancer-producing food additive). It's hard to believe what he went through after drinking just 6 diet cokes - Shocking! (11 minute audio) HERE
A child's health was compromised after cosuming Aspartame
Most of these reports below originated from various sources such as Dorway.com, Mission Possible and The Aspartame (Nutrasweet) Toxicity Info Centre. There are more HERE.
But first, a short account from a whistleblower...
INFORMANT:
Date: Sun, 21 Dec 2008 16:43:57 -0500
To: bettym19@mindspring.com
From: "Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum." <xxxx xxxx>
Subject: xxxx xxxxaffidavit
Date: Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:32:23 -0800 (PST)
From: xxxx xxxxx <xxxx xxxx@yahoo.com>
Subject: my experience w/ the cover-up
To: xxxx xxxx
Dear Betty:
I lived near Columbia, MD and worked as a temp. It was the late 80's and Regan had been elected president. I was a national officer in the largest christian singles organization and needed to travel a lot so I worked as a professional temp.
I was sent from a Laural, Md tem agency to an office complex at a corner intersection near Jessup, Md ( I can find out the exact location if you really need it). I am an executive secretary w/ high skills and made top dollar. This job paid top dollar. I was asked to take piles of paper and COPY, THEN SHRED them. I was told very sternly NOT to read the material and that if I did I would be fired. Well, I grew up in the military in the 60's w/ secrets all around and I'm very curious. I am afterall a paralegal. So, I read while copied and read while shredded.
Here's what was going on. The copies were being sent to France, then I was shredding them, too and the originals were being shredded. They were about the new product not yet on the market, EQUAL. They were the lab results from the tested rats and other animals. The results were outrageous. This stuff killed everything it touched.
I overheard a conversation on the second day by the "boss" and the girls who was telling me what to do. She told him what I was doing and that I was also doing the faxing to France. He was livid and started screaming at her, "What if she reads some of this stuff?" she told him I was too stupid to know what I was reading, even if I did.
What she didn't know was that I was a doctor's daughter, that I had 3 years of college and I was extremely intellegent. Nor did she know that all during my father's college years when he was in charge of the animal lab at his college, he would take me to help give the rats their injections. I knew what I was reading.
We know that you know some of this information, but did you know the originals are in France? I should have told someone then, but WHO? I just never touched the stuff when it came out and tell everyone I know it is dangerous stuff. I didn't know it was the Aspartame in it that was the problem until recently. A friend of mine sent me to this web site so that I could finally tell what I know.
I hope you find that the Reagan Administration (which I believe is the case) did this intentionally. though I'm a republican, that has nothing to do with what happened here.
If they can take Neuronton or other drugs off the market because of their effect on people, they can take this off the market. The cover-up is horrific.
Thx for what you do.
God Bless and have a good day,
xxxx
Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2008 21:33:11 -0800 (PST)
From: xxxx xxxx <xxxx xxxx
Subject: yes, you have permission
To: "Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum." <xxxx xxxx>
Dear Betty,
Yes, you have my permission to use my letter. I will help you in any way I can to get this stuff off the market.
-------------
No more soda
Monday, February 24, 2020, (Sparkpeople.com) JOFIE 36
Drank diet dr. Pepper yesterday ... around 20 ounces..... woke up bloated and hands swelled up... yep no more soda.
But first, a short account from a whistleblower...
INFORMANT:
Date: Sun, 21 Dec 2008 16:43:57 -0500
To: bettym19@mindspring.com
From: "Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum." <xxxx xxxx>
Subject: xxxx xxxxaffidavit
Date: Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:32:23 -0800 (PST)
From: xxxx xxxxx <xxxx xxxx@yahoo.com>
Subject: my experience w/ the cover-up
To: xxxx xxxx
Dear Betty:
I lived near Columbia, MD and worked as a temp. It was the late 80's and Regan had been elected president. I was a national officer in the largest christian singles organization and needed to travel a lot so I worked as a professional temp.
I was sent from a Laural, Md tem agency to an office complex at a corner intersection near Jessup, Md ( I can find out the exact location if you really need it). I am an executive secretary w/ high skills and made top dollar. This job paid top dollar. I was asked to take piles of paper and COPY, THEN SHRED them. I was told very sternly NOT to read the material and that if I did I would be fired. Well, I grew up in the military in the 60's w/ secrets all around and I'm very curious. I am afterall a paralegal. So, I read while copied and read while shredded.
Here's what was going on. The copies were being sent to France, then I was shredding them, too and the originals were being shredded. They were about the new product not yet on the market, EQUAL. They were the lab results from the tested rats and other animals. The results were outrageous. This stuff killed everything it touched.
I overheard a conversation on the second day by the "boss" and the girls who was telling me what to do. She told him what I was doing and that I was also doing the faxing to France. He was livid and started screaming at her, "What if she reads some of this stuff?" she told him I was too stupid to know what I was reading, even if I did.
What she didn't know was that I was a doctor's daughter, that I had 3 years of college and I was extremely intellegent. Nor did she know that all during my father's college years when he was in charge of the animal lab at his college, he would take me to help give the rats their injections. I knew what I was reading.
We know that you know some of this information, but did you know the originals are in France? I should have told someone then, but WHO? I just never touched the stuff when it came out and tell everyone I know it is dangerous stuff. I didn't know it was the Aspartame in it that was the problem until recently. A friend of mine sent me to this web site so that I could finally tell what I know.
I hope you find that the Reagan Administration (which I believe is the case) did this intentionally. though I'm a republican, that has nothing to do with what happened here.
If they can take Neuronton or other drugs off the market because of their effect on people, they can take this off the market. The cover-up is horrific.
Thx for what you do.
God Bless and have a good day,
xxxx
Date: Wed, 27 Feb 2008 21:33:11 -0800 (PST)
From: xxxx xxxx <xxxx xxxx
Subject: yes, you have permission
To: "Dr. Betty Martini,D.Hum." <xxxx xxxx>
Dear Betty,
Yes, you have my permission to use my letter. I will help you in any way I can to get this stuff off the market.
-------------
No more soda
Monday, February 24, 2020, (Sparkpeople.com) JOFIE 36
Drank diet dr. Pepper yesterday ... around 20 ounces..... woke up bloated and hands swelled up... yep no more soda.
This account from 'The Migraine Girl'
[continued]
Had to send in my personal experience before stumbling
off to bed.... I did have neurological symptoms that I feel were the result of
consuming sugarfree desserts and drinks sweetened with aspartame. I had muscle
tremors that made it feel like we were having an earthquake when I was trying
to go to sleep at night. Since I
completely stopped consuming any of these products the last 5 years I have had
no shaking sensations... My son gets zero of these products. I noticed that when I ate desserts sweetened
with aspartame the tremors returned. I
think the stuff is VERY questionable.
1. Re: Blinded by NutraSweet (aspartame)
Date 4
Jan 1996 03:29:00 GMT
Keywords
Aspartame poisoning
Newsgroups
sci.med.vision
I am only a physicist, with a private pilot's license,
among many other interests. As such, I
keep abreast of a great many publications, some of which bear directly on this
topic. Many professional pilots have permanently lost their licenses to fly due
to Aspartame-induced epilectic seizures and other severe side effects of that
poison.
2. Date: Tue, 2 Jun 98 17:33 BST-1
Subject: Aspartame... the BAD news!
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
I'm 42, male, in reasonable general health (if slightly
over weight) and run a small computer company near Oxford, U.K.
I switched to Aspartame-based sweeteners in tea and
coffee several years ago. Over the past 9 months I've been suffering from bouts
of diarrhoea on an approximately twice-weekly basis usually without any
apparent cause. Over the past two months these had been getting more severe
with bouts lasting several days. Unpleasant and uncomfortable but not
accompanied by vomiting or feeling really lousy as one might normally expect
from food poisoning or a stomach bug.
I tried various modification of diet (already having
excluded almost all prepared foods in favour of a low-fat diet of fresh fruit,
vegetables, chicken and fish) and exercise which made little difference
Three weeks ago I read 'Aspartame... the BAD news!' and
decided to stop using artificial sweeteners or products containing them. Here
in the UK this was a pelleted and Granular sweetener marketed as 'Canderel'
plus the occasional diet Pepsi or diet Lilt. I did this just as an experiment
(I'm a bit of a cynic about 'Internet Scares' I'm afraid!).
The diarrhoea stopped within a day and hasn't (fingers
crossed!) returned. Bowel motions are now more normal than they have been for
many months. I still have some digestive problems; I hope these will improve as
the effects of Aspartame on my system dissipate and that there is little or no
permanent damage.
3. To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Case History - xxxxxx
Date: Fri, 30 May 1997 09:46:53 +0100
We have a daughter - Laura born 15/06/94 so she is nearly
3 now. In October 96 we weaned Laura off baby fruit juices onto the more
everyday sort of fruit squashes e.g.
Ribena. We were very aware of the
high sugar content of many of these squashes with the link this has to dental
health problems. We saw juices in the supermarket labelled "No Added
Sugar" and thought this seemed to be an answer to the problem fruit juice
and no excess sugar to trigger dental problems.
In late December 96 Laura developed a rash, particularly
on her extremities and lower abdomen, her hands were very badly effected. We
took her to our local GP and this resulted in a diagnosis of eczema; the Doctor
prescribed an application of topical cream, and recommended taking Laura off
dairy milk onto Soya Milk. Laura drinks
little milk anyhow so that seemed a strange diagnosis we were unhappy with this
and decided to look further into possible causes. The condition became more
advanced and a further visit to the GP saw us with a different topical cream
and reassurance that it was indeed eczema.
Around that time I subscribed to an Internet provider but
due to PC limitations only used the service to access e-mail. One night I was reading an e-mail from a
fellow member of the local Friends of The Earth group in which he sent me
details of Mission Possible and Aspartame. As I read I saw similarities with
the problem we encountered with Laura, I looked at the label on our "No
Added Sugar" concentrate and sure enough found Aspartame on its list of
contents. Taking Laura off the substance,
saw the rash has all but gone within 14 days, but for the first 5 or so
days, (Aspartame free) she was like
someone in withdrawal, aggressive and craving the substance.
I passed this information to our GP practice and the
local newspaper, the former simply added it to Laura's case notes and the newspaper
is treating it as too hot to touch. I
sent the case history to the Times and Independent neither followed it up. We
are convinced that Aspartame is the trigger for Laura's problems, we suspect it
is in children's toothpaste - unlabelled and many other products e.g. low fat
yoghurts and Tescos Clear Apple Juice.
Consumption of both resulted in an almost instant rash
and return of behavioural problems.
4. Newsgroups: sci.med.nutrition
Subject: Re: Aspartame/Nutrasweet
Date: Thu May 16 13:43:33 1996
I'm a medical research scientist with doctorate
credential from polytechic university, etc, and 25 years of experience. We were
able to cure 75% of people in the migraine clinic at mount sinai medical center
in nyc by simply taking them off aspartame. Of course nutrition is far more
than just staying away from aspartame.
5. Date: Sun, 30 Mar 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
I have bookmarked your page and am printing off the pages
to give to my sick friends. It is
remarkable that you chose to post this information to the internet. My story is that I was diagnosed with
fibromyalgia. I am a medical
professional and have noted the exponential rise in autoimmune degenerative
neurological conditions in the last 15 years.
The fibromyalgia predominantly strikes women and mine was
triggered by the birth of my daughter and a surgery. I also used DayPro, but it
was quite useless except to make me tired and go to sleep for the total fitfull
time of 4 hours per night. Since the
symptoms are primarily neurological, I back-tracked histories of myself and several of my patients. We had all had surgery but not all had had
general anesthetic and a neuro muscular blocker as I had. We all had used nutrasweet!!
I am a heavy user and have used about 2 liters of diet
soda daily since the day the stuff hit the market. My symptoms:
screaming leg pain mostly at bedtime. The most defining pain was the
intra scapular tearing pain. There was
one panic attack, heart palpitations nearly daily (no cardiac involvement, that
was tested). Joint pain (no swelling and
no articular deterioration), teeth grinding and nightmares, evening time
rashes, slowed speech and forgetfulness, depression and moodiness, vomiting and
coughing in the morning and loss of about 80 percent of my strength.
Previously, I had worked out at a gym and could leg press
over 800 pounds. That went down to less than 50 pounds. I couldn't get back up
from the floor without climbing up my own legs. There never were any
headaches. I used Prozac for several
months until I couldn't sleep at all. I
had physical therapy also at that time.
The prozac was great to get some neurotransmitter back in my muscles and
the strength is about 60 percent better but the side effects were bad for
me. It gave me strength to train in
physical therapy. I have discontinued
the prozac due to side effected and the ever present stigma associated with the
drug.
I've been off nutrasweet for about a week except that I
had some gum 2 days ago that was laced with the stuff. Within the first 3 days the fog has really
lifted and my toes are coming back, there's pain where there was numbness. In order to walk some mornings, I had to soak
my feet in super hot water and then stick them on the frozen cement of the
garage floor. This is called contrast therapy which shocked the feet so I could
walk.
....
As a medical professional who can affect change, I vow to
use my experience to help my patients recover their lives. I will write again
to tell you of my progress.
[update]
6. Date: Mon, 14 Jul 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: 3 months off Nutrasweet
I can walk. I can
think. I'm creative again. I sleep most nights. Wow!
What a difference without Nutrasweet!
It's great to have my life back; to be able to remember
how to use my vocabulary, to not have anxiety attacks and paranoia over common
events. I no longer blank out. I've
worked very hard to be able to walk a mile a day at a brisk pace and can do it
daily now.
I have incapacitating flair ups but it's nothing compared
to how sick I was. The turning point was
at about 80 days. Again, bless you, bless you, bless you for posting this
information to the
web.
7. Date: Sat, 15 Mar 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Diet Coke
My husband and I run our own business. It meant many long
hours, specially with the onset of the recession and all its implications. My
husband has always drunk coke, but for dietry reasons and in order to stay
awake (often working seventeen hour days-I also worked long hours but do not
drink coke) drank more and more diet coke. Inevitably this sleep deprivation
combined with a certain amount of isolation plus a need to drink up to SIX
LITRES of diet coke a day led to a sense of complete despair, depression and
poor self esteem. Add to this the pressures of a young family, job insecurity
and little outside help or support and
things were pretty bleak. I realized I could no longer
continue this way and began to extend my hours of sleep.
My husband still felt all the same pressures and could not be persuaded to
sleep better hours, saying that it was the way he worked, and was still
drinking large quantities of coke - I believe he was well and truly addicted to
diet coke and was unable to help himself. With incredible determination both my
husband and I managed to improve our overall lifestyle and overcome the
associated problems, however having lessened the amount of coke he consumed my
husband was still addicted to it. Now with other problems lessoned I could
clearly see the affect diet coke has on him. when he is not drinking diet coke
he is like a new person, or at least the person I once knew. BUT after
abstaining for a week then drinking it these are the characteristics I see
-
Depression, aggression (pent-up or verbal aggression not
physical) a sense of hopelessness, unable to sleep, poor concentration, poor
communication, trouble with eyesight, chest/lung problems. Also when he
abstained from drinking coke altogether he looked healthier AND lost weight
naturally.
8. Date: Fri, 19 Apr 1996 23:58:30 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: RE:Coke/Nutrasweet
I am 38. Twenty-two years ago (gulp - I must be
old!) I was apprenticing to a ballet
company, when the ballet master was harassing everyone to lose more weight, one
point driven home was, "If you want to lose weight, DO NOT drink
diet sodas. Drink water or unsweetend ice tea or hot
tea.") Therefore, for my entire life, I've never voluntarily consumed
artificially sweetened beverages or products. Besides, they all taste foul.
Over the years I've become a working actress and a
fitness trainer. Six weeks ago I booked a Crystal Light commercial. During the
day's shooting I had to drink a total of about three glasses of the beverage -
the shots were such that it was impossible to 'fake drink' or drink and spit.
The following morning I woke up with an abdomen swollen to three or four months
pregnancy in appearance. I thought I had put on some weight, having been
married the week before and eaten to my heart's content. However, my entire
intestinal system was upset: gas, tenderness, constipation. Nothing for three
days would relieve the bloating, and believe me, I reverted to all the instant
weight
loss secrets I've learned over the years. On the fourth day,
I woke up, urinated for what seemed an hour, and my system was fine. Obviously,
these sweetened actually make one RETAIN water rather than simply running the
system as water does. The only really abnormal thing I'd
consumed for three weeks was the Crystal Light - everything else was
"real" food. I counsel all my clients to reject all foods containing
not only artificial sweeteners, but also - and I dread to learn in a few years
what they'll reveal about the artificial fats - artificial fats.
9. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
Mon, 30 Sep 1996 17:15:21 -0500
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
It's easy to ignore reality, if that is what you choose
to do, Bill. I have been a reseach
chemist for 40+ years, and have been working in the position of a senior
principal research scientist for many years.
I feel that I have the qualifications to make intelligent decisions
regarding the subject of Nutrasweet. I
have suffered from food allergies for years, and I, and many of my friends have
presented markedly alleviated symptoms upon the elimination of aspatame from
our diets. If even 1% or less of the claims
made against the use and political manipulation of aspartame are true, it would
still be something to seriously consider for further scientific investigation.
10. Date: Wed, 22 May 1996 12:29:32 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxxx
Subject: Thank You for Awareness Building
A colleague of mine gave me a paper prepared by yourself
which discussed the effects of aspartame. It was a real eye-opener, and really
highlighted just how ignorant the mass of the general public is about the
toxins we readily consume as part of our everyday diet. I am quite careful
about what I eat, but being British I had a strong taste for tea (and the sugar
that goes with it). To cut down on the sugar I had been taking aspartame-based
sweeteners. I am someone who drinks something like 15 cups of tea a day, two
sweeteners in each cup.
Fortunately, I had only been taking these for a few
months - and came off them a week or so ago. I recollect feeling a little
'sticky' visually, but put that down to general wear and tear. Yes, I had been
having headaches, unusual for me, but again put that down to stress.
11. Date: 4 Sep 1996 13:14:04 gmt
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: A Further Thanks!
Well being off aspartame has made me feel so much better.
Now when I am shopping I actually take the time to read the contents /
ingredients labels. If its aspartame its back on the shelf - soft drinks and
squashes are virtually non-consumable because nearly all contain aspartame.
Most of my friends are steering clear of those products that contain it. They
even make sure there is no aspartame in anything they give me to drink or eat -
and that's without me reminding them! I am actually feeling a lot healthier,
eye-sight much better (apart from having to use a PC for my work Excel /
PowerPoint trainer and application developer).
12. Date: Thu, 9 May 1996 00:51:40 -0400
To: Multiple recipients of list
<pilots@cadserv.cadlab.vt.edu>
Subject: Re: Introduction: Betty Martini - OPERATION
MISSION POSSIBLE
I had not heard anything bad about aspartame until a
couple years ago when I was an intern at Continental Airlines. I met a captain who lost his medical
certification and his job because of a reaction he had to consuming the
sweetener. He went into a seizure
shortly after consuming a diet cola. The
doctors confirmed that it was caused by Nutrasweet. His medical was taken away because of the
seizure and now he is some sort of consultant.
Since my
talk with him, I've tried to avoid consuming anything
with aspartame. Obviously this reaction occurs in very few individuals,
otherwise we would hear a lot more about it...but I just don't want to take
that chance. Just another point of view......
13. To: xxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame Consumer Safety Questionnaire
Aspartame Consumer Safety Questionnaire:
Name: xxxxxxxxx
Age: 39
Sex: Male
City:
xxxxxxxx, British Columbia, Canada
I have had many medical problems as the result of
Aspartame (Sweet Death).
Q. Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
A. The problems presented themselves after only a few
months of consuming food products with aspartame.
Q. Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
A. Yes, but it took some time for the symptoms to
subside.
Q. Did you see a Doctor?
A. Yes.
Q. Did the Doctor think it related to aspartame?
A. No, he related it to stress, caffeine, etc. Aspartame never entered the picture.
Q. Did you report problems to FDA?
A. No. I only
reported the problem to my Doctor. He
displayed a lot of interest in my findings and wanted to know where he could
find more information.
Q. What specific products were you consuming?
A. Gum (One pack per day) and diet drinks (about one per
day).
Q. How long have you been consuming these products?
A. About 5-6 months.
As time marched on, I consumed more products.
MY SYMPTOMS:
1. Diziness
2. Severe
headaches
3. Confusion
4. Numbness and
tingling of extremeties
5. Chronic fatigue
6. Irratibility
7. Rapid heart
beat, Tachycardia
8. Nausea
9. Diarrhea
10. Burning urination
11. Burning of eyes
I hope this gives you an idea of what this stuff does to
the poor consumer...
14. Date: Fri, 02 Aug 96 09:33:01 GMT
Newgroups: rec.aviation.military,
rec.aviation.military.naval,
misc.news.internet, misc.health.infertility, misc.legal,
misc.health.therapy.occupation, misc.health.alternative, misc.education,
misc.emerg-services, misc.consumers
Subject: Re: Deadline Mon, 7/29 to object to aspartame
blanket approval;URGENT
I may have posted this before, but feel it applies here
especially. I have a patient who came to
me with a four-year-old medical diagnosis of Crohn's disease (a severe form of
irritable bowel syndrome). One single
chiropractic
adjustment and immediate total abstinance from
aspartame/NutraSweet products resulted in immediate and total remission of her
symptoms. She is now telling all her
friends about the doctor who made it possible for her to be
stomach cramp free and diarrhea free for the first time
in years.
It is my professional opinion, based upon both my
clinical findings and my training in nutrition, that http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/
deserves a significant portion of the credit for this woman's recovery.
15. Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 14:19:04 EDT
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nutrasweet
Tue, 5 May 1998
Last night, I decided to do some browsing on the Internet
concerning Nutrasweet. I have had severe
problems in the past for many years with this stuff, but finally tested myself
by leaving it alone for 3 wks. and found after just 2 wks. That I definitely
could see a change in how I felt. My mother is experiencing health problems and
my sister, who has also found that she can't tolerate it, and I started to do
some research last night to find out why she is having this particular problem.
...
Haven't been able to convince her of this yet. I asked her the last time I visited with her,
to leave it off for 3 solid wks. and see if she noticed a change. She's
reluctant to do it. I can understand it.
It took a friend from October to August, three yrs. ago, to convince me
to try leaving it off for 3 wks. I'm so
glad that I did. I had thought that I
was dying. I could hardly function. For
over 10 yrs I experienced chronic diarrhea, severe stomach cramping, isolation
because of the diarrhea, dizziness, depression, low energy. I even had one
doctor to diagnose me with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. I was experiencing weakness all over,
especially my legs. I've had two MRI's
since 1988, thinking that I might be developing MS, also. I couldn't eat out
without coming straight home.
If my daughters wanted to shop, I could only go to one
store, and then, come home. If we went shopping and they wanted to eat out, we
shopped at one store and then ate, and then came straight home. At home, when I
cooked a meal, I didn't have the energy to wash the dishes until the next
morning. Since going completely off that stuff, I have slowly regained my
ability to walk the length of the mall, can stay away from the house for longer
periods of time. I don't have to hold on to shopping carts to maintain my
balance. I still have some cramping and
diarrhea, but it isn't nearly as bad as it used to be. I don't break out in cold sweats anymore or
feel faint, worrying if I'll make it to the restroom. Please forgive me for
being so personal in this letter. No one knows how I've suffered due to this.
If my letter helps one person to leave Nutrasweet alone, or help change Diet
Coke, or get it off the market, it's well worth my time to write this.
16. Date: Mon, 22 Jul 1996 23:19:55 -0400
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: [Fwd: Re: Is Nutrisweet a poison? You bet
your sweet ASPARTAME!]
Having worked for government for 30 years I know that the
prime directive is self preservation of government. ie:(FDA) I wouldn't trust any government bureau any
farther than I can throw my car!
Why? Because I saw it from the
inside. I know that I know, that I know!
Now as far as aspartame is concerned in that search I found plenty of evidence
that many health problems that I had could be explained with my heavy aspartame
intake for 12 years. The final blow came
when some time ago I heard, long before I came to the internet that there was a
chance that
Aspartame was causing the severe pains in my legs at
night. They hurt so bad I could not sleep in bed but had to sleep in a
recliner. I quit aspartame for awhile
and sure enough my leg pains subsided and I could stand to wash my legs without
pain. All was well, I thought, but you
see I was hooked on the stuff and being diabetic with high insuline
resistance I couldn't resist going back on it. Well I don't have to draw you a picture what
happened all too soon. Severe pain in
legs again and back in the recliner. Now entered the internet. I did my due dilegance (sp) and again concluded
if there was any truth in what I had learned it could stand the test the second
time. I again quit ingesting
aspartame and again within a week or two the pain was
gone. I started being civil to my
family. I could think more clearly again
and in general I felt better. Now you tell me, with everything else being equal
and having gone through this fiasco twice, would I want to do it again?
17. Date: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 16:48:49 -0600
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: My aspartame story.
I would like to register a complaint about Nutrasweet. I
have experienced headaches, short term memory loss, dizzyness, and seizure-like
symptoms while consuming this product.
Because of the above symptoms, I spent several years
seeing neurologists who ran a litany of tests.
Amazingly, all tests showed absolutely no abnormailities. According to the doctors they could not
identify any reason for the seizures or other symptoms. Nevertheless, I should take the seizure
medicines tegretol and neurontin.
All along, I new there was a cause for the symptoms even
if the neurologists couldn't find it. I
am not one to give up without an answer.
...and I knew the seizure symptoms did not appear out of the blue....
However, I remembered during a 3 month trip to Malaysia,
during which I had no access to Nutrasweet, that I had no seizures, no
headaches, no memory loss. Just a
coincidence, absolutely not. Therefore, I decided to try a little experiment. That experiment was to end the consumption of
all aspartame, and of my seizure medicine.
That day was December 27, 1997, my birthday. Since
this day, I have not had any seizures, any headaches, my
memory has returned, and I feel 100 times better. Coincidence, not at all.
I had been having headaches daily. I had been having constant memory problems
which threatened the completion of my MBA. I had been having seizures regularly
even while on neurontin and tegretol.
Coincidence, that all the symptoms ended when I removed aspartame from
my life. Absolutely, positively not.
Seems to me that I may well be able to prove a causal
relationship between the my consumption of Nutrasweet and my health
problems. Therefore, I am in the process
of searching for an attorney.
For now, I realize that this is just anecdotal evidence,
and that Monsanto doesn't give a damn about my health. Though in an very minute way they care about
me because I will never consume that which is poison to me...Nutrasweet.
18. Date: Mon, 20 Apr 1998 15:52:36 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame Victim
I would like to tell you about my personal experiences
with aspartame and what I feel that it has done to me....
In the last two years I have become a *heavy* Diet Pepsi
drinker (approximately 2 two liters a day, plus NutraSweet in my coffe, and
many so called "diet" products once my weight gain began.... and I the more NutraSweet I consumed the more
weight I put on....) hearing things about how NutraSweet was bad for you, but
never really knowing the facts. I don't know exactly how long after starting to
drink that much of the soda my symptoms started to appear, but I would say that
it was about six to eight months. For a little over a year now I have had to
deal with *tremendous* weight gain. I always had a little bit of extra meat on
my body, but I was always active enough to keep it level. I never changed
weight much, but in the last year I have put on approximately 70 pounds, all in
my thighs and hips. (This may or may not be all from aspartame, obviously, but
I don't know....)
In addition to the weight gain, I have had AWFUL mood
problems. I have been diagnosed as manic depressive, and have started to have
anxiety attacks. I don't know how much of my other physical ailments were
caused by aspartame, but before I list them let me say that previous to my
drinking the soda all the time, I didn't have any of the symptoms. I was an
average, mostly healthy 19 year old girl. I have always had very very minor
arthritis (since I was a child) and very light athsma (never
"attacks", but it made normal colds worse)...... the rest of these
things, I never had ever had wrong with me until I started drinking the soda
all the time.
anxiety attacks/panic attacks
bloating
breathing difficulties/chronic cough
burning urination
VERY CHRONIC FATIGUE
depression (Very Badly)
EXTREMELY EXCESIVE THIRST AND HUNGER
face flushing
thinning/losing hair
extreme loss of sexual feelings (has caused huge problems
with my fiancee and I)
inability to concentrate
insomnia (Severe)
irratibility
itching
joint pains
VERY marked personality changes
memory loss/poor memory/not as good as it used to be
EXTREMELY MESSED UP menstrual cycles
numbless/tingling of extremities
EXTREME WEIGHT GAIN
I am now 21 years old, and I honestly feel like I'm an 85
year old. (No offense to anyone older, but I think you get what I mean...) I
just don't feel young and full of life the way I used to. I thought these
things were all wrong with me because of my "manic depression" that
the doctor said I had. I thought that all of it was in my head.... I have spent
time actively thinking that I am an awful human being, fat and lazy and
worthless. Tracing these emotions backwards, I realize that they all started
after my HEAVY consumption of Diet Pepsi started. I used to be vibrant, full of
confidence and able to spend a day being physically active with the best of
them.
Now I can't do any of those things.
[update]
19. Date: Wed, 10 Jun 1998
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: My 60 days is over!!
I am just writing to update my personal aspartame story.
;) Sometime a little over 60 days ago I
wrote to you with my horror story about aspartame. I am the 21 year old who
felt as though I were 95. I had a list of symptoms as long as my arm, and was
convinced that my entire life was on a downward spiral into destruction. But
now!!
60 days later and I swear to God I feel like a new
person. My personality has just changed so much!! I feel like I did years ago,
before I started putting that poison into my body. The panic/anxiety and
depression and nastiness has just faded away. My sleeping patterns have
returned to normal. I eat and drink like a normal person now, without the
excessive consumption. I can move like I used to, without the pains and
aches.... Just so many things about me have returned to how they should be. I'm 21 again and just so happy I could
scream!!
I just wanted to write to you and thank you for all the
information you have out there about aspartame. I have told friends and family,
I have taken the flyer to the supermarkets and other local places and I think
that people who I have talked to about it have started to listen! It's
wonderful.
I am a tribute to the values of keeping that junk out of
your body. It's an awful good thing my boyfriend loved me enough to stay with
me through all the horrible mood swings and things I put him through.... He's
getting quite the benifits also, from the me he used to know before I started
to become a bitter old person.
Thank you xxxxxx, for spreading the word about this. I
appreciate it more than I can say.
20. Date: Sat, 28 Mar 1998 18:50:41 -0800
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Recent diagnosis of MS
Hi. Thank you for being here. I have used Aspartame since
it came out. I would use at least 10 packs per day! ACHHHH! Well, I started
tripping and falling 2 and 1/2 yrs ago; before that, I was told that I was an
early [30y.old menopause]! Well I called the tripping part "peripheral
Neuropathy". Finally, a brain scan was requested-probable MS. Then 3 wks
ago, I learned that ASPARTAME mimmicks MS! I quit anf PRAYED really hard. A
spinal tap was done , and there are 4 or 5 bands in my CSF.
....
Oh, and ASpartmae DID make me crave sweets, and I did NOT
lose any weight!
21. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: xxxxxxxx
Date: Thu, 14 May 1998 13:10:07 -0700
I had been OFF aspartame 3mos and was feeling pretty
well; THEN I had a snowball. The
tingling started in my legs and feet, I lost my balance, had a headache that
persisted for 6hrs, couldn't sleep and had the bathroom urges.Asparatame DID
IT!!!!!!!!!! All that money and detoxers have been wasted because there was
aspartame in the syrup! No MORE snowballs!!!!!!!!! If I don't prepare it, if it
doesn't come from a health dood store, AVOID IT!!!!!!!!!
[continued]
22. Date: Tue, 26 May 1998 11:41:35 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame case
Hi. Thanks to xxxxxx, I have been OFF aspartame for three
months! I couldn't FEEL my hands and toes and would trip and fall!! Now I can feel them!!!! Chewing the sugarless gum
or anyting with aspartame is really bad since it works through the amalgams and
GETS into your BRAIN!!!! Then , the "doctors" will identify lesions
and diagnose MS, when actually they are aspartame lesions. It is a deadly neurotoxin,
and we need to get it OFF the market! EVERYONE has a side effect. Lord, help
us!
[continued]
23. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: GOOD NEWS!!!!NO MS!!!!!!!
Date: Wed, 27 May 1998 15:13:55 -0700
Well, I have been detoxing from aspartame since Feb 1998,
and TODAY, the #1 MS Dr. in N.O. told me that I presented as NORMAL with NO MS
symptomology!!!!!
24. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Thank you
Date: Sun, 14 Jun 1998
19:32:03 PDT
I began to have head tremors
about a year or so ago, and they were getting
worse. Whenever I was tired or sitting
still watching TV or (very embarrassing)
in the middle of a meeting, my head would shake. To the degree that caused me great
concern. I went to the doctors but all
test including an MRI told me nothing was wrong. I knew better. So I got on the internet and put in
"head tremors" that's when I
found the aspertame reaction page. You
have no idea what it was like to "Possibly" know what was wrong. After 2 months of giving up aspertame, my
head still shook and I was about to give up, thinking I must be wrong, but into
the third month of not drinking my usual 3 diet cokes a
day, not only have the tremors
let up, I can actual think much, much clearer and don't forget what I'm saying
in the middle of a sentence. I feel like
the "fog" I have been in has lifted.
But that's only the beginning.
Ten years ago I almost died... are you
ready for this from seizures that had no cause, no cure. Back then I drank diet
soda constantly also and gave it up during one of my "hospital"
stays. They never did find out what was
wrong with me. I was on medication like
you would not believe when I was sent to a doctor at Yale School of Medicine in
New Haven, CT who decided to remove me from the unbelievable amounts of
medications the previous doctors had me on to start from scratch. I was
even scheduled to have surgery
to have a part of my brain removed to stopped the seizures. But as she began to lessen my medication, I
was able to stand up and walk across the room without having a seizure, I was
able to remember who had just visited me, I could go on, but you get the
picture. The final diagnoses because there was no other answer was and I quote
"convulsive syncope brought on by non-epileptic medicines". I went from an invalid who could not move to
an unbelievably busy person.
When the tremors started, so did the
fear. I will never know if it was the
aspertame that almost killed me, all signs point to that fact, but I do know
for a fact, that the aspertame caused my tremors and brain fog.
Thank you for spreading the word, I look
forward to feeling better and better every day.
And please encourage people to not give up, the poison takes time to get
out of your system.
25. Date: Tue, 12 May 1998
11:46:27 -0500
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame Illness
Diagnosed............
I am a type II diabetic and
had been taking Nutrasweet for years. I
had noticed that stress and anxiety in my body, specially in the morning on waking
up and stretchy legs at night. I felt uncomfortable
with this unexplained stress but the doctors could not identify it. I had also noticed over the last several
years difficulty in memory and attributed it to old age. I am 48 and thought that this is what starts
happening when you get old. Oh yes, I had also noticed severe joint pain specially
in shoulder, hips, and knees. I recently
had some intense periodontal work done and was put on tetracycline medication
for infection. Within one week I had an
acute vertigo attack. I thought I was
having a stroke and was whisked to the ER at the hospital. I was told by doctors that there was no
explanation for this and given medication.
The vertigo subsided as I told the doctors of my now morning stress and
anxiety, and that my body was telling me something. About a week later the
morning anxiety got so bad that I had to go to the ER again and beg for help. A triage nurse talked to be and both her and
the doctor tried to convince me that since I was recently looking for a new
job, the anxiety was in my head. They
put me on Buspar. I kept on saying
something is not right and even though the Buspar took the edges off the
anxiety or panic attacks I felt like life was soon coming to an end. Very scary and depressing.
Searching the net with my symptoms I started to see a
pattern and then one morning last weekend a got a severe anxiety surge just
after I had eaten some cereal with Nutrasweet spinkled on it. Could it be that I am allergic to
Aspertene? I stopped using it and within
several days felt like a new person. I
can sleep at night and life is looking great.
I thought I would pass this on to you. You can repost it or use this information at
you see fit. Please in return let me
know of possible organizations or others, specially diabetics that I can pass
this on
too. I wish I had
known sooner, since I would imagine that serious damage has been done to my
body and I am sure overall affected my life span. I am angry at how such a damaging product is
still being used.
[continued]
26. Date: Wed, 27 May 1998 17:48:28 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: So much improvement off aspartame.
Just thought I would give you
an update. I don't know if this is important
in your records but I thought I would pass it on. When I had my acute vertigo attack and
thought I was having a heart attack, I noticed a slurring or drooping of one
side of my mouth, I think it was the left, but not sure. I told the doctors that I had this sensation
and the looked puzzled since it is not common with a vertigo attack. It was temporary just during the initial attack. I have never had, and hope I never again,
another vertigo attack so I really cannot compare the severity of my attack
with anything else. It seemed to me that
I was having a heart attack. Also, the
vertigo attack and anxiety attacks were worst in the morning when just getting
up. Just thought I would pass this on since
you seem to be the center of data
collection.
Right now I feel great. My energy level has skyrocketed and my
daughter who is 21 complains when she visits now because we are always walking
or going somewhere. She used to like
coming over to visit because we would just sit and veg. Have already lost 15 lbs in the last couple
of weeks. It will be time for some new
clothes pretty soon. This reversal in my
body in no way can be a coincidence.
Enjoy your list messages.
27. Date: Mon, 23 Feb 1998 11:13:01 -0500
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame reaction
I found your site just in time and it has stopped me
cold. I no longer use anything with
Aspartame. In 1992, I was diaganosed
with Severe Hypoglycemia. I was told to
not ingest any sugar whatsoever, and I was put on a strict diabetic exchange
diet. Months went by and in october I
began finding a bunch of sugar free alternatives to those things I loved so
much - ice cream, candy, hot cocoa etc.
Well, after several months I began to develop acne. Keep in mind that I had never had a pimple in
my life and I was 22 at the time. Well,
I tried ewverything - accutance, retin a, euryderm etc. - It helped a little. Then in 1995, I began ingested a lot more
nutrasweet - on my cereal, in my tea, several diet cokes a day.
Well, I began to develop anxiety and sleep disorders - I
did not sleep for a week. I became
obsessive and plagued with worry. I
thought it was caffiene - si I stopped it.
It became a little better. Well,
I still had pimples and in 1996 I got cystic acne and was still wired. After
going from doctor to doctor and having my hormone levels checked and told that
there was nothing wrong - I became frustrated.
My face looked like hell - swollen and oily and it hurt - my self esteem
was in the crapper. I needed to do
something - so, I thought about the time when this started coming around. I traced it back to when I was diagnosed with
hypoglycemia. That is when I started
with nutrasweet - so in december I stopped.
WOW, My face cleared up in about a month - totally. I have slept through the night for
the last two months - no anxiety - nothing. I am happy to say that after having quit
music from "performance anxiety" that I am able to do that again. Another thing I noticed was I no longer have
back aches and my PMS is not as bad.
Pretty amazing huh? And they say
this stuff isn't bad for you. Well, I am
living proof, as are all of the other people on here, that it is bad - VERY BAD
- even life threatening. Thank you
28. Date: Tue, 10 Feb 1998 06:20:01 EST
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Final submission - Symptoms complete
This is a very accurate account of my life on
aspartame. Seems to me that anyone who
is using aspartame and having problems could find correlations with their
symptoms as I did with mine. I connected
dates with employment and events that I was certain of dates and that is how I
have develped this list of symptoms.
Symptoms of Aspartame Poisoning
Actual Case History
Seizures and Convulsions - First grand mal nocturnal
seizure was 01/96,
then: 03/25/97, 03/29/97, 04/29/95, 10/25/9 (two during
the night),
01/05/98.
Dizziness & Tremors - Severe dizziness and unbalance
at my mother and father's 40th Aedding Anniversay mass--brother caught me from
falling (that was 1990). Intermittent
unbalance and dizziness from 1993 to 1997.
The symptoms disappeard afer April 1997 after completley quitting
the ingestion of Nutra Sweet.
Severe Headaches - Yes - For 15 years I thought I had
sinus headaches. Generalized in the
post-surgical area on the left side of my head.
Occasionally, the headaches would involve either my whole head, my frontal
region or just the left side. Headaches severity subsided after April 1997.
Became intense after that, but completely went away after January 25, 1998 to
the present.
Memory Loss - Yes
- very noticable in 1994-1997, especially when I worked for an attorney's
office Disappeared after April 1997.
Slurred speech - Yes - very noticable in 1994 - 1997,
especially when I worked for an attorney's office. Disappeard after April 1997.
Confusion -
Yes-occasonally since 1993 -- totally disappeard after April 1997
Numbness or Tingling of Extremities - Yes--occasional -
totally disappeared after January 25, 1998.
Chronic Fatigue - Yes--very noticeable from 1993 to
1997. Still lingered after that but not
as severe. Most severe when working in
the Attorney's office. Subsided after
April 1997, but totally disappeared after January 1998.
Depression - Occasionally down, but not extreme--seems to be
gone also since January 25, 1998
Insomnia - Severe since 1993. Severe up until January
1998. Very infrequent now.
Irritability - Yes--I blamed it on the career change from
1993. But I still was irritable doing what I loved
doing for a living--being an
artist. I didn't understand. Some still lingers, but a noticeable
positive change since January 25, 1998 after quitting the
creamer.
Panic Attacks - Yes - severe at night upon awakening and
right before I would have a grand mal seizure. It was so much improved since April 1997, but still present
until January 25, 1998--once I quit the creamer, this symptom has occured one
time without the threat of a seizure.
Marked Personality Changes - Yes--most noticebly withdrawn (so one
family member noticed) and didn't feel like I fit in since 1993 - the career
change into being a full-time artist in 1997 helped
improved that, but I still knew something wasn't completely right. My shyness was to a greater degree. I feel like I am the person I once was before
1993, but I am still very shy and intimidated at
times, but all of that seems to be better since January
25, 1998.
Phobias - YES--extreme---afraid of going to sleep because
I thought I would die during a seizure. After January 25, 1998, that symptom
completely disappeared.
Rapid Heart Beat & Tachycardia - YES--very extreme at
different times since 1993. This symptom
didn't disappear after April 1997. It
got so severe at times, I was over 120 BPM, and
my blood pressure was very high.
This symptom completely disappeared after January 25, 1998.
Asthmatic Reactions
- Yes--in the form of sneezing and apparent sinus congestion. Would wake up sneezing, and discolored
drainage from my nose was present most of the day. Sneezing very infrequent since January 25,
1998. No change in this symptom after
April 1997. Still severe up until
January 25, 1998. Now moderate drainage
remains.
Chest Pains - yes-- off and on since 1993 - Completely
disappeared after January 25, 1998.
Hypertension High - First noticed March 1997 -
144/96. Only one time was it critically
high, and that was in October 1997 - 168/102.
It has been low since January 25, 1998 - 120/84.
Nausea or Vomiting - Yes-only nausea - Usually
accompanied the low blood sugar reactions I seemed to have during different
time throughout the year of 1997. My
first clue should have been years ago when I tried Diet Pepsi--I got nauseated
right away and didn't know why. Diet
Pepsi is the only product that gave me immediate nausea.
Diarrhea - Yes--very noticable after a meal, but not
frequent. First noticed in early 1997.
....
Blood Sugar Control Problems - Yes--severe, even though I
am not a diabetic. Approx. 4 times during 1997, I had severe low blood sugar
reactions where I would start shaking and
have to stop and get some sugar in me.
Craving for Food - Yes--always wanted something, but
never knew what I craved. Mostly since 1993.
Since January 25, 1998, I have not had cravings. Now changing over non-processed foods.
Weight Gain - Yes - 30lbs in the last 3 years. I never ate that much and rarely snack, but
my body just gained the weight which was and still is impossible to lose until
I detox my body from the formaldahyde I feel.
Hair Loss (Baldness) or Thinning of Hair - Thinning of my
hair has been very noticeable since 1995. [snip lots of symptoms: severe
infections, itching, burning urination,
excessive thirst, etc.]
Joint Pains - Yes---As far back as 1993, I remember
having joint pain every day and feeling like I was "old" at the age of
42. Since January 25, 1998, that all
disappeared unless I eat something that contains MSG or hidden NutraSweet. My immediate reaction to those things is
first sneezing, not feeling well and joint pain the next day.
April 1997 was a significant time for me, because after 3
grand mal nocturnal seizures in less than 45 days, I completely quit ingesting
nutra sweet in all foods and beverage.
Throughout 1997 and as late as January 5, 1998, I had nocturnal grand
mal seizures after not ingesting nutra sweet for all those months. That led me to believe that there was a real
physical problem present OR it led me to believe that I was still ingesting
nutra sweet unknowingly. The only thing
I was still ingesting that DID NOT state anywhere on the container was the
Nestle's French Vanilla Creamer. Afer completely quitting that on January 25,
1998 (I had enjoyed it since 1993), most all of my symptoms immediately
disappeared and I have not been having any seizure activity. Though it is too early to tell, I have a
hunch that the creamer does have nutra sweet in it, even though the company
denies that it does.
29. Date: Sun, 24 May 1998
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: ASPARTAME -- PROOFS OF HARM
Unfortunately, my own husband, Ken, was one of them. Late last summer he was having a bad headache
located mostly on one side of his head.
He went into the Univ. of Utah Medical Center for an MRI. They discovered a mass, more like a brain
lesion. The Dr who first examined him up
in Payson (a town located between us here
in Price, and closer to Provo) is a specialist in those sorts of problems, and
recommended the MRI.
Anyway, Ken cut
out drinking the diet Coke, or anything at all which contained Aspartame or
other artificial sweeteners. His
headaches soon stopped, and when he went back for another MRI in early Feb. everything
was clear,--no more brain lesion, or beginning of a tumor or whatever it
was. When I contacted the Dr. again by
E-mail about a month ago, he said that several of his other patients, who had also
stopped drinking any diet sodas, had all of their similar problems cleared up,
too.
There are several other articles which I posted last
fall, perhaps when you were away from the List.
Among them was one describing how Japan had banned all Aspartame for the
last 10 years or longer. STEVIA is being used instead, and Japan is now
cultivating the sweet-leaved bushes there.
30. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject:
Aspartame---Nutrasweet
Date: Sunday, March 22, 1998 10:37 PM
31. Date: Mon, 18 May 1998 23:48:33 GMT
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspertame Adverse Reaction
I would like to add my own story to that of the growing
list of people who have suffered adverse reactions to aspertame. My story is actually an old one. Back when the cola companies first started
putting nutrasweet in their drinks I decided that it was a good time to begin
the use of artificial sweetners. Up
until then I had avoided diet sodas because I didn't like the taste of
sacharin.
Well, I came home with my first can of diet Coke. I drank it with dinner - around 7 p.m. At around 10 p.m. as I lay down beside my
husband to go to sleep I bagan to feel strange.
It felt as if electricity was building up in my limbs and the next thing
we knew I was having seisures in both arms and both legs. My limbs jerked around uncontrollably. My head
swung from left to right as I lay on the bed. My husband was very upset; so was I. The seisures continued intermitantly for two
hours, lessening with intensity as the time went by.
I told my husband that I
thought it had to be the soda doing it to me because I'd never had any
kind of seizure in my life. Needless to
say I did not have any more of the Diet Coke. I allowed a month to pass. During that time my husband waited to see if
the seizures would reoccur. They did
not. I, was convinced that it was the
aspertame; he was not convinced. As an
experiment, after one month had passed, I purchased a diet-Pepsi. I drank it in
the presence of my husband one Saturday afternoon. The
adverse reaction proceeded just as it had the month prior with the diet-Coke. After
wating a few months I tried diet 7-UP. I really did want to lose weight without
giving up sodas. Again, the same reaction
as the first two instances.
32. Subject: Re: Do you drink crystal light?
Date: 27 Mar 1998 12:58:40 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.med.fibromyalgia
NO!!! I sure don't! I did when it first came out(I was in
about 10th grade),and it made me very sick. I was using it in
everything-"Diet coke" "Extra" gum
"Equal",etc..... Finally my
doctor figured out that I was most definitely allergic to it. It gave me
intense headaches,blurred vision, balance problems (which was very embarrassing
as a member of a dance company!) and many other problems which I can't remember
now due to the "fog" in my head! Anyway, I abruptly stopped using it
and felt much better immediately. I avoid it now for those reasons, but I don't
entirly trust it as "safe" either. That's my personal opinion. I'm
not a person that trusts chemicals much, drugs, or altered food. So that's my
2cents!
I don't use anything with Nutrasweet either - soon after
it came out, I tried it and twice got quite sick from it. Once waas a headache, body aches and the other
time, it made me throw up! So I think
I'm allergic to it. We just don't *know*
longterm what the affects of that are. I
discourage my hubby/kids from having lots of the stuff too. Real sugar has been around a long time, so we
know more about that!
I really don't like soda/pop at all - don't like the
bubbles. I'm still on my apple cider
trend adn thinking that the FMS might be causing that. As long as the store keeps carrying it -
every half gallon I wonder if that'll be the last, but they still have it, so
I'm thankful for that!!
33. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Questionairre
Date: Fri, 6 Mar 1998 16:13:00 -0600
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
I have experienced severe abdominal pain, bloating,
feeling of being tremendously full all
of the time even though I would hardly eat.
Pain to the point of not being able to bend over. Regurgitation of food. I would become tremendously gassy.
Why do you feel aspartame caused these problems?
Because this went on for over one year. I thought I had a food allergy. I slowly
began to eliminate foods that I felt could be causing it. I eventually had eliminated almost
everything. It was by accident that I did
not consume any asparatame one weekend, and felt better than I had in over a
year. I thought it could be it, and
completely stopped consuming it. I have
not had one symptom since.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Yes, 100%.
Did you see a doctor about symptoms?
Yes, they ran numerous tests. Sent me to a digestive healthcare clinic. Put
me on medications that required me to take up to 12 pills a day. I am not one to take medication, so I
continued to attempt to figure it out on my own.
Did Doctor think it was related to aspartame?
No, I did mention it one time, but he did not feel that
was it.
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA or any other
group?
No, I have read a lot about affects of aspartame since I
was so sick, but did not know where to report to.
Specific products I was consuming:
Crystal Light
approx. a pitcher a day
NutraSweet in every cup of coffee I would drink (2-Cups/Day)
Trident ( I would chew a lot of gum) (1/2 pack/Day)
Equal - on my cereal in the morning (1-Bowl / day)
Sugar-Free Jolly Ranchers
Sugar-Free Frozen Yogurt (1-Cup per day)
I have since found other products (ie. gum) that is not
sugar-free but contains asparatame yet.
I look at every label now.
I probably started experiencing these symptoms soon after
using the products. I am very health
conscious, so I began adding more to my diet over time. The symptoms definitely got worse
overtime. I have consumed on occasion
without my knowledge, small amounts since I have given it up. I can tell immediately, that my body cannot
tolerate it.
I am so against the use of it since I became
knowledgeable of it making me so miserable for so long. I would just cry because I was so uncomfortable
at times. It began to interfere in things I would do, I wouldn't go places.
I truly believe that this product should not be on the
market. I would be interested in any
information related to my experience that you might have.
34. Date: Fri, 6 Mar 1998 08:38:43 -0500
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
Subject: Re: Nutrsweet Lies
hi...i read your post and thought id tell you my story
the short version.I drank 5-6 16oz of diet soda a day im small 100lbs (not
anymore but i was)ive been doing this for atleast 3yrs.anyway about 8 months
ago i got ill dizzy, weakened immune system trouble swollowing,tired etc...drs
couldnt find anything so i took it into my own hands i was havind tachycardia
so i gave up caffiene still drank diet sprite nothing well time went by and
tuesday i gave up nutrasweet well can i tell you my dizziness thats been
plaguing me day and night is almost gone of course my immune sys. is still shot
but i heard it can take 60 days to detox im taking detox herbs to speed it
along this cant be coincidense.just wanted to tell you my story (as you can
tell by my spelling my fog has not tottally lifted yet)
35. Subject: Re: xxxxxxxxxx approved in U.S.!
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Date: Thu, 2 Apr 1998 21:03:22 -0800
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
I don't know about Nutrasweet being bad for every one,
but I know that it makes me deathly ill.
Headaches, sick to my stomach, really raunchy taste. But I am one of those that just can't stomach
it. My mom has been using saccharine and
aspartame for years and she is just fine.
...
When I was 16 my step mom told me that I had to drink it,
and told me it was a matter of taste and
sat me down and made me drink a 6 pack of diet Pepsi...I ended up in the
hospital with gastric distress, that was the last time I willingly drank
it. One sip and I am wanting to heave.
36. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame problems
Date: Fri, 13 Feb 1998 18:46:06 -0600
I am a 37-year-old teacher, who has always been in good
health.
....
I eat healthy foods, but I have one bad habit. I began drinking Dt. Coke three years ago,
and I am up to two 20 oz. Diet Cokes per day.
I don't drink coffee or tea, so my Dt. Coke habit began as a want for
caffeine. I switched to caffeine-free
Dt. Coke after one year of the regular diet kind. Unfortunately, about six
months ago, I began having terrible headaches.
I would go to sleep with one, and wake up with one. I didn't seem to have any organic reason why
I was having them. Everyone seemed to
think they were stress related, BUT I really felt happy - my career and
colleagues are great, my husband and kids are fantastic, our money situation is
better than ever -- why would I be stressed? On a hunch, I gave up pop. Within 10 days, my headaches went away. After being headache-free for a few weeks, and
I guess, finding it hard to believe that pop could cause problems, I went back
to drinking caffeine-free Diet Coke.
Then three weeks ago, I began to have light flashes occur
in my eyes. I thought it was our fluorescent
lights we have in our classroom, which seem to shine brighter on dark, dreary
days, and the reflection off of the dozens of mostly white papers I grade on a
daily basis. My eyes need a
rest, I thought.
Then it happened two more times, once when I was at home. When the
flashes occur, I can't see in the center of my eyes, only around the edges, and
the flashes are as bright as photographic bulbs. I have a check-up next month, so I thought
I'd bring it up then, since otherwise I
was O.K. It was strange,
too, and I didn't want anyone to think I was hallucinating, etc., etc.
This week, I have had constant heart palpitations. These frighten me, enough that I mentioned it
to family members and even a colleague of mine. I have no pain -- just frequent heart
"fluttering." I have read enough to know these symptoms are
related to certain health problems (and my brother is a doctor, which
helps!) I have no thyroid problems and
my blood sugar level is fine. I have a
doctor's appointment in a few days, but, being a teacher, I'm naturally
curious. So I thought about my lifestyle
(I don't smoke, drink, or do drugs), my eating habits, etc., and looked for excesses. Dt. Coke, of course! I followed a hunch and did a search on "aspartame." I'm going cold turkey on the Dt. Coke. I'll let you know when or if the palpitations
stop, or if another cause is found. I
would have never thought that diet soda could be toxic. I guess I'll find out first hand if my fears
are correct. Why hasn't this been brought
out before? I'm beginning to feel like a
victim.
[update]
37. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
Date: Tue, 17 Mar 1998 20:19:27 -0600
I stopped using all products containing aspartame on
February 11, 1998, after suspecting caffeine-free Dt. Coke was making me
sick. I drank some as a "test"
on Friday, February 20, and got really sick.
I also tried tea (not herbal) on Feb. 25 to see if it triggered
anything. It didn't affect me. Still thinking it a coincidence, I tried
caffeine-free Dt. Coke again on March 9th, but only four sips. Yikes!
Was that a bad decision! I'm just
glad I have strong willpower, because I feel now that I was addicted to Dt.
Coke. This and the fact that it has made
me so sick, has frightened me enough to give it up for good, plus other
aspartame-containing products. I've never drank alcohol or tried any addicting
drugs, but I feel that Dt. Coke is as addictive and dangerous. I'm telling everyone I know to be careful of
what they eat and drink. My colleagues
cannot believe this has happened to active me.
I still have some heart palpitations now which occur randomly (not
specifically after exercise or eating, they just occur in an irregular pattern)
even though I am now on 200 mg. Lopressor per day.
My memory is improving slightly, although I think I may
be compensating for my problem somewhat (more lists, sticky notes to myself,
etc.). The sensitivity to light, and
light flashes have stopped so far. My
doctors want to do another thyroid scan next week. I'll update you. Thanks for the information! I'm glad there are people out there who care!
38. Subject: [LC] aspartame dangers
Date: Sun, 1 Feb 1998 19:32:11 -0800
Mailing List: LOWCARB-LIST@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
If you do some searching on nutra sweet you will find
many articles detailing the side effects of aspartame including increased risk
of brain tumors, and numerous other health problems resulting from methanol and
formaldehyde released during digestion of nutra sweet or aspartame.
Last year, I developed Bells Palsy (I did recover) and
then I got Shingles. both of these have to do with nerves and run along the
path of nerves. You only get shingles when extremely run down such as the elderly
or cancer patients. I was 36 years
old. this scared the s?&* out of me.
I started doing some research and discovered all the "BAD" things nutrasweet
can do. It can mimic MS which both Bells
and shingles are symptoms of. I did have
an MRI which ruled MS out. I stopped it cold
turkey.
....
I was drinking gallons of diet iced tea a week. enough.
Never again! I also felt like a cloud had been lifted off
of my brain within a few days of stopping it.
39. Date: Tue, 27 Jan 1998 14:31:19 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: You're a victim of mass poisoning
I am SO angry.... I and my 10 year old son have been off
of this since August and almost all my
symptoms are gone! He no longer has asthma
and now no longer needs to wear glasses!!!!
I don't have to wear glasses either!!!! But those are
minor. I have been using Nutra Sweet for
at least 7 or 8 years!!! I had gained
weight! I now only weigh 118-120 (I am
5ft 2in), I have been up to around 200 lbs, and using this to LOSE!!!! I had Endometreosis and Menstrual
problems...Had a Hysterectomy at 24, developed Hyperglycemia and so increased
the Aspartame intake. Soon after I
started having bladder and bowel problems.
Had a colonoscopy...to examine my insides and bladder surgery to
diagnose. I was told to have Chronic
Spastic Colon Problems, and that I no longer had a bladder lining...a condition
called Interstistial Cystitis. The
symptoms are blood in the urine ...pain ...and no infection. I have been
treated for all of the above for 7 years. They only worsened. Then about 4 years ago I started
have major muscle problems. I was
constantly in a fog, and falling down and running into things. My legs would
give out while I was walking. My knees could
not hold me up. At this time I only
weighed about 145 lbs. Finally, I was
pre- diagnosed with MS. I was sent to a Nuerologist for extensive tests. Including
a spinal tap and MRI and Brain electrode testing. MS was not the problem. My muscle Spasms in my back got so bad that I
was bed ridden and having to be carried to the bathroom. The pain was almost
unbearable. I was then diagnosed with Fibromyalgia by 3 separate Drs. My memory loss became a joke to the whole
family. And I use to sit down and feel
like I was in a well looking out into the world...a sort of sur-real
feeling. I was lossing hair, and having
allergy problems, and constantly in pain in my abdomin and back.
I finally decided to get healthy and started
"working out". I ended up in
the hospital for heart palpatations and chest pain. I would have tremors that
no one could control. I was told they were panic attacks, but over what, I
would ask? I would be asleep and wake up in tremors! Someone mentioned this info to me, and so I
cut down on the aspartame, just because I was willing to try anything. I joined a weight loss class called weigh
down. She said that your body basically metabolizes
everything natural and to just try to eat "Real" food and not the
diet foods with artifical fat and sweetners. This would allow your body to work
natuarally. I started this in June. I finally quite all nutrasweet in August. By
December I am almost totally well. I am
no longer in pain and not in need of ANY medication except for hormones for the
hysterectomy. I am 32 now. This has made
me so angry! I am warning everyone, and
intend to contact my insurance company....since they have helped me foot the
bills. No one can however give me back
the quality of life I lost during the last few years. Nor can they make up for
all the pain and the tests I had to endure.
I feel betrayed, and yet I am so glad that there is information out now
before it is too late. I am thankful my
son is off of this stuff, and I pray he will be ok in the future. Thank
you for all you are doing. Let me know
what I can do to help.
40. CompuServe
Natural Medicine Forum, Corner Juice Bar[1]
Re: Aspartame: Nutrapoison?
Mon, Dec 15, 1997, 8:20 PM
Message # 274332
I was intrigued by the posting for the conference
Aspartame:Nutrapoison??, unfortunatly I was unable to make it. However, I have had personal experiences with
aspartame that I would like to share.
About 10 years ago my grandmother became ill and the illness progressed
until it became so violent that it
forced her to the emergency room.
It began with flu like symptoms and progressed to the point of effecting
her vital signs with boughts of extreme stomach illness. At the time of her hospitalization they were
unaware of the cause of her illness because the symptoms disappeared shortly
after her hospitalization. The correlation
was drawn to aspartame when family members brought in "diet Ginger
Ale" and the illness returned. At
this time they determined that she was "allergic" to it. I had assumed at this point that it was not
harmful to everybody, just her because of some rejection by her body.
I myself was unaware of its negative side affects until
recently when I had to seek several forms of treatment for debilitating
migraines. It wasn't until a mere
coincidence that my eye doctor warned me that the cause may be aspartame. I immediately stopped consuming diet soda and
have been migraine- free for 8 months!!
I have grave concerns however, because I have seen several primary care
doctors and not one of them warned me of the possible aspartame/migraine
correlation. Is there anyway that this
information can be educated to the public, especially the physicians?
My gastro doctor told me several years ago that many
people have a hard time digesting NutraSweet.
At that time I was chewing a lot of sugarless gum (w/ Nutrasweet)....it
bloated me and cramped me. When I
switched to regular gum (pre-Atkins), I fared much better.
I found your list of reactions to nutrasweet while
searching for something else. I thougt I
would let you know i finnally discovered the cause of my terrible itchy skin
afer 4 monthes of lotions potions doctors and even a naturopath. No one could help it was only after discussing
with someone the possiblity of it being
something I was eating that I began a process of elimination. After one week of no I felt better after 2 no
more symptoms. So now to loose weight I
am exercising more. After reading your
list I will now stop all my family having any.
Since that day that you wrote me I stopped completely the
use of neutrasweet. My intake per day of this molecule was huge. Now, the
dizziness is gone I hope that it did not kill too many neuron cells or created
any genetic damage. What is very interesting is the participation of Dr. R.
Wurtman in this issue. As long as it was politically convenient for him he
helped the struggle against the FDA. When he needed approval from them for
Redox (another medical disaster), Neutrasweet became O.K. It makes me very
angree when he appeared on the CNN after 24 patients already were diagnozed
with valve damage and stated that Redox is the safest drug on the market for
this purpose. At the same time the damage to the neurns was showed in tissue
culture. I am a scientist myself and I know how political and monetary
advantages can change their scientific opinion and kill many people.
I am allergic to Aspartame (I have CFS or ME) as is my
son with autism. We both get a bad sore throat.
After reading your web page, I have finally figured out
why I have been feeling so weird. Mood
swings, panic attacks, heart palpitations, chest pains, and since I have cut
out aspartme and any other artificial sweetners, I feel like a new person. You never hear anything about this in the
media, and the only reason I figured it out is because I am a vegetarian, exercise
like a banchee, drink tons of water, take vitamins, am 5'6 and weigh 112 pounds,
and Diet Drinks were my only vice. I
feel like a totally new person after cutting them out of my diet. Thanks for you information!
41. Date: Fri, 06 Feb 1998 15:54:15 -0500
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame + Epileptic Seizures
My little girl was seven when she started to experience
problems. She is a tubbly little thing - it runs in our family and always has.
When I was expecting her I stuck to low call drinks and food. As she grew so
did her wieght and one day I had a call from the school nurse about it. She
referred us to a hospital dietician and the diet sheet told us to switch to low
call drinks and low call foods.
I followed all of this with gusto and got some artifiical
sweetner as well. Within a short space of time she started to be not so well. Somethimes
she was not with it and sometimes she would look real bad. She started to have
funny turns and would lose the muscle power to one side of her face and loose
her speech. Eventually she had a full blown fit that was very bad indeed.
When all your information arrived it prompted much
discussion. My eldest child told me that my daughter loved the artificial
sweetner and if may back was turned she would help herself to a couple of
spoonfuls at breakfast time. She always had her fits in the late morning! EEG's
and Brain Scans produced no sign of any problems but she was and still is
diagnosed as Epileptic.
They gave her medication but it did not seem to have much
effect. My daughter was pale with dark circles under her eyes and a blue tinge
to her lips. She did not seem to be with it and she became breathless very
easily yet they could not find anything wrong!!
Life was awful but then xxxxx xxxxx Asked a question on
the Net about this subject and you replied. When I read all the information you
sent I was horrified. I threw out any and everything that had Aspartame in it.
Three weeks late I was looking at a healthy alert child
with vivacious bright eyes, rosy cheeks and red lips. She has never had a fit
since and needless to say she now avoids anything with Aspartame in it. My
daughter felt the improvement so much that she is convinced that this awful
substance caused her problems. She has only ever been on a low dose of seizure
controlling drug and we are finding it very hard to get the medical authorities
to recognise that there is a realy high probability that this was the cause.
Our family are convinced of it because we saw no improvement for some time
after she started on medication but a wonderful improvement when we started the
no Aspartame regime.
Im sorry to have taken so long to let you know the
outcome of your efforts. I have just gone on the net and the first thing I did
was look you up. I just wanted to let you know that you have restored peace of
mind for my daughter and myself and that I support your campaign to the full.
Once again thank you so very much.
[Update]
42. Date: Sun, 08 Feb 1998 19:42:57 -0500
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame + Epileptic Seizures
Thanks for your note and all of the information - You
will never understand just how grateful I am for the trouble you took on that
one night to send that information. I suffered post traumatic stress syndrome
for two years after my daughter had her first fit and I am so convinced that we
have the cause that I can now sleep at night. My eldest child has just had an
eeg and guess what? it is showing irregularities - I feel so guilty because I
used to drink this stuff when I was pregnant because I was always being nagged
about my weight.
I refuse to buy anything with it in and I now write
letters of complaint to all those manufacturers who insist on putting this
rubbish into non low cal products ie. normal orjage drinks etc. We only have
mineral water and fruit juice in our house and I take every opportunity I can
to recount our story to whoever will listen. As a result our local schools no
longer give the children anything with Aspartame. So many people on this Island
now are aware of the dangers of this substance.
I will keep fighting the good fight and will continue to
do battle with our local hospital - can you believe it? THEY ACTUALLY GAVE ME A
DIET SHEET FOR MY DAUGHTER WHICH STATED THAT I SHOULD GIVE HER LOW CAL
PRJODUCTS!!
....
43. Date: Sun, 14 Jun 1998
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: I took the test! Aspartame
On Jan 1, 1998, I quit eating anything that had Aspartame
in it. It used to be an important part
of my diet since I have always been horizontally gifted. My first recollection of Aspartame was when
Tab was removed from the market and replaced it with Diet Coke. (Who even remembers how long ago that was?) Since I have quit Aspartame I have noticed
that my headaches have gone, my memory has improved and I think my current food
management plan is successful because aspartame is no longer part of my diet.
....
43. Date: Wed, 17 Jun 1998 06:07:05 GMT
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
My story? I was drinking a lot of Ribena light (a reduced
sugar blackcurrant drink) and using a lot of low sugar chewing gum in January
this year. I started getting severe heart rhythm abnormalities (known as
"ectopic" beats) which have stopped since I removed all Aspartame
products from my diet.
I feel I have a duty to let more people know about this
poison. Do you have an info pack you can send? Is Monsanto likely to take legal
action (or have they done so) against people campaigning against Aspartame? I'd
be interested to take this one to court...
44. Subject: Re: [EARTHSAVE] Weight gain and aspartame
Date: Fri, 20 Feb 1998 10:55:11 -0600
Mailing List: EARTHSAVE@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
I don't know whether Aspartame weight gain was
psychological or actual. I do know that
I developed increasing headaches and vision problems due to Aspartame which I
stopped consuming over a year ago.
In its place, I simply changed my diet. That change did not mean drinking sugared
Pepsi instead of Diet Pepsi. It meant
changing from junk food diet drinks to a more natural diet without any added sweetener. I stopped consuming soft drinks, tea or
cofee, and drank herbal teas that did not need sweetener, Mountain Valley Water
(which I use for all cooking and beverages, even for my pets) . I've returned to eating fresh fruits and
fresh fruit juices or shakes and avoiding anything with sugar or artificial
sweeteners.
Since I've stopped using Nutraseet, my vision is becoming
better and the headaches have seized.
In fact, I can now see with eye glasses that I used 6 years ago. Whereas, when I used Equal, I was contantly getting
new prescriptions.
Since I rarely buy food at the grocery store, the food I
am able to buy is not yet contaminated with artifical ingredients. And, although I've had a weight problem for
years, it is not due to buying natural food, but rather what I had eaten while
also consuming Equal. I'm losing weight now.
In the last two weeks, I've lost about 8 pounds.
45. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nutrasweet
Date: Tue, 31 Mar 1998 15:37:16 EST
I just read your long article on Nutrasweet. I have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome which I
attribute to chemical/pestacide poisoning which altered my immune system so
that I was susceptable to the yet to be discovered virus that causes CFS.
That's my educated guess after over a year of "internet study and
research".
Nevertheless I do have a Nutrasweet story. When
Nutrasweet first came on the market in the '80s, I was drinking Diet Pepsi with
nutrasweet and noticed migraine headaches were increasing in frequency and severity. On mother's day 1987 I had such a severe
migraine that I thought it was a stroke.
I was in my 30's so you can imagine how worried I was. I had a CT scan at the Wellington Regional
Medical Center in West Palm Beach, and it was negative for a stroke, so they
gave me some pain medication and sent me home.
I have never had nutrasweet since then, and have been a fanatic about
keeping my young children off of it. As
the years have gone by, whenever I read something negative about nutrasweet, I
am not surprised. It is sickening that most children's medicine has nutrasweet
in it. It is a crying shame that you and others have been/are going through
such hell, and ill health. All because
of corporate greed on the part of Searle.
46. Date:
Sat, 21 Mar 1998 20:51:36 CST
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re[2]: sendme: brain-cancer
Yes, I got the information I wanted. Yes, I am a victim and I have known that for
over 10 years now. However, I was
unaware of the awareness groups as well as the other major side effects. As a child, I was misdiagnosed with
hypoglycemia due to vertigo I experienced due to aspartame in diet soda. I was only 11 and they put me on a low sugar diet,
meaning I actually consumed more NutraSweet and the dizziness continued. I finally lied to the Dr. because I was sick
of appointments and being treated like a freak.
I said they had stopped and went back to eating normal. After I stopped consuming NutraSweet, the
dizziness stopped.
47. Subject:
Re: Nasty lil toxin
Date:
1998/03/16
Newsgroups:
soc.singles.moderated
Yup. Both with
having side-effects and with digging through long list of ingredients to make
sure that something I'm going to eat doesn't have aspertame in it. (A good indicator is if it warns
phenylketinurics (sp) not to eat this.)
My side effects varied.
From food and sodas, I get nasty, nasty headaches. I really think it's had a negative effect on
my memory, too. For awhile I tried to do
the SlimFast thing, and the powdered mix gave me the most bizzare
sensations--like I was kinda drunk but with a serious caffeine buzz. My insides just quaked and I could feel my
blood rushing through my veins with each pump of my heart. After the second "meal", I
stopped. (Note, though, that the
pre-mixed, canned stuff doesn't have aspertame, just the powdered mix.)
I even get headaches now from breathmints or chewing gum
that has aspertame in it.
My suggestion for you (if you have to beware the stuff)
is to avoid anything that has the word "lite" in it. Nine times out of ten, it'll have nutrasweet
in it. You'll have to learn how to diet
without using
those products.
(Which sucks rocks if you want my opinion, but, what else can you do??)
48. Subject: Re: please help
Date: 7 Mar 98 16:15:54 GMT
Newsgroups: sci.med
I suffered for about a year with what my doctor thought
was some kind of "chronic mono" or "chronic fatigue
symdrom." In addition to fatigue, I
had extreme difficulty concentrating, and felt like I never came completely
awake all day. It turned out that my
symptoms were caused by aspartame when I switched to diet soda, and went away
within 48 hours of ceasing to drink it.
The suggestion that it might be the diet soda came from a coworker, and
I never expected it to turn out to actually be the cause.
49. http://www.wdworkshop.com/wdwd_frm.htm
Re: Diet cokes SODAPHOBIA
Date: 06 Mar 1998
Time: 23:51:39
xxxxxxx, You may be skeptical of the research and
comments made on that particular web site - and sometimes I am also skeptical
of everyone who always seems to want to
be suspicious of EVERYTHING - BUT - I truly believe that aspartame is a bad
thing for me.- and I no longer use it in any way, shape or form, nor do I allow
anyone in my family to use it! I began drinking diet coke about 2 years ago -
because i wanted to save some calories - even tho it tasted awful - i got used
to it and really enjoyed it - then about 1 year ago i began having horrible
headaches, foggy thinking even optical migraines (lost my vision for short
periods of time) I never, never had a migraine or foggy thinking before -
anyhow, did a lot of reading up on aspartame - and decided to give up my diet
coke - this wasnt easy - i craved it - 3 different occassions i have tried some
diet coke and all three times within an hour or so i developed a sever migraine
and/or the foggy brain thing! that's all the research i need to know i will stay
away from it forever!! sorry so long - but thought you might be interested in
hearing from an "average woman" not a crazed person out to find bad
in everything Praise the Lord for the wonderful things He has done in my life
through WDW!! In His Love.
I am wondering how Cindy's cat scan turned out. I know
she didn't mention anything about Nutra Sweet, but for those who did, I also
have had an experience with it and it was most unpleasant. It was about 8-10
years ago. I had been drinking diet soda for a good while when I started having
these spells. The closest thing I can think that they would be like is a
stroke. I would start to get a headache, then become dizzy or light headed and
pretty quickly too. Then my speech wouldn't cooperate with me. I could think of
someone's name and see their face, but not say their name and I felt slurry
too. I also would have pain in my left arm. I know this sounds crazy, but I
experienced it. I stopped drinking diet things and it stopped. I don't have
that happen anymore. I have to give God the credit for me being able to find
out what it was. It had to be His hand and I sure do thank Him for it!! When I
read these other posts about the Nutra Sweet, I thought I would share. Hope it
is of some help to someone.
I had lived away from home for years and the trouble
started soon after moving back. My mother was putting EQUAL (a artificial
sweetener)in my tea. My father had some put in his tea by accident and he got
the symptoms. It took me a few days without Aspartame and antihistamines but
the problem slowly went away.FREE AT LAST.
Concerning your headaches...have you considered a
possible allergy to Nutra Sweet? I experienced migraine headaches for many
months, often drinking a diet soda when the headache started, thinking the
caffeine would help the pain. A friend suggested the headaches might be related
to an allergic reaction to Nutra Sweet. Apparently they were. I stopped using
it in any form and the headaches stopped.
50. Subject: Re: Ginea Pig Volunteers Wanted
Date: 2 Apr 1998 12:09:55 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.mult-sclerosis
Thats a great idea, xxxxxx. I for one can vouch that
aspartame played a major part in some of my health problems. I was a heavy user
in that I don't really like hot drinks and I lived on Diet Cola. I actually felt
it took a few months to wean myself off it. I missed it a lot. And an extra point,
some chewing gum and sweets contain aspartame as well. I found mints that I
never knew were sugar free and they had aspartame. So check the labels on stuff
as well.
51. Date: Mon, 16 Mar 1998 14:02:44 -0500
To: aspartame <webmaster@aspartame.com
Subject: Re: IC
We have known, for years, that nutrasweet is a
significant bladder irritant for Interstitial Cystitis patients. With the small open wounds in the bladder
membrane that most IC patients have, nutrasweet is one of those compounds that
appears to easily penetrate and further inflame those tissues. IT is one our top ten list of forbidden
fruits.. and, between you and me, I think that those people who have lived on
diet sodas for years and then developed the incurable IC can blame nutrasweet
as the trigger for their particular condition.
52. Subject: Re: nutrasweet?
Date: Tue, 3 Mar 1998 08:58:21 -1000
Newsgroups: alt.med.cfs [i]
Did anyone use alot of this before CFS?
Not before but after in attempt to lose all the weight
lying in bed created. I got major
urinary pain, but the urologist couldn't find anything. He even did a biopsy, because my bladder was
covered with red spots like the beginning of lesions. He said, "It's going to turn out to be
an allergy, I bet, but to what, I have no idea." By process of
elimination, I discovered it was NutraSweet.
No symptoms since.
53. Subject: Off Nutrasweet for two months....
Date: 26 Feb 1998 16:46:32 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.inter-cystitis
I had an epiphany about nutrasweet and quit using it two
months ago and guess what? the tiny
flareups i had a night are gone, gone, gone. not a twinge. just want to let
you-all know...i observe all the other nutritional no-nos but couldn't say
goodbye to nutrasweet. i have replaced it with the herb STEVIA which research
shows to actually balance blood sugar, not wreck it! and i lost five
pounds...wow.
54. Subject: Re: effects of aspartame?
Date: 2 Mar 1998 16:20:42 GMT
Newsgroups: rec.drugs.smart
Does this stuff give you somewhat of a mental block? I'm
hypoglycemic and i can't have anything with a lot of sugar in it… Around last
october i started drinking lots of Sparkling soda, ice cream, candy..etc.
sweetened with aspartame.. and the last few months i've been kinda.. blank..
unable to come up with new ideas and stuff, and just bored.
The same thing happened to me. I also after several months began to get slight
dizzy spells. 3 or 4 days after
stopping, I felt brighter, less bored, and the dizzy spells vanished
completely. Now I use Sweet&Low with no ill effects. Unfortunately there's no ice-cream with
S&L instead of sugar, so once in a while I indulge a little. It's still better than using aspertame.
55. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 23:05:22 EDT
Dear Dr. Friedman:
My beloved wife Kelli died last month. She was 37 years old. She left behind an 8 year old daughter.
Kelli died of a brain tumor. She was a heavy user of Aspartame.
On a typical day, she would consume between 6 - 12 cans of diet
cola. I used to joke to her that she
drank so much diet Pepsi, that she should cut out the middleman and have them
deliver the stuff right to our house.
Her use of Aspartame did not end with diet cola. She consumed it in many products
everyday. Like most women, she was
obsessed with watching her weight.
I have heard representatives from Monsanto claim that the
product is the most widely tested and safest product on the market. It's not a coincidence that the studies they
quote to support their claim were funded by Monsanto.
There are so many doctors and scientists who are
questioning the safety of Aspartame, that it is time the FDA took action. I'm not a scientist, and don't claim to
understand all of the studies. However,
it seems to me that when you can find a direct correlation between the
introduction of Aspartame into the market and a sharp rise in the number of
brain tumors, it's more than a coincidence.
It needs to be investigated.
Lives are at stake here!
I do realize that it's too late to bring Kelli back. I can't tell you the hell we went through for
the past three and a half years. Her
illness took a toll on our entire family.
We will suffer from her loss for the rest of our lives.
Dr. Friedman, please have the courage to stand up against
Monsanto and the other big business interests trying to hide the facts. Get Aspartame off the market!
56. Subject: Re: Aspartame question...
Date: Sun, 3 May 1998 08:13:20 -0700
Mailing List: ATKINS-NEW@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
Has anyone else on this list experienced headaches or a
feeling that your eyes were going to pop out of their sockets at night (when
you're trying to go to sleep). This
latter symptom has happened to me twice and it doesn't hurt but it is extremely
uncomfortable and makes me feel like I have to hold my eyes in w/ my
hands! I toss and turn and can't go to
sleep when this occurs. Very strange!
I had the same problem. At one point I was consuming
either two glass or diet soda or copious amounts of powered drink formulas, all
laced with aspartame. The headaches got so bad that it took two aspirins, twice
during different time of the night, just to get a decent night's sleep!
Finally, I researched the matter on the Net and found
PLENTY of reports about the same thing. I immediately quit ANY drink, mixture,
or envelope containing Aspartame or Nutra-Sweet. The headaches stopped and
haven't returned. That's all the proof I
need!
As for Stevia, don't give up! Go to Web and look of
"Paul on Sweetners" at
57. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame Poisoning
Date: Mon, 22 Dec 1997 02:48:38 EST
I am off this poison and feel much better. However, my
friends son is 37 and has been rushed to the hosp. twice now for severe chest
pains and was just told that it is not a heart problem. He drinks too much diet
soda. Hve you heard of Aspartame causing heart pain? I told my friend to tell
her son to speak to the DR. about this. I understand he drinks at least 5 cans
a day to control his weight.
58. Subject: Re: Other days off ......{was:NOT AGAIN!}
Date: Wed, 01 Apr 1998 14:11:49 -0800
Newsgroups: alt.support.childfree
Not everyone has the option of "take a water pill
and a couple of advil" - I was originally put on the Pill because I had to
spend the first 48 hours of each period _in bed_ with what my gyn basically considered
labor pains while I bled through a "super" tampon and an "overnight"
super-maxi in an hour, passed huge clots, spent hours in the bathroom with
vomiting and diarrhea, fainted when I stood up.
Boy, did this bring back horrible memories. I went
through very similar months while I was in high school. What a nightmare! It
turned out that it was my body's recation to aspartame (nutrasweet) and Diet
Coke had just come
out.
59. http://wdworkshop.com/_wdwd/00002f6f.htm
Re: Daily Headaches
Date: 28 Jan 1998
Time: 15:12:30
60. Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
Date: 13 Jan 1998 23:43:03 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.med.fibromyalgia
Hi, I also do not
have concrete info on nutrasweet. I know
for me I get horrible headaches, extra foggy, and horrible pains in my stomach
with any artificial sweetener. I finally
talked my husband to try not drinking diet pop for one month. I just figured all his weird symptoms----rash
on face at all times, constant sinus nasal drip, and bad breath had to be
connected. Well, one week off of diet
soda and it all went away. He has not
had any diet pop for over a year now. I
do not believe that putting that chemical in your body is good for you.
61. Date: Sat, 3 Jan 1998 01:53:27 -0500
Newsgroups: alt.med.cfs
Subject: Re: MED: other: chat Aspartame
Unfortunately - tis the truth. I have a HUGE file on this
stuff - BAD NewS! Avoid it like a STD! I fouled up back in the hot summer of
92, and was consuming a 24 pack of diet pop a week - tried to give up coffee -
what a dope! After about 6 weeks of the diet pop - I found myself going down hill and it was
only the beginig of July - This was NOT supposed to happen to PWC's at that
time of the year.... the downward spiral is due here mid November - not mid
July. I quit the diet pop, and within a couple of weeks was BACK to the level of
activity I was accustomed to that April, May and early June.
It you want a copy of the aspartame file let me know back
channel – but I warn you - it is HUGE, VERY HUGE, HUMONGOUES even - really - it
is one big blighter! Best wishes for an improvement once you quit poisoning
yourself with EQUAL, (AKA -
Aspartame)!!!
62. Re: MED: Aspartame
Date Fri, 2 Jan 1998 14:12:21 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
I know from personal experience that aspartame, nutrasweet
etc. gives me horrible, and I mean dreadful, migraines. Aspartame also stimulates appetite, I don't
know where I read this, but I have read it in a paper or somthing.
I have heard anecdotal that when aspartame heats up, it
can become toxic to your body (like when the truck delivering bottles of diet
Coke gets hot). I have also heard, on
some tv program that it is causing serious eye problems. I will never touch the
stuff again.
63. Subject: Re: Anybody take this?
Date: 16 May 1998 19:56:48 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.mult-sclerosis
I cut that garbage out of my diet in December. I found the dizzy spells I was getting have
almost disapeared! I never heard of
swelling as a side effect of apspartame, but I wouldn't doubt it! Dizzy spells, headaches, stomach problems. .
.and now edema. That stuff is poison.
64. Subject: Re: ASPARTAME?
Date: 09 May 1998 13:55:16 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.med.fibromyalgia
My own experience with aspartame (Nutrasweet) is that is
gives me screaming headaches. Several years
ago when I was dieting and constantly complaining of headaches, my neighbor (a
nurse with an epileptic son who was also affected by aspartame) suggested that
I eliminate the diet pop I was drinking .
Lo and behold, that particular type of headache disappeared.
65. Subject: Re: Anybody take this?
Date: 16 May 1998 07:24:43 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.mult-sclerosis
I found this spring that my feet were swelling for the
first time in my life. My internist suggested I walk more (this during the
rainy spring we are having in NYC--rain makes my legs feel like each one is
encased in a 75-pound concrete block). I
followed his advice, but the swelling persisted. Then I found the cause: diet
colas with Nutrasweet, which I had just begun to drink. As soon as eliminated them, the edema
(swelling) disappeared. I later read that aspartame (Nutrasweet and Equal)
causes foot edema in some people.
66.Subject: headaches, non-migraine
Date: Sat, 17 Jan 1998 09:51:06 -0800
Newsgroups: alt.folklore.herbs
Aspertame (a.k.a. nutrisweet) gives me unbearable
headaches -- it started slowly, and built up with my use of any diet substances
containing aspartame. Within the first
month after it was introduced, the insides of my elbows and the backs of my
knees would be speckled with bruises if I had anything with aspartame in it,
even one stick of gum. Needless to say,
I do not use anything with aspartame!!
67. Date: Wed, 25 Feb 1998 17:59:06 +0530
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
Subject: Nutrasweet...my experiences
I have struggled with weight all my life and I have tried
most every type of diet out there. I have found that I have one really big problem
with Nutrasweet. Every time that I use it, I get really bad migraine headaches.
I have tried lots of different products containing it and they all have the same
effect. I have family and friends that have the same problems with it. I know
that if something gives you a bad side effect such as headache then it can't be
that good for you!
68. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: l-phenylaline ?
Date: Thu, 15 Jan 1998 17:57:47 -0500
xxxxx, this is very interesting to me. I react badly to aspartame/NutraSweet. It makes me feel (mentally) something like a combination
of caffeine overdose and a "fever delirium." High-speed, jumbled thoughts, with
(physically) twitchy nerves and jerks... the mental part is similar to a "moderate"
Anxiety episode. Any thoughts on this?
69. Subject:
Re: Aspertame...???
Date:
1998/03/21
Newsgroups:
alt.sport.weightlifting
I lived for the best part of a year with an allergy no
doctor could explain,a skin crawling and sometimes pins and needle itch you
would not believe.I went everywhere to find the problem, I was told to just
accept it and get on with life.I was taking antihistamines which made me drowsy
and apathetic.
70. Subject: Re: Aspartame and MS
Date: 26 Mar 1998 11:59:25 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.mult-sclerosis
Aha, panic attacks. Mine are gone (fingers crossed) and I
gave up aspartame about three months ago. I'd been taking it in Diet Coke for a
good few years. Don't miss it one bit.
71. Subject: Re: Nasty lil toxin
Date: 12 Mar 1998 21:55:49 -0500
Newsgroups: soc.singles.moderated
A headache? What I
got was a technicolor headache with vision impairment and a feeling that I was
going to die, die, die, and an emergency trip to the doctor. *Just* a migraine. (and now there's olestra)
72. Subject: Re: Melatonin (was sleep)
Date: 25 Mar 1998 05:14:06 -0000
Newsgroups: alt.support.menopause
I've had two classic migraines, including aura, both
triggered by aspartame. Bleah. I now occasionally have a sinus headache
morph into a migraine, less severe than the aspartame ones.
73. Subject: [LC] MSG/Aspertame ... long
Date: Fri, 6 Feb 1998 09:53:47 -0800
Mailing List: LOWCARB-LIST@maelstrom.stjohns.edu [i]
Ok, now to aspertame.
While surfing the net about MSG, I ran across a site about aspertame and
it's affects. Yeah, I've read that there
are lots of controversy over this product, and I don't want to start anything
with anyone about it, but I'm just going to state what this product does to ME
and how it affects my life. In addition
to all those nasty side effects *dizziness, brain fog, blacking out,* (I have experienced
these effects personally) I have also found that the maltodextrin used as the
filler for aspertame converts to MSG when ingested. SOOO, with that in mind, it is very frustring
to also find that Sugar Twin (and the guy from the Stevia page has told me that
the free sample that he is sending me) has that as it's first ingredient also.
74. Date: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 19:39:29 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: RE: Headaches and aspartame
Thanks for your email.
I have been meaning to write to you.
My wife has been off aspartame for approximately two months and has
noticed a significant reduction in her headaches. The few that she still gets are much less
severe. There was a definite change
immediately after she stopped using the aspartame. The list of alternate sweeteners was also very
helpful. It will take a while before all
of the aspartame is out of her system. I
am sure she will continue to improve.
We'll keep in touch.
75. Date: Mon, 13 Apr 1998 15:32:18 -0700
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: re:aspartame
I just received your story and was amazed. My husband drinks at least a 6-pack of diet
pepsi a day and has no effects. However,
since I quit nursing our son I felt free to again drink caffeine and started to
drink diet pepsi. I didn't drink it
every day and also drank regular pepsi. After a few weeks I noticed I started
to get headaches, had trouble focusing my eyes and was getting dizzy. I at first thought that it was from the
caffeine since I hadn't had much for a couple of years. I then noticed I only got symptoms after
drinking diet pepsi. I wondered why but
didn't think much of it, I just quit drinking it. Now I know why and it scares me because my
husband and I have both allowed our 2 year old son drink small amounts of diet
pepsi. Not to mention other drinks and
foods containing aspartame.
76. Subject:
Re: Aspartame Poisoning
Date:
1998/02/25
Newsgroups:
alt.support.eating-disord
Nutrasweet has Aspartame in it, and Aspartame< thins
out the lining in the blood vessels. For those who suffer from frequent
headaches or from migraine headaches, this can become a serious problem, as the
thinning of the blood vessel lining will produce higher levels of pressure in
the blood vessels - especially those in the brain. I suffer from Migraines, and
I'm Hypoglycemic. It took a couple of years to figure out why I was getting headaches
after meals, et al. Fortunately, I did the research and consulted my doctor
before I ended up blowing a blood vessel.
77. Date: Sun, 12 Apr 1998 17:23:15 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Problems with nutrasweet
Dear xxxx, how in the world do we get the word out about
the harmful effects of aspartame? I have
had many symptoms for over a year now and I am doing better since I stopped
using this poison. The national news media won't touch it , do you have and
ideas? I am telling everyone I know and I am making copies of info off the net
for anyone who will read it. Please advise, and thanks for all that you do on
this issue.
78. CompuServe
Natural Medicine Forum, Corner Juice Bar[1]
Re: Aspartame test
Date: Tue, Dec 16, 1997, 3:11 PM
Message # 274430
About 10 years ago I participated in a double blind study
of the effects of Aspartame at Duke University. I was asked to be included
because I had complained to the FDA and some medical doctors interested in the
substance's side effects.
At the time I was previously very healthy, and I was
consuming 10-20 ounces of Diet Coke daily. I started having migrane headaches
(I didn't know they were migranes until my doctor diagnosed, I had never had
them before), confusion, dizziness, memory loss, and I just felt very
"old". I was only 25 yrs old
at the time.
I read an article about the "possible" side
effects of aspartame, and it sounded just like me so I wrote to the doctor who
wrote the article, explaining my experience. It was several months later that I
went to Duke for the study. I was very concerned about the effects of Aspartame
and wanted to contribute what I could to the cause, in this case I contributed
my body! They checked me out head to toe, inside and out first, then gave me
capsules to take each day. Some with Aspartame, some without. Then each day
they ran many tests on me again. The results showed that I have an allergy to
some chemical in it. I guess it is a common allergy, many people have it,
therefore many people can have side effects to Aspartame.
I believe this is only one problem with Aspartame, it is
very much a poison to our systems, and should be avoided at all costs. Every person
who knew me at the time I had the symtoms now avoids Aspartame, they saw what
it does to a healthy person.
79. Date: Fri, 8 Aug 1997 07:09:40 -0700
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: ASPERTAME/NUTRASWEET STUDY
We tried the NO ASPARTAME TEST! Here are two results:
A. My brother is a
company president, used to drink 4 to 6 cans per day at work, of diet soda.
After I forwarded him your info, he quit. Then he thanked
me, saying, I used to get KILLER headaches every day, now they are completely
gone.
B. I myself used to drink 3 to 4 cans per day, thinking
it would help me lose weight. I quit and guess what, I LOST WEIGHT. What happened was, my stomach was no longer
irritated by aspartame. When I drank diet coke, I would get a caffeine high and
also a stomachache. To soothe my stomach, I would eat. Guess what, I have lost
about 15 pounds without trying, because my stomach does not ache any more from
the aspartame!
80. Date: Fri, 30 Jan 1998 02:04:50 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: personal experience, Mission Possible
Finland
Hello xxxxx. This is xxxx from xxxxx. I wanted to share a
personal experienre concerning aspartame. A couple of weeks ago I bought this
rasberry juice concentrate. A week later I started to feel weird. I was tired
out of my mind. I had problems with my long vision (it took time to focus my
eyes on the object that I was looking at). I thought I was getting something.
Then when I reread the label of the concentrate to my astonishment I noticed
that it had sugar but it also had aspartame. I poured it down the sink and in a
few days time the symptoms disappeared. I failed three of my exams besause of
this. I was sitting in the examroom looking at my exampapers. I knew I could do
them but somehow I couldn't get my thoughts organized. I think this was due to
aspartame I was prepared for the exams so it wasn't because I hadn't read
enough. I've known the negative effect of aspartame for a long time but this
kind of personal experience is frightening and it motivates me to try more here
in xxxxxx.
81. Date: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 23:27:54 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: I am convinced
I have been off diet sodas, diet anything with aspartame,
for three months now and I can really tell an improvement in how I feel. I have now convinced my great aunt, daughter
and several of my daughter's friends to get off the stuff and I no longer have
it in my home. My aunt was having the
classic symptoms you described and since she has been off it, she has not had a
single headache. My daughter was a
little reluctant, but being 23 has to be difficult, I think I can remember that
far back. The one thing my daughter
noticed immediately was the loss of water retention. Her face has now broken out, but mine did
too. I told her that I thought it was the toxins coming out because after
around 10 days, my face cleared up. I want to thank you from the bottom of my
heart for informing me and others of what this horrible chemical was doing to
our bodies. I salute your work and may
God's blessings be upon you.
82. Subject: Re: Caffeine, Eggs, and Brie Cheese
Date: Mon, 12 Jan 1998 19:27:10 -0800
Mailing List: LC-DIABETES@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
I must beg to differ with you. There is something
terribly wrong with NutraSweet. I drank lots of Diet Sodas for a long time, and
always had terrible migraine headaches. I couldn't figure out what the problem
was. I went to drs. and then to a Special Chiropractor to fix me up. Nothing worked.
Drugs just took the edge off. To no avail.
Then one day my very concerned husband said stop drinking
diet soda for a while. Guess what. My headaches went away. They have gone
completely. When I try to drink something like Crystal Lite, the next day the headache
is back with a vengance.
83. Date: Fri, 2 Jan 1998 06:58:32 -0500
Newsgroups: alt.med.cfs
Subject: Re: MED,CHAT: Aspartame
I have found that anything with Nutrasweet (aspartame) I
think it's pronounced as/par/tame, gives me a"blow my brains out"
headache. I can tolerate one diet coke or anything with Nutrasweet in it,
without the headache, then real trouble.
It has always made my sister very dizzy and she does not have CFIDS or
anything else, Thank God.
84. To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
Date: Tue, 25 Nov 1997 14:48:18 -0500
Appreciate your commitment to aspartame and its inherent
problems. I worked for Coca-Cola for 25
years and understand what is happening.
With a young family, soft drinks in the house was not a luxury but a necessity.
We drank Coke and subsequently Diet Coke as a matte of fact. Sure I was aware of caffeine but as a devoted
coffee drinker I certainly had no problems with the caffeine that was part of
any Cola drink.
I became addicted not only to Coca-Cola but most
important Diet Coke. Inherent problems were written off as old age. I did not realize until I started reading
articles on aspartame that there could be a problem. I quite drinking Diet Coke and my life
changed.
85. Subject:
insomnia and antioxidants
Date:
1998/05/27
Newsgroups:
alt.support.sleep-disorder
....
For instance, MSG and Nutrasweet cause insomnia for me.
....
Thursday June 11, @08:53
it's sugar free. And aspartime gives me a headache (as
well as a bad aftertaste). If it were available w/sugar, I'd definitely buy
some.
Thursday June 11, @09:08
Finally, I don't have to worry about getting confused while
popping Altoids and Vivarin and chewing the Vivarin...believe me, it's not an
experience you want...I'd order a case if they came with sugar...Aspartame
makes me nauseous...
Thursday June 11, @09:56
These mints look promising but for two things. A) They're
sugar-free. Aspartame is legalized poison. B) They couldnt possibly be as
strong as Altoids.
Thursday June 11, @11:44
Aspartame gives me severe migranes (about the only way I
ever experience them!). Damn shame about these neato mints- I guess I won't be
buying them any time soon.
....
It's this witches' brew of poisons that actually tastes
"sweet", not Aspartame itself. It's amazing what the FDA will approve
for public consumption, isn't it?
Thursday June 11, @12:07
I too suffer 12 hour migraine headaches after drinking a
single diet soda. The first time it happed was after staying up all night
playing "Empire" on the VAX-750 at Interactiv Graphic Systems back in
1984. When the sun came up, I got up from the ADM-3 terminal and raided the
fridge for something to drink. The only choice was "Diet Dr. Pepper."
I guzzled the 12 ounce can and started to drive home from Woodland Hills,
California to Northridge, California. About five miles down the road I started
to experience the worst headache of my life. I thought that I was going to die.
But I made it home alive. I simply cannot believe that Aspartame is legal! Yet
it is.
Thursday June 11, @12:33
The engineering students at the university I atteneded
would never drink the stuff. They called it "NutriStupid", because
they could tell the effect that it had on their mental performance. I never
touch it either, and you'll never catch me eating olestra, either. "Anal
leakage" just doesn't sound like a pleasant side-effect.
Thursday June 11, @02:26
Where can I find more information about aspartame and its
nasty effects?
I've stopped drinking Diet Coke (used to down at least 6
a day) and I feel much better for it, but I'd like a little more information to
help my friends quit their "Diet Coke habit".
86. Date: Wed, 27 May 1998 20:09:09 EDT
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame
Thank you for the aspartame information. I have migraine headaches when I ingest
aspartame thus I try to make certain I do not eat or drink anything with
aspartame.
87. Date: Sun, 14 Jun 1998 10:50:19 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: STAR list and Restores
As I originally told you, each morning of my life for approx. 15 years, I consumed an entire pot
of coffee with approx. 3-5 packets of
NutraSweet or NatraTaste or Equal in each cup per day. Along with a high consumption of fat free
yogurts, ice cream, etc. It is true, I
craved sweets constantly. Since not using
aspartame, I don't even use or want sugar or sweets. I actually
don't even drink coffee anymore. My
system is so clean, it only wants the purest things.
88. Date: Sun, 17 May 1998 16:23:40 EDT
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: I have no problem accessing your site.
I just wanted to applaud you for revealing the problems
with aspartame. I KNOW I have
problems. I would be willing to submit
to tests just to prove it. I have replied to several newsgroups about this
poison, and hope, as I am sure you do, that I have stopped even one person from
using this stuff. It should be labeled with a skull and crossbones,
because it is a killer.
89. http://wdworkshop.com/_wdwd/00002e91.htm
Weigh Down Workshop Encouragement
Re: Daily Headaches
Email: none given
Date: 25 Jan 1998
90. Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 1998 20:40:28 -0600
Mailing List: ATKINS-NEW@maelstrom.stjohns.edu [i]
To my point, in desperation I decided to ditch all
discernable forms of nutrasweet, and am amazed at how much more my food
cravings have let up (haven't thought about pop tarts all day long!).
91. Subject: \Re: Atkins Diet - Feel Sick - HELP
Date: Tue, 24 Mar 1998 14:01:16 -0800
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
The nutrasweet and coffee might also be a problem. They can both be trouble for some people as
they are very sensitive to it. I cut out
the nutrasweet and went to stevia and I immediately dropped weight.
92. Subject: Re: Migrane sufferer
Date: Tue, 24 Mar 1998 17:36:39 -0700
Newsgroups: alt.support.headaches.migraine
Welcome to the newsgroup!
I hope this finds you well. I too have a problem with nutrasweet, but
not with my migraines - I break out in a strange rash around my neck from it.
93. Subject: Re: caffine
Date: Fri, 27 Feb 1998 14:48:54 -0500
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.autism
Whenever we give Nathan a regular soda (not often) he is
a super great angel, behaving and sitting and happy. The nutrasweet in diet cokes is BAD and gives
an adverse reaction.
94. Subject: [LC] equal knocks me out of purple
Date: Tue, 7 Apr 1998 15:33:12 -0400
Mailing List: LOWCARB-LIST@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
I had the same problem. My stepmother is a herbologist
and acupuncturist and says that the nutrasweet can also stunt your weight loss.
I don't have any real scientific evidence to support that, the fact is I lose
more when I don't use equal or nutrasweet. Stick to stevia.
95. Date: Mon, 30 Mar 1998
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: tamoxiphen
I guess that is the test i am talking about....I don't
think it is a problem with me though because I can not take anything with nutri-sweet
or anything like nutri-sweet...It gives me severe headaches...So needless to
say i stay away from anything like that...Also MSG gives me headaches...So i
watch for that also... I am just learning about the milk...i have gone to soy
milk...
96. Date: Mon, 02 Feb 1998 23:03:18 -0600
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame/phenylalanine
I tried to quit diet Pepsi, cold turkey, and almost died
when my metabolism essentially shut down.
I was taken to the emergency room at a local hospital, and no one knew
what was wrong with me or why I was drifting in and out of a
consciousness. I'm now on oral
phenylalanine (of my own doing) which miraculously reversed an almost comatose
state and brought me back to where I am, now.
I'm trying to get off of the phenylalanine as fast as I can; it seems
like a horrible drug addiction. I've
never taken any "drugs" in my life, but this seems as serious as any
drug adiction I've heard of.
97. Date: Wed, 06 May 1998 21:58:37 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: nutrasweet!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i to chring at the thought of people drinking/eating stuff
with the ingredient known as aspartame............i find it to trigger my
headaches...............besides people should realize that it leaves an after
taste in their mouths as well...................alot of people still do not
understand that nutrasweet is bad stuff especially ones that are prone to
seizures too.............it's a chemical that our bodies can do
without........the less chemicals the better off our bodies will be...........i'm
a very concerned professional(health field)................
98. Subject: Re: Aspertame (Was Re: Caffeine, Eggs, and
Brie
Cheese)
To: xxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Date: Tue, 13 Jan 1998 17:12:36 -0500
....
I must tell you and others that had it NOT been for the
aspertame discussion, *I* would not have found out what was triggering my
desire for carbs...it was the diet sodas.
There have been topics of discussion that did not affect me either, but
I am sure *someone* was helped by reading them!
99. Subject: Re: Atkins and diarrhea
Date: Thu, 8 Jan 1998 01:18:19 -0500
Mailing List: ATKINS-NEW@maelstrom.stjohns.edu
100. Date: Wed, 19 Nov 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
I wrote you in August.
I got off of aspartame on August 22nd. It just sent FDA a message, I
hope it got to the right place. I
couldn't find what I wanted. It had a
comment page that I sent but I think it
was for comments for Internet page.
Here is what I sent to them:
I am sending you notification that I think that aspartame
is a very dangerous substance. It is
what caused me to have slurred speech, lost most of my reflexes, dizziness,
hives, balance and coordination, my heart would pound hard when I would be
sitting, I had trouble sleeping, nightmares, I had to have help tying my
shoes. I was having a terrible time
concentrating. I had to have my daughter do my bills at work. I was tested for all kinds of things. I was checked for stroke, heart trouble,
Lupis, Multiple Sclerosis. I had a Cat
Scan, and a MRI. I had about $5000
dollars worth of tests, and the Doctors couldn't figure out what was the
cause. I have fibromyalgia, and
aspartame made it much worse. I have
been in terrible pain for years. It took
me about 70 days to get aspartame out of my system and now I am in less pain
than I have been in for years. All of my
symptoms left except one, I am still having difficulty concentrating. Please consider taking this hazard off the
market. Since I have been free of
aspartame, my husband and many other people have noticed that I am able to do
many things that I haven't been able to do in YEARS! I had drank aspartame in diet drinks evetry
since it came out. I had no idea that
aspartame was what was
causing most of my problems until I started doing
research on what could cause slurred speech.
I don't want anyone to go through what I have been through. I thank God that I found out before it was
TOO LATE!
101. Date: Thu, 30 Oct 1997 18:40:35 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: nutrasweet/hypoglycemia/seizures
I am 26 years old and I have never had a serious medical
condition in my life. Recently, I began
having blackouts, feeling rather run down, and I was having frequent mood
swings. I consider myself to be in
excellent physical condition and watch my diet religiously. Not very long ago, I was taken to the
hospital while having one of my supposed seizures, or blackouts. I tend to stray away from "seizure"
because as soon as the word is brought up you are labeled epileptic. While at the hospital, I was put through all
of the usual tests when someone is said to have had a seizure. The tests, C-T scan, MRI, and ECG, did not
reveal any obvious problems. So, for
lack of anything better, my brilliant(Hahh!!) neurologist diagnosed me with
epilepsy. At the same time I was also
having problems with my blood sugar being too low. He didn't even try to link either of my two
problems together into a feasible diagnosis.
You can understand that I was feeling angry, depressed, and thoroughly
confused.
It wasn't a week after I had been released from the
hospital and I had another "seizure".
My girlfriend and I thought back through the events of the prior days
and nothing seemed irregular. While in
the hospital my physician placed me on Dilantin, an anti-convulsive medication,
and it was supposed to alleviate my problem.
Obviously it wasn't working. My girlfriend
and I then began thinking of anything that we had changed in our lifestyles in
the last six months since these problems occurred.
We found an article on the adverse effects of nutrasweet
and became very curious. Then we discovered
it. With our efforts of keeping a strict
diet I began consuming large amounts of Crystal Light. I liked the powdered drink mix because by the
package I just assumed it was flavored water.
I never drank any diet sodas so I really never encountered Nutrasweet to
a very high degree. Soon I was consuming
6-10 gallons a week along with my normal water intake. I did not experience any immediate problems,
at least we don't think so. Then came
the problems that I have discussed.
Since then I have found a doctor that believes in my reaction to
Aspartame, and has discontinued my medication.
I am now trying to restore my life to the way it was before my Nutrasweet
problem. Due to my seizures, my driver's license has been suspended for six
months.
102. Date: Mon, 10 Nov 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Legal Action against Monsanto
I have been off aspartame for some time now and I have
been under the care of a fine doctor to rid myself of the chemical. My confusion (getting lost on the way home)
disappeared as soon as I stopped consuming aspartame. But it is apparent that brain damage has been
done, because my memory has been seriously reduced. I have difficulty remembering the names of my
students, or any other new information.
I am considering a suit against Monsanto and/or the FDA
seeking damages, but have not yet consulted an attorney. Are you aware of any law suits by individuals
like myself against Monsanto or PepsiCo?
I would appreciate any information you have that could be of assistance
to me in this effort.
Thank you for everyting you have done. If it weren't for you I would still be doing
brain damage to myself courtesy of these criminals.
103. Date: Tue, 04 Nov 1997 11:07:52 -0500
Subject: Aspartame
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Let me first commend you and your "partners in
crime" for the work that you do in reference to aspartame and it's ill
effects on the human body. As a sufferer
of aspartame poisoning, I feel quite strongly that you and your people may have
gone as far as saving my life. At the least, you people are responsible for
improving my quality of life by an exponential amount. I was diagnosed with
type II diabetes a little over 3 years ago. Like a scared little diabetic, I
was concerned for my health enough to make several changes in my lifestyle, to
improve my overall health and to try to keep my diabetes under control. I began
using Equal in my coffee, (4 cups/day) and I began drinking diet
Pepsi, about 4 per day.
I tried to use as many products with aspartame as possible. During the next 2 years, I lost 55 lbs, much
to the delight of myself, my family, and my doctor. But during these 2 years, my
health began to suffer, and I started experiencing many problems that no one,
including my doctor, associated with aspartame useage. As a matter of fact,
everyone, including myself, thought that most of my problems were my
"advancing age" (46 now).
The problems I had were as follows; indigestion (used Rolaids like candy), headaches, almost every morning, (used Advil almost everyday). severe mood swings, memory loss (mostly short term), my vision deteriorated, insomnia, and finally vertigo. When I began the dizziness associated with vertigo, I again went to the doctor thinking maybe I had a clogged artery to my brain. My doctor could find absolutely nothing wrong with me. He scheduled me for a "fasting" blood test the next morning. The next morning I took a thermos of coffee sweetened with aspartame in the truck, to drink on the way to work after the blood test. That morning, I felt great...no dizziness and no indigestion. When I got to work, bam...I had a dizzy spell. I thought for a minute as to "what did I do from the time I left the lab, until now?"....it hit me like a ton of bricks....an almost forgotten memory of the controversy over the approval of aspartame. I searched the Web and ended up at your sight. The rest is sort of history. I stopped using aspartame products, and all the symptoms went away, almost immediately, except...I fear my eyes are permanently damaged, and my short term memory has improved, but is a long ways from what a man my age should be experiencing. I am now on a "one man" crusade in work, to educate my fellow workers and friends to the dangers of aspartame. I have been successful with 4 individuals, who are now on the mend, and who also NEVER associated their medical problems with their use of aspartame.
The problems I had were as follows; indigestion (used Rolaids like candy), headaches, almost every morning, (used Advil almost everyday). severe mood swings, memory loss (mostly short term), my vision deteriorated, insomnia, and finally vertigo. When I began the dizziness associated with vertigo, I again went to the doctor thinking maybe I had a clogged artery to my brain. My doctor could find absolutely nothing wrong with me. He scheduled me for a "fasting" blood test the next morning. The next morning I took a thermos of coffee sweetened with aspartame in the truck, to drink on the way to work after the blood test. That morning, I felt great...no dizziness and no indigestion. When I got to work, bam...I had a dizzy spell. I thought for a minute as to "what did I do from the time I left the lab, until now?"....it hit me like a ton of bricks....an almost forgotten memory of the controversy over the approval of aspartame. I searched the Web and ended up at your sight. The rest is sort of history. I stopped using aspartame products, and all the symptoms went away, almost immediately, except...I fear my eyes are permanently damaged, and my short term memory has improved, but is a long ways from what a man my age should be experiencing. I am now on a "one man" crusade in work, to educate my fellow workers and friends to the dangers of aspartame. I have been successful with 4 individuals, who are now on the mend, and who also NEVER associated their medical problems with their use of aspartame.
104. Date: Mon, 17 Nov 1997 08:09:41 GMT
To: MSLIST-L@techunix.technion.ac.il
Subject: Re: Effects of alcohol? Now also Diet Coke
I have had more than 1 doctor warn me about
nutrasweet. Funny, I don't use it
anyway... because my first time ingesting it resulted in hallucinations and the
most incredible anxiety I have ever experienced. I ran into my mother's bedroom crying and
insisting that my room was haunted. I
told her that things were flying around and my digital display on my clock had
changed from green to blood red and was dripping.
Thing was.... I didn't even know I had had
nutrasweet. A friend of mine had made
kool-aid with it, and we had gone for a picnic at a fishing peer. I asked her if she had put "anything
special" in the kool-aid and she said.... just "equal." I put it in the back of my mind, until one
day (about a week later), I hear on the radio that there were people having bad
reactions to nutrasweet, including hallucenations. I called the FDA that afternoon. They sent someone over to interview me, and
gave me Searle's address (the manufacturer). I sent for more information and
FDA reports and such. This was before the
internet and before they began putting it into every diet food on the market.
What I read about aspartame (nutrasweet) astounded me,
and I never touched the stuff again. I
got very habitual about reading labels and asking people if what they had given
me had aspartame in it. I also made a
point of educating people about it, as much as I could. My sister has had a
seizure disorder since she was a child.
The constantly told her it wasn't epilepsy. Oddly enough, her new neurologist and a
second opinion just confirmed that it IS epilepsy. ROTFL (as if we didn't know). Anyway, she had been on her usual "epilepsy"
meds for her seizure disorder (that still cracks me up) since she was in 3rd
grade. Only one grand mal seizure when
she was about 13. We felt that had to do
with her getting her period the first time and the hormonal changes affecting
her brain. From the
time she was 32 or so, she started to have petit mal seizures
again. No one could figure out why.
Then, one day, about 2 years ago, she revealed to me that it was very
common for her to drink 3-5 diet cokes a day.
I was so upset. Here she was...
just the person who shouldn't be drinking that poison!!!! and now she is having small seizures again? I asked her to promise me that she would quit
the diet cokes and drink regular ones for 2 weeks.... just as an
experiment. She hasn't touched one
since, or had any seizures at all.
105. To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame
Date: Thu, 17 Jul 1997 13:14:02 -0400 (EDT)
Yes I am off of Aspartame completely!! Have been feeling good. Haven't had any seizures and have been able
to cut back on my Dilantin. I am also cutting
out caffeine now. Of course my
neurologist won't admit that Aspartame has anything to do with seizures, he
just laughs when asked that question.
But I do know that I didn't have seizures until I was 19 years old,
(after I started drinking diet soda) and am not having them now (off of diet
sodas and all other Nutrasweet). My CT
scan and MRI were both normal and doctors can't explain why I had
seizures. EEG did show seizure activity,
so I know I was not just crazy. I would
be curious to see if my EEG is now improved.
But that costs a lot of money, so I guess I'll just enjoy my new and
improved lifestyle and keep my fingers crossed.
Cutting back on the Dilantin has also given me more energy!
106. Date: Sun, 19 Oct 1997 22:54:11 -0400
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: xxxxxxxx Guestbook
I have been plagued with unknown health problems for 3
years. Been to several doctors, had all kinds of tests run, and after the tests
confirmed I had nothing wrong, and I was still having seizures, I begin to
eliminate foods from my diet, I still had all kinds of problems, such as
fatigue, heart palpitations, hypertension, abdominal pain, hair loss, memory
loss, vision loss, to name a few, but the seizures were the worst. When I
eliminated Equal from my diet 6 weeks ago, I have not had another seizure, and
all other ailments except the irregular heart beats have improved. I wish I
knew the long range damage of Equal to my body, and I might have a better
outlook on life. Do you know a lawyer working on this for the people with
damage to their health from Nutrasweet, and where can I contact them.
107. Date: Fri, 7 Nov 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Detox update - good news!
I just wanted to let you know how I'm feeling after two
weeks away from Nutrasweet. You may
remember I had spoken to xxxxx xxxxxxx about a non-pharmaceutical for my
excruciating insomnia - well, I no longer need one, as I sleep through the
night now. The only lifestyle/dietary
change I've made is the elimination of aspartame (Diet Pepsi, more
specifically). Istill consume caffeine
every day.
I was very concerned about gaining weight, because of my
history of eating disorders, but so far, so good. I think I'm eating more, but haven't gained an
ounce. The flashing lights in my eyes have settled down, and I can't wait until
my retinal specialist examines me Monday - he's skeptical about the aspartame link,
but when he sees my improvement, perhaps he'll be more convinced. My kids have
noticed changes in my demeanor - I meet
them outside when they get off the school bus, rather than them finding me exhaused
in bed at 3 p.m. I'm also much clearer in the morning, and not prone to
agitation. I'll keep you apprised of my progress along the way, and thank you
so much for all the valuable information to which you have directed me.
[update]
108. Date: Wed, 31 Dec 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame
December 25 marked the last day of my 60-day withdrawal
from aspartame, and I just wanted you to hear how things are going. I'm still having an awful lot of vision
problems - legally blind. What is now apparent
is that this particular part of my affliction my be life-long, because of
damage to the optic nerve and retina that is irreparable. My eyesight "waxes and wanes", and
the flashing lights sometimes make me feel like going insane!
However, on a more positive note, I am sleeping so much
better, and I do not feel the rage and ensuing depression I felt when I was
using aspartame on a daily basis. My
heart has stopped fluttering, my mouth doesn't burn any more, and I feel a
little more "there" I have not
experienced any more grand mal seizures, either ( you may recall I had four in
the period between 1994-1997 with no history of epilepsy, tumors or massive
head injuries)
Monsanto has used the general population as guinea pigs,
as far as I'm concerned. And in light of
Fen-phen, Rezulin, and other drugs approved, then abandoned by the FDA, I am a
firm believer that the FDA is not qualified to be a regulatory body when it it
comes to the public well-being. To me,
FDA approval is meaningless - as they say, you can put syrup on it, but that
don't make it pancakes!
109. Date: Wed, 22 Oct 1997 16:56:50 +0800
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: allergic to sweetners
110. Date: Fri, 26 Dec 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: apertame
im a long haul trucker whos been driving safely for 20
years.last year i was in a accident caused by a dizzy spell or seizure.i would
drink large amounts of coffee with a aspertame sweetner along with chewing
large amounts of gum containing aspertame.usually 8 to ten packs a night.i
believe my accident was a result of aspertame
[updated]
Im sorry i just read your last e-mail. I am fine. I dont
use aspertame.honestly Im not happy about the lack of awareness about the
problems with this piosen. im going to restart looking for a lawyer again in a
last ditch attempt to hold them responcable for the dizzy spell that i had.I
dont think the law firm Ive got for my workers compensation thinks its worth
his time.but I know what happened. i know what i did to stay alert [chew lots
and lots of gum with this product.and drink diet sodas .but in the end if it
fails at least [thanks to your web sites] i know what caused my dizzy spell and
also my wife and kids avoid this poisen to.
111. Date: Wed, 29 Oct 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame and choking
I try not to eat anything, chew gum, or drink anything
that contains NutraSweet. A few years
ago I realized that sometimes when I chewed gum, I would choke and lose my
breath for several seconds, which is VERY scary. It then became apparant that
it only happened when chewing gum with NutraSweet in it. I know only one other person that this
happens to—we call that kind of gum "choker gum". Do you know why it affects some people that
way? I read what you had to say about
phenylalanine on the internet. Why isn't it banned?! It's disgusting!
112. Subject:
Re: Aspartame
Date:
1997/12/22
Newsgroups:
bit.listserv.autism
I also was interested in the aspartame post. I've taken myself off it for years because it
caused migraines, irritability, cloudiness in thinking. I used to consume large amounts in college
when I was trying to conform to the anorexic body image prevailing at the time. Now I
wonder how many people out there are drinking diet Coke while conversing with
their shrink!
113. Subject:
Re: Aspartame
Date:
1997/12/22
Newsgroups:
bit.listserv.autism
Thanks for the info.
I took Logan off it totally about a year and a half ago, and his
language and "with-it-ness" increased dramatically within a week. Been
suffering ffrom depression for a couple of years now. Don't know why I didn't think of it. I am
addicted to diet coke. Guess I am now
"on the wagon"
114. Date: Sun, 22 Jun 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame Poisoning?
I have spent much of this afternoon reviewing, with
interest, the material on your web site, along with that on the xxxxx web site
and that of xxxxx, as well as the xxxxxx Web Site. This was prompted by a several
weeks of ongoing severe headaches and throat irritation that had gone
unexplained. I had come to the conclusion
that perhaps allergies were at play, and started to watch for what brought on
the symptoms. The last two evenings,
symptoms were brought on severly by the same apparent cause: extra large, fast
food Diet Cokes!
Over the past 3-4 months, I moved from my prior job to
create a startup business. I am a
software designer and developer and have spent a great deal of time at home creating
a new software program. As a result, my intake
of Diet Coke has increased dramitically.
However, I did not begin to expect this was a problem until the past two
evenings. I have cut out these drinks as of today, and will monitor whether
this causes the symtoms to subside. If
you would like, I will report back to you after a period of time.
Thanks you for your efforts to make this informaiton
available. The first site I found was
the xxxxx site. I was quite discouraged
as I though I had identified the problem.
Only when I followed my other search links did I realize the whole truth
might not be there.
[update]
115. Date: Thu, 13 Nov 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame Poisoning?
Thanks for the follow up.
Yes, I have sworn off aspartame since my first message on 6/22/97. My symptoms disappeared and have not
returned. Frankly I was amazed. This has caused me to look more carefully at
other stuff going into my body. Note that I did not give up coffee
initially. This was on my list of
possible causes also. Much later, I did
give it up, but long after (months after) my symtoms had disappeared.
116. Date: Thu, 30 Oct 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: NutraSweet victim
some very disturbing information on Nutrasweet on the WEB
a few months back. After reading the
information I stopped drinking Diet Coke and diet sodas immediately. I had been drinking Diet Coke for about four
years or so, pretty much on a daily basis (Meaning one or two a day). For about the last two years I had some increasing
pain on the inside bone of both elbows.
I thought it may have been an old hockey injury. I started to get very concerned when the pain
was persistant and seem to be getting worse to the point of having great pain
when lifting not so heavy objects. I remembered
when I had started drinking diet sodas.
That was the only constant variable in my diet in the past years. The pain got to the point of being too severe to ignore. I happened to look up on Nutrasweet on the
WEB and found an abundance of negative information. One particular report mentioned that sore
joints was one of the symptoms. I have
not injested diet sodas since then and am happy to say the pain is 90 %
gone. Coincident? Maybe.......I don't
think so. I hope that I haven't done anything
too irreversable at this time. I did
coincidently drink a couple of quarts of freshed squeezed vegetable juice each
week during those years. A friend of mine
owned a juice store at the time and (like a bar) I would stop in a couple of
nights a week for a :drink". During
that time (approx. 5 years) I only had the flue once. (note: I am not a health or excersise
fanatic) I am sorry about the long
winded note, but I thought you might like to hear my story.
117. AOL/Allergies, Immune Disorders/Food Allergies
Subject: Re: "Diet" Drinks
Date: Tue, Dec 23, 1997 9:40 AM
However, I have had a different encounter with Nutrasweet
and all aspartame-based products. This
summer I was diagnosed as not only having asthma/allergies (already knew that)
but also chemical sensitivities to phenol & formalin (formaldehyde precursor). In my reading, I found an explanation for the
aspartame reaction I had. Once ingested,
there is apparently a reaction with aspartame in the intestines which produces
formaldehyde.
Even a small breath mint with Nutrasweet can make my
bronchii inflame to the point where I can't even get enough air to speak. My
face turns grey-blue, I get agitated (I usually stay calm during an asthma
attack), and I'm exhausted for several days.
Once I cut out all Nutrasweet, it stopped. Although you have not run into this extreme,
you may want to look into chemical sensitivities. It's possible that you have run into a
chemical sensitivity rather than a straight allergic reaction.
118. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subject: Help re: PKU sensitivity
Date: Tue, Dec 23, 1997 4:05 AM
I have had several episodes of sensitivity to Nutrasweet.
I try to avoid it but have accidently ingested it in punches that contained
diet sodas. It seems to affect my brain function & I feel irritable &
edgy.
119. Date: Mon, 8 Dec 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Looking for brain tumor information
120. Date: Wed, 22 Oct 1997 21:16:50 -0400
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame
Thank you very much for your time and devotion to this
cause. In the first week of August, I was searching for a cause for my mom's neuropathy
and abdominal pain. Thanks to your website
I have an answer. I can't convince mom's doctors that this is the cause.
Most doctors seem to be brain dead. They just think it is normal in diabetics
to develop severe abdominal pain.
Since I am convinced, I am going full swing into
educating the public. I am going to hand out flyers entitled DIET COKE ALMOST
KILLED MY MOTHER at the store where mom bought her poison as well as picket the
FDA. My parents live about 5 miles from the FDA. I don't want to step on
anyones toes. Let me know if you would like to in anyway coordinate my efforts
so that I don't go off half-cocked so to speak and do no good!
Mom has passed the 60 day mark with little improvement
except her arthritic pain is gone and her B/G level is much more stable. She
still has severe abdominal pains which is treated by percocet and weak legs. She
is using about 1/4 as much insulin. She is confined to a nursing home because
it became impossible for my 76 year old father to care for her.
I have talked to so many people who are affected by this
poison. I rarely consumed it but couldn't understand about 8 months ago feeling
very strange every time I ate dinner at my folks. At one time I had to stop my
car on the way home because of a rapid heartbeat. Thought I was having a heart attack.
While writing this letter, I went outside to talk to a friend, a junk dealer
named "Popeye". He told me about getting tunnel vision and convulsions
after consuming crystal light at his brother-in-laws house.
121. Date: Wed, 22 Oct 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: nutrasweet danger
I AM xxxx FROM MEXICO CITY, SORRY FOR MY BAD ENGLISH, ALL
I WANT TO SAY IS, I HAVE BEEN SEARCHING IN THE WEB, FOR THIS POISON CALL
ASPARTAME. NOW I KNOW MANY THINGS ABOUT
IT, I AM AN HYPOGLUCEMIC PERSON, BUT I ALWAYS REFUSE TO TAKE NUTRASWEET. IF I
HAD JUST ONE DIET COKE, I FELT REALLY BAD, CAFFEINE AND NUTRASWEET ARE LIKE A
BOMB FOR ME.
I AM AN AEROBICS INSTRUCTOR, AND I LOVE TO SEARCH
FOR NUTRITION FACTS. WHEN I TOLD MY
CLIENTS ABOUT THIS, THEY QUIT TAKING NUTRASWEET, AND BELIVE IT OR NOT NOW THEY IMPROVED,
AND NOW THEY CAN FOLLOW THE CLASSES AND THE RUTINES MUCH BETTER.
122. Date: Tue, 02 Dec 1997 16:30:01 -0500
Newsgroups: alt.support.epilepsy
Subject: Re: Warning to all with seizure disorders
I don't know how it works with seizures but eliminating
aspartame from my diet made my migraines go away..from an average of 3-4 month
down to none
123. Date: Fri, 17 Oct 1997 20:06:49 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: So glad you're better
When you last wrote I couldn't see any change in my
health. Shortly after that, about 80
days after stopping aspartame, I am feeling much better. I may still have seizures, but I'm managing
WELL on only 400 mg. dilantin daily.
Before even 500 mg every other day was not helping. I hope to decrease the dilantin sometime and
see if, by any chance, the seizures are gone.
I will do that under my neurologist's direction. Right now, I do not feel like changing
anything.
124. Date: Sat, 31 Jan 1998 00:01:09 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet/seizures
Got off Nutrasweet and am MUCH better. Thanks.
Letitia
125. Date: Tue, 25 Nov 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame keeps diabetes out of control
This is not very scientific but I wanted to write to you
about my mom's experience with aspartame.
She takes medication to control her sugar and never is able to get it
under control. She also drank lots of
diet soda and ate things with nutrasweet, jello, pudding, cookies, etc. The doctor told her to give it up and start
taking shots. She decided to find a new
doctor. About this same time. (Last April, I think) I got your articles via e-mail after reading
about you and immediately called my mom.
My dad answered and I told him about it. From that moment on no diet soda etc. And immediately her sugar count began going
down and came under control. About 2
months ago she drank Crystal Light for 3 days.
Because she had it around for my nephew and she thought what the heck. Well her sugar went sky high, so she
stopped. Two weeks ago she had 3 diet
root beers in one evening. The next
morning, it was sky high again. I think she
is now convinced. I wish we could
convince my sister to stop (weight problem) and not allow my 3 yr old nephew to
drink it. But she said she is cutting
down. I did share the recent article
with her about it affecting conception, as she is trying to get pregnant
again. At least she didn't drink it
while pregnant. Thanks for all your information
and I hope this helps prove even more what you say. My boyfriend is a pilot and he has quit
drinking any diet soda. He never ate
foods with it, and he is sharing that info with other pilots. Keep up the good work and have a wonderful Thanksgiving
and a Blessed Holiday Season. I hope my
story makes sense. I am not a great writer.
126. Date: Tue, 16 Dec 1997 11:57:39 -0800
Newsgroups: alt.med.fibromyalgia
Subject: Re: Caffeine, aspartame and sugar.
Thumper I get a horrible headache and diarrhea from nutrasweet.
It took me a long time to trace it back to diet pepsi. I read an article a few
years ago that suggested nutrasweet had been linked in some way to some type of
neuro problems. I don't remeber if it was brain tumors or strokes. Headaches
were a symptom though. It seems to me that saccharin causes bladder cancer in rats.
But like you said, the human equivalent was an outrageous amount. I don't
recall the human equivalent in the nutrsweet tests. It is probably the same
way.
127. BiSleep Discussion Forum
http://bisleep.medsch.ucla.edu/discussions/clinicalP/messages/msgs00179.html
RE: Subject:Nutrasweet & Vitamin B 12 for DSPS
I would be interested in the Nutrasweet correlation
myself. I have insomnia and a digestive disorder, The digestive problem got lots
better when I stopped Nutrasweet products. The insomnia is always worse when my
digestive problem is active so . . . I just am very curious.
128. Subj: Re:
Aspartame and Immune Disorders
Date:
97-07-14 23:27:10 EDT
To:
xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
I have not had aspertame for at least 6 months. I do drink regular sweetened drinks and
overall feel better than before, hard to explain, but definitely there is a
difference.
129. Subject:
Re: Aspartame
Date:
1997/12/22
Newsgroups:
bit.listserv.autism
130. Subject:
Re: Skipping Beats
Date:
1997/12/18
Newsgroups:
sci.med.cardiology
Funny you should mention them going away. It seemed to me at the time, that they [the
PVCs] occurred sporatically throughout the year. I went through the Holter monitor test and
the doctor pretty much said that I didn't have anything to worry about. Since then, I started surfing the web and
various other journals in the library. I
have all but eliminated the following two chemicals from my diet; phosphoric
acid (found in cokes, diet cokes and pretty much any caramel colored soda pop)
and nutrasweet (equal, etc). The PVCs
rarely occur these days (that was a year and a half ago). I still consume caffeine (2-3 cups per
morning) and I exercise moderately 2 to 3 times per week. I am 34 years old and have a history of heart
trouble (I was born with a hole in my heart - the hole was repaired but a
severe murmur remains to this day).
131. Date: Fri, 31 Oct 1997 23:11:24 -0600
Newsgroups: alt.support.crohns-colitis
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet question
I was a frequent user of Diet Coke and used Equal for
sweetening breakfast cereal. I gave it
up about 4 yrs. ago. It seems to
aggravate my guts and I have some very frequent, severe headaches. I seldom get the headaches now, but the gut
problems come and go (CD for 18 yrs.)
132. Date:
Thu, 16 Oct 1997 14:37:05 -0400
Sender:
Low Carb Support List <LOWCARB-LIST@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject:
Re: artificial sweetners
I seem to have an intolerance to Nutrisweet whereby I
break out all over when I use much of it. I don't break out, but I have found
that if I use more than a couple of packets a day, my gums will bleed. If I
stop using it, the bleeding stops. I've decided to switch to stevia. ....
133. Date:
Fri, 3 Oct 1997 20:22:46 -0700
Sender:
Low Carb Support List <LOWCARB-LIST@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject:
Re: Headaches
If I were you I would look to aspartame. It gives me terrible headaches - but it took
forever for me to make the connection because they show up during the night
after an indulgence and they feel a lot like sinus. I take one feverfew capsule every day now
because I believe that the aspartame triggers the migraine type pain. ....
134. Date:
Sun, 26 Oct 1997 21:44:53 -0500
Subject:
Re: [FIT-L] Aspartame and appetite
To: FIT-L@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
I too wrote a couple of postings to this list regarding
the same subject. I am an active male, age 50, non-drinker, physical fitness
devotee. I quit drinking four to six(average) diet soft drinks per day. I lost
ten pounds!
135. AOL/General Health Discussions/Nutrasweet
Subject: Serious side effects
Date: 23 Jul 1997 01:32:50 EDT
I had a very bad experience with Nutrasweet--it caused
severe headaches, visual disturbances, hemispheric numbness and parasthesias in
my face and head (one side only). It took me quite a while (and a complete
neurologic work-up) to figure out for sure if it was the aspartame--but when I
figured it out and tried Nutrasweet by itself I knew for sure. I felt really
terrible while using it. I think it is a dangerous chemical--and have since read
that there have been convulsions and deaths from using it. I won't touch it ever again--nor do I want my
children, or grandchildren consuming it.
[Followup]
136. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subject: I have Mastocytosis and Nutrasweet is poison
Date: 23 Jul 1997 01:53:17 EDT
I have mastocytosis, mast cell disorder--due to to the
degranulation of mast cells in my blood and in various organs, I have weakness,
parasthesias, fatigue, pain, facial swelling, respiratory problems,
hypersensitivities (looks like severe allergy) to food additives--and
NUTRASWEET IS the VERY WORST, followed closely by sensitivity to MSG. Both
these chemicals trigger mast cell degranulation for me, which if severe enough,
leads to anaphylactic shock. If I do not treat the shock symptoms immediately I
could die rather quickly. I also have had severe neurologic problems from these
chemicals which mimic stroke. I hate Nutrasweet and the companies which are
putting it into the food chain. We are going to have millions of people so ill
they will have to live in nursing homes before they are old--if we do not get
the POISONS out of our food chain, starting with aspartame, and monosodium
glutamate.
137. Subject: Re: Alzheimers/NutraPoison
Date: Fri, 29 Aug 1997 16:48:12 -0600 (MDT)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
I think the people who have immediate reactions are
indeed "lucky". I had a friend
who drank several NutraPoison sodas every day.
She developed severe, debilitating headaches but never made the
connection to the NutraPoison. Over the
course of a year she spent thousands of dollars on specialists and tests (she
even had a brain scan). Spent hundreds
of dollars on different kinds of drugs to alleviate the headaches, all to no avail. Someone mentioned to her that NutraPoison has
been known to cause headaches, so she decided to stop ingesting it. Her headaches stopped 2 days later. A couple weeks later she tried drinking one soda
and got a horrible headache. She then became
an anti-NutraPoison activist, trying to warn others. Too bad I didn't listen. She told me she started doing research on how
dangerous it was and practically begged me to get off it, but I just didn't
want to listen. I kept saying that it was only bad for certain people, but I
"obviously" didn't have any problems with it, so I kept on drinking
it. I wish I had had a severe reaction
so I would have realized how damaging it is.
I kept drinking it for years, thinking all along that I just wasn't
"allergic" to it.
My family and friends were all worried about my NutraPoison intake, but I kept telling them it was certainly safer than sugar. Finally I decided to try to stop drinking it for awhile to see if there was anything in what people were telling me. After being free of NutraPoison for 2 weeks I noticed that I wasn't tired in the morning anymore (didn't need caffeine to wake me up), I stopped craving sweets, I lost weight, and I felt better. A few weeks later I decided to try it again. I had muscle aches, joint pain, and I almost threw up. It tasted like poison. I used to actually crave the taste, but now it just tastes like the poison that it is. It converts to formaldehyde even in the retina of the eye and has caused enough blindness that in l986 the FDA was petitioned to ban aspartame for this reason. It ravages every organ in the body. I just found out (at only 43) that I have glaucoma, even though I don't have any risk factors. Perhaps its from my years of drinking NutraPoison?
My family and friends were all worried about my NutraPoison intake, but I kept telling them it was certainly safer than sugar. Finally I decided to try to stop drinking it for awhile to see if there was anything in what people were telling me. After being free of NutraPoison for 2 weeks I noticed that I wasn't tired in the morning anymore (didn't need caffeine to wake me up), I stopped craving sweets, I lost weight, and I felt better. A few weeks later I decided to try it again. I had muscle aches, joint pain, and I almost threw up. It tasted like poison. I used to actually crave the taste, but now it just tastes like the poison that it is. It converts to formaldehyde even in the retina of the eye and has caused enough blindness that in l986 the FDA was petitioned to ban aspartame for this reason. It ravages every organ in the body. I just found out (at only 43) that I have glaucoma, even though I don't have any risk factors. Perhaps its from my years of drinking NutraPoison?
Also, the wood alcohol in aspartame literally destroys
the immune system. Would you get up each morning and take a little pill that
you knew little by little would breakdown your immune system? I also got MCS,
FM and CFS while drinking NutraPoison.
My liver simply doesn't do phase II detox anymore. Maybe NutraPoison didn't directly cause these
illnesses, but I do know that it added to my total toxic load. I can think of
no redeeming value for NutraSweet except a good rat poison. I think I remember
reading somewhere that given a choice, rats won't eat NutraSweet (or maybe it
was cockroaches?) so it may not even make a good rat poison.
No redeeming value does NutraSweet have. It is addicting and it makes billions for
Monsanto. I'm sorry to say that for
years I helped support Monsanto with my NutraPoison habit. I cringe at the thought today. I can't
believe I wouldn't listen to all those who were trying to help me.
138. Date: Tue, 23 Sep 1997 14:24:11 +0100 (BST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: re: toxic reaction to aspertame
The following is my brief account of recent experiences
of a toxic reaction to aspertame and/or acesulfame k.
I had never heard of aspartame (or acesulfame k) and
recently suffered my first ever panic attack. More than anything else I could
not understand why or how this could possibly happen to me since I am very fit
and a reasonably calm person who performs well under stress. Then, thanks to reading
an account on the internet, mentioning aspartame, I did an analysis of recent
changes in my diet.
To my surprise and horror I discovered that I had been
taking some chewable vitamin C tablets (purchased at Boots the Chemist here in
the U.K.) which contained both aspartame and acesulfame k. I had consumed 35 tablets
at the rate of one a day. I was immediately convinced that this was the source
of the problem since my usual diet never includes anything containing
artificial sweeteners or other artificial substances and I have always kept a
close watch on my diet. Of course, I stopped taking these tablets and within
days my symptoms changed dramatically. I had suffered palpitations and
tightness across my chest and the bridge of my nose, and my anxiety level was
extreme. After stopping the tablets the palpitations came less often and were
less profound and my anxiety dropped considerably. As the days have gone by I
have felt continually better.
I cannot believe that this wretched substance is out
there in so many products just waiting for the next unsuspecting victim. It
really is time for the big food giants to admit that aspartame, acesulfame k
and products like them, are not fit for human consumption. If aspartame can do
this to me (and it really was one of the most harrowing and nightmarish periods
of my life) then what is it doing to our children. Here in the UK more and more children are
suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome... How do the scientists know that this
is not a side effect of the consumption of aspartame in diet coke and other
products?
Clearly, there is more to aspartame and acesulfame k than
we are being allowed to know. Many people's experiences are more tragic than
mine and if it were not for the access to information via the internet I may
never have known what the source of my problem was.
139. Date: Wed, 15 Oct 1997 23:20:59 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Thank you so much!
140. To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Date: Thu, 11 Sep 1997 19:44:47 -0500
Subject: Aspartame
I found your name & address on Internet today. I wanted to share my experience.
Several years ago I started drinking a lot of Diet
Coke. Gradually I began to feel tired
all the time. I am a librarian and by
noon every day all I wanted to do was sit at my desk and close my eyes or stare
into space. Not only was I tired, my
back hurt all the time. And it was like my
brain was in a fog. I was in my early
40's at that time and had decided I would never be able to learn much of
anything new. Then one day I was reading
magazine at my desk because I was to tired to work. I don't remember what magazine - only that is
was a woman's magazine. There was an article about nutrasweet possibly causing
loss of brain power. (That might not
have been exactly how it was worded) I
decided right then to quit drinking diet Coke and see what would happen.
It only took about a week and it was like the fog lifted
from my brain. And gradually my energy came back. And my back quit hurting all the time. Now I can work all day with out excessive
fatigue. And I have learned how to use a
computer - something I might not have wanted to trya few years ago. I did not realize I had Aspertame
Disease. I did not even know there was such
a thing until my mother taped a radio program about it. I recognized my systems from among the
many! I have not drank diet drinks in
over years five years.
I plan to tell others about the danger of aspartame.
141. AOL/General Health Discussions/Nutrasweet
Subject: Re: Blah, blah, blah
Date: 20 Jul 1997 06:56:34 EDT
I feel I must repond here. i have been having problems craving diet foods
like diet pop and iced tea that contained nutra sweet. However, at the time I did
not realize it, was sick, and the doctor brought it to my attention! I quit
consuming it just to see if it made a difference and it did! I have a problem
with the seratonin and dopamine neurotransmitters. Noone will ever convince me
otherwise. My family saw the change in me and they even voluntarily cut it out
of their diet!
142. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
Date: 13 Jul 1997 16:40:07 EDT
Nutrasweet! Bah, I hate to even see the word. It made my life so miserable for 10
years. I thought when it came out it was
the best thing that ever happened. I
could drink all the pop I wanted with nutrasweet. I got daily migraines. Had every kind of medical test to try and
figure out what was causing the migraines.
Finally when the headaches were coming 4 times a day and I was banging
my head against the wall because I was so frustrated, I started taking a look
at what I was eating. The first thing I
stopped was pop, mainly because there wasn't any, and noticed that I DIDN'T GET
A DAILY HEADACHE!! I hadn't had a
migraine in a very long time, UNTIL today.
So the only thing I had eaten was a container of yogurt and sure enough,
there was nutrasweet in it. I haven't
allowed nutrasweet in the house in 2 years and here I'm the one that brought it
in with the yogurt. Have to pay more
attention to labels!!
143. Date: Thu, 2 Oct 1997 16:23:27 -0500
Subject: Aspartame Consumer Safety Network
Questionnaire
To: xxxx@xxxx.xxx
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network Questionnaire
Please fill in and return to ACSN - PO Box 780634 Dallas
TX75378 or
EMAIL to ACSN Founder: marystod@airmail.net [and CC --
mgold@holisticmed.com]
(Please feel free to attach a letter with more details,
preferrably typed. Thank you.)
Age:_29_ Sex: M
City: Edmonton_State: Alberta___________
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
Headaches, fatigue, memory loss, weight fluctuations
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
I had several instances that I stopped using aspartame
for a 1 or few weeks. I notice that the
symptoms went away after I stopped. My short term memory improved, the
headaches went away, I was no longer fatigued and my weight stopped
fluctuating. Although the headaches and fatigue may have been caused by the
caffiene in the beverages.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Yes
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
No
Did Doctor think it related to aspartame?
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food & Drug
Admin.) or any other group?
No
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were
you consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
Diet Coke
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each time, etc.)
2 litres of Diet Coke each day
How long had you been consuming these products before
you experienced the symptoms?
unknown
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT: Did you begin using products with aspartame
when you began a
restricted calorie diet?
yes
Did you use aspartame products only for some of your
meals to save calories?
no
Did aspartame seem to help you lose weight at first?
no
What were the long term weight loss effects of using
aspartame.
No effect. The calories saved by drinking aspartame were
made up by eating too much of other things.
144. Doomed to a life of diabetic misery
Date
Tue, 09 Sep 1997 17:28:47 -0600
Newsgroups
soc.support.fat-acceptance
I can't even use sugar substitutes because saccharine
makes me gag and NutraSweet gives me headaches and diarrhea.
145. Date: Mon, 4 Aug 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: little history
I started taking the contraceptive pill when I was 17/18.
Took Ovranette, a combined estrogen/progestogen on and off until I was 30. I
smoke, so when I hit 30 I tried a progestogen only pill. It made me bleed
continously, so I stopped taking it. Started taking Mercilon in 1991. I had
always had heavy, painful periods, bad cramps in my lower back and down the
fronts of my thighs, as well as bad depression for 2 weeks out of every 4.
Being on the pill relieved these symptoms.
After about two years on Mercilon, I started getting
cramps again with the monthly bleed, this didn't bother me too much. The actual
bleeding was really reduced, only a really tiny amount. Two years ago, in July
'95, I was on the week off, and was due a bleed. I started to feel quite ill,
no fever, just queasy and tired, then I got bad back cramps for 5 days, then a
very small bleed just one showing of blood, and then the cramps turned into a really
bad pain on the left hand side of my back, just above my hip. It wasn't
movement related, I felt like I had the 'flu, and after a few days went to the
doctor. I don't and didn't have good doctor, just one I went to for the pill
prescription. She gave me some anti inflammatories and sent me home to bed. The
pain didn't go away, so I went back to her. She sent me for a back XRay.
That night, I had really severe diarreah and cramps in my
stomach every 20 minutes, with blood in the diarreah. I called the doctor at
8.00 am, and my husband went and picked up some lomitol (anti-spasmodic). That
stopped the cramps and diarreah. I went for the XRay, no problem with my back.
She took a urine sample and a stool sample. She sent me to a physiotherapist. The
physio said it wasn't muscular or skeletal. She suggested some kind of pelvic
inflammatory problem. The doctor found blood in the urine, sent me for an
ultrasound. No problem. Sent me for an IVP - she insisted that it must be my
kidneys - no problem with IVP, noted some small areas of opacity on my pelvis
(rear), kidneys just fine. The doctor was really horrible, so I decided not to
see her again. She wouldn't believe me when I said it was gynae. She refused to
send me to a gynaecologist. Went to another doctor who agreed I should see a
gynaecologist. Saw the gynaecologist who said there was nothing wrong with me,
and it must be my kidneys.
Doctor sent me to a urologist. Urologist was the only
doctor I met during this entire business who listened to what I said. As he asked
me questions, I heard his questions and my own answers - by this time I had
been sick, with constant diarroreah and pain for nearly 3 months. I was also severely
run down. As we talked I realised there was something I could do to help a bit,
which was to start taking a multi vitamin! He said that he didn't think it was urological,
but he'd do a cystoscapy just in case. Did it, no problems. Sent me for a CAT
scan, because he suspected something ovarian. No result, other than a
retroverted uterus.
I got the really bad, flu like sickness and back pain a
second time after a bleed, couldn't get out of bed. I stopped taking the pill. The sickness passed after about 10 days, and I
got a bit better. Diarreah didn't stop. Went to another gynaecologist who did a
laparoscopy. Had suspected possible endometriosis. None found. Only result of
note, the retroverted uterus. I started going to the physio for pelvic strengthening
excercises, the bad pain came back with the next period. Went to the
gynaecologist again, with letter from the physio, he put me onto depo-provera
to stop the cycles.
In between all this, there would be days when suddenly,
my back would be okay. I also saw another 3 back specialists, who insisted that
my back was fine, and that where the pain was was not back pain. Anyway, went
on the provera in Dec 95. OK for about 2 weeks, then back came the pain - lower
back, particularly left side, above hip. Pain not worse with movement or
position. No actual position helped to alleviate it. In late January I started
a bleed, with cramping and back pain - this went on for 2 and half weeks. The
gynaecologist was away and his replacement was the first gynae I'd been to see,
and I never wanted to set eyes on her again!! So when he came back, decided I
would be better on 8 week shots rather than 12 week shots. In addition to the
back pain, I now had one in my groin, like elastic being pulled from the front.
Diarreah had begun to settle down, and I didn't have the sickness any more.
I stayed on the provera until Dec 96. No improvement with
the pain, still having 6 weekly bleeds, and bad cramps continually. Back
cramps, like when menstruating. The last bleed I had was in the middle of Nov.
96. Between the middle of Nov. and two weeks ago, I had no bleeding, but
frequent back cramps and pain.
In Mid February and again in Mid June, I had terrible
PMS. Sore breasts, which I never used to get, weepy, cramping, back pain. I
started on the Atkins diet six weeks ago. Two weeks into the plan, and just
after the induction phase, I had some chinese food. I got back cramps. I
realised I hadn't had them for two weeks, thought about it and realised that a
lot of the time when I had cramps it was after having chinese food. MSG!!
The following week I felt a stirring in my uterus as the
pain moved from the lower to the middle back - sort of a rising upwards – got the
usual menstrual constipation, followed by some bleeding, for 6 days! not
terribly heavy, but real bleeding. No cramps. Some back pain, but not too bad,
and no sickness afterwards. Whilst I was researching low carbohydrate stuff on
the net, some of the articles mentioned Aspartame. I used to drink gallons of the
stuff. Three days before the period started, I stopped taking any at all. I
don't know if that's long enough to make a difference. My back is quite good
now, I'm getting some disk pain – like when I walk the sciatic nerve is getting
upset, so it feels like my back is trying to put itself back to normal. I have
some pain still in my groin, but it's discomfort rather than pain.
I think I have mixture of several different allergies.
I've been lactose intolerant for years, and totally allergic to full fat milk since
I was 3 or 4 years old. Right now, I think I have to let my body clear out all
the stuff that was poison to me, like gluten, and get my hormones into some
sort of balance as well. I think it will be a while, but I feel well, and can
cope with the pain a lot better, particularly when it feels like
"good" pain, repairing rather than damaging -
146. AOL/General Health Discussions/Nutrasweet
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
Date: 08 Jul 1997 11:13:36 EDT
I would get sleepy after drinking a Slice when Nutrasweet
first came out. I just wanted to close
my eyes and put my head down on my desk.
I was getting plenty of sleep and couldn't ask for a more interesting
job but I attributed it to fatigue because Nutrasweet was touted as having no
side effects. The last straw came when I
drank a diet Coke on an empty stomach and later that day (but after I had
dinner), I experienced a strobe effect as though my brain were clicking on and
off. It was very frightening and I quit Nutrasweet
cold turkey. I didn't experience any
more sleepiness at work until I was in my ninth month of pregnancy. I really like pop so I sip it in a juice
glass if I've had my limit for the day.
147. Homeopathy Mailing List
Re: Diet Coke proving!!
Mon, 7 Jul 1997 17:42:41 +0000
I can vouch for those symptoms!! I tried to drink diet
coke for about a month and had much the same results (along with blinding headaches)
- and can vouch for the mental state it would put you in. To say the least not
only do I stay away from any nutrasweet product - but keep it from my children
as well. Sugar may not be the best -but it is definatly better than the effects
of diet products.
148. Subject:
Help at last... please read
Date:
1997/09/13
Newsgroups:
alt.support.tinnitus
On 07-11-97 I received information on the fact that aspartame(Nutrasweet/Equal)
could cause tinnitus by destroying the central nervous system. I had been a large user of diet sodas which contain
aspartame.I figured I had nothing to
lose by switching to plain water. The results were not immediate but took
approx. 2 months. I can now honestly say that my tinnitus has been greatly reduced
and completely gone much of the time.
149. Date: Tue, 7 Oct 1997
To: xxxx@xxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Case History
In 1985 I was a marine stationed at Quantico Va. I drank nutra sweet. I was an analyst and I
had to use my brain power to make it thru the day. I noticed that when I drank nutra sweet I
would have trouble remembering. It took
awhile to figure it out. I was lucky.
I quit drinking diet soda and my memory power returned. I told few people about this. some did not believe me. I did so I never drank the stuff again. Now 12 years later you have explained to me
what that was all about. I was lucky.
150. Forwarded message:
Subj: Re:
Recall of aspertame !!!
Date:
97-10-03 01:44:19 EDT
To:
mfriedman@oc.fda.gov (head of the
fda)
It is an emergency that you find the strength as a man to
recall such a deadly substance as aspertame. I always thought that I would
first get my message through to FDA to remove sodium benzoate from food and
drugs..WE BLEED SEVERELY WITH THIS PRESERVATIVE...NOT TO MENTION THE HEADACHES
THAT MY SON ALWAYS HAD PRIOR TO A BAD HEMORRHAGE...
However; the fact that I haven't had success in being
heard for sodiumbenzoate, perhaps you will consider the severe reactions we
have had to Nutrasweet...headaches, blurred vision, dull ache in head days
following severe headache and poor focus with eyesight during the days following...nausea,
etc.
The MOST IMPORTANT THING I WANT YOU TO KNOW IS THE
TERRIBLE THINGS MY BROTHER HAS BEEN THROUGH SINCE THE 80'S WITH A DIET COKE ADDICTION...I
FIRST COMPLAINED TO FDA IN '85 AND '86, only to be told there was only
information about short-term memory loss related to aspertame...nothing about
addiction, depression..vision problems..personality changes..or anything
else...I was told that FDA would need at least 10 years to study the effects of
aspartame.... Following the refusal of FDA to listen to my complaints for both
my brother and my family...I knew I had to get someone to listen to me since my
brother displayed such Diet Coke addiction that I feared for his life...I found
a name back then...Dr. Louis Elsas, Prof of Pediatrics at Emory University...I communicated
with him by telephone...he wrote to me...and I felt better once I had found
someone who believed me...I knew he was the doctor so talked about at that time
in the 80's as the one who was warning pregnant women to avoid aspartame to
protect their babies brains and to keep it from babies after birth at least
until the babies were 6 months old...he had seen brain damage from the
substance in babies in these age groups...he told me that at that time (late
80's) someone in Washington was tracking Nutrasweet Victims....
It was a little encouraging to find someone who didn't think I was crazy to believe in a Diet Coke addiction... It would be too lengthy to try to explain all that aspartame DID TO MY BROTHER...but I feel better knowing how hard I worked to convince my family and his doctor of his addiction to aspartame...I feel even better now that he is off Nutrasweet products... especially happy that his psychiatrist is weening him off all the big time medications he was on for symptoms that had gotten so out of had with increased use of aspartame...TO WATCH SUCH AN INTELLIGENT COLLEGE GRADUATE GO DOWN THE TUBES AND LOSE MORE THAN A DECADE OF HIS LIFE IS PAINFUL...BUT THANK GOD HE IS ONE OF THE FORTUNATE ONES WHO STILL HAS A LIFE !!! WE FEEL IT WILL TAKE SOMEONE WITH A REAL CONSCIENCE, NOT A NEED FOR GREED OR PRESTIGE WITH ASPERTAME MAKERS, TO STEP UP TO THE MIKE AND ANNOUNCE THE RECALL OF THIS DEADLY NEUROTOXIN...If anyone backing Nutrasweet thinks the whole public can be changed into believing that aspartame is safe...let me share with you the answer I got from an ATTORNEY concerning aspertame safety....We were at a wedding 2 weeks ago...I speak with him often since we were on a cancer board together years ago...I know of his love for flying, so I asked him about his knowledge concerning the aspartame "unsafety" at high elevations...His answer was that Nutrasweet is no longer allowed in his home...he said once he determined that Nutrasweet made him depressed and made his wife's moods bad, he banned it from his house quite some time back....
It was a little encouraging to find someone who didn't think I was crazy to believe in a Diet Coke addiction... It would be too lengthy to try to explain all that aspartame DID TO MY BROTHER...but I feel better knowing how hard I worked to convince my family and his doctor of his addiction to aspartame...I feel even better now that he is off Nutrasweet products... especially happy that his psychiatrist is weening him off all the big time medications he was on for symptoms that had gotten so out of had with increased use of aspartame...TO WATCH SUCH AN INTELLIGENT COLLEGE GRADUATE GO DOWN THE TUBES AND LOSE MORE THAN A DECADE OF HIS LIFE IS PAINFUL...BUT THANK GOD HE IS ONE OF THE FORTUNATE ONES WHO STILL HAS A LIFE !!! WE FEEL IT WILL TAKE SOMEONE WITH A REAL CONSCIENCE, NOT A NEED FOR GREED OR PRESTIGE WITH ASPERTAME MAKERS, TO STEP UP TO THE MIKE AND ANNOUNCE THE RECALL OF THIS DEADLY NEUROTOXIN...If anyone backing Nutrasweet thinks the whole public can be changed into believing that aspartame is safe...let me share with you the answer I got from an ATTORNEY concerning aspertame safety....We were at a wedding 2 weeks ago...I speak with him often since we were on a cancer board together years ago...I know of his love for flying, so I asked him about his knowledge concerning the aspartame "unsafety" at high elevations...His answer was that Nutrasweet is no longer allowed in his home...he said once he determined that Nutrasweet made him depressed and made his wife's moods bad, he banned it from his house quite some time back....
Now maybe you can see that many people are intelligent enough
to make healthy decisions for themselves...BUT WHAT ABOUT OUR KIDS AND OUR
GRANDKIDS... WASHINGTON NEEDS TO WAKE UP AND FEED OUR KIDS BETTER FOODS (LESS
NUGGETS, HOT DOGS, JELLO, CHOC MILK, INSTANT POTATOES, ETC)..THEY NEED SOME
REAL HOMECOOKED AND FRESH FOODS, FREE OF UNNECESSARY ADDITIVES, AND CERTAINLY
ASPERTAME SHOULD BE BANNED FROM ALL FOODS AND DRUGS, FIRST AND FOREMOST THOSE
WE PUT IN FRONT OF OUR KIDS...LET'S GIVE THEIR BRAINS A CHANCE... PLEASE STAND
WITH THE PEOPLE WHO CRY OUT FOR YOUR HELP IN GETTING THIS DEADLY NEUROTOXIN OFF
THE MARKET...RECALL IT PLEASE.
151. Date: Fri, 17 Oct 1997 00:47:28 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspertame Posioning
Thanks for your work on this subject. I was suffering dizziness and memory loss for
many months that was getting progressively worse. I had all kinds of medical
tests including an MRI and ear tests for balance problems. All results were negative. I decided to search the net for answers and
found the Aspertame Awareness Network.
After reading their information and yours I stopped drinking Diet Pepsi
and my symptoms have been greatly reduced (90%) after 5 weeks of quiting. I am forwarding this information to my
ENT. He is very interested in this work,
he had not heard of this controversy.
Thanks for your hard work and please let me know if
anyone would like to file a class action suit against these bandits.
152. AOL/General Health/Nutrasweet
Subject: Re: More Information
Date: Sun, Sep 28, 1997 11:38 PM
Just to add one more adverse reaction to your file; I
don't touch nutrasweet or any preprocessed foods, for that matter. I have never mentioned my reaction to any
doctor manily because they would probably lock me up.
Nutrasweet gives me a feeling of not being where I am. I
feel like I'm watching a movie. I'm sitting
there, but, I'm not there, Feel like I'm looking through people. I have no ambition to do anything, I know
whats going on around me ,but I don't care.
It also makes my stomach feel really strange. Does this make any sense to you? Crazy, Huh!.
It also makes me think, and react
differently than I normaly would. Thanks for the space.
153. Date:
Sat, 13 Sep 1997 17:53:59 -0400
Sender:
New Diet Revolution List <ATKINS-NEW@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject:
Re: Artificial Sweeteners Question
I quit And after reading that about the apartame I'm glad
I did so! I think i't's been over a week and I don't seem to get the intense headaches
I use too during my cycle. I grew up on equal I'm 29 now so i've been using it
as long as it's been around. Not any more. I just wish that a safe alternative
would be available in the U.S. I use stevia now and a little sweet & Low
but I would love to be able to have some of the stuff that we make here in the
states , but sell in other countries ( would that be clymates andsplenda?) Anyway
I'm glad I stopped using the aspartame ( and I was a die hard user)
154. Date: Sat, 11 Oct 1997 01:47:21 -0700
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
I have had a brief, but distinct experience with
Nutra-Sweet that I would like to share. You may include it in reports to
appropriate agencies. Two summers ago I experimented with drinking one or two
diet Seven-Up sodas perhaps three to four days a week. I don't believe I ever
drank more than six to eight sodas a week. Normally I don't have anything "artificial"
in my diet, but I wanted something sweet tasting and didn't want the sugar
intake. Within a month I began to notice increasingly numbness and tingling in
my hands. This concerned me because I work with my hands a lot. I wondered what
I had done to cause this. The only difference I could think of was the
Aspartame intake, so I stopped all intake of it. Within another month the
symptoms had vanished completely!
I am grateful to have noticed this sooner rather than later
and to have been able to stop these problems before they got more serious. xxxxxxx
xxxxxxx, L.Ac.
155. Date: Fri, 04 Apr 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: THANK YOU!
I've always known I had problems with anything with
Nutrasweet in it, and I finally convinced my family of it, but most people look
at me like I'm crazy when I refuse a diet cola... Now when they tell me it's all in my head, I
can send them here and they can read this for themselves! Thanks so much! I've learned to avoid it like
the plague after several bouts of almost crippling headaches immediately after
drinking a diet cola, and itching for several days after I got even the
slightest amount.... I'm allergic to so many things though, I thought it was
just another weird quirk of being me. Now
I know I'm not the only one with problems with it.
156. Again, THANK YOU!
Date:
Fri, 3 Oct 1997 02:46:45 PST
Subject:
[FIT-L] Re[2]: [FIT-L] Aspartame
To: FIT-L@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
I can't back this up with a source, but I used to eat
& drink a lot of this stuff, and got a lot of terrible-need-to-lie-down
headaches. One time, as I was lying down
with one of these headaches (about 6-7 years ago when I was living in Austin,
TX), I picked up the paper and read an article about aspertame, and how it has
been proven to cause migraines, seizures, and a bunch of other symptoms that I can't
recall today. So I quit nutrasweet and
never had another headache like that again.
Since then, (and as I said, I can't remember where I read this) I have read
a couple of times that the good ole USA is one of the only countries in which
aspartame is not considered a poison. It
does not pass the USDA's standards, and the only reason that it is everywhere
is that there is SOOOOOO much money to be made on this stuff, they went ahead
and approved it anyways. Attack if you will, but I really believe that there's
at least an element of truth in this. I
know way too many people who have adverse reactions to think it's harmless.
157. Date: Thu, 25 Sep 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxx.xxx
Subject: Another case
I have been using diet products (Soda and gum) for
years. I swore by aspartame for the longest time - until I realized that
every time I chew a "nutrasweet gum" i.e. - Ice Breakers, my throat
starts to close up and I feel like I am choking. Every time I drink Diet Snapple, my throat
feels very uncomfortable. I have also
had irregualr heartbeats - the doctors can't attribute it to anything. Any possible link.
158. Date: Fri, 26 Sep 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Mission Possible Branch?
My husband [Bill] and I have read the information you
sent to him. I have pulled some information off the internet.
Because of the information we received from and through
you, we both no longer use anything with aspartame. Bill, has better control over his sugar ( he
is diabetic) and his memory has improved.
159. Date:
Sun, 5 Oct 1997 15:48:54 EDT
Subject:
[FIT-L] Aspartame
To: FIT-L@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
I used to guzzle diet soft drinks (I've since elimanited
them completely from my diet.) with aspartame and I noticed when I drank them I'd start gobbling food
also. Anytime I drank/ate something with
aspartame in it, I wanted more and more to eat.
I thought it was just me but since then I've heard from many people that
aspartame suppossedly triggers your appetite.
160. Re: meds and memory loss/aspartane
Date
Sun, 28 Sep 1997 17:53:49 -0700
Newsgroups
alt.support.depression.manic,soc.support.depression.manic
161. Re: Depression and NutraSweet ( aspartame )
Date 3
Oct 1997 11:35:09 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.depression
I used to call Diet Coke "PMS in a can" because
it weirded me out instantly, but that's the only thing ever to have such a
noticeably relational effect. It it were Aspartame, wouldn't half the world be
sobbing???
162. Re: OT:migraines
Date
Sat, 27 Sep 1997 01:27:22 -0400
Newsgroups
rec.crafts.textiles.needlework
I have cut two things out of my diet which triggered
migraines for me: Nutrasweet and caffine. I also take a preventative once a day
and what a world of difference it has made in my life !!
163. Date: Wed, 9 Jul 1997 19:40:06 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Natural Nutrition #105 - Special Issue -
Aspartame
I have waited a respectable amount of time to send this
post, to be sure what I am about to report to you is in fact, accurate. I am now satisfied that I have enough facts to
do so.
After reading the special issue report on Aspartame, I
decided that since I had already been without the additive for 10 days prior,
because of a diet plan I was trying out (that I since abandoned), I would
continue to refrain from aspartame and see if there was any credence to this information.
You see, I was diagnosed with FMS in 1992, suffered
horribly from hip joint pain and morning immobility. Being a hypoglycemic since childhood, artificial
sweetners were always a part of my diet - a substantial part. Because I am an
advocate for complementary medicine and nutritional healing, I gave this
bulletin very serious consideration.
At the same time I gave up aspartame, I also started
Physical Therapy, as my hip joints and lumbar area of my back had become so
immobile, I could no longer toilet properly.
Now, I'm a senior in school for Occupational Therapy - there is nothing
that can set an OT reeling more than the loss
of an Activity of Daily Living - trust me on this.
After 4 weeks of therapy, I saw little change, but
some. Magically, in the 5th week, which
corresponded to a little over 6 weeks without aspartame, something magical
happened. A rapid progression that I
know from my training as an OT, is not something that occurs in therapy -progressions
in therapy are usually slow and steady.
Having a scientific mind, I decided to be my own test subject and I
completely discontinued the Physical Therapy, but continued to avoid aspartame.
Guess what - it's now been 8 weeks without the dreaded chemical
and I (and those around me) am happy to report that I am pain-free, mobile and feel
better than I have in as many years as I can remember. Almost all of the signs of the FMS and joint
immobility are gone. I am working on
regaining my muscle tone, now that I have proven my
theory to me.
Needless to say, my husband is thrilled to have his wife
back, and is telling everyone he knows and meets of my story - in his words -
he lost his wife to something as stupid as diet soda and all of the doctors and
health practitioners could not help. It
was his sharing the post about the Nutrition Newsletter with me that ultimately
led to my recovery.
xxxxxxx, and xxxxx, and xxxx - THANK YOU, THANK YOU,
THANK YOU. I am grateful for the service
you provide and will continue to spread the word. Anyone with questions that wishes to address
me directly may do so at:
andrea_keil@juno.com.
164. Date: Thu, 10 Jul 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Attention All Dieters - Important Info About
Aspartame
I have been experiencing unexplained joint pain for the
past couple of years. No one can figure
out what's causing it....are you saying this could be the result of
Nutrasweet???
Curious...and a little frightened,
Absolutely. Take
the challenge - no aspartame for 60 days.
I can't tell you what it feels like to have my life back!
165. Re: The Bitterest Sweet
Date
Tue, 15 Jul 1997 07:39:41 -0500
Newsgroups
sci.med.nursing
being an avid fan of diet drinks (I drank the first diet
drink as a kid...diet rite cola, moved to diet dr. pepper, and then to tab and
diet coke, I can speak the truth........LISTEN TO THIS WOMAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had to quit secondary to arthralgias,
memory problems, massive edema problems, arrhythmias, etc. I also started having
problems at higher altitudes due to aspartane.
I drank a 32oz-1liter/day maximum only on days I worked. I quit and my problems have resolved
100%. It took 6 months, but it was worth
it.
166. Date: Sat, 6 Sep 1997 16:15:41 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Another Aspartame Testimonial
I am 49 years old and first experienced
disorientation/confusion spells while at work starting in 1986. I had always drank other soft drinks and only
began drinking diet coke in 1986 when my company replaced our other drink
machines with Coke machines.
These disorientation spells progressed in frequency and
severity when, in 1990 I suffered a grand-mal seizure at work after drinking 2
diet cokes and a chocolate candy bar. I
suffered another grand-mal seizure in 1991 and have had 8-10 grand-mals since
that time experiencing spells of severe disorientation almost regularly every
3-4 weeks. The most recent experience
was this prior weekend after attending a party in which I drank 5-6 diet cokes
- much more than my usual 1 or 2. This
grand-mal resulted in my heart stopping and quitting breathing. Had I not been in the company of my
girlfriend who is an RN, I am sure I would be dead right now. I have been on
dilantin, tegretol, felbatol and after this weekend's experience my neurologist
plans to put me on lamictal since none of these medications have been able to
eliminate my disorientation spells which I have continued to experience at least
monthly. I was alerted to aspartame in 1994 by a co-worker who provided me
several articles which I found alarming.
I quit drinking diet cokes for about one year and experienced no
grand-mals and only one or two minor disorientation spells. I guess I resumed
drinking diet cokes as I either forgot their potential impact or didn't really
believe the connection. I DO NOW !!
I can't believe the volume of testimonials on the
Web. I accidentally hit print and went
through all my paper stock. I find it very
gratifying that people are taking the time to share their experiences on the
Internet. I have had every test known to
mankind, numerous times. These included MRI's,
CT, EEG, blood, blood and more blood.
Cysternogram (?) to check for infection of the brain fluid and proper
flow. NOTHING turned up in any of these
tests. All very, very frustrating as I
have always been very active and this condition was becoming debilitating. I
had also experienced grand-mals over the pacific on the way to Hawaii vacationing
as well as numerous other vacations that ended in a 911 call.
My family has no history "anywhere" of epilepsy
and I have found it very trying to be labeled with this stigma. I have also lost one job as a result of
excessive absences when I experienced 3 consecutive grand-mals toward the end
of a 2-week vacation. My childred are petrified
for me to visit them at school (embarassment I guess) as they witnessed one of
my grand-mals while dining out. Irealize now there is ONE COMMON ELEMENT - DIET
COKE !!! For some reason, the other diet
drinks don't affect me as severely. Is it possible that diet coke has a higher
concentration of Nutrasweet ?? I DON'T GET IT ! IT SEEMS THIS PROBLEM COULD BE EASILY
VERIFIED WITH A CONTROLLED TEST. SURFING
THE INTERNET, I SUSPECT THERE WOULD BE PLENTY OF VOLUNTEERS OR SUBJECTS. I CERTAINLY WOULD VOLUNTEER. ALSO....HOW ABOUT A CLASS-ACTION LAWSUIT
??? IF THE TOBACCO INDUSTRY CAN
EVENTUALLY BE DEFEATED, I SUSPECT THE MAKERS OF NUTRASWEET COULD AS WELL.!!!!!!
What is this drug doing to our children who are being
weened on it ? What will the effects be
on them when they get older ?? Hopefully
all this documentation will still be around for evidence of negligence on the
part of the NutraSweet makers and those food/drink companies that have elected
it as the food additive of choice.
I personally plan to post warning posters on all Coke
machines at work and anywhere else I can
as I feel this has had such an adverse affect on my life that I am going to
take this as a personal vendetta. I AM PISSED !!!! My quality of life has suffered for 10
years +. I KNOW it is directly
attributed to aspartame as I can demonstrate its effects.
HELLO FDA - ANYBODY HOME ??? OUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK !!!!
[followup]
167. Date: Tue, 14 Oct 1997 16:25:57 -0700
To: xxxxx@xxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Asparatme Settlements ??
By the way, I quit drinking Diet Coke on September 2nd
this year after suffering a "Status Epilepticus" (as in
"dead") and immediately my seizure, disorientation spells, chronic
fatigue, migraines, sore muscles and joints all went away completely !
This was the only change in my diet and prior to that
time I had been experiencing seizures, disorientation every 2-3 weeks at a
minimum. Also, my "woman-friend" is an RN and has witnessed my
condition, seizures etc. for the past 1 and 1/2 years. She also was the one who administered CPR
after my September 2nd incident. She has
also kept a very detailed log during this time (as I find out) which has come
in very handy at this point.
168. Date: Fri, 8 Aug 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: What a difference quiting Aspartame has
made!!
My name is xxxxxxxxx xxxxxx. I am 28 years old and
started drinking Diet Coke back in 1990 after a friend convinced me that the sugar
content in normal coke was bad for me. Earlier this year (Jan-Feb) while surfing
the net I stumbled across the article on your home page entitled "The
Bitter Truth About Artificial Sweetners".
As I was "addicted" to diet coke and consuming
around 1-2 litres a day, I was absolutely horrified to read about the dangers
of aspartame. I was so shocked I gave up the stuff that day and have not had
another drop since. Prior to stopping,I suffered from alot of the symptoms
mentioned in the article - terrible muscle spasms, vertigo, dizziness, nausea, depression,
slurred speach etc. Within 7 days of stopping, most of the above symptoms had
disappeared and to date I have not had any recurrences of these.
There is no doubt in my mind that aspartame causes the ailments
mentioned in the article. As I live in Australia, I would like to know if there
is an action group here that I can offer my assistance too. If not I will
continue to warn those that I come into contact with. It is an absolute crime
that this substance has been offered to an unsuspecting and ill-informed
public. It must be stopped.
169. Date: Thu, 31 Jul 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Overwhelming Thanks!
I am writing to thank you for your crusade against
nutrasweet. I am a type 1 diabetic for 25
years now. I received my first article
from you by accident, as I was a member of the email users list for xxxxxx
xxxxx when your article accidently got posted to all of us last year. I wish I could say I followed your advice at
the time, but I chose instead to believe the "other side", and
thought you were simply a reactionary (very sorry). I did lay off nutrasweet for about a week
just for laughs at the time because I was starting an exercise program, and
wanted to rid my body of all artificial stuff.
However, when my blood sugars improved, I attributed it to
the exercise. Eventually, I added the
nutrasweet back into my diet, nothing too much, just a diet snapple here and
there - maybe 3 a week. And my blood
sugars were no longer quite as good, and I began having what I refer to as
"knock-down, drag-out hypoglycemic reactions. I just thought I needed to do more
exercise! Last December, I was told by
a dietician that nutrasweet was perfectly safe, and I just went wild eating it
in everything and upping my snapple intake to two or more a day. Who knew?
Well, my blood sugars went from difficult to horrible. My appetite was running rampant, I was waking
up with 500 blood sugars and going to be with lows of 35-40. I was depressed and angry all the time. No one could figure out what was wrong with
me. I didn't want to have sex with my
husband and I even began having hot flashes (I'm 36). Some minor tingling, which I have always
passed off as "just one of those diabetic things", which never was more
than just a minor sensation, was getting worse.
I was gaining weight, feeling uncoordinated and spacey, like I always
had a hangover, and felt like death.
One day, I was looking up menopause in my medical
advisor, and happened by the section on multiple sclerosis. I read the symptoms and it sounded just like
me, with all the tingling and stuff. I
panicked, then I remembered your email from a year and a half ago that talked
about nutrasweet possibly causing MS-like symptoms, and decided to give up nutrasweet
to see if it would help. The next day,
my blood sugars were perfect, and I re-read the article and saw that nutrasweet
has been implicated in swinging sugars!!
My blood sugars have been perfect for almost two weeks
now. It is uncanny. I am so beside
myself with glee I can hardly stand it.
I have energy, my vision is better, my constipation is gone, I can think
far more clearly, my stamina has improved, and I want to live life again. My blood sugar meter average has dropped from
200 to 165 in the time span of 10 days, and still falling. It is once again easy to correct low blood
sugars, and they are very minor occurances now.
My insulin dosage has gon efrom 30 to 17 total units per day. I have, simply put, been reborn.
A chemistry teacher in my diabetes support group says it
is true that aspartame converts to formaldehyde
and methanol in the body. A very respected
neurologist where I work (I work at a research institute within a medical
center) said that she had a patient who was having seizures and eating lots of
nutrasweet. As you can guess, the
seizures stopped when nutrsweet was eliminated from his diet.
I am telling everyone about this. I have forwarded the info to my diabetes educator
at the University of xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.
She theorizes that if the nutrasweet was the culprit, it may have caused
a mimicking of gastropherisis (delayed emptying of injested foods), which in
turn caused my swinging sugars. A
research tech also told me she systematically eliminated foods from her diet to
find out what was causing her constipation and severe abdominal pains. Her search was over when she tested the
nutrasweet.
I am going to fill out one of the action report
forms. Is there any other way I can help
in this effort? I don't even know if you
respond to emails, but I just wanted to add my testimony to the growing list of
nutrasweet recoveries.
Deep thanks and God bless you.
170. Subj:
Thank-you
Date:
97-06-09 18:06:24 EDT
To:
xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Thanks so much for the information you sent. I was off aspartame for awhile and was so
much better that I started using it again.
I am in big trouble right now with dizziness, memory, and ms
symptoms. It is frightening what it does
when it gets above 86 degrees. I have
left cases in my garage before. I am unloading my Montsanto stock as fast as i
can.
My husband has taken all the info to the nurses at the
radiology department. They can't believe it.
My hubby specializes in mammography.
I'd love to do some research asking ladies with diagnosed breast cancer
how much aspartame they have in their normal diets. I bet there is a huge connection.
Course all these symptoms can come from so many
things. The proof is when you improve by
being totally off the darn stuff. Then
you know. Thank-you, thank-you for your knowledge and sharing.
171. To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Answer to Aspartame Questionnaire
Date: Mon, 18 Aug 1997 15:42:05 -0500
Aspartame
Consumer Safety Network Questionnaire
Name_xxxxxx
xxxxxxx____________________________________________
Age: 23___ Sex: Female
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
Every single time that I eat or drink something that contains
aspartame I get very dizzy, and very strong headaches to the point of being
unable to leave my bed. When I get like this I can't even move my head nor
stand due to the extreme pain.
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
I don't know for sure, but I truly believe in all of the
papers I've read about the toxic and poisonous effects of aspartame. When I
first read "The Sweet Poison" I opened my eyes, and began to identify
with some of the symptoms.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Yes, definitely, but it takes time: once I took a free
sample of "I can't believe it's yogurt" on Friday, and I was sick the
whole weekend, I wasn't feeling OK until next Tuesday.
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
No, at that time I didn't think I was sick because of the
aspartame, I thought it wasn't important.
Did Doctor think it related to aspartame?
Later on, I did consult a physician, I told her about the
symptoms I experience every time that I take aspartame and about the time that I took some vitamins
with a Scooby Doo shape (originally meant for kids) that contained
phenylalanine and that caused me to get sick, again with dizziness and
headaches. She said that phenylalanine was a substance that my body had
difficulty to methabolize it or synthetize, and that it was hazardous for all
people, but that some of them show the symptoms more quickly than others.
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food &
Drug Admin.) or any other group?
No, I live in Mexico, and I think that here, there isn't
much information about these issues.
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were
you consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
"I can't believe it's yogurt" vanilla yogurt, Scooby-Doo
shaped supplement vitamins (for kids), Diet Coke
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each
time, etc.)
They were very low doses, for instance the yogurt was
just a free sample (just one in my life); I took about 3 tablets of the
phenylalanine vitamins; and one Diet Coke was just enough to give me a
headache. I've taken I think about six diet cokes in my entire life, and I
learned that I shouldn't take no more.
How long had you been consuming these products before
you experienced the symptoms?
I noticed the symptoms immediately.
172. Date: Mon, 28 Jul 1997 13:13:35 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Welcome Back To Life, Aspartame Free
I wanted to write to let you know that I have now been
completely off of aspartame for one month and I can feel the results! First,
for two years I have had fibromyalgia-like symptoms. I hurt all over. Shoulders, legs, back, neck
ankles, all were painful most of the time.
I had chronic insomnia and could hardly sleep at night. My vision was getting worse all of the
time. In the single month that I
eliminated aspartame, I feel 100% better.
I don't hurt. The carpal tunnel
in my wrist and shoulder has finally subsided.
My memory seems to be improving. I have more energy and I don't get as
hungry.
I found that I was drinking 3-4 diet Cokes everyday. Fortunately, I did not use Equal in my tea or
coffee. I use either sugar or sweet n
low. I don't know much about saccharin
testing but I cannot believe that it is as bad as aspartame. I am going to get some stevia and try that. I
have made copies of some of the articles and sent them to a number of people
who have also "sworn off" of aspartame.
Obviously the FDA does not care one bit about product
safety. If a company is as big as
Monsanto, they can market any kind of poison they please without a whimper from
the FDA. And, it appears that Congress is powerless to stop them. Or, that Congress is too busy with their
"in-fighting" to do anything for the people who voted them into
office.
173. Date:
Mon, 18 Aug 1997 06:48:46 -0700
Sender:
Low Carb Diabetes Support List <LC-DIABETES@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject:
Re: New to List
I, too, suffered severly from neuropathy. My feet would hurt so badly at night that my
husband had to rub them. I work on my
feet all day and they were either numb or hurting. I would elevate them every night and my doctor
recommended pepper cream. The cream was
terribly expensive so I never bought it.
Through research, I started to wonder if nutrasweet was my demon. Sure enough....I went of ALL nutrasweet and
artificial sweetners. Within one
month.....I could make a fist again and I have NO pain whatsoever in my feet,
legs or hands. My fingers were to the
stage that they would buckle on me. NO
MORE!!!! It would be worth a try for you.
174. Date: Wed, 3 Sep 1997 15:19:55 -0400
Subject: toxicity review
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
The summer is over and I missed it thanks to aspartame.
This is my toxicity reaction summary. It started on Father's Day June 9th. My
husband and I went out for breakfast. In the middle of the meal and "out
of nowhere" I felt like I was fainting. I was so shocked by this sudden
onset, I went to the restroom and splashed cold water on my face trying to
regain my composure. I felt weak the rest of that day.
A few days later I had another fainting spell at work
only this time it was worse - accompanied by rapid heart beat and shortness of
breath. I left work saying I didn't feel well. I thought I had too much
caffeine and if I went home for a while it would pass. It didn't. In fact it
got worse – to the point I called 911. I thought I was having a heart attack.
My resting heart rate was 120. They gave me 02 and my heart rate came down to
80. I declined a ride to the hospital still thinking it would pass.
I then started having nighttime tremors/panic disorder. I
would wake up in the middle of the night with a dry mouth and then the tremors
would start. At one point I think I had
a seizure becuase I was shaking so badly. Then on the fourth of July - I was in
the emergency room with the same symptoms.
They ran all kinds of test, EEG, Thyroid - all fine. The
only thing abnormal was my blood count. Hemoglobin was 11 and the red cells
were small. I was diagnosed with iron-defiency anemia. Told to get off my vegetarian
diet and eat some red meat! Great advice from a doctor huh? Followed up with a
visit to my doctor. She was surprised that my blood count was 11, she expected
it to be 5 or 8, normal is 15. I started taking a prescription for iron.
Well the night tremors and shortness of breath continued.
I kept calling my doctor and she thought I might be having panic disorder as a
result of the anemia so I started taking Valium and Prozac. This helped the
nighttime panic attacks. I started researching Prozac and Seratonin and this is
what led me to you. Thank goodness someone is watching out for us! I had
developed a bad chewing gum habit. Chewing 1 large pack of Extra surgarfree gum
daily. I stopped this immediately and here it is Sept. and I am finally staring
to sleep and feel like a normal person! I am no longer taking Prozac or Valium but
switched an herbal remedy called St. John's Wort. I'm convinced the aspartame
destroyed the Serotonin level in my brain and destroyed my blood. I don't drink
or smoke and had been in perfect health prior to this.
I am schedculed to have a complete blood count done this
month with a test for Ferritin. Is there any blood test for aspartame toxicity?
Why not? How should I approach my doctor? Everyone thinks I got sick because of
my vegetarian diet. I know it's not so. I probably consume more iron than the
average carnivore! What happened to summer?
[more information]
175. Date: Thu, 4 Sep 1997 12:50:45 -0400
Subject: toxicity review reply
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
i have not ingested asp since july 10, no caffeine or
alcohol either. trying to eat pure foods as much as possible. lots of orange
juice, fresh fruits, organic garden vegetables. now i am watching msg intake as
well. To tell you the truth i'm afraid
to eat in a restaurant.
176. Date: Wed, 07 May 1997 09:23:04 -0700
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: NutraSweet
I need some questions answered. I have a 14 year old son, xxxxxx, who has
been having what the doctors are calling optical migranes. At the age of 11
years old xxxxxx was diagnosis as hypoglycemia.
I was a mother who never believed in letting her kids to eat or drink
anything with NutraSweet in it until xxxxxx became hypoglycemic. Since then he has drank Diet pops.
Since January 1997 he has been having problems that he
loses his peripheral vision. The first
time he lost it for around 20 minutes and then when his vision came back his
lips went numb. (He got a headache after his vision returned, it lasted through
out that day.) I took him to the doctors
and he sent us to an opthomoligist. He
then a through check of his eyes and said everything look good and
healthy. He thought that he may have had
an optical migrane. He said he may never
have another one but if he did he would like an CAT scan ran.
In March he had another episode. This time it lasted 20 minutes and the headache
lasted for two days. I called the doctor
and he had a CAT scan ran. The test
came back normal. Still they feel that
it is just an optical migrane. If it
happens again he will see an pediatric neurologist. In April he had another episode,
this one lasted 10 minutes and the headache lasted two days. He was set up to see the neurologist. The neurologist said he felt that it was just
optical migranes. That he should just
take an extra strenght Tylenol and a benadryl then sleep. He also said he would
set up a EEG to be ran to make sure he is not having seizures or mini strokes.
Five days after seeing the neurologist he have another
episode. This time it lasted 45 minutes
with no periphial vision and during this time his tongue on the right side and
his right thumb went numb. I panic and took
him into emergency. The checked him and
refered to his neurologist. They both
decide that it was an optical migrane.
(this headache lasted for one and a half days.) He is set up for May 12 to have an EEG ran.
What I am wondering is if he is toxic from the
NutraSweet? Has anyone had this
symtoms? I am trying everything. I told xxxxxx he is not to eat or drink
anything that has anything with NutraSweet in it for two weeks.
[more information]
177. Date: Tue, 13 May 1997 09:56:39 -0700
To: xxxxxx
Subject: NutraSweet
Thank you for all the information you sent to me. xxxxxx had his EEG ran yesterday, everything
came back normal. The only thing he saw
was that he had two irregular heartbeats.
But he felt this is someting that he will outgrow.
While reading some of the information I see that maybe
the NutrSweet can be causing this. We
are going to eliminate this from his diet for the next 60 days, to see if this
is his cause. Again, I thank you for the
information and if there is anymore you can send me please do.
[update]
178. Date: Wed, 10 Sep 1997 13:50:06 -0700
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nutrasweet
Just an update on how xxxxxx is doing. I last e-mailed you in May. Since then xxxxxx
has had nothing with aspartame in it and he has had no problems. Everthing seems to be going good. I would like to thank you for all the
information you sent me and I have passed it on to alot of people. Please let me know if there is any new
information. Please pass on xxxxxx's
symptoms and reactions so other people may be aware of what aspartame can do to
your body.
179. Date: Mon, 27 Apr 1998 08:05:25 -0700
To: xxxx@xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: resent information
Hi. I am writing in regards to my resent letters to you
about my son Brent. Since we have
ellimated Nutra Sweet from xxxxx's diet he has only had one episode of a
migrane, it could have been from he started taking vitamins which I am not sure
if they had apartame in them.
180. Date:
Sun, 10 Aug 1997 22:59:49 -0700
Sender:
Thyroid <THYROID@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject:
Re: Aspartame --adverse reaction
I had looked at several of the Internet references on
Aspartame recently, but about a year ago I had also become aware of a report
(or reports) regarding airline pilots losing their licenses because of problems
with aspartame. It took a while for them
to figure out what was causing the problem.
Personally, I cannot tolerate aspartame at all. It causes confusion, memory loss, and other nasty reactions. The last time knocked me out for almost 2 weeks. How I got it the last time
was a fast-food establishment had their hoses crossed -- the diet cola was
hooked to the regular cola faucet. This
is the second time that has happened -- at different chains. And the kids they have working their are have
not lived long enough to realize that people can die from this stuff if they
have a bad reaction. The first time this
happened, I realized that the cola tasted like "diet" instead of like
regular. I asked them to check and sure
enough the hoses were crossed, and they fixed it. This last time, it was hot, I was dehydrated,
my husband was in the car suffering, so I didn't ask them to check the hoses --
I just drank it -- and suffered the consequences for almost 2 weeks. Never again!
181. Date: Sun, 20 Jul 1997 22:16:21 -0500
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: NutraSweet & UTIs
Have read through part of your NutraSweet web page with
great interest. I used to regularly consume 2-3 cans Diet soda/day. I also used
to live with urinary tract infections averaging one/month. I work in a medical
lab and these are confirmed infections by routine urinalysis and culture.
Two years ago I had a terrible UTI, and had been having
some resistance to antibiotics by this time. I had to go to California for a
meeting, so I trudged onward with antibiotics and my soda. When I arrived in my
hotel room, I went to get a pop and found out it was $1.50/can. On grounds of principal,
I couldn't buy it. I recovered from my UTI, bought a soda and was ill by the
afternoon. After doing some of my own cause and effect, I figured it was the
soda and thought maybe it was carbonated beverages. SO NO MORE SODA FOR ME!. It
took awhile to pinpoint the NutraSweet, but I have been free of urinary tract
infections for 2 years and you can't believe the relief! I tell everyone I know
who has a UTI, to stop the diet drinks if they take them. Thanks for your web
site.
182. Re: Astrology Testing Farce
Date
Sun, 13 Jul 1997 00:45:51 +1100
Newsgroups
alt.astrology,sci.skeptic,alt.paranet.metaphysics,alt.astrology. asian,alt.divination,alt.consciousness,alt.consciousness.mysticism,alt.paranet.
channeling,alt.paranet.metaphysics,alt.paranet.psi,alt.metaphysics.lightwork,al
t.religion.course-miracle,talk.religion.newage,alt.paranormal,alt.metaphysics.a-a-bailey
I had incredible stomach pains for about two years. They
seem to have stopped since I stopped drinking diet drinks. Aspartame
(Nutrasweet) is another story though (hint - don't go near the stuff!).
183. Re: Aspartame(was Healthy Fast Food)
Date Fri,
25 Jul 1997 02:13:27 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.consumers
I do get headaches from it -- I have occasional severe
headaches (basically, migraines) and I found that consuming aspartame either started
or promoted an attack. And it makes me a
bit dizzy, too. :(
184. To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: the dark side of aspartame
Date: Thu, 7 Aug 1997 21:49:10 -0600
I had been drinking aspartame in diet coke/coffee/crystal
light and eating it in snack foods for about six years and began to have
chronic urinary tract infections - at least two major episodes per year for three
years. Medical professionals blamed it
on caffeine. So I gave up all caffeine
which, of course, decreased my aspartame intake, which caused my symptoms to
improve slighty. However, even without
caffeine, I was still having infections.
My friend who is a nurse suggested that artificial sweeteners can cause
bladder irritation. Because I love coffee
and coke, and was hoping caffeine was not the cause, I gave up all aspartame,
in foods and drinks. For one year I had
no infections while continuing to enjoy about 1 cup of coffee and 1 coke per
day (my usual intake). Everything was
going along well when all of the sudden, I had an infection. While I'm wondering what could have happened
(was it really caffeine after all?) I started looking at the foods and drinks I
had recently purchased. Although I am
fastidious about checking labels, I had missed a very small label on the corner
of a box of Fiber One cereal. It did
indeed contain aspartame and it only took eating a small bowl of cereal three
days in a row to cause a major urinary tract infection. I have had no reactions for three years since
that last episode, and I can enjoy as much coffee and coke as I like as long as
I do not ingest aspartame in any amount.
I will not even chew a stick of gum that contains aspartame. I also
noticed, about a year after I stopped ingesting aspartame that I felt more
alert. I hope this information is
helpful. I would be interested in
working towards having aspartame pulled by the FDA (even if that hope is
slim). Luckily, as a health educator, I
have the opportunity to increase awareness of the dangers of aspartame.
185. Date: Fri, 1 Aug 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: If You Want To Get Fat NutraSweet Is Where
Its At!
I have found your site very informative and
helpfull. I have now been off Nutrasweet
containing products for approx 3 months and I have found this very
benificial. The symptoms that I had been
experiencing after 10 years or more ingestion of aspartame are begining to
subside. One of the problems I have is that after 10 years of dieting I am now
54lbs heavier than when I started!! I read somewhere that the methonal is
stored in the fat and I'm worried that my symptoms will continue as I loose
weight and re-release the accumulated poisons back into my system. Do you know of any source of information on
the storage of the poison in the human body?
186. Date: Thu, 14 Aug 1997 12:21:51 PDT
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame Consumer Safety Network
Questionnaire
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network Questionnaire
Name: xxxxxx xxxxxxx
Age: 29 Sex: Female
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
Migraines, memory loss, weight gain, rash all over body.
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
Because whenever I would eat or drink something with
Nutrasweet in them within 30 minutes I would get a horrible migraine and my
skin would turn red. I also felt really
"strange", almost like I was drugged.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Yes!
Completely. I have not had
anything with aspartame in it for 5 years now.
I avoid it like the plague.
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
Yes.
Did Doctor think it related to aspartame?
He thought it was unlikely. I disagreed because the symptoms disappeared
when I stopped using aspartame and would reoccur when I accidentally did.
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food &
Drug Admin.) or any other group?
No, because I didn't think my symptoms were that
profound....(compared to others with seizures and the like).
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were
you consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
Diet Rite sodas and Crystal Light drinks mostly. And chewing gum.
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each time, etc.)
I would have roughly two sodas a day, and 2 servings of
Crystal Light.
How long had you been consuming these products before
you experienced the symptoms?
Only a few days.
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT: Did you begin using products with aspartame
when you began a restricted calorie diet?
Yes, I did.
Did you use aspartame products only for some of your
meals to save calories?
No, I never didn't eat.
Did aspartame seem to help you lose weight at first?
Yes, at first I lost 20 lbs.
What were the long term weight loss effects of using
aspartame.
I started retaining huge amounts of water and my face
always had a puffy look to it, while using those products.
It wasn't until I realized that consuming anything with
aspartame in it was causing me problems, that I stopped and then was able to
regain my health. Now I tell everyone
that it's poison. I have a friend who was in an accident many years ago and
suffered brain damage. She has seizures
often, and seem to have them more frequently when she consumes anything with
aspartame. I've tried to get her off of
the products, but she said she's addicted.
187. Date: 2 Dec 1996 11:20:34 -0600
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: How Are you?
Yes, I'm doing much better since I swore off
NutraSweet! Most people I know can't
believe I quit drinking diet coke.
They've always known me to carry a can or bottle of it around with
me. That was part of my image: long blond hair, Ray-bans, and a can of Diet
Coke.
I have been waking up feeling rested. I'm not as achy. I'm not as tired. I don't crave sweets anymore. I haven't lost any weight, but that's probably
because I drink a lot of Coke Classic now.
I don't NEED a coke first thing every morning now like I did a Diet
coke. I used to get headaches if I
didn't have my Diet Coke within an hour or two after waking up. Now I can go all day without a coke and not
have any problems. I kept telling myself
it was caffeine withdrawals, but if it's not happening now, that can't be the
case. I drink as much caffeine now as
before, only now my caffeine is Nutra-Sweet free!
My son's behavior problems are improving now that he's
off NutraSweet and mostly off artificial colors. He's working better in school, and he's doing
really well at learning to read and to add and subtract. He seems to be sleeping better now, too. Now when he climbs up onto my lap it's not
painful like it used to be.
Uncomfortable, yes, since he's 50-something pounds! But not painful.
My vision is improving and so is my memory. I've been working full-time for more than 6
months, and I just completed a quarter of college full-time as well, making two
B's and an A. I'm still prone to
depression; in fact, I've been depressed lately. But my bouts are not as bad as they've been
in the past. Before when I'd get
depressed, I couldn't drag myself out of bed or have enough interest to do housework. I'd sit around eating brownies by the panful
and Ben and Jerry's by the pint. Now, I
can still get my day-to-day work accomplished if I'm depressed, just not as
quickly and efficiently. I think when I
start taking my anti-depressants again, they may actually work since I'm not
constantly depleting my seratonin levels and counteracting the effects of the
medicine with aspartame.
I'm working on losing the weight I've gained in the past
couple of years (some 40 or 50 lbs--thank you Diet Coke, Duncan Hines, and Ben
and Jerry!), and I think I might have a fighting chance now that aspartame
isn't tricking my body and brain. I
honestly can't believe how my taste buds react to sweets now. Thanksgiving day I ate pumpkin bread and
pumpkin pie for dessert instead of reaching for the chocolate cake and chess
pie. I couldn't even bring myself to
taste the chocolate dishes! That is so
unlike me! I remember when I was younger
I used to crave salty foods and protein, like ham slices or something. That's what
I've been craving again lately. That and
healthy foods like salads and vegetables.
Amazing! Incidentally, I decided
to drink a Diet Coke about a month ago just to see what it tasted like and made
me feel like after a couple of months without it. Blech!
That tasted nasty! Made me feel funny,
too. Gave me a headache. Funny how I could come up with all sorts of explanations
for symptoms instead of facing the truth that I was poisoning myself.
I talked to a woman at church a couple of weeks ago who
was puzzled why she had been feeling bad lately. I found out she had just started drinking
Diet Coke about a month earlier. She had
been drinking only water before. I asked
her if she felt like she'd been beaten with a baseball bat every morning when she
woke up, if she felt like she hadn't slept a wink, if her kids were finishing
her sentences for her, if her vision was a bit blurry, if she'd been craving
sweets lately, if she got headaches more frequently especially if she'd missed
her morning cup of diet coke, and if her muscles hurt when her kids climbed up
onto her lap. She answered yes to all
those symptoms, most of which she hadn't really thought about or noticed until
I brought it up! I told her my story and
gave her the info I got from you, and she said she'd quit drinking it and see
how she felt. I haven't talked to her in
about a month, but I should see her soon and I'll ask if she's doing better.
Thank you so much for helping spread the word. I probably would've kept drinking the stuff
until I killed myself if it hadn't been for you and your crew. If I can help, I'd be glad to. I'd like to have an even better success story
for you 6 months from now since I feel better physically and better about
myself after getting off the poison. I
feel like I can accomplish more of my goals now! My depression and achy body won't get the
best of me anymore! Hey, if I can work
43 hours a week and take 3 college courses and make a 3.33 average while being
a single mom of a kindergartener, I think there's probably even more that I can
do!
188. Date: Tue, 5 Aug 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Thanks for your story
Thank you kindly. And thank you for your great work against
the deadly genetically engineered drug aspartame.
We all owe you a debt of gratitude. I had my own
aspartame story also. I was having lots of problems concentrating and thinking
clearly for over two years. I was drinking a half gallon of Diet Coke most days.
I had no idea!! I never would have suspected that stuff as the cause had it
none been for your work. Now they want to screw up the rest of the food supply.
I gave up aspartame almost a year ago and I do feel much
better. Now I also am avoiding the other genetically engineered foods.
189. Date: Sat, 9 Aug 1997 18:26:50 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: ASPARTAME
Thank you for your quick and informative answer. I am a seven year drinker of DIET PEPSI and
just quit drinking that poison 45 days ago, and I can not believe how great I
feel. I am only 56, and my doctors and
friends told me that it was old age creeping in. Well, they were wrong! I FEEL GREAT!! If I can do anything other than just get the
word out let me know.
190. Date: Tue, 9 Sep 97 07:32:21 -0400
Subject: Reaction
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
I have had arythmia and severe headaches from
aspartame. In my teen years I consumed
quite a bit of NutraSweet. Eventually,
my family realized that the "heart palpitations" may be connected and
I stopped consuming it. In my early 20s I decided to try it again. Same thing. After just a small amount, I was again experiencing the
arythmia and severe headaches. I get a
headache almost immediately after consuming as little as four ounces of a
nutra-sweet laced product. I've never believed in activism, but since I started
studying NutraSweet, I've been interested in spreading the word. Especially to the people who are risking
their children's lives.
191. Re: NutraSweet
Date 7
Sep 1997 05:18:49 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.med.fibromyalgia
I still wonder why nutrasweet is allowed to be on the
market. I no longer touch anything that has it in it. When I was drinking the
diet soda with nutrasweet I started having serious memory lapses and my short
term to long term memory transfer ability was debilitated. Even though I
haven't touched nutrasweet in 5 years I still feel that I haven't regained my
full memory back. I know some of my memory trouble is due to "fog"
but "fog" can't cause everything.
192. [aspartame and other stuff]
Subj: Re:
Preservative ALLERGY??
Date:
97-06-22 21:19:04 EDT
To:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Thank you so much for your report on Aspartame.... I am
47, female, and I truly feel that aspartame has been a big part of my problem
along with MSG, cheese, and caffeine. I
have given up all of these for the past 40 days and my symptoms have improved
by 85% I would guess.
I had all the tests like you - over seven months......and
they said they also felt I was beginning with seizures - the partial kind. I hadn't lost conciousness yet but was
feeling close to it.......that diagnosis just didn't sit well - it didn't feel
right, you know what I mean? They put me
on anti-seizure medicine (Neurontin) for 3 months... to see if my symptoms
would go away.... (I was still using Nutrasweet alot) the medicine didn't phase
one symptom.......then they put me on Inderal thinking it was a migraine type
problem - migraine equivalents they called it - but Inderal didn't phase my
symptoms either - plus I gained weight !!
I got so disgusted I tried the avoidance of migraine trigger foods - a list my sister sent to me thru E-Mail. Nutrasweet
was on the list. As I said in a few weeks
my symptoms were so much improved I couldn't believe it!! How long does it take for that chemical to
get completely out of your system? I
suspect it might take a while - what do you think?
193. Re: Betty's info on eye problems in diabetics
using aspartame (NutraSweet)
Date
21 Jun 1997 04:20:00 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.health.diabetes
There have been questions about aspartame since it's inception.
I've recently stopped ingesting it and to me it's quite noticeable that I feel
better. No headaches or memory lapses which could have come from it.
194. To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame Consumer Safety Network
Questionnaire
Date: Fri, 27 Jun 1997 14:02:58 -0500
Name:___xxxxx
xxxxxxxx__________________________________________
Age: 32 Sex: F
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
I get violent headaches when I consume aspartame
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
Because I don't get that kind of headache when I don't
consume aspartame.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Yes. I noticed
this in 1991. I would have a diet sprite
with lunch, and along about 1:30 or 2:00, I would get a pounding headache. I mentioned it to someone I worked with, and
since he is extremely sensitive to aspartame, he mentioned that I might be
having a reaction. I had been out of the country for a couple of years and
hadn't had any aspartame before.
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
No, they went away when I stopped drinking the diet pop.
Did Doctor think it related to aspartame?
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food &
Drug Admin.) or any other group?
No, I didn't know there was any recording going on.
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were you
consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
Diet pop. That was
about it. I'm not a candy or gum person.
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each time, etc.)
One can of pop with lunch, maybe one later in the afternoon.
How long had you been consuming these products before
you experienced the symptoms?
As previously stated, I had been out of the country for
some time. Nutrasweet was being introduced when I left. When I came back, everything was
Nutrasweet. I noticed the headaches
right away after I started consuming large quantities of it.
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT: Did you begin using products with aspartame
when you began a restricted calorie diet?
Sort of. I grew up
drinking diet pop, so regular sugar tastes too strong to me.
Did you use aspartame products only for some of your
meals to save calories?
Yes, just pop.
Did aspartame seem to help you lose weight at first?
I didn't consume enough to notice any difference.
What were the long term weight loss effects of using
aspartame?
At the time, learning to eat properly was more important
than weight loss, so I didn't focus on losing weight.
FOR THOSE WITH DIABETES: Any trouble controlling blood
sugar while using aspartame?
I'm hypoglycemic rather than diabetic. After drinking a diet pop, it seemed my blood
sugar levels dropped dramatically.
Did using products affect the types of food you
selected to eat? How?
Yes, my bg levels were low, so I'd crave something to
eat. Sweet things looked more attractive.
Did aspartame affect your desire for sweet tasting
food or drink?
increase
195. Date: Wed, 09 Jul 1997 00:16:20 -0700
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspertame
I discovered a few years back that aspertame gives me
migraines. I am very careful about what
I purchase and read all suspect labels.
Aspertame shows up in the darndest places! The other day I bought some
Welch's juice bars. They were labeled
'No sugar added'. For some stupid
reason, I did not search for the dreaded nutrisweet on the label. I thought that 'no sugar added' meant they
were naturally sweet.
I ate one. Now I
am on day 3 of a aspertame headache. I
threw the rest of the headache bars in the garbage. I'm not sure how to contact
Welch's about this misleading label. I'm
sure that an upstanding company like Welch's would not knowingly mislead the
public. :-o
I just read on your page that aspertame can hurt the
optic nerve. My mother has been using
Nutri Sweet for 20 years and now she is almost blind. She has had glaucoma for all this time, but
has been
using eye drops and her pressure has been under
control. Her eye doctor says that her
blindness is caused by optic nerve damage due to the glaucoma. I'm sure Nutri Sweet hasn't helped.
196. Date: Sat, 12 Jul 1997 10:43:55 +0100
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Artificial Sweetneters
My wife is so sensitive to any artificial sweetener that
any amount no matter how small causes a severe reaction. Even one drop of Diet Coke will make her sick
for days. A gulp of diet soda is so
deadly to her that it requires an immediate ambulance ride to the hospital.
You should know that these sweeteners are used in many
things you don't realize. Toothpaste for
example. Last year she discovered by
accident that her toothpaste had aspartane in it and she was being poisoned by
it on a daily basis. We check every
single thing she consumes but outside of the United States this is difficult
because of the lack of labeling laws.
England is especially bad. Last
week while trying to buy off the shelf cough
medicine, the pharmacist had to call each manufacturer to
check what they contained. We found that
every single brand on the shelf contained artificial sweeteners except
one. Just a few days later she was
almost poisoned again by a Sangria drink she ordered at a restrurant – the lemonade
in the drink was made with artificial sweeteners instead ofsugar.
Because of her I've become more informed of how these
sweeteners work and I can hardly believe it.
They can only be described as mind altering drugs. The war on drugs should begin with artificial
sweeteners. In
summary, beware. This dangerious stuff
is not just in soda -- it's in all kinds of seemingly innocient stuff you buy
at pharmacies and elsewhere.
197. Date: Fri, 27 Jun 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame and It's Effects
My mother and I both have been a victim of
aspartame. Are you aware it's almost
impossible to get children's vitamins or yoghurt without it? My mother broke out in a terrible rash up and
down her arms like hives that remained on her for a month after the aspartame
was discontinued. I got intense
headaches. It was awful. This is not a case history, but just a
comment.
198. Date:
Wed, 25 Jun 1997 23:57:12 -0500
Subject:
Re: Persistent Sore Throat
To: ALLERGY@postal.tamu.edu
The beginning of my allergy discovery began this
way. After reviewing my medical bills
for insurance reimbursement, I noticed that I had lost my voice and had either
an ear or sinus infection every month since I moved to California from the
Pacific Northwest. Allergy tests by one
doctor showed I was slightly allergic to dust.
Another doctor's test showed I was negative to everything. He suggested I look into eliminating milk
from my diet.
What I now understand two years later is that I was
causing my own damage through preservatives.
When I moved to California and began my long (1-1.5 hour) commutes, I
drank a lot of soft drinks especially diet with Nutrasweet. I also am a lazy cook and ate a lot of
preprepared foods.
I wish I understood then that additives in my diet were
the problem. I wouldn't be on such a restricted
diet today if I or the doctors could have seen the real issue. By the way, the
moment I cut out preservative from my diet, I felt remarkably healthy and
energetic. I have not had a sore throat
from nasal drip since.
199. Date: Tue, 8 Jul 1997 20:46:25 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nutrasweet
I've noticed over the past few years that after using
Equal for several months, I will have serious pains in the stomach area. The first time I went to a MD who fully
examined me and told me to use Zantec, to no avail. I then started to omit
various foods, etc and found that whe I eliminated nutasweet for a week the
pain went away.
After a call to the company, without any meaningful
comment by them, I then started using Equal after a month or so without
difficulty for about a year. When the same pains started again I at once
stopped using nutrasweet and the pain disappeared almost at once.
After the past eight months of usage, again, I today
began the same pain and have stopped neutrasweet. If I am correct that the source of the pain
is neutrasweet (Equal) the pain should stop in a day or so.
[update]
200. Date: Wed, 10 Sep 1997 16:05:54 -0400
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
Did the stomach pain disappear?
Yes it did. I did
what I had done before and that was to stay off Equal for a few weeks and went
bacj to sugar and at times the pink stuff.
201. To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame review after 75 days
Date: Fri, 25 Jul 1997 14:26:43 -0400
I have been Aspartame, caffeine, and sugar-free for about
75 days now. When I went off these three
items on April 30, my main complaints were: shaky handwriting and tremblor of
hands; flickering lights in the outer field of vision and joint pain. These have
disappeared almost completely. I have not gone back to Aspartame at all, but I
have begun to drink regular coffee without suffering any ill effects, except
one day when I overdid the caffeine bit by having about six cups. Then the shaky handwriting and the flickering
lights were back. While I am happy to be
rid of most symptoms, I cannot really say that all of the good effects were
solely due to quitting Aspartame. Thanks anyway for the information. Maybe we
all consume too much caffeine, also. If that is true, then the coffee and
softdrink industry will really be mad!
202. Date: Sat, 16 Aug 1997 17:35:41 -0500
Sender:
New Diet Revolution List <ATKINS-NEW@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
Subject:
Re: I'm Not Making The Progress I Thought
I was a total Diet Coke addict, and eating cold cuts like
crazy. When I learned about all the
additives in cold cuts, and read so much about Nutrasweet on this list, I cut
them out and have lost 14 lbs in the intervening four weeks. (I also have a tendency to abuse the heavy cream
allowance, making myself elaborate flavored decaf coffee drinks at night to
assuage my dessert cravings.)
My ketostix weren't turning anything darker than a medium
beige, and a week after I made the changes they started turning a medium purple
and I started losing. Also I wasn't drinking enough water. I now go through two 1-liter bottles a day,
and I believe it's helped.
Man, giving up the Nutrasweet was HARD. I had headaches for a couple of days, but after
about five days my cravings for sweets really diminished ... I don't think I'm
ever going back to Nutrasweet, after all the bad stuff I've read/heard about
it.
203. Date: 05 Jun 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Apartame side effects (fwd)
I was alerted to the effects of aspartame through reading
the message board under the better heart health site on the internet. I was new to computers and anxiously read all
I could access about tachycardia, arrythmias and high cholesterol. I found a posting from xxxxxxx that listed
side effects from aspartame. I had some
of the same symptoms that she had experienced like; fast heartbeat. She kindly sent more
information about aspartame. I
experimented by listening to my body when I consumed aspartame and sure enough
it was a cause of rapid heartbeat. I cut it out completely. I used to consume quite a bit of the stuff in
diet drinks and by adding it to coffee.
I am also cutting out coffee, fat and am starting to
exercise regularly. I told the story to my brother, two aunts and two uncles
who also have heart problems as well and they have also found a connection.
Thanks alot to xxxxxx, I'll continue to share your
information with anyone who I think might benefit from the news.
204. Date: Fri, 27 Sep 1996 21:22:46 -0700
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: 60 day aspartame abstinence
I have been noticing gradually improving memory and
mental acuity since I have quit aspartame. I've had very few headaches. A side
effect of quitting aspartame is drinking much less soda since I can't afford
the calories. Thank you for your tremendous efforts in behalf of all you may be
helping. My reading concentration is much improved also. God bless you in this unique
ministry.
205. Date: Thu, 1 May 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: send me help
Just read the article from xxxx xxxxxxxx about artificial
sweetners. I have been drinking diet
sodas since they first came out. I have
a bunch of the symptoms listed, the worst being swollen stiff joints,
attributed to rheumatoid arthritis. I
easily drink 2 liters of diet pepsi a day. Your message is really shocking and
upsetting.
[update]
206. Date: Mon, 18 Aug 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Regarding update
Thanks for your last e-mail. I have mostly not had any aspartame for a
couple of months, but,every once in a whilef I had a diet soda. No more.
The last time I drank diet pop a bunch of symptoms
returned and I'm blaming them on te pop. The joint pain has not completely
disappeared, unfortunately. So maybe
that's not all aspartame. Thanks for the
info and concern.
207. Date: Tue, 19 Aug 1997
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nurenburg Trials/Responsibility for
NutraSweet?
My name is Lynn and I live in St John's, Newfoundland, Canada. I have recently become very interested in the
scourge of aspartame. I am a sufferer of
migraine headaches, and have been so for many years. I have concluded that the culprit of my
problem is indeed aspartame.
Unfortunately, after being diagnosed with the problem my
doctor did not inform me that one of the possible causes of migraines may be
aspatame, even though she did give me a list of may types of food that cause
the disorder. At the top of the list was
the warning that foods containing phenylalanine may be a problem to
sufferers. However not even a hint as to
any problems derived from consuming Aspartame. I continued to suffer from
migraines even though I discontinued eating every food on that list.
What a shock I received one day when I was purchasing
'sugar-free' yogurt at the supermarket.
In the ingredients list it said that the product contained aspartame and
that aspartame may contain phenylalanine.
I immediately stopped using the product in my diet and the symptoms went
away entirely. I was Amazed. Why wasn't
I informed about the possibility that aspartame may be the very thing that was
making me sick.
I have been looking through the net and the symptoms
listed on some pages include some of the scariest I experienced during what I called
a migraine. These included memory loss (to the point where I couldn't remember
my brother's or my roommate's name), and slurred and jumbled speech. I revisited my doctor to tell of these
symptoms which were getting progressively worse (before the aspartame halt) and
she said that she has had other patients complain of similar symptoms and that
everyone experiences migraines differently.
I question whether doctors are informed about the effects of aspartame
or if they are just as blind as I was.
208. Date: 22 Aug 1997 03:07:17 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
Subject: Re: Coke Vs. Diet Coke
Hmm... well I find that if I have more than 2 servings of
Nutrasweet a day I get a nagging sore throat... that is as long as I drink a
lot ofwater... if I'm subsisting on JUST Diet Coke (and yes I HAVE done it
:->) I do get really tired.
209. Re: aspartame (was: caramel)
Date
Sat, 06 Sep 1997 11:01:31 -0700
Newsgroups alt.folklore.herbs
I'd like to add my .02 to Sandy's post. NutraSweet (aspartame) is also dangerous for
people with hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).
Most doctors will tell hypoglycemics to stay away from sugar, but mine
never mentioned aspartame. If I eat or
drink *anything* containing aspartame, my blood sugar plummets and I get a
horrible migraine. It's even worse than
eating a sugary snack. I read a few
months ago that the reason for this is that it "tricks" your body
into thinking it's had sugar (because of the sweetness), but the
"energy" (calories) of sugar aren't even there to temporarily raise
the blood sugar before it lowers the sugar in the blood. Now, when I get cravings for something sweet,
I make tea and add stevia. I've never
had an unfavorable reaction from it.
210. Date:
Mon, 21 Jul 1997 11:17:49 -0500
Sender:
Paleolithic Eating Support List <PALEOFOOD@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
Subject:
Re: Non nutritive sweeteners
My daughter has seizures if she drinks or eats anything
with Nutrasweet. I have also heard that it has been banned from Japan.
211. AOL/General Health Discussions/Nutrasweet
Subject: More Information
Date: 04 Aug 1997 21:12:30 EDT
I'm glad it made me sick when I first drank it, so it
never had a chance to do me in. It's really a shame that they don't remove it
from the market, but then with Monsanto people being placed in positions of
authority at the FDA, what do we expect?
212. Date: Wed, 23 Jul 1997 12:42:54 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: How are you?
Within about 10 days there was a substantial reduction in
headaches. Particularly the ones behind my eyes that hurt so much and caused
eye problems. As for other problems, I
have seen nothing.
213. LUPUS-L Mailing List
Re: MED: FDA "PIVOTAL" SAFETY STUDY:
ASPARTAME CAUSED BRAIN SEIZURES
Sat, 21 Jun 1997 22:17:19 -0500
Aspartame causes me to have headaches and be more light
sensitive.
214. Date: Tue, 8 Jul 1997 19:02:55 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame Disease mimics MS
Have a friend who has been diagnosed as a
"probable" MS patient. Last week she learned thru a friend of a
friend that Nutrisweet might be her problem. She has cut out Nutrisweet from
her diet entirely and, although it has only been less than 2 weeks, says she
feels significantly better and has already reduced prescription drugs.
215. Re: The Bitterest Sweet
Date
11 Jul 1997 15:23:58 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.nursing
Are you refering to a study or did you state your opinion
(I agree with you in a way because nutra swt makes my mouth sore and gives me
an overall ill effect everytime) I believe in good old sugar
216. Re: Joe Parsons Rides Again
Date
28 Jun 1997 11:41:36 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.attn-deficit,sci.psychology.psychotherapy, news.groups
I know that nutrasweet gives me one hell of a headache.
Don't know if that has anything to do with ADD, however.
217. Re: PVC's unchecked
Date
Sat, 28 Jun 1997 10:00:26 -0400
Newsgroups
sci.med.cardiology
My PVC's have recently returned - the cause once again is
plenty of stress. I also found out that the aspartame (Nutrasweet) in diet soft
drinks was aggravating the condition - I'd get PVC's within about an hour of
drinking a diet soft drink. No more
aspartame, and the problem has lessened. Still, though, one of the primary
underlying causes is certainly stress. So I'm back on Lopressor again, for a
little while anyway.
218. Date: Wed, 3 Sep 1997
To: xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame causes allergic reactions
I have been plagued by a rash along the insides of my
fore-arms for several years. I saw a dermatologist
who said it was due to extra-dry skin and told me to use lotion after my
showers. (This didn't work.)
Strangely enough, about a week after discovering I was
pregnant, my rash disappeared. I had
been a real diet coke junkie and vowed to stop during my pregnancy. When the baby was about 3 weeks old, I had my
first diet soda in 10 months. Within
hours, my rash returned. It took a
little testing to confirm my theory, but now I am certain. Anytime I have been rash-free for weeks, if I
drink a diet soda or have a "lite" cup of yogurt with aspartame, the
rash is back the next morning.
219. To: xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Date: Mon, 16 Jun 1997 20:52:09 -0400
I am an RN and have who has been diagnosed with
fibromyalgia and I am aspartame free since 6-97. So far so good! But I ahve a nurse friend that has been
diagnosed with Meniere's Disease and am
wondering about that and aspartame. She
is on a very restricted Sodium diet and is better. But, mentionerd the aspartamne and she
notices that when she drinks diet epsi, her Meniere's flares reall badly. She
thought maybe it was the caffiene. But I am wondering about the aspartame.
[update]
220. To: xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Date: Fri, 8 Aug 1997 22:28:41 -0400
I don't know if you remember, but I contacted you about
the possibilty of a connection between aspartame and Meniere's disease. My friend gave up her diet Pepsi and has not
needed to take her diuretic except 3 times in one month . She was taking them daily to reduce the
dizziness. She hasn't needed it. She said she really wasn't keeping track, but
suddenly realized that she did have a decrease in symptoms. I am now known as
the Nutrasweet police, but I have given your infoe to everybody, including
several physicians. I have not noticed
much change in my fibromyalgia symptoms, but some times you don't know how good
you feel until you feel awful again. I
have had some sort of virus, we think. Jokingly we have decided that it is
aspartame withdrawl. I will tell you that
on reflection, I had a seizure disorder and the worst seizures were when I
worked 11 PM-7AM shift and lived on diet pop for caffeine. Two years ago, I had
an EEG and No seizure actitvity was present!
Imagine that.
Please forgive me for going on so long. I want to say
THANK YOU!! And please continue your work.
221. Diabetes Mailing List
Re: Headaches and DM?
Sun, 10 Aug 1997 22:42:08 -0500
When I was first diagnosed and made the transition from
REAL soft drinks to diet... I started getting a lot of headaches. It seems that
one of the most common side effects of Nutri-Sweet (aspartame) is headaches,
until your system becomes metabolized to it... And then from time to time when
the aspartame builds up to toxic levels, it has been known to cause migraines.
222. Re: Aspartame is unhealthy? (was Re: Meal
Replacement without Aspartame?)
Date 7
Sep 1997 21:27:00 GMT
Newsgroups misc.fitness.weights
I know that Nutrasweet in foods or drinks gives me
violent headaches...and my siblings recently confirmed the same about
themselves. So, my drink of choice is...WATER! LOL
223. Date: Sun, 24 Aug 1997 15:06:21 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
Subject: Re: Lots of Non Diet Soda's
I don't personally recommend that diet soda, I know that
nutrasweet will give me a migraine 9 times out of 10 I have something with nutrasweet
in it.
224. Date:
Tue, 20 May 1997 05:58:26 -0500
Sender:
Paleolithic Eating Support List <PALEOFOOD@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
Subject:
Silly question
When I was on Atkins, I used to eat a lot of Sugar-Free
Jello (especially with whipped cream or cream cheese or cottage cheese. Eeeps!
No wonder I was so messed up and gained weight!) but gave it up when I realized
I was having physical reactions to NutraSweet.
....
225. Date:
Sat, 28 Jun 1997 08:00:24 +0000
Sender:
Thyroid <THYROID@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
Subject:
Nutrasweet
Nutrasweet gives me headaches so I do not drink it.
226. Date:
Fri, 8 Aug 1997 01:23:16 -0400
Sender:
Thyroid <THYROID@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU>
Subject:
Re: Fw: aspartame info (Long)
Great letter...I was "hooked" on diet Coke...I
mean I liked it better then regular! I
drank it morning ...noon...and night!
What a gimik...you can have all you want...and no calories. I was also
experiencing panic attacks. When the first letter hit the list....I stopped
drinking it! Thank you all!!! I (knock on wood) haven't had a panic attack
in over a week...:) I never gave in
totally to my panic so I haven't been house bound....but it so much more pleasant when I don't have to
experience them at all!!!!!!!!
227. Date: Thu, 15 May 1997 22:54:53 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Copy of email to Dr. Friedman
I used to drink vast quantities of Diet Coke or Diet
Pepsi ( both caffeine free) -- they never seemed to quench my thirst and I
suffered from terrible headaches. I quit using any products with Aspartame and
the headaches have gone away. I don't think this is merely anecdotal. There is
mounting evidence that aspartame is NOT safe. Please remove this dangerous drug
from the market.
[husband's case history]
228. Date: Fri, 1 Aug 1997 14:14:11 -0400
To: xxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Fw: NutraSweet
I know how hard it is to give up Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi
-- I was addicted to the stuff. Do you remember how much I used to put away?
Athol (my husband) as almost as bad.
Here is my NutraSweet story -- I used to get horrible
headaches and was thinking of taking out shares in Johnson & Johnson I was
sucking down so many Tylenol! Mary Beth had told me that NutraSweet gave her
terrible headaches and I poo-pooed her until it eventually got so bad that
decided to try. The headache used to sit at the base of my skull and my neck would
crack horribly when I stretched it in an attempt to alleviate the pain. After
going through a few weeks of withdrawal symptoms -- I was fine. I haven't taken
ANY pain killer for over three years.
Now Athol's NutraSweet HORROR story. A couple of times in
South Africa and then a couple of times here Athol had unexplained blackouts.
It wasn't a faint -- he didn't crumple like a faint -- he would go down like a
felled tree! We saw an endless parade of heart specialists and neurologists, he
had MRI's, EKG's, EEG's, zillions of blood tests. No answer.
Eventually one collapse (about 3 or 4 years ago) was so
bad we thought he'd had a stroke -- he had all the symptoms of a stroke.
Paralysis down one side, slurred speech -- the works. He was hospitalized --
more tests including a Doppler scan of the carotid arteries (clear). They
finally let him come home after three days and we were really none the wiser.
The doctor and hospital decided that a perfectly healthy 33 year old male with
NO predisposing factors had had a TIA (transient ischemic attack) --
doctor-speak for mini-stroke. He had several more collapses after that.
Finally one at work which freaked everyone out. His boss
insisted that he stay home until he was properly diagnosed. He saw yet another
neurologist in the city and this one finally diagnosed epilepsy. Athol then went through a series of
four anti-seizure drugs -- Dilantin (caused a suicidal depression), Depakote (came
damned close to destroying his liver -- the liver enzyme SGOT measured 240 when
it should be under 40), Tegretol (made him unbelievably moody and aggressive)
and finally Lacmictal which seemed to be OK.
Problem was the initial dosage wasn't preventing the
seizures. They kept increasing the dose until Athol was like a zombie. In the
meantime I had read that NutraSweet
could cause seizures. I begged Athol to stop using the stuff, figuring
that someone who was already having seizures didn't need anything that could
cause more.
Finally in October of last year he did stop. Unrelated to
this he had decided to start reducing his medication because he hated how he
was feeling. He decided that he would take his chances with the seizures rather
than feel so lethargic and spacey all the time. He gradually reduced his dosage
and on Christmas Day 1996 stopped using medication altogether. He has not had
one seizure since. Co-incidence? I think not. He only started these seizures
after he'd met me and I used aspartame.
When I think of the harm I must have done to myself,
Athol and my kids by having us all use this poison in the mistaken belief that
sugar was actually worse for us -- I feel physically sick. I can only hope that
we quit in time.
229. Date: Mon, 02 Jun 1997 20:08:29 -0700
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: OVER 30 DAYS WITHOUT ASPARTAME,,,,
Thanks for the e-mail today, it has been 34 days without
any aspartame, and I feel great. Looking back, it amazes me that I was just
going along, not really thinking about how I was feeling, when Jim said that he
had really noticed that I wasnt in as much pain, as before. As he said, I wasnt
twisting all over the sofa trying to get comfortable. My pain level has gone down by at least 60%
if not more. I am doing my gardening, and general housework, and other things
without to much pain. I can carry on now, even when I am getting tired. Whereas
before, I would have to lay down, and nap or at least rest.
I really havent got any down side, to anything, as yet. I
really feel like I am getting my life back.
I am much nicer to be around, my friends have noticed that, and I can
even joke around now, I am not always spending my energies on fighting the
pain. I just hope that it continues to get better for me.
230. Don't Buy Stock In Monsanto :)
Date Thu, 9 Jan 1997 13:33:30 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
Right on Ilena! - 9 days off of Aspartame; I feel a
little better already. I can hardly wait for the 60 day countdown to feel how I
am then.
[update]
231. Date: Sat, 31 May 1997 08:55:46 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Don't Buy Stock In Monsanto :)
I feel much better, thanks.
I no longer get blurry vision, have less tremor in my
hands (although this isone symptom which I think will never go away
completely), no more chronic "tickle" in throat which caused me to
constantly clear my throat, less chronic depression, and best of all, I don't
feel that deep down fatigue that I used to feel in seemingly every bone in my
body. Overall, I seem to sleep better also, although I still occasionally get
one of those sleepless nights. I no longer get those inexplicable monster
"back-of-the-eyeballs headaches" when I read anymore; although I used
to be an enthusiastic reader at one time before aspartame, I couldn't tolerate
reading for more than 15 minutes when I was on aspartame.
I still do get tired more than I feel I should, but I
definitely am doing better than just 6 months ago. I believe that an important
residual effect of aspartame use is that due to chronic fatigue and basically
feeling sick all the time had led me to become much less active which caused me
to gain weight and to lose endurance from lack of enough aerobic excercize.
xxx, in addition to removing aspartame from my diet, I
have also cut my caffeine down to only one cup of coffee (seem to still need
that jolt in the morning) per day which really minimizes that 2pm to 4pm
"valley of fatigue" crash which used to hit me very hard usually
right after lunch.
Other diet revisions which I have made: 1) almost compete
substitution of soft drinks with fruit/vegetable juices such as V-8, oj,
cranberry, grape, etc. about the only soft drink that I'll still have is ginger
ale but even that I have rarely; 2) major reduction (but not fanatic abstinence)
in consumption of red meats especially cold cuts; 3) we make a couple of big pots
of different soups every weekend made with a lot of fresh veggies which we use
as left overs which last through the week; 4) also have increased intake of
vitamins upto at least 1500 mg of vit C and 400iu of vit E per day along with a multi for B vitamins
which I always make sure to take along with meals to ensure more complete
digestion and adsorption.
I really did not start my diet change until after my 60
day countdown of stopping aspartame use. So I guess it was somewhat
"scientific" for whatever it's worth. We have also started
experimenting with natural non-caffeine teas and oriental herbs.
The main idea that I have brought away from following the
CFS and aspartame post lists and web info is that everyone has a right to
actively take care of his own health and to have free access to the materials
and information to do so. I think that the modern medical system has become too
bureaucratic and unresponsive to individual needs, especially if your symptoms
don't happen to fall neatly into an easy to diagnose and prescribe ailment. As
time pemits, we're trying to read more books about holistic health approaches.
232. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subj: Re: nutrasweet/indigestion
Date: 29 May 1997 00:07:23 EDT
Nutrasweet makes me sick, my husband and daughter. It
started with me. Several years ago, I took two nutrasweet packets in several
cups of coffee and had one pop a day. I noticed my eyes were always burning. I
read a story in the tribune about two women who sued for blindness caused by
it. I stopped taking it. The burning in my eyes went away. I was afraid to have
my daughter take it and wouldn't let her drink pop with it in it. She stayed
over at a friend's house where a diabetic grandma lives and drank some of her
nutrasweet pop. She was sick all night and half the next day with a horrible
headache. When my husband accidentally had a drink with nutrasweet in it -- he
believes in sugar -- it made his head hurt, his nose run and his eyes burn.
I think this stuff is poison and i don't care what the
FDA says is safe. they're acting more like a shill for corporations than a
consumer protector. A friend of mine pulled a story off the net about a worker
at the Searle plant dying from nutrasweet exposure. Apparently, all the workers
have to wear space suits and this guy wasn't careful. Kind of like the food
additive version of who killed karen silkwood. She also pulled a story off
about the woman who died in the ER and smelled so bad? It was from nutrasweet.
The chemicals in nutrasweet tuned into methyl...something that smells bad. Anyhow.
I don't use it and I tell people it's poison, don't use it.
233. Re: Lyme & Nutrasweet
Date
Sun, 25 May 97 13:27:46 EDT
Newsgroups
sci.med.diseases.lyme
About a year ago I stopped drinking/eating anything with
nutrasweet. This was truly amazing, because I practically lived on Diet Coke. I
have noticed a marked difference in my mental abilities since giving up the nutra-sweet.
I made the decision after reading a newsletter from a
group that was trying to inform the public about the dangers of nutrasweet. I
can't find the publication now, or the name of the group, but I can tell you
what some of their issues were. They claimed that Nutrasweet only barely passed
the FDA approval process, and if it were not for appointing an additional
researcher to the panel that was approving/or not nutrasweet it never would
have been approved.
They claimed that in experimental animal studies,
nutrasweet caused holes in the brains of animals given the product. If I remember
correctly, this was not massive doses that caused this damage. Also, this group
claimed that studies showed that one of the metabolities of nutrasweet (what
the product brakes down into in the body) is formaldehyde!!!! Just what I want
running through my body!!!
As far as helping you lose weight, they claim it fails
here too. This is what they claim happens. When you eat sugar, the brain
detects the sugar and produces substances to metabolize it. When your body doesn't
do this, it results in serious medical problems because of the inbalance. When
you consume something super sweet as nutrasweet, your body is tricked into
producing the same substance to metabolise the sugar it thinks you consumed.
This creates an imbalance in the body. Your body uses cravings to help you to
correct this problem. You end up craving sweets, and most likely you will end
up consuming them one way or another. So the benefit from drinking diet sodas
is negated!
Anyway, I have sweared off the stuff, and think I am
better off for it. I used to have the "lyme brain fog" when out and
about running errands. I would go crazy looking for a diet caffinated drink to
help "clear my head" It was
only making it worse.
I tested this on myself by not consuming nutrasweet for
about a week or so, then drank a diet soda or two during the day. The increased
confusion and brain fog was so marked, it convinced me to stop using nutrasweet. Now if I have 1 every once in a while it
doesn't affect me, but if I have more than one, I'm feeling pretty bad. I
noticed this one day when I was eating a birthday cake made without sugar and
only nutrasweet. I did not know this at the time I was eating it, but I got
very sick afterwards. Later, I heard the woman who made the cake boasting how
it contained no sugar and was made with tons on the "blue stuff".
234. Date: Sun, 12 Jan 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: aspartame/xxxxxx
Shortly after aspartame came on the market I started
using it frequently. In 1983, desparate
to take off some weight, I gave in to all the commercial hype and started using
it regularly - everyday. I had gone to
Florida to start a future there. I was consuming
products with Nutra-Sweet in many of the things I ate daily. I started to feel like I was moving in slow motioin. The headaches - they were unbelievable. I would just lay on the bathroom floor
(closest proximity to toilet) and just cry and throwup. Finally, one night,
after being in terrible pain and confusion my roommate took me to Boca Raton
Hospital. I thought my head was about to
explode.
Before being shot up with demeral, the doctor asked what
I had been eating. I told him I was dieting and he immediately asked how much
nutra sweet I was consuming. I was
honest and told him I had been passing over healthy foods for things like
pudding with aspartame in it or jello.
As a compulsive eater, I couldn't settle for just one serving, I would eat
the box at one setting instead of a regular meal. Then I ended up with what I call the
nutra-sweet hangover. It took me days to
get back to normal. That was it for me.
I moved back to Buffalo shortly after that and went back
to college. I did my own little study
for a graded project, which was video taped.
I got an A. After reading some of
the stories, I'm really glad my professer kept my project to show to future
classes. Every once in a while I used to tempt fate and see just how much I
could get away with. I would actually
try to consume a can of pop, and naturally, I would get sick.
My sister, who is very athletically inclined used to
drink diet pop on the volleyball court.
She told me how she would start to feel like her body was slowing down,
as well as her reaction time. I certainly made a believer out of her. She won't go near the stuff. I'm so glad I ran into this extremely
important info on the net. Thank you for
your organization.
235. Date: Sat, 04 Jan 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame experience
Thank you for your enlightening information regarding
Aspartame. I would like to share my
personal experience with you.
When the product hit the market in the early 1980's, I
was a teenager. Because I was always watching my weight, I drank lots of diet
soft drinks. At the time, as you will recall, Aspartame was added to soft
drinks without any other type of sugar additive available. Since Nutrasweet was touted as safe, I, along
with everyone else, continued to drink diet soft drinks. Approximately two
months after the switch over, I started to have mild seizures. At the time, I was not sure what was
happening and continued to drink diet soft drinks unknowingly. As the seizures continued, I went to a physician
to find out why this was happening to me.
They tested me and concluded that I must have had a mild form of
epilepsy, although nothing conclusive ever showed up to indicate epilepsy. I was prescribed an anti-seizure medicine,
Dilantin, at the age of 18. After being
on the drug for perhaps six months, my father had heard a TV news report (back
in the 80's) that some people were having a reaction to the sweetener. At that time, I went off of anything
containing Nutrasweet, as well as my Dilantin, and within six months was
completely normal again.
I am now 32 years old and will not touch Nutrasweet in
any form. My children are not allowed to
drink diet soft drinks or have anything that contains Nutrasweet. I feel that Aspartame is a dangerous food
additive and should be taken off the market.
What makes me angrier still is that no choice was ever given to the
consumers regarding what type of sweetener they wanted. Saccharin had been on
the market for years and I had had no problems at all with it. The lab mice that were injected with the
Saccharin were injected with doses so large, no human could ever consume the
quantity given to these animals. I'm
angry because I was not given a choice.
I would have rather continued to been able to purchase products containing
Saccharin, instead of going through what I want through with the Nutrasweet
products.
Please continue your good work! Hopefully, through your work, we will be able
to see Nutrasweet come off of the market!
Thanks again.
Last friday, 5/10/97, I discovered what caused a
peripheral vision loss that was diagnosed in 1994. Aspartame. I couldn't
believe it when I found out this crap has methyl alcohol in it.Everyone knows
wood alcohol makes you blind, and here I have been drinking it since 91. I have
also had headaches, memory loss, confusion, anger and who know's what else. In
just 6 days without Diet Coke I have come to feel a heck of a lot better. I am
writing to thank you for your efforts at educating the public (me) on the
dangers of Aspartame. Keep up the fight.
236. Re: Lyme & Nutrasweet
Date 24 May 1997 05:43:17 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.diseases.lyme
My daughter drank diet coke until about 3 years ago. The diet brand started to make her sick
gradually until she dropped them altogether and drank regular (classic) coke
with no problems. She has to avoid all
diet products with aspar. or nutrasweet or her symptoms make her very
sick. Maybe there's some truth in your
question. (But then again, both products
make my brainstem swell. Think it could run
in the family?
hmmm.....seems there's something not hit on yet with the
excacerbated symptoms and brainswelling, then with the nutrasweet with it. Because of my seizures I have to do without
it. And also the right temporal lobe of my
brain is swollen.........Ok, that's all i know:).....will leave the details of
this one for another brilliant researcher out there:)
237. Re: other/nutra sweet
Date
Wed, 28 May 1997 11:28:24 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
I agree with what you said about nutra sweet not causing
CFIDS. But it can cause problems. About 2 weeks ago I ate large doses of this
in a jello salad (for 2 days!) without knowing it was sugar free jello. I have had a major set-back with SEVERE joint
aches, esp my right knee which was hard to walk on, fever, sweats, chills,
HEADACHES, & extreme exhaustion which put me back on the couch unable to
function. I finally went to my Dr. for
pain pills & he said, "What did you eat?" as it was an allergic reaction he said, &
it would take about 2 weeks to clear out of the system. Much sorting out, I awoke late at nite saying
I bet the jello was nutra sweet. And
after tracking the source, it was.
Now the most pains have subsided, but he headaches are
still here. I get up in the morining and
cry because I feel so bad.
238. Date: Wed, 01 Jan 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Thanks for the info
I just wanted to say thanks for the information that you
made available on the web about aspartame. I am a 27 year old male. For the
past 10 or 11 years I have consumed large quantities of diet sodas. All of
which contained aspartame. I would drink soda all day long. When I wasn't drinking
diet soda, I was drinking coffee or ice tea sweetened with sweet & low or
equal. All this time I was figuring I was doing my body good by not consuming
all that sugar. That was until I heard about aspartame.
On December 31 my mother and my wife told me about the 60
Minuets show on the aspartme. I like to check these things out for myself, so I
spent hours today on the web reading about this stuff. Most of this information
came from Dorway. I was sickened to read about my own governments sell out, not
this type of thing surprises me.
I went down the list of reactions. At one time or
another, all of us experience some of these things, but they can usually be
explained. I am in good health. I am overweight, but I work out and do
cardiovascular exercise a few days a week. I am often surprised at how fatigued
I am. I have been getting headaches out of the blue for the past two years. I
have experienced some hair loss from time to time. I lately have become dizzy a
few times with no warning.
My joints ache, at times I have memory loss. I don't
drink very often, and I don't use drugs. I try to eat right and take care of myself,
and I generally stay well all the time except for these unexplained symptoms
that I get from time to time. I don't go to the doctor unless Something is
major is wrong, so I have never talked to anyone about these problems. I was
glad to hear about this from you. This might well be my problem. I have decided
to try the 60 day test. I probably will never use the product again, but for
the next 60 days I will not go near the stuff. I am also telling everyone I
know about the Dorway website.
[Update]
239. Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 20:14:52 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: 60 day No Aspartame Test
It has been about 120 days since I kicked the habit. I
thought maybe my letter was lost in cyberspace since I had not heard from you
in so long. My headaches are gone. Surprisingly my dizzy spells are gone as well.
That was what was worrying me. I was keeping a record of these spells, and the
last one I that accrued in early Jan. They would come at any time even watching
TV. They are gone. My joints no longer ache, memory is better and I feel great.
I will say I do miss diet coke etc.... I now drink allot of water, mostly
sparkling or seltzer with only lime or something. I want to thank you again for
the info.
240. To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Nutrasweet Symptoms
Date: Fri, 18 Apr 1997 10:23:02 -0400
I had gotten used to living with headaches and
fatigue. I thought I wasn't getting
enough sleep (7 1/2 to 8 hours per day).
Each day, I used around 6 packets
of equal -- three in a large 20 ounce coffee in the morning and three in a
large 20 ounce tea in the afternoon. The
reason I used the stuff was that it disolved quickly compared with sugar, and I
actually do prefer the taste to sugar.
Add in lots of sugarless gum and a diet soda from time to time, and it
was consuming a lot of aspartame.
I am otherwise in good health and exercise frequently. Almost
immediately upon giving up Nutrasweet, my symptoms went away. No more fatigue and fog in the morning, and a
clearer head throughout the day. It was your web site listing hundreds of pages
of toxicity reactions that convinced me to change my habits. You have got to keep getting the word out.
241. Date: Mon, 28 Apr 1997 12:18:12 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: aspartame
Just for the record, I stopped using aspartame and my
vision problems disappeared. I suffered for years, tried all kinds of
treatments and it was simply caused by aspartame!
242. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subj: Re: Nutrasweet
Date: 14 Jun 1997 23:09:14 EDT
I don't have any documented proof by article. But I can tell you that I am positive my
brilliant daughter lost her photographic memory the first year nutrasweet was
out - that first summer. She is an
electrical engineer now, but was afraid she wasn't going to make it during her
last year of high
school as valectorian.
She did!!! But boy did she have
to kill herself working on her studies.
It would have been so much easier without the photo memory loss.
I myself, have a time with short term memory loss on just
a couple cans of diet pop with aspartame.
I can't even remember who I just talked to on the phone sometimes. That
stuff is really bad and it aggravates my fibromyalgia I found out just recently.
243. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subj: Re: Re:NutraSweet and fibromyalgia
Date: 10 Jun 1997 22:08:36 EDT
I'm another one with Fibromyalgia. When they first switched to Nutrasweet in the
diet sodas, I started itching so bad from head to toe, that I had to be on
Benedryl for a year. That's how long it
took me to find out the cause of the itching.
I suspected the itching was related to a food allergy, but when I went
without the diet soda for three days, the itching continued. I found out the cause when I went two whole
weeks without any sodas and the itching stopped. It takes two weeks for it to leave the fatty
tissue in your body. It definitely
effects people with Fibromyalgia. I wish
they would wake up and realize how harmful it is.
244. Re: menopause joint pain?
Date
Sun, 11 May 1997 11:21:30 -0600
Newsgroups
alt.support.menopause
I am 50 years old and also have had joint pain for a few
years which I attributed to approaching menopause. Accidentally, I discovered that the source of
my pain was the use of Nutra Sweet. Once
I stopped using it in my coffee and didn't eat or drink anything containing
aspartame, my joint pain completely went away.
245. To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Date: Fri, 16 May 1997 10:49:00 -0400
246. Date: Mon, 12 May 1997 18:29:05 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Whey to go!!!!!!
I loved your article.
Just recently I found out the EVILS of Aspertame. As soon as I did I
called my Mother and told her not to drink any more of her diet Pepsi, which by
the way she has been drinking for 20 years plus. Well even though Aspertame hasn't been the
market 20 years it was still wrong to change what ever they were using
before. Well she hadn't drank diet Pepsi
for a couple of weeks and she was starting to feel better. Out of habit she
bought a diet Pepsi and drank a little, and soon after realized what she had
done. With in the hour she starting having
pains in her sides and the old familiar headache came back. She also just felt like crap the rest of the
day. Needless to say she'll never do
that again. By the way she has had
continual stomach and intestine problems as far back as mid '86. And every
doctor has given her one potion or another to treat the problem (poison in her
system). I have introduced my mom to
vitamins and minerals and she loves the results. The other day she bought some vitamin B
complex. Well she took it and laid down
took take a nap. When she awoke she had
a headache, well guess what the vitamin had, ASPERTAME. I am so glad people like yourself are
standing up and making the FDA take responsibility for its BIG mistake. (one of
many) If we can get the politics out of the way maybe some common sense will
kick in(fingers
crossed). By the way I call Yoplait and grilled them on
there use of the poison. Of course I
fell on deaf ears. Well keep up the
great work. And if you need any more
info on my story let me know!!!!
247. Date: Wed, 14 May 1997 11:50:54 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Anxiety Attacks
This makes sense to me...even though I'm taking medicine
to guard against panic attacks I started
having them constantly a short while ago. I never realized until I read your
post that I had been bingeing on diet soda (we just had a new fountain
installed in our breakroom). After the novelty of the fountain wore off, I went
back to drinking water -- the panic attacks stopped!
Thanks for giving me an idea as to what caused their
resurgence.
248. Re: Nutrasweet (Equal, etc.)
Date
Mon, 26 May 1997 16:13:22 EDT
Newsgroups
alt.med.fibromyalgia
That stuff is like poison to me.
249. Date: Wed, 21 May 1997 23:27:25 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: nutrasweet
Here is another testimony to add to your thousands of
others just discovered by me on the web.
I have used aspartame for years, usually going back and forth between
regular sodas and diet sodas as my "health consciousness" fluctuated. I knew that diet sodas caused me severe
gastro-intestinal problems, but figured that was the price I had to pay for
that "great taste and refreshing fizz". It wasn't until my husband informed me that
he was sick of having to "rub my stomach" and maybe I should consider
cutting back on the diet drinks that I decided to research Nutrasweet and found
your website. ( My stomach cramps were so severe that I was unable to sit down
or eat or do anything other than go to sleep for the evening, and I also was a chronic
headache sufferer.) Now I vow that I
will never knowingly ingest aspartame again, and just regret all the years that
I've allowed this harmful substance to ruin my body. What disturbs me the most is the children's vitamins
I have religiously given my 3 kids...all containing aspartame, ofcourse.
250. Date: Tue, 20 May 1997 22:29:36 -0400
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
I agree! Nutripoison gives me migraines that feel like a
brain explosion!
Really, a half a diet coke will give a four day
headache...
251. Date:
Wed, 7 May 1997 20:05:28 EDT
Subject:
Aspartame
To: MBS-HEALING@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
Carol's right.
This stuff is so bad, it would take a month just to dent the surface. And
I get angry every time I see it or hear about it. It's bad stuff....and Carol didn't overstate
it at all.
I'm one of the lucky ones....it makes me sick to even
take a sip of something w/ aspartame in it.
Makes my mouth feel greasy (like sorbitol does, only slimier). And if I'd been able to keep it down, I know
I'd have been using it, since I'm one of the PWCs with the weight problem. It
took me a year to get my husband off aspartame after we met. Once he got off and the addiction wore away,
he was *stunned* at what it had been doing to him.
If you have to drink carbonated stuff (also bad), do as
Carol suggested, please, and mix soda water w/ your favorite juices. I can't even imagine what aspartame does to
sick people. Honest. This stuff really screws up your thinking,
too.
252. Date: Sat, 10 May 1997 18:25:55 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame case
No, I never did receive the info on joint pain, but I did
go off nutrasweet (avid diet coke drinker) and the results were wonderful. Within days the pain in my hips and legs
subsided!!! It's nice to roll out of bed
in the morning and not cringe all the way to the bathroom!!
253. AOL Post
Subj: Allergy?
Date: 97-02-02
13:07:24 EST
My son, who is 7, developed an allergy to nutrasweet when
he was about 3. It alters his
behavior. It is like Jekyl and Hyde
right before your eyes. He gets so
aggressive and hyper and he can not be controlled. Any one else have this problem? I thought it was sugar that was making him
hyper and we put him on a sugar frre diet when he was 3. About 30 minutes after ingesting it, he went
crazy. We tried this off and on for
about a week and had the same results.
He has had nutrasweet since then and it still makes him crazy.
254. Date: Sat, 12 Apr 1997 21:30:49 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame Reaction
I spent January through February aspartame free by
cutting out Diet Coke. I am diabetic and
have spent most of the 20+ years drinking diet sodas. I thought I was crazy cuz my husband said I
had become belligerent and "testy." I've had back and shoulder pain
(what I thought was bursitis) for most of these 20 years. And it's always been difficult to control my
diabetes in all this time.
I had been going to an accupuncturist for the back and
shoulder pain. It worked but was only
temporary and expensive. Well, it didn't
take long in those two months for the headaches and back and shoulder pain to
go away. And my attitude has improved tremendously. The unthinkable has now
happened. I backslid and drank one diet
coke, which then became three a day within a week's time. For the last six weeks I have been suffering
from back and shoulder pain and headaches, and have become a bear again and
very "emotional." And when I
wake in the morning, my hands are stiff.
Have been drinking probably 5-6 diet cokes for the last 5 weeks, and am
trying desperately to get off the diet cokes again.
255. Re: aspartame
Date
Mon, 14 Apr 1997 07:27:52 -0700
Newsgroups
misc.consumers.frugal-living
All the studies in the world are not going to convince me
Aspartame is okay when my husband AND I get excruciatingly painful headaches
when we ingest the stuff (and since we're not genetically related, that's
pretty scary), and only when we ingest the stuff, and when we stop ingesting the
stuff, our headaches go away. I will also never forget being told BY MY DOCTOR
not to ingest Aspartame when I was pregnant, because it might cause fetal brain
damage. I think this is a dangerous product, and I won't let my kids go near
it.
256. Date: Tue, 17 Jun 1997 14:47:25 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: NutraSweet case/headaches
Read with great interest the information on
aspartame. What a tragedy! I repeatedly found myself plagued with severe
migraines if I consumed as little as is found in four cans of diet soda. I thought I must be crazy; surely they can't
be caused by the Nutrasweet. After
testing my theory, the cause and effect finally became clear to me. I thought I was the only one until I found
various sites dealing with the issue.
Thank you for confirming what I really had already known in my heart -
aspartame is very dangerous.
[update]
257. Date: Thu, 13 Nov 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet -Reply
Headaches are all but gone. I've only had one or two migraines which were
clearly hormonally caused. I am
spreading the word, Betty, and so admire all you're doing...
258. Date: Tue, 6 May 1997 10:43:41 -0400
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame
I just wantedto say THANK YOU for taking the time to put
this vital information on the web. So
many consider the subject taboo. I am 33 years old and have kidney disease. Two
years ago Duke University performed nurmerous test to find out why I had so
many headaches, and other symptoms. I
was told that I had an allergic reaction to aspartame which is found in most
all diet products. Doctors would not
comment if this was related to the kidney disease I have, but I believe it is
possible. As a diebetic, I have great concerns about nutrasweet. Several letters to the Nutrasweet Corporation
have gone unanswered. God help all that
are using these products to try and make themselves thin and beautiful for
society. They are putting themselves in
the grave.
259. Date: Wed, 28 May 1997 01:05:21 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: simple case history
my wife used to drink diet coke religously. we live in south texas, a hot and humid
climate. Several nights, she couldn't
sleep. She had heart palpitations and
flutterings. (she's only 36) She is a non smoker, non drinker, exercises
regularly and is 5'4" and 107 pounds. I hate doctors. ( I also have worked
for American hospital supply co, been around the hospital long enough to know
that they don't have all the answers.)
We have used acupuncture and chiropractors, so use some alternate
homeopothy treatments.
Anyway, after 2 nights of no sleep, I did what doctors
do; I asked questions.
What did you eat differently?
"
" " drink?
ANd the only unhealthy thing I could fathom was the Diet
Coke. The coke left our home that day. She has been in the pink ever since-
with one exception. The day she drank 4
oz of the stuff her sysmptoms reappeared-albeit mildly. Now, for the first time
in a long time, she perspires, sleeps and feels just fine.
Much more (filtered when possible) water, and an
occasional herbal tea are the only changes in lifestyle. Glad to have my wife
back. All this, and I had never read your stuff before!
260. Re: Nutrasweet (Equal, etc.)
Date
Sun, 25 May 1997 16:57:42 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.med.fibromyalgia
I stay as far away from it as possible. I discovered that
it triggers terrible migraines for me.
261. http://www.dorway.com/ Guestbook page
Wed, 13 May 1997
Tue May 13 20:26
Thank you for compiling SO MUCH information! My diabetic
husband used to go through times where he would do anything to find an
argument. We finally connected these episodes to his Nutri Sweet comsumption. I
have a book titled something like "The Handbook of Food Additives".
It has a whole page (instead of a couple lines for most other additives)
dedicated to this lovely product, but you've fleshed out the description and
supportive details. It is SO hard to find soft drinks without it. Right now, he
primarily drinks home-made iced tea with Sweet & Low. I'm fighting my own battle
with a relatively mild case of environmental illness. What we DON'T need is
another chemical that our bodies have to deal with. Keep up the good work.
262. AOL/Allergies, Immune Disorders/Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome
Subj: Re:
aspartame
Date: 97-02-09
20:01:34 EST
I have the same reaction to aspartame as I do MSG,
horrible head-in-a-vice headaches, I also have the samereaction to ibuprofen
which is SUPPOSED to be an analgesic. Go
figure.
263. Diabetes Mailing List
Chockaholism & Nutrasweet
Tue, 03 Jun 1997 01:56:09 -0700
By the way, packets of Nutrasweet powder are loaded with
dextrose which is, guess what, a sugar!
The Nutrasweet tablets are dextrose free. I have found that even two
tabs a day promote water retention and some degredation of short term memory.
Artificial sweetners should be taken with (hmmm) a grain of salt?
264. Re: sodas
Date
Mon, 2 Jun 1997 04:52:46 GMT
Newsgroups
soc.motss
Aspartame also does bad things when it gets hot, and can
have lots of other nasty side effects. In any quantity at all, it makes me
dizzy.
265. AOL/General Health Discussions/NutraSweet
Subj: Re: nutrasweet/indigestion
Date: 06 May 1997 04:10:32 EDT
I have a really hard time with my stomach about 1 hour
after injecting anything with nutrasweet in it.
My stomach hurts, I have heartburn really severe. Anyone else have similar symptoms. Thank goodness I recognized them right
away. So I have to watch it close. I read labels a lot. Atleast I realized what was causing the problems.
266. AOL/Diet, Exercise and Fitness/Zone Discussions
Subj: Re: Diet Jello in the Zone?
Date: 29 Apr 1997 16:26:49 EDT
MTZ about NutriSweet not being good in the Zone
I would suggest that NutriSweet (aspartame) is not good
in or out of the Zone. A growing number
of people are discovering that their headaches and memory problems were
directly related to this stuff, and the problems disappeared after stopping all
use of it. In my case, it was headaches.
Although fond of sweets, I'm even more fond of being pain-free. :)
267. Re: Meal Replacement
Date
Sat, 24 May 1997 01:18:31 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.fitness.weights
If I chew sugarfree gum I get a pounding headache. Why
put something with a possible negative effect if you can avoid it.
268. Date: Mon, 19 May 1997 19:42:20 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame/asthma
On Mon, 17 Mar 1997, xxxxxx xxxxxxx wrote:
I've been having increasing problems with mood swings,
loss of memory and asthma. I have,
unfortunately, been using aspertame is much of my cooking and soft drinks.
[update]
My symptoms have indeed subsided. Mind you, the biting cold, dry winters we
have are definitely something that can worsen asthma. But I do know that if I drink more than one
Diet Coke, for example, I'm reaching for my inhaler within a couple of hours. My
mood swings haven't changed much.
However, I am going through a very stressful time in my life, so heaven
forbid, I may just be experiencing real emotions instead of something
chemically introduced!! 8-)
269. Re: Nutrasweet as a trigger?
Date 8
May 1997 02:34:08 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
I concur with xxxxxx. Nutrasweet is a potent trigger for
me, but sorbitol is no problem at all.
270. Date: Thu, 5 Dec 1996 12:25:36 -0700 (MST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Transient Loss of Vision ?
thank you very much for the info. there is a strong
possibility that I may indeed be a victim of aspartame. for the period in which
I experienced my vision problems, I was drinking 24-32 oz. of diet coke on a
daily basis. (of course, I'd love to be able to tie these symptoms to something
external that I can eliminate.) during the period in question, I suffered
strong symptoms of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD). I am prone to this
condition, and have learned to control its severity. however, during my
"aspartame" period, its intensity was so strong I couldn't manage the
symptom. just by happenstance, I took another job in a work environment without
a soda machine and stopped drinking the stuff regularly...
271. Date: Sat, 10 May 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: brochure
Dear xxxxx. Thank you for the very prompt resonse to my
request. They arrived yesterday. So far they are airing out in my garage,
because of my severe chemical sensitivities, but by tomorrow they will be fine.
I know it will help a numberof peopel who have no idea why they have so many
problems. I lived in Skokie, Il when Nutrasweet first came out. took one sip
and turned red as a beet. Since Searle was in my home town, I called and
reported it,and they told me just a rare thing peculiar to me. So, I waited a
year , tried again, and same thinghappened, only worse. Called again, and they
said well, a few isolated cases, but do not worry!!Needless to say I never took
another sip, and started a long time ago to wan people. but still no one will
believe me unless they are really sick. So much to do, and thank you for your
efforts, xxxxx
272. STOP: NutraSweet / Caffein / Smoking
Date
Wed, 07 May 1997 03:02:34 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.prostate.prostatitis
I had/have a case of prostatitis. 1st Urologist put me on
Floxin 2/day - 3 months. At the end, pain lessened, but not gone; sex painfull.
2nd Urologist did a good exam, and asked if I drank coffee, used Nutrasweet or
smoked. Answer was "all three"
I learned that all three things (nutrasweet and/or sacharrine, caffein, & nicotine)
are "known bladder irritants".
Urether too I'd guess. Have now cut out all artificial sweeteners &
coffee/tea for 3-4 weeks. RESULT: Pain
almost gone, sex drive returning.
273. Sulpha Drug-Sulpher-Candida
Date 2
May 1997 13:20:12 GMT
Newsgroups
bit.listserv.autism
My wife is also highly reactive{allergic, intolerant} to
sulpha drug and I started wandering if there might be a connection between her
candida and food problems and her sulpha problem. It turns out that certain
dyes in foods and aspartame in her diet Coke would cause negative mental
effects.
274. From: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxxx
Date: Sat, 1
Mar 97 23:39:26 PST
Subject: Aspartame
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Found you via web search for aspartame to show a friend
who had purchased a 'health' product containing aspartame and acesulfame-K. The
product is 'Redoxon' vitamin-C, from, wait for it, Roche Consumer Health.
Acesulfame-K is unknown to me and will remain so. My experiences (2) with
aspartame were involuntary and only identified after I nearly died both times.
The headaches caused were of such severity that 2 grams aspirin were required
each time to alleviate them. The tension in the muscles of my neck would
otherwise have broken it! This stuff is seriously bad. I cannot understand the
continued marketing of it. The people who make and manufacture are seriously
insane. Please notify my report to any interested parties. Please do not worry
about hiding my identity - I don't care who knows what I think of this kind of
misbehaviour by the Megagreedies of this world. May they die in agony! Peter
Sault
275. Date: Sun, 23 Feb 1997
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Update from xxx xxx
You requested that I give you an update after 60 days
without Aspartame. I have made some
progress. I have no more migraine
headaches, no leg cramps, the joint pain is at least 95% gone, the skin lesions
are going away, and I have lost 6 1/2 pounds without changing my eating habits
any more. Something else has happened
that I can't explain. For years I have
not been able to drink tea because it hurt my lower back (which I thought was
my kidneys). When I bought the cali tea for detoxification, I didn't think
about that not bothering me. After I had
been drinking it for at least 2 weeks, it occurred to me that I wasn't having
any pain from drinking tea. Could it be
because I'm not consuming aspartame anymore?
Anyway, I've been drinking tea now at fast food places instead of diet
coke and getting by with it. I could not
even sneak in one glass of it before without it causing me pain right away. I
have a long way to go but I didn't get this way in two months and I won't get
rid of it in two months. It took me 14 years to get this bad and I will keep
trying. I have reached a lot of people
and hope they will listen. I want to get
enough better that when I tell someone about this, they will listen and take
notice of my getting better.
A Note from her daughter, xxxx: xxxx, mom didn't mention these other improvements:
Her balance seems better at times. Several have noticed
that her handwriting is better - isn't as shaky. Her last eye exam, only 1 of
her eyes had changed. I don't know if
it got better or worse and she didn't ask.
She did say that with her double vision that she saw 2 distinct items
where now the two overlap again.
276. Date: Mon, 30 Dec 1996
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame History
I've had problems with buzzing ears since 1984 that could
not be diagnosed by various ear doctors over the years, as well as chronic
depression. After hearing a radio program on the bad effects of aspartame in
early November, I stopped all use of products containing aspartame. My ears
havent' buzzed since, and I feel a definite improvement in my mood. How can I
support the movement to remove this substance from the marketplace?
277. Date: Fri, 04 Apr 1997 13:31:17 -0500
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Class action suit against Nutrasweet/Equal
people
I am one of the many people who have experienced
significant side effects from the use of Nutrasweet (if I sip a diet coke, I'm a space cadet for
the rest of the evening...) I was wondering if anyone was considering a Class
Action law suit against the makers of Equal. While I don't use it anymore, I
honestly feel that it is a dangerous product. My story is pretty typical - I
was using Equal in my coffee at work, had really bad headaches, anxiety,
dizziness, confusion, etc...and I really think that stuff did some long term
damage -I stopped using Equal 3-4 years ago, but I still have Equal
'flashbacks' that I never used to have.
278. Date: Wed, 02 Apr 1997 12:18:17 +0000
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: nutrasweet reaction!
Have just discovered your effort to combat
aspartame/nutrasweet use. After eight (8) years of suffering and being seen by
every specialist in my area, I have
finally discovered (through a God-sent Kinesiologist) that I was actually
"allergic" to all the nutrasweet I was consuming (sometimes in excess
of 6 cans of Diet Coke per day, not to mention all the "diet" things
it may have been hidden in! Even after
an MRI brain scan, no medical doctor questioned my "habits" !! I
awoke one morning in 1989 with a funny sort of "dizzy" feeling and
tried desperately for the next almost 8 years to solve or get to the bottom of
my problem. After eliminating nutrasweet
from my diet for a couple of weeks, my symptoms disappeared!! Miracle!! Please share this hope with others and
register my toxic reaction with any and all organizations your can! Greatful in
Atlanta.
279. Re: Nutra Sweet - long
Date
Fri, 21 Mar 1997 09:04:53 -0600
Newsgroups
alt.folklore.herbs,sci.med.nutrition,misc.health.diabetes
I had major joint problems for some time about 5 years
ago, my doctors thought that I had either lymes, lupus or arthritis, non of which
was a particularly good option. Howver,
after testing for everything they determind that I had "non specific
tendonitis from and unspecified source" great diagnosis right! They put me on massive antiinflamitories and
left it at that. Soon I couldn't even
pick up a coffee cup as my elbow was so bad.
Then someone suggested that I stop eating anything with Nutra
Sweet. I decided that it couldn't hurt.
I think that I actually went through withdrawal - I wanted a diet soda so much
it was ridiculous. Anyway that pains in
my joints started to leave with the last new pain leaving first and so on until
finally my elbows which were the first to show symtoms were ok too. About 6 months later I had to see my Dr. for
something else and told him about what had happened with my non specific
tendonitis. He then told me that he hadn't
thought of it but that he was reading more and more about symptons from the
stuff and that migranes and joint pain were two of the most common.
Nutra Sweet free for 5 years with no problems and loving
it.
280. Date: Mon, 17 Feb 1997 12:22:27 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: RE: Detoxify
Well the headaches have not exactly vanished, although
i'm hopeful...the aspartame connection has not really panned out for
me...YET!...however i think i'm noticing a little less nervous energy
especially at bedtime, my legs were restless and moving around alot, (kramer
from seinfeld calls them "jimmy legs"!!)...this seems to have calmed
down a lot...i'm definately convinced of the deadly hazards of this poison and
i wish the migraine had stopped as soon as i quit the soda but it didnt, again
your mention of formaldyhyde poisoning is something i dont feel has played out
in me yet, right now i'm doing the 60 day test and seeing what happens
(including a probable detoxification of some kind)...
[update]
281. Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 12:29:06 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: update: my head
well i have some good news, it seems that my migraines
are disappearing...for the last two weeks they have almost completely
stopped... as you know i've been off ASP for almost 4 weeks and just 10 days
ago you said to take a magnesium tablet which i did, and things have been
rapidly changing, i haven’t had a migraine at all in one week...i put off
taking my homeopathic remedy for a while to make sure i was onto something
which i think now i am (onto something)...i really think the ASP connection is
it, i havent done a detox yet but will soon...also another thing i noticed is
my wife is not having bad gas problems since quitting ASP too...
so good news huh? i havent had to take my imitrex in over
a week and that makes me happy because i dont want to be on a super drug like
that although I am grateful for it because it does work on the migraine quite
well...so i'm hoping i'm done with the migraines, my intuition says i'm right
and why should i question such divine advice!!
PS...i feel somewhat compelled to have a business card
printed with the dangers of ASP on it to hand out to people i see drinking diet
sodas...i tell everyone i know about it and print info for them to read and it
amazes me how some people just dont get it...i'll pray for them!
282. Re: Caffine or Nutrasweet?
Date
10 Mar 1997 03:38:27 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
If I drink a diet soda, within 10 minutes I will have
about a 8-9 HA, complete with nausea and sometimes vomiting, and fever and
chills alternating at about 120-second intervals. This will last for several hours, until I can
finally get the pain under control enough to sleep for 7-8 hours. Also have a
friend who is affected almost exactly the same way by the stuff. Nasty stuff.
283. Subject:
Re: CONJ: NutraSweet and Caffeine
Date:
1997/07/08
Newsgroups:
alt.med.fibromyalgia
I think it was my post last month, reporting on how I am in
almost total remission after stopping all Neutrasweet cold turkey that got this
threat started.
At the expense of sounding harsh, let me say this: I reported on being a heavy user of
Neutrasweet. I was very very sick with FMS and CFS. For some irrational reason, I felt that you
could take my Diet Coke from me when they pried my cold dead hands from around
it. When I finally was so bad that I
quit cold turkey--not an easy task for a diabetic--I reported to you that
within a few days I felt much better and within 90 days I am in almost total
remission. Stopping was not my only
action. I take B-1, B-6, B12, Chromium, Multi-vit, C, melatonin and E daily
along with eschenacia. I also drink
water and get to bed early. (8 hours of sleep starting at 2 am is not the same
as 8 hours starting at 9 pm--that's a fact.) I also exercise daily whether i
feel like it or not. But I'm telling you that stopping Neutrasweet played a
major role in my recovery. I don't care why.
But I know it did. So why is it that so many of you will cry "I
give anything for a good night's sleep" or "Please can't someone stop
the pain". for God's sake, how can
you write to this newsgroup and say that you drink a couple of liters of Diet
Coke per day as though you are bragging about it, then complain about how bad
you feel. God helps those who help
themselves. Stop the Neutrasweet for 90 days and go to be early and get up
early. Your ass will drag for a few days but you'll get on a normal cycle. What
the hell do you have to lose, people. Don't complain if you don't try. You'll
live. i promise you, Stopping Diet Coke
never hurt anyone. It ain't heroin. You can do it. Just do it.
Flame me. But if
it saves one person from the hell I went through it will be worth it. A dozen
people have emailed me to say that they feel much better after stopping
Neutrasweet.. A few have said it didn't help them at all. You could be one of
those thinking clearly and out playing with your kids. all ypou have to lose is 90 days of Diet
Coke. Sorry for the attitude but it is worth a try!!
284. Date: 19 FEB 1997 16:25:52 GMT
Newgroups: alt.support.anxiety-panic
Subject: NutraSweet/Aspartame
I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one having a
problem with NutraSweet (aspartame). I
did alot of research on it and it seemed Pro-aspartame research was funded by
companies that benefit from
NutraSweet sales.
And anti-nutrasweet reports were from other companies (like Rodale
Research).
Anyway......I was having vision disturbances and mental
"gaps" that were momentary gaps where I couldn't remember where I was
going or what I was doing. I thought for
sure I was over drugged with Xanax and Buspar. After alot of experimentation,
two weeks with no NutraSweet and the mental gaps are gone and haven't had a
vision disturbance since. (It's been about
6 years)
I drink alot of Pepsi in a day (used to drink at least a
6-pack) so I got alot of nutrasweet, interestingly, since I changed to regular
sugar-loaded Pepsi, I haven't had any significant weight changes.
i get dizzy whenever i drink anything with nutrasweet in
it. asparatane is the same as nutrasweet
285. Re: Nutra Sweet
Date
31 Mar 97 17:50:02 GMT
Newsgroups alt.folklore.herbs
But a few years ago I isolated some severe headaches and
mood swings, attention problems to Nutrasweet.
Boy, does this look familiar.... My husband for several
years started to drink beverages with Nutrasweet in it.. The rest of the house noticed that he was
getting very testy (I say that with a smile, and also was trying to think of a
better description)... So we started to
pay more attention to what he was eating and drinking, and also started to make
certain absent from his menu... Lo and behold, when we took him off Nutrasweet,
he was back to his jolly old self again...
He now jokingly tells people "Give me Nutrasweet,
and then give me a $100 dollar bill, and I will be blast you for doing it
wrong." So we keep him completely
away from Nutrasweet.... I can relate a few other stories about people we know
well who stopped drinking anything with Nutrasweet who had personality
changes....
286. Date: Wed, 02 Apr 1997 13:58:21 -0800
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: aspartame
It was the 380 manuscript. I was addicted to 2-3 liter
diet Coke consumption a day? I will say this-It is addictive!!! My wife said my
behavior became "less aggressive" - in fact I felt calmer after
coming off Aspartame. Your article scared me shitless-I even did followup
research to make sure you were right! You were right!!!
Boy do I have faith in our "system" now??? I
believe that the powers that be know that this substance is addicting-it took
4-6 weeks to come off withdrawls. Addiction leads to sales and more money. What
a bunch of psychopathic sicko's!!!
287. Date: Thu, 10 Apr 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: I quit three weeks ago!
Some friends at work who knew that I consumed massive
quantities of Diet Coke on a daily (hourly) basis told me about a TV news story
they saw re: the dangers of aspartame.
It got me thinking "maybe I ought to check this out." I found your web site and was alarmed to read
about many symptoms I'd been experiencing, including (from your list): headaches,
change in mood quality or level, diarrhea, memory loss, fatigue, sleep
problems, change in sensation (numbness, tingling), change in activity level,
joint and bone pain, eye irritation, change in body weight, nocturnal, change
in thirst or water intake, and sinus problems.
Three weeks ago I quit DC cold turkey, and lo and behold,
many of the above symptoms are clearing up, especially the numbness and
tingling that was concerning me the most.
For several months, my left hand tingled, especially in the morning,
often lasting all day. I was also experiencing
numbness in my legs when sitting for any length of time. These symptoms so
concerned me that I visited my physician to obtain his opinion. He told me to get used to it, that I'm just
getting older (I'm 39). I'm relieved to
tell you that after quitting the use of aspartame, I'm feeling younger! The tingling and numbness are gone. Other symptoms seem to be clearing up as
well!
288. http://neuro-www.mgh.harvard.edu/neurowebforum/
MultipleSclerosisArticles/2.17.975.53PMMSandNutra-Sweet.
MS and
Nutra-Sweet
This article submitted by on 2/17/97.
I just wanted to share with everyone that Nutra-Sweet can
cause attacks of MS. I know that with MS we are spossed to be eating low-fat,
but watch out for the artificial sweetners. Also, if you suffer from Migranes,
Nurta-Sweet causes migranes (or at least seems like it does). One night, I
drank an entire bottle of light cranberry juice before I realized that it had
Nutra-sweet in it. That entire night, I had more sleeplessness than before and
stomach cramps like you wouldn't believe. Over the next few days, my MS got
worse, my vision became more blurried.
Here is a list of responses that have been posted to this
article...
* I agree!
(2/20/97) 6:42 PM
* Old Aspartame
= Methanol (2/18/97) 2:12 PM
* yeah, me too
(2/17/97) 10:35 PM
* to nutrasweet
victim (2/17/97) 7:27 PM
289. Date: Sat, 1 Mar 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Take the 60-day no-aspartame test
I did take the 60 daty test and never went back to
aspartame. I do feel better in spite of
the stroke. I think I've had quicker
healing because I quit the aspartame. I
am able to walk somewhat without a cane.
I am a noticing increase in memory that was a problem even before I had
the stroke. I am gaining more energy,
however, that process is rather slow and I think more due to the residual
affects of the stroke. Well, this might
tell you something. I took my drivers
test this week and passed. (except for high speed driving. I chose not to do that one yet.)
I am not 100% but am improving all the time. Thanks for your efforts in this much needed
cause. Perhaps I'll get the energy back
soon and be able to assist you.
290. Re: Nutra Sweet irritates bladder?
Date
Sat, 22 Feb 1997 02:57:56 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.folklore.herbs
I can't give you 100% good information on this but, ever
since the Nutrasweet/brain tumor issue came around I have been using sugar
again and have noticed quite a difference in the "urgency" problem.
291. Date: Thu, 20 Feb 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: My brother is suffering from Aspartame
Symptoms
Thank you for your immediate response. My name is xxxxxxx xxxxxxxxxxx and I'm
concerned about my brother. He is 46
years old and since 1988 (approximately) he has deteriorated health wise. At the age of 40, all his friends would continuously tell him to
"lighten up" and that "life begins at 40" but he could not
share their optimism since he felt like "hell"! During this time he experienced several
seizures and doctors who examined him told him he was epileptic, even though this is not traced in our family
history. He was also told that he was diabetic. Diabetes does occur (mildly) in our
grand-parent. He was put on a special
diet to control his blood sugar and the doctors prescribed medication to
control the seizures. Nevertheless, he continued to feel exceptionnally fatigued
and generally un-well and the seizures continued. He went to many specialists, trying to identify what was causing the
seizures and underwent a multitude of state of the art tests without any real
positive results. They eventually
diagnosed him with Multiple Sclerosis but were unable to identify the real
cause of the seizures.
On November 18, 1996,
my brother was driving on the highway when he had his most recent
seizure and of course he woke up in hospital with fractures and bruises (and
luckily for him) he was still alive! On the
19th of November (the following day) while resting on his bed, at the
hospital, he happened to be watching a
report on the news stating that Aspartame had been found to cause
seizures, MS and etc... This is when he realized that Aspartame might
very well be the reason why his health had deteriorated to such a degree. He had been a habitual user of Aspartame for
easily 15 years. He drank Diet
Coke, he used Aspartame to sweeten his
coffee and he also would look for foods that were prepared with artificial
sweeteners to control his diet. He drank
a lot of coffee! And he also enjoyed
peanut butter sandwiches with Aspartame sprinkled on it instead of honey.
He has not had any foods with Aspartame since that day
and he has been extremely careful about
his food intake since January and he says he feels much
better.
[^^^^^^^^^^^]
292. Date: Tue, 11 Mar 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Report on aspartame's history
Sure....I had been having headaches a lot and feeling
tired a lot. Since I have quit using the
nutrasweet the headaches have pretty much gone and I have been a lot more
energetic. Also, I haven't gained
weight, even though I've been drinking regular pop.
293. Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 06:33:18 -0600
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame
We threw out all these sugar substitutes and no longer
buy "diet" drinks or "diet" anything. My husband seems to be doing better. For
example he no longer takes Zoloft for depression. The MD says his walking difficulty is caused by peripheral neuropathy, but as a
RN I have never seen his particular type of problem before. He has very poor balance and would fall over
unless he stands holding onto something. I think it's caused by a combination
of things ... diabetes plus years and years of using sugar substitutes in
coffee and food.
I have plastered articles on aspertame in the hospital
where I work, and have persuaded some to get off the stuff. Thanks for your diligence in trying to get
this poisen off the market. Keep me posted on your progress and let me know
what I can do to assist.
294. Date: Sat, 22 Mar 1997 11:47:40 -0800
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame
I had a reaction to aspartame in the late 80s when
durring that summer we decided to get off sugar and began drinking drinks with
aspartame as a sweetener. It was very hot in Louisiana that summer and I was
consuming as much as a gallon of lemonade a day,made from Crystal Lite Drink
mix. I suffered 3 grand mall seiziers in a month. The hospital could find
nothing wrong with me physically so I was diagnosed as epiliptic and told I
would have to take an anti seizier drug for the rest of my life. I had heard
about the nutrisweet danger and decided on my own that that may be the problem.
I did not take the seizier medication rather stoped drinking or consumming
anything with aspartame in it and to this day have had no more problems.
I wonder how the government can let this happen? I would
like to do somthing about this but know of no avenues to react.I hope somehow
tis product can be banned from the market before other
people are hurt.
295. Date: Thu, 03 Apr 1997 02:35:15 -0800
Newsgroups: misc.health.diabetes, alt.folklore.herbs,
sci.med.nutrition
Subject: Re: NutraSweet
I found, in addition to the headaches, I was swelling,
ankles and other extremities, which did manage to abate after ceasing the nutrasweet,
probably because of its pharmacologic similarity to msg,
which has become horrid for me, with 3 days or so recovery
needed after accidental ingestion.....if you're really msg sensitive, you might
also be nutrasweet sensitive.
296. Date: Fri, 4 Apr 1997 18:47:56 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: case history
My name is xxxx and my sister Txxxxxxx asked me to write
to you with myinformation. Txxxxxx
visited me on January 19 and was telling me about the nutra-sweet
information. I have tremors. They are called familiar or intentional
tremors. They occur when I try to do
something deliberate like drink a cup of coffee, eat, use the computer mouse to
play solitaire. Well the dr gave me
medication that didn't seem to help much and I couldn't drink a cup of coffee
with my right hand and I couldn't play solitaire without holding my right hand
down with the left one. When Theresa
came up on 1/19 I decided to stop drinking diet soda and drink regular
soda. Within two wks I could hold a cup
in my right hand and play solitaire again.
I am a home health aide and it can be embarrassing when I
shake worse than the people I am caring for.
A couple of weeks ago I was caring for a 43 year old woman recovering
from surgery and had to put a bandaid on her and she noticed the slight tremor
and asked me if I had familiar tremors and I said yes. She said she did too. Then I told her about the nutra-sweet and she
was amazed because she was drinking a two liter of diet coke a day and then
quit soda altogether and noticed that her tremors had gotten better.
297. Date: Fri, 11 Apr 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Glad they know aspartame is poison
Thank you for your latest information on the
subject. I have had a couple of
victories with friends who drank alot (1 quart a day) of diet coke. They ceased drinking it, and are now in the
best of health. Furthermore, they now
believe me when I said that it was poison, and are now converts at getting
people off the stuff. Here in xxxxxxxxx Nutrasweet
has not invaded food to the same extent -yet.
However, I am keeping up with the campaign. xxxxxxx who works with Dr xxxxx is also part
of your group, and when she advised me to avoid diet coke, I told her that I
was and then gave her all the reasons why.
Then she told me she was aware of your work, and is also spreading the
news.
298. Re: NutraSweet/PKU
Date
17 Mar 1997 05:17:59 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.food-allergies
All of the medical jargon aside... I know I'm allergic to
NutraSweet. If I eat the smallest amount
I break out in hives, other skin rashes and have from a mild to sever case of
diarreah with severe intestinal cramping.
The severity depends upon how much I have ingested. Funny... I never had
these reactions to saccrine, go figure it.
299. AOL/General disABILITIES Discuss/Seizure
Disorders Support
Subj: Re:Nutra
Sweet Problems
Date: 97-02-16
11:05:10 EST
300. Date: 18 FEB 1997 20:55:16 GMT
Newgroups: alt.support.anxiety-panic
Subject: Re: Vitamin Supplements & MSG / PhD's response
I have a sensitivity to both aspartame and MSG..I can
take aspartame in tiny bits <like 1/2 can diet soda> before I get sick.
Same with MSG. I am also sensitive to saccharin :) I break out in the hives
with it..on top of all the other fun sicky feelings.. How it effects my PD I
don't know..I get too sick physically to care.. And aspartame makes me feel
like my brain is sloshing around in my head.
301. Date: Thu, 20 Feb 1997 21:47:17 -0800
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspertame in Clorets Breath Mints !!
My mother has suffered from migraines since the early
'70's and the frequency and severity has increased in the past two years. She
avoids all migraine triggers she can identify, including aspertame, but has always
chewed two Clorets after each meal to help her digest. Well, only in December
did she discover that aspertame is in the ingredients of Clorets. Her migraines
have diminished significantly since. Buyer beware!! Does anyone have info on
aspertame in instant coffee, ie Tasters Choice? Please post this so others can
be aware.
302. Diet soft drinks - alleged health hazard (was:
sewing dresses)
Date
Sun, 23 Feb 97 08:54:58 NZT
Newsgroups
alt.support.big-folks
From my own personal experience (and yes I realise that a
sample size of 1 is not statistically valid) I found that when I switched from
diet coke to regular my depression reduced, and what's more I didn't get any
fatter. It took me a while to get used to the overly sweet taste though.
303. Re: Caffine or Nutrasweet?
Date
Sun, 09 Mar 1997 22:07:36 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
I cut all diet soft drinks, and artificial sweeteners out
of my diet..After having used tons for years and years...That's one of the lifestyle
improvements I made and am attributing to being relatively pain free..oh...I
never gained tons of weight when I put sugar back in my diet...
304. To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame
Date: Wed, 12 Mar 1997 22:36:58 -0500
I just finished reading through an enormous list of
"toxic" experiences with Aspartame.
This is the first time I have heard of someone other than
myself with dramatic reactions to this chemical. I suffer from chronic migraines and get an almost
immediate reaction from any product with Aspartame in it. One sip of a diet
coke and I immediately begin with a twitch in my temples and then...the
aura.....and BANG! the Migraine! I have
had many instances where I have ordered soft drinks in restaurants and after
taking a mere taste, knew I was doomed after sensing the taste of
nutrasweet. After one sip, there's no
turning back. It's amazing to me to see
this chemical added to so many products! The one that is the most unsettling is
children's vitamins.
305. AOL/Allergies, Immune Disorders/Chronic Fatigue
Syndrome
Subj: Re:
aspartame
Date: 97-02-08
15:49:19 EST
I had to eliminate all forms of this substance. I DID use lots of diet products, especially
diet sodas. I wish I could say that ALL
my symptoms disappeared. But some of
them did. One day I decided I could drink a diet soda again...and the worst
exhaustion symptoms returned!
306. Re: NutraSweet
Date
Sun, 30 Mar 1997 21:46:26 -0600
Newsgroups
misc.health.diabetes,alt.folklore.herbs,sci.med.nutrition
Nutrasweet does cause headaches in me. I can't use it
because every time I've tried it I got a bad headache. So that means there's
something in there that just isn't right. I also have heard from many other
folks who have the same problem with it.
307. Re: CONJ: Nutra-sweet
Date
Sun, 16 Mar 1997 10:41:23 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.fibromyalgia
xxx, nutra sweet
hits me, my oldest daughter, and my father like a brick wall....the horrific
migraine headache is totally UNBEARABLE and it can only wear away as your body
gets rid of the nutra sweet...Haven't had any since dxd with FMS/MPS...and I
ain't gonna try it either!
308. Re: CONJ: Nutra-sweet & comment
Date
17 Mar 1997 01:44:48 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.med.fibromyalgia
Not only do I have severe physical responses to aspartame
(the chemical name for Nutra-Sweet) but they're often delayed a day or two
which made it tough to figure out what had happened...
At one time, I believed that I was becoming too dependent
on the reaction to aspartame (as in the theory which claims that if you crave a
food item, you're allergic to it and the craving is a way for your body to NOT
have to go through the withdrawal) and that's actually what convinced me to avoid
it altogether.
I think my ob/gyn said it best when he told me that
"women in China have been drinking tea and having babies for thousands of
years, but no one knows what aspartame REALLY does to the human body over
long-term - and no pregnant woman should ingest aspartame". So why should I take better care of myself
when I'm pregnant than when I'm not?
Thank God I can still drink my tea! Our family drinks a great deal of
'earth juice' (water) now, and we're all pretty happy about it. I'm a distilled water fan, myself.
309. NUTRASWEET aka ASPARTAME
Date
16 Mar 1997 22:55:55 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
12 months ago I stopped using Nutrasweet and my chronic
headaches have been cut by over 75%.
After 6 years on Fiorinal for pain, I can treat them the occasional
headache with Advil!! :o)
310. Date: Sat, 22 Mar 1997 12:40:38 -0800
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Artificial Sweetners :)
Personal testimony: I stopped using artificial sweetners
when I become pregnant with my first child. I experienced horrible headaches
for about two weeks while going through what I can only account to as withdrawl
effects. I irresponsibly took up being lazy about it and would have more
artificial sweetners than I should have had up until I was pregnant with my
second child, whence I gave up artificial sweetners again. Same withdrawl symptoms......It
was at that time I realized that these sweetners were the direct cause of many
of the symptoms I was having and I have not had headaches per se' since, unless
accompanied by a virus :)
I do have multiple sclerosis and do not account that to
the A. sweetners, although they did irritate my already pre existing condition
tremendously. My mother has the same reaction to these kinds of sweetners. My
father is diabetic so he does indlge in the consumption of artificial
sweetners. Not willing to change his ways, stubborn :) but wonderful.
311. Date: Tue, 18 Mar 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: my nutrasweet story
greetings. my
insomnia and the search for a graduate thesis topic has brought me to your
e-mail address. for what it's worth,
here is my stream of consciousness story.
i'm a 25-year old pharmaceutical chemist named
kathryn. i've always been fairly healthy
except for an inherited case of primary dysmenorrhea, and an occasional bout
with hay fever. when aspartame first replaced saccharin as the artificial
sweetner of choice, i was an oblivious junior high schooler who drank about two
glasses of diet soda a day. two to three
weeks after the switch, my mother (who also drank diet soda daily) and i
started getting bad headaches, usually accompanied by nausea. we were quickly able to isolate nutrasweet as
the culprit. after giving up diet soda
cold turkey the headaches went away.
during my college years i was always able to tell if i had eaten
something containing aspartame by the tell-tale headache that would
result. for years now i've been warning friends
and family that i don't trust nutrasweet - but i've never had the time to do
any research on the subject until now.
what i'm reading scares me. i
hope this can be of help to you - i realize it's not much. (i apologize for the
lack of capital letters - i can't stand them after midnight.)
312. Subj: Re:Nutrasweet
(Aspartame)
Date: 97-03-17
18:09:27 EST
AOL/Diet, Exercise & Fitness/Nutrition & Diet
Help
I cannot tolerate aspartame. The dizzines and headaches
that came with aspartame usage were very bad.
I have challenged this several times over the last 13 years with the
same results. About 10 years ago I saw a
Newspaper article, with a lot of similar problems, including blindness.
313. Date: Fri, 28 Mar 1997 13:58:23 -0800
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame Intake
I have since detoxed from aspartame. I now drink herbal
(no caffeine) teas. My cravings for sweet foods has been curbed dramatically.
Also, small mole-like areas on my neck have disappeared. If I have any more time
I will send you more information on my progress.
314. Date: Sun, 16 Mar 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Poisoned by Aspartame
I just want to thank you for getting the word out on
aspartame. My husband is diabetic and started having shaking of the arms and
legs and would become very ill, he would be down in bed for days at a time. We
notified the doctor and he ordered a MRI. The doctor could not give us a reason
for these symptoms. We started noticing that when he ate anything with aspartame
alias NutraSweet in it, he would have these symptoms, sometimes severe. We
finally decided to no longer use anything with aspartame in it, and he has not
had a attack since, except he does still have some trembling of the hands. I
just want to thank you and all others that are taking up the fight to remove
this poison from our food.
315. AOL/Diet, Exercise & Fitness/Ask the
Nutrition Expert
Subj:
Re:Nutra-sweet
Date: 97-02-20
01:00:26 EST
I get headaches from diet sodas with nutrisweet and from
Equal.)
316. Re: Diet soft drinks - alleged health hazard
(was: sewing dresses)
Date
Mon, 24 Feb 1997 21:11:25 +0000
Newsgroups
alt.support.big-folks
My partner adds that artificial sweetners have given him
headaches whenever he used them.
317. AOL/Women's Health/Headaches & Migraines
Subj:
Re:Eliminate NutraSweet!!
Date: 97-01-12
18:18:14 EST
I used to get a bad headache everytime I drank a Diet
Coke with NutraSweet. I still have migraines, though, even though I avoid
NutraSweet, but I know that caused my headaches then.
318. Re: Nutra Sweet irritates bladder?
Date
Fri, 21 Feb 1997 17:47:30 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.folklore.herbs
My whole family gets migraines from NutraSweet except my
dad, which is fortunate because he's diabetic.
319. AOL/Diet, Exercise & Fitness/Phentermine and
Fenfluramine
Subj: Re:Nutrasweet
Date: 97-02-02
12:52:14 EST
When I started taking Phen/Fen last October, I also
decreased my intake of Nutrasweet considerably. I stopped drinking diet sodas
all together. I did this on the advice of the messages I read on this board.
Now that I'm on maintainance, I'm fairly convinced that the Nutrasweet was a
big cause of my intense cravings. I would drink 2-3 Diet Pepsi's in the evening,
and within the hour, I'd be uncontrollably hungry. It was a viscious circle.
320. Subject:
weight loss and protein powders
Date
Mon, 31 Mar 1997 09:53:04 -0500
Newsgroups
bit.listserv.celiac
Since I am also hypoglycemic, I need something with very
little sweetener. (Nutrasweet gives me instant diarehha and heart
palpitations.)
321. Re: Nutra Sweet
Date
Thu, 20 Mar 1997 15:33:19 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.folklore.herbs,sci.med.nutrition,misc.health.diabetes
I for one am glad to have read about the problems that some
people have had with NutraSweet. I have
recently discovered that my borderline hypertension gets appreciably worse when
I drink any quantity of diet soda, and subsides to near-normal levels when I
stop drinking it.
322. Subject:
Re: Deciding what our triggers are
Date:
1997/03/13
Newsgroups:
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Anyway, I don't go
near nutrasweet because before I understood about chronic daily headaches I
once complained to my opthamologist that I frequently woke up with a headache.
Among the triggers he mentioned was nutrasweet and I realized I had gotten into
the habit of drinking decaffinated chrystal lite iced tea in the evenings and
that I was waking up with a headache the next day. When I stopped drinking the stuff, I stopped
waking up with headaches at least for that period of my life.
323. Training-Nutrition, Number 553
Date: Wed, 5 Mar 1997 15:57:52 -0500 (EST)
Subject: Nutrasweet
Have a problem that maybe some could handle? Anytime I drink or eat anything with nutraweet
in it I get devastating headaches. So I
usually avoid them if possible.
324. Date: Mon, 17 Feb 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: aspartame
Well, I don't know for certain what symptoms I've
experienced (thnat I can attribute specifically to aspartame) but I can tell
you something I've noticed this week (a whole week without diet Coke...who
would have thought?) : I was anorexic at age 12, when I began drinking Diet
coke. After I recovered from anorexia, I continued drinking diet soda. In the
yrs that followed I developed ammenorria (not spelled correctly, I know)
--cessation of menstrual periods--My drs attributed this to the anorexia. Yet
in the past seven yrs, since my recovery from anorexia, I still have had to
deal w/ this problem (no menstrual periods). My dr. tried provera pills and
when that didn't work, a provera shot, and when that didn't work 2 proivera
shots plus pills...all to no avail. She couldn't figure it out--and I became
scared that I had some serious problem that would affect my ability to have children....Remarkably
enough, after 1 week without aspartame--and seven yrs later,I discovered my
ammenoria was suddenly "cured." Is this ironic timing--or is there a
connection? I know what I think...
325. Date: Mon, 17 Feb 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: A few more questions/my story
After a lifetime of health, in April of last year, I
developed an onset of fatigue, headaches, muscle aches, joint aches, burning in
my upper back, neck aches, numbness in my lower legs and feet, nerve pain (legs
and lumbar), mental confusion, dizziness and depression. By the end of August, I was in such severe
pain I could hardly walk, and the lumbar pain had become so extreme that I
couldn't sit in a chair very long. I was
taking 18+ ibuprofen daily and was using a heating pad round the clock. I didn't sleep well or on my right side, due
to the nerve impulses which had begun shooting through my right leg.
The x-rays, MRI (cervical/lumbar), and blood tests all
came back "normal." After the EMG and nerve conduction tests, the
official diagnosis was "peripheral neuropathy." The neurologist either ignored or minimized
the other symptoms of which I complained:
debilitating fatigue, headaches, mental confusion, cold hands &
feet. I felt totally lost and walked away
with no concrete answers. My sister-in-law, who many years ago was diagnosed
with fibromyalgia (FMS), kept suggesting I had the symptoms, so I kept
researching that angle. I knew I had
some of the symptoms of FMS, but some of my symptoms didn't fit - if it was
fibromyalgia, then something else had to be going on, too.
In December, while researching the net, I came across a
list of symptoms which contained not only my complaints to the neurologist, but
also, *on the same list,* were other ailments I'd also suffered for 3-5 years,
yet never thought to associate with aspartame: cloudy vision, loss of equilibrium,
tinnitus, slurring of speech, tingling of the extremities. I was shocked. Here was one list with all the things I'd
been suffering. It was a list of symptoms of aspartame poisoning. Reading further, I learned that aspartame
poisoning can worsen or mimic MS, FMS, Chronic Fatigue, Alzheimer's and more,
because it attacks the nervous system.
Now it all made sense to me for the first time.
And no wonder I got sick!! I'd been drinking 3+ diet pepsis daily since aspartame
was put into them - 13 years at least!
My husband also had been consuming aspartame daily for years as well, in
Equal, and in such products as yogurt and ice cream; and, unbelievably, for
nearly 2 years he'd had a bizarre hip ache and hamstring pull that wouldn't
heal, no matter what he tried. Turns
out, it was aspartame, too!!
The reason we both know this is that on Jan 1. 1997, my
husband and I gave up all aspartame-laced products, and within days most of our
muscle aches and pains, and my nerve pain, subsided considerably!!! My dizziness, cloudy vision, and "foggy thinking"
have improved noticeably, too. It's only
been 5 weeks, and my husband feels like a new person. I feel better, too, but I still have the leg
numbness, tinnitus, and some dizziness, but since it supposedly takes over 60
days for major improvements, I am hopeful. I will never knowingly consume
aspartame again, and I tell everyone I know what happened to me and to quit
consuming this poison!!
326. Subject:
Re: aspartame vs. sugar experiment
Date:
1997/02/10
Newsgroups:
misc.consumers.frugal-Living
When Nutrasweet first came on the market 10 years ago, I
switched to it from saccharin for my soft drinks (sodas made with sugar taste
too "sticky" for me). Shortliy
thereafer, my short-term memory started going.
I would be in the middle of a sentence and totally forget what I was
talking about. I would walk down the hall
in my house to go to another room and forget what room I was going to, much
less what I was going *for*, by the time I made it down 12 feet of hallway.
I was 29 years old and convinced that I was having
advanced symptoms of Alzheimer's, it was that bad.
But then a friend of mine said that her doctor told her
to stay away from Nutrasweet, as it destroyed the synapses (the little gaps in
the brain that keep your memory circuits running), and after I stopped using
Nutrasweet, my memory came back.
327. Re: Atkins: why is it not working?
Date
15 Feb 1997 02:57:01 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
Another thing I found is that when I quite drinking soda
with nutra sweet that awful foggy feeling disappeared
alsmost instantly.
328. Date: 10 FEB 1997 02:41:14 GMT
Newgroups: misc.consumers.frugal-living
Subject: Re: aspartame vs. sugar experiment
I suffer from migraine headaches (have all my life), and
Nutrasweet triggers the most intense, debilitating ones for me. I don't buy
anything with that stuff in it.
329. Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 12:17:11 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Darrell xxxxxxx
I cannot use any artificial sweetners myself since they
give me bad dizzy spells. Not a good
thing if I am flying and drinking Diet drinks... :)
330. Re: aspartame vs. sugar experiment
Date
Fri, 07 Feb 1997 17:16:19 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.consumers.frugal-living
aspertame >
it's not nice to fool mother nature
Does anyone know if aspertame causes a higher rate of
tooth decay than sugar? I always feel a
plaque coating on my teeth after I consume any. I am not even going to describe
what it does to my gastro intestinal system and willspare you the gory details.
331. AOL/General disABILITIES Discuss/Chemical
Sensitivities Support
Subj: Re:Food
additives
Date: 96-12-28
19:45:56 EST
I have to avoid all artificial sweeteners, including the
"natural" Nutrasweet. I get
awful, head-splitting migraines and cognitive dysfunction to the point I can't
name the street I live on. Stay away
from fake sugar; if you must eat sweets, you're better off with a few extra
pounds!
332. Artificial Sweeteners
Date
Sat, 01 Feb 1997 10:08:14 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.support.asthma
I have had the most interesting recovery. It isn't complete because I am still
asthmatic but the change is EXTREMELY BENEFICIAL.
I have been choking and coughing for almost three years
now. It seemed to start with a very bad
cold. And, the coughing and asthma that accompanied
it stayed. No mucous, just wheezing,
coughing and asthma. I have never been given an asthma medication that I
liked. Most of them made me feel
"angry" all of the time and some of them gave me Thrush and Vaginal
Candida infections. So, I suffered
along. I couldn't put more than 5 words
together without coughing and talking because an unpleasant exercise. I have avoided most of my allergic causing
things i.e.
cigarette smoke, animals, dust, mold, mildew, etc. but it
stayed and staying. Then I got a stomach
flu and could only take liquids for about 4 days. During that time I was drinking Gingerale and
it got worse. I was thinking about a
hospital visit because I was having so much trouble breathing.
My first day back at work, my partner suggested that I
stop drinking DIET SODA. That's when I
realized that all I have touched for about the past four years in the way of
soft drinks is DIET SODAS (root beer, ginger ale, and coke). So I stopped drinking the stuff and within 5
days my breathing had improved immensely.
It has now been three weeks and the difference is remarkable. Yes, I still have asthma---but now do not
need any medication at all because I am no longer wheezing all the time. It will come back when I get sick with colds.
Oh yes, it also comes back when I inadvertently eat something that contains
artifical sweeteners. (Like 2 days ago I ate a dessert and as soon as I
finished it, realized that it had started to affect me.) The asthma has lasted
2 days, not severe, but enough to make me cautious. Now, I will always read
labels and if I don't know what's in it, I won't have it...
333. To: xxxx@xxxx.xxxx.xxx
Date: Fri, 31 Jan 1997 15:25:56 -0400
Subject: Aspartame
I found your articles and research on aspartame to be
extremely enlightening. I have suffered
with many of the symptoms that were described in your research, all of which
have disappeared since I stopped using this product.
[updated]
334. To: xxxx@xxxx.xxxx.xxx
Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 16:55:49 -0400
Subject: Re: Aspartame
I was drinking about 32 ounces of caffeine free Diet Coke
every night, (during and after dinner).
Some of the symptoms that I had were as follows:
Frequency of urination through the night, (5 to 7
incidents each night). I saw my
physician about this problem. He thought
that I may have either a prostrate problem and or a thyroid problem. All tests were negative. He also sent me to an eye specialist because
my eyes were not tearing enough. The eye specialist had me use over the counter
eye drops 4 times a day.
Frequent headaches.
Anxiety and panic attacks through the night.
Muscle cramps in my fingers and toes.
Difficulty remembering things.
Insomnia. (The doctor perscribed a mild sleeping pill,
which I refused). These symptoms disappeared immediately when I stopped using
aspartame.
Also, I had been off of aspartame for about 2 weeks when
one night I had a mild anxiety attack through the night. I then remembered that I had chewed quite a
bit of Freedent gum the previous day and evening. I checked the package and found that this
product contains aspartame and phenylalanine as well as sugar. I had never suspected this, as Freedent is
not a sugarless gum. I now check the
ingredients of everything that I drink and eat.
335. Newsgroups:
alt.med.cfs
Date:
Fri, 10 Jan 1997 14:28:00 -0500
Subject:
Re: MED: FM, CFS, and aspartame
To: Multiple recipients of list CFS-L
<CFS-L@LIST.NIH.GOV>
Hi all !!!! I
can't use aspartamane/Nutrasweet in any form at all.....It causes me great
diffculty cognitively/mentally and physically.
My daughter's pediatric neurologist vehemently opposes the use of
Nutrasweet in my daughter's diet at any means.
She has a seizure disorder. Must
mean somethin' ..........
That stuff scared me 15 years ago when I read a study
about it at a hospital I was working at in Calif....I've never felt it was
"safe"......My oldest daughter was having terrible menstrual problems
and we stopped the Nutrasweet and "Bingo", guess what else
stopped????
336. Re: MED: FM, CFS, and aspartame
Date
Fri, 10 Jan 1997 01:17:04 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
I'd been drinking aspartame-sweetened sodas for fifteen
years, and I hadn't realized I had a problem with them, but last year I stopped
drinking sodas for a while because I thought I might be pregnant, and I noticed
that my brain fog lessened quite noticeably.
Experimentally, I tried drinking sugared sodas rather than diet soda,
and my brain fog continued to lessen.
The final evidence, to my mind, came one day when I
ordered a Coke Classic at a fast-food restaurant and I was served a Diet Coke
by mistake. I was thirsty, and fountain
sodas usually taste odd to me at the best of times, so I downed most of it
without thinking. By the end of the
meal, I was having trouble making sense of my surroundings; I asked my husband
for help and he had the sense to take a sip of the drink -- that's how we know it
was diet soda. It's now been almost a year since I switched back. I still have
some brain fog, but not nearly as much as I used to, and my short-term memory
seems to be coming back; I can remember phone numbers again now.
337, AOL/Pain Message Boards/Headaches &
Migraines/Headache Triggers
Date: 97-01-30
17:53:14 EST
I am a twenty-seven year old female who has suffered with
cluster migraines since the age of five years old. Two years ago, on a self-betterment binge, I
cut Nutrasweet out of my diet after a particularly horrible cluster of migraines. In two years, I have not let the stuff pass
my lips. I have stuck to this dietary
change and not deviated, and in two years, I have had two migraines. Cut this out of your diet. Put the teaspoon of sugar in your coffee, the
honey in your tea, and walk up an extra flight of stairs to work of the 16 extra
calories. My life has changed!
338. Date: Fri, 9 Jan 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxxxx
cc: MCS-CI@mail1.bellglobal.com
Subject: Re: MCS-CI aspartame...on cfs list
[forwarded from MCS-CI list]
On a personal note, my mom and two sisters began
experiencing chronic feelings of anxiety, paranoia, clostraphobia, and accute
episodes of panic... which subsided completely when they finally stopped
drinking diet pops.
339. Date: Wed, 05 Feb 1997 22:23:50 -0600
To: xxxxx@xxxx.xxxx
Subject: asparatame
I was out cruising on the net again and ran into your
info on asparatame. I have already found an abundance of info and want to tell you
what I know to be true. In the last ten years, two different chemists at two different
labs (for the plastic company that my husband works for) told him that this
food was dangerous and never meant to be put into soda because it was toxic. At
the time we were both drinking diet pepsi to help us lose weight, and were
experiencing many headaches. I decided to eliminate diet pepsi from our diet
and the headaches went away.
Also about
the same time as this happened, I read some information from the food coop that
I belong to. They always do a spread sheet on different fats, cereals, flours,
sugars etc. One month they had a big article on different sugar and sugar
substitutes. The information on aspartame
was frightening; methonal, phenalanine, and formaldyhide frome it's metabolism.
Well, it didn't take any more bad news about this for me to eradicate diet
pepsi from my home.
340. Re: MED: FM, CFS, and aspartame
Date
Thu, 9 Jan 1997 11:56:27 -0600
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
Wow! I used to get
swollen legs at work after drinking diet pop. Stopped drinking it even though
the doctor I saw then said it was PMS! Since then, I have avoided nutra-sweet
and I don't have the problem.
341. Date: Tue, 14 Jan 1997 15:50:51 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxx@xxxx.xxxxx
I have known for years now that the sweetner is "deadly"
to my own body because of the severe, almost paralyzing stomach cramping, gas
etc. that it causes. I avoid it at all
costs but am particularly distressed about one thing. Each time I am admitted to Ben Taub Hospital
here in Houston (3 times since Sept. and will be again next week for what I
hope will be my final radiation implant...had a radical histerectomy in
October) I list Nutrisweet as one of the things that I am alergic to. And since I have to be on a liquid diet it
really tics me off when my tray arrives and I taste the jello and it has...you
guessed it...Nutrisweet! And complaining
dosen't do a thing!
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network Questionnaire
Age: Sex: 41
Male
Q. Name medical
problems YOU experienced while using aspartame (tm NutraSweet/tm Equal).
A. Headaches,
gastrointestinal, vertigo, numbness, suicidal depression, rashes,
anxiety/phobia attacks, twitching, joint pain,
fatigue, impotency, heart attack symptoms, mood swings, body aches.
Q. Have you been
diagnosed with any form of malignancy that coincided with your aspartame use?
(Aspartame caused brain, uterine and mammary tumors in lab animals in the
original tests.)
A. No, not at this
time.
Q. Did your
symptoms go away or diminish when you stopped using the sweetener?
A. Today is day
four, (December 7, 1996), but I feel
better already and have more energy.
Q. How long have
you been Aspartame-free?
A. Four days.
Q. Did you see a
Doctor about any of these symptoms?
A. Yes!!!!!!!!
Q. Did your Doctor
think it could be related to aspartame?
A. None of the
doctors I saw came close to this possibility.
Q. Did your Doctor
advise you to stop using aspartame?
A. No
Q. Did you report
your symptoms to the FDA (Food & Drug Admin.) or any other group?
A. Not yet but I
plan on doing so. Should I do this
myself or thru your Network?
Q. Name the
specific products(s) containing aspartame you were consuming when you
experienced these symptoms. (Brand names.)
A. Diet Coke, Diet
Rite, almost any kind of diet soft drink.
Q. On the average,
what quantity were you consuming (how often, how much each time, etc.)
A. On average 6 to
8 cans per day since 1980.
Q. Did you ever
feel addicted to your sweetener? (Describe)
A. Not
really. I was sold on no calories since
I have always struggled with my weight.
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT:
Q. Did you begin
using products with aspartame when you began a restricted calorie diet or
joined a weight loss program?
A. I was drinking
diet colas before aspartame was introduced. They tased so much better after
aspartame was added. In looking back I
have had repeated episodes from the early 80's on that I now think were a
result of this product.
Q. Did you use
aspartame products only for some of your meals to save calories?
A. Yes, I used the
product to reduce calorie intake.
Q. Did aspartame
seem to help you lose weight at first?
A. I guess so
since I was able to keep my weight down along with exercise.
Q. What were the
long term weight loss effects of using aspartame.
A. I seem to be
able to keep weight off but had a hard time really losing any.
Thank you for helping me out. I would be interested in getting any
information you have on what the best way to rid my body of this stuff. Are there any special vitamins etc. Also I want to report this to as many places
as possible to voice my rage that this was able to take place. I want to help others and stop this stuff
from being on the market. I am really
scared about what the long term affects will be on my health. Since I drank this stuff for many years I can
bet some damage was done. The 60 days that I have seen published to feel better
can't come soon enough.
[update]
342. Date: Sat,
8 Feb 1997 00:25:31, -0500
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: 60 Days
Things have been up and down during the last 30
days. I had some good days yet still
seem to fall back. In the past three
days I have felt very good. Today is the
best day I have had in months. I was
starting to wonder if I would ever feel normal again. In looking back over the last 60 days I am
feeling much better. I just keep hoping
that it will keep up and not go away.
343. Re: Poll: Vaccine reactions
From
Patricia McDermott <pattymcd@erols.com>
Date
Sat, 18 Jan 1997 02:50:09 -0800
Newsgroups
bit.listserv.autism
This is a great idea, and I'd be happy to complete the
form. Other information (sibling reactions, family autoimmune disease or
further details)
He cannot tolerate nutrasweet (aspartame). On the two occassions that he did have soda
with nutrasweet, he had a grand mal seizure.
344. Date: Fri, 31 JAN 1997 13:55:59 GMT
Newgroups: sci.med.nutrition
Subject: Re: ASPARTAME; CHRONICLE OF CRIME (aviation
and aspartame)
I received quite a bit of information from xxxx regarding
NutraSweet some months ago. After reading it over and doing some checking on my
own, I stopped using the stuff. In my case, I have experienced an improvement
in muscular control while walking. It is pronounced enough that I, for one,
intend to continue avoiding Aspartame.
345. Date: Wed, 4 Feb 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: Re: Re[2]: Send me help
I don't have adequate
time to truly respond to your message re: the "why" of my interest - but I have been mistrustful of aspertame for
years after finding that it caused me a
horrible headache whenever I knowingly or unknowingly consumed it. Within the past few months I was diagnosed
with a prolactin-secreting pituitary tumor and am furious and curious as to its
origins. Prior to that I have had other
hormone/endochrine related conditions - melanoma, ovarian tumor, uterine
fibroids, bone tumor, fibrocystic breast disease....All conditions of undeterminable
origins. Genetically, I come from
incredibly healthy "stock," I live a health "lifestyle,"
live in a reasonably uncontaminated environment (except for farm pesticides
that must be present in the waters here in Iowa), etc.
I want to know more about aspertame and saccharin for my
own sanity, and because as a parent, I want it as far away from my daughter as
possible. (I called the Tylenol makers
yesterday when I had learned they put it in their chewable children's
tablets.....WHY???????????)
346. Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 03:08:33 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxx@xxxx.xxxxx.xx
Subject: Re: Aspertame
Since I've stopped using aspartame, the numbness and
tingling in my hands has stopped and so has a very slight edema around my ankle
bones.
[Updated Info]
347. Diet, Exercise & Fitness/Zone discussions
Subj:
Re:Aspertame
Date: 97-01-21
15:24:21 EST
The undesirable side-effect I get from aspertame is
numbness and tingling in my hands. Caught on to this when my daughter who had
surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome told me that after her surgery she got
terrible pain and sensations in her hands when she ate something with
aspertame.
348. Re: MED: FM, CFS, and aspartame
Date
Fri, 24 Jan 1997 17:31:22 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
I am still way behind in my mail reading, but wanted to comment
on this thread. I went to the web sites
that have been mentioned and read "The Bad News about Aspartame" etc.
and was shocked at the list of symptoms that they reported. I had never heard anything more than people
saying "It gives me a headache," which didn't seem to be the case with me, so I
thought it was ok.
However just in the past few weeks, I had noticed
something that had not been apparent for me before. I had been having problems (again) with heavy
attacks of sweating, both day and nite, and found that drinking even a couple
of sips of Diet Coke would bring on a heavy sweating attack almost immediately.
Anyway to make a long story short, the sweating is much improved, down to just
mild ones at nite, and my sugar cravings also seem to be reducing
dramatically. Will let you know how I
progess.
349. Re: Sugar Substitute Was: Re: Off topic-kids
vitamins
Date
Fri, 24 Jan 1997 13:33:00 -0600
Newsgroups
misc.consumers.frugal-living
I thought for a minute I had been sleep surfing...as my
name is also Stephanie and I have suffered from migraines since I was 8. I still get migraines every once in a while
but have seriously reduced the number of headaches I get by cutting out all
aspartame. I had my mom do this too with
the same results.
[another post]
350. Date:
Wed, 22 Jan 1997 10:46:04 -0600
Subject:
Re: Water
To: Multiple recipients of list FIT-L
<FIT-L@ETSUADMN.TAMU-COMMERCE.EDU>
I am prone to headaches and I have had migraines since I
wa 8 years old. Nutrasweet or aspartame
gives me headaches and doesn't help with my depression. I stick with sugar or sweet and low.
[^^^^^^^^^^]
351. Date: Sat, 25 Jan 1997 10:54:20 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Personal Nutrasweet Update
I first wrote to you last July to tell you about how I
would break out in a rash whenever I did anything heat related (eg, sunbathing,
exercising, etc.). It was as if my body
was allergic to my own sweat. These big,
usually oblonged-shaped, sometimes itchy welts would form on my arms and upper
legs. You suggested that I take the Nutrasweet challenge. I did and I noticed major changes within 60
days. I don't seem as sluggish as I
was. Also, I'm readily losing wait on
Atkins diet which worked when I was younger but seemed to be ineffective in the
80's (after Nutrasweet was introduced to the market).
But here's the big test:
I went down to Pompano Beach, Florida over Christmas. The weather was wonderful - 80's and
sunny. You know how chancey the weather
in Florida is over the holidays. Anyway,
the five days I was down there I sat in the sun hour after after, reading and
sipping rum
and orange juice, just like I could in my 20s. NO WELTS!
Three years ago, a mere four hours in the sun and I was a bumpy itchy
mess. Only one thing has changed: I have eliminated Nutrasweet from my diet.
I am now totally convinced that stuff is poison! ....
352. AOL/Pain Message Boards/Headaches &
Migraines/Headaches
Subj: Eliminate
NutraSweet?
Date: 97-01-16
20:38:36 EST
For months I have seen postings here about the
"evils" of NutraSweet but I really didn't pay much attention. I thought I had a handle on all the other things
that triggered my headaches. However, I
decided to eliminate it for 2 weeks and for 2 weeks I was headache free. Halfway through my first Diet Coke (after
this test period) I started having the usual tightness in the back of my head
soon followed by migraine symptoms.
Despite meds the headaches lasted 2-3 days. So, I'm off the fake stuff forever and join
the ranks of folks who say keep away from NutraSweet!
353. Date: Sat, 18 Jan 1997 12:53:23 -0800
To: xxxxxx@xxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: aspartame
After using aspartame for six months, I started to get
rashes and swelling on hands and face. Allergy tests showed the usual dust and
mold sensitivity. Only after I stopped using aspartame did the symptoms cease.
I tested it later by taking aspartame, and the symptoms re-occurred.
354. Date:
Sat, 28 Dec 1996 22:12:35 -0500
Sender:
"PARKINSN: Parkinson's Disease - Information Exchange Network"
<PARKINSN@LISTSERV.UTORONTO.CA>
Subject:
Re: Concentration of the mind
THIS is true: Many years ago I purchased a book "How
to Improve Your Memory", I misplaced it before I had a chance to read it! I recently found
it, and one day soon, I plan to read it, cover to cover! Another truism: I
stopped using nutrasweet and Equal, a few weeks ago, and I DO seem to have an
improved memory, moreso on longterm than short term. I have been having
episodes of remembering things when I
was under 10 year of age, I am 53 now. I
don't know if the brain tumor or alzheimers scare is true, about the
Nutrasweet, but I do believe it affects memory.
355. AOL/Diet, Exercise & Fitness/Nutrition &
Diet Help
Subj:
Re:Nutrasweet (Aspartame)
Date: 97-01-07
08:09:32 EST
I cannot have aspartame, when I tried it a few times
years ago, i got very dizzy and almost passed out, followed by a terrible
migrane! I have to read every label to make sure I stay away from it.
356. AOL/Pain Message Boards/Headaches &
Triggers/Headache Triggers
Subj:
Aspartame....AGAIN
Date: 97-01-15
12:31:50 EST
I have been reading about this and am horrified to learn
what I have been doing to my body by ingesting this poison. I am now Aspartame-Free and have found that
my headaches have completely stopped.
357. Subject: AOL/Pain Center/Headache Triggers
Subj:
Re:Aspartame
Date: 96-11-16
15:30:36 EST
The first time I drank something with Nutrasweet, it made
me feel weird. The first time I drank a lot of something with Nutrasweet, it
gave me a blinding headache. So I stay away from Nutrasweet. But nowadays, things with aspartame don't have
the Nutrasweet label, so I stay away from things that are artificially
sweetened, no matter what! Give us back our cyclamates, damn it!!!!!!!!
358. Re: shooting the sh*t and drinking beverages :)
Date
22 Jan 1997 02:35:12 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.support.dissociation
I despise any "beverage" with aspartame in it. makes
my brain go skitzy doodle!!!! firget lots an lots of things. don't know what
else, but just that it's bad an usually we don't remember what does what to the
body.
359. Re: Sugar Substitute Was: Re: Off topic-kids
vitamins
Date
23 Jan 1997 12:49:43 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.consumers.frugal-living
I suffered from migraines for years. I stopped drinking
Diet Coke and stopped having the migraines. It took about 6 weeks to totally
flush the chemicals out of my system, but since that time, I haven't had a
migraine (headaches - yes; just not the kind that put me in bed).
360. AOL/Pain Message Boards/Headaches &
Migraines/Headache Triggers
Subj:
Re:Aspartame....AGAIN
Date: 97-01-15
13:12:36 EST
I had headaches before nutrasweet...but quickly
discovered it was a trigger....(give me back saccharin..at least I could have a
diet soda once in awhile)...my mother and sister do not have migraines unless
they have nutrasweet...it sucks....I knew it all along
361. Subject:
Diet Coke
Date:
1997/01/27
Newsgroups:
alt.support.tinnitus
After reading on the group that Aspartmene may be
indicated in some types of T, I decided to cut out my 3 glasses of it a day.
After about a week the T seems reduced. It is not gone, but it is easier to
live with.
362. Date: Sat, 01 Feb 1997 09:02:34 -0800
To: xxxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Who'd a guessed?
I live in the Denver area and recently consumed Aspartame
unsuspectingly. Not knowing why I kept having strange headaches all week, along
with feeling being "out of it," I read the back of the package of
Alka Seltzer Cold Medicine that I had been taking. Guess what!?
Yes, there was Aspartame listed as an ingredient. I stopped taking it, and the next day my
headaches went away but my cold symptoms persisted as expected. I also went to the drug store to buy some Vitamin
C, and all the chewable types had Aspartame listed as the sweetner.
I have no other food or drug alergies that I am aware
of. However, I have been very sensitive
to Aspartame from the 1st day it came on the market. It triggers nasty headaches for me and
sometimes migranes. The public is being deceived by companies who use Aspartame
as a sweetner in their products and not providing clear labeling indicating such. Who has time to read the fine print listing
ingredients on the back of every package?
363. Neurology Web Forum
http://neuro-www.mgh.harvard.edu/neurowebforum/MultipleSclerosisArticles/Nutrasweet.htmlANutrasweet
This response
submitted by on 9/18/96.
3 years ago(pre-MS) I stopped drinking diet drinks(except
the occasional Tab which has saccarine not nutrasweet) because the Nutrasweet
was giving me daily headaches. I don't know if it affects MS but I think it's
bad stuff, I only use sugar or sweet and low now. Of course, when I got MS
(just this spring) I also got migraines at the same time, oh well! (at least
it's not every day!) :)
364. Re: Coke Vs. Diet Coke
Date
Fri, 10 Jan 1997 10:23:59 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
I cannot tolerate Nutrasweet sweetened drinks. When I
drink a diet soda I get the same symptoms as when I have extremely low blood
sugar-faint, sweaty, irritable, nauseated. ....
365. Re: aspartame vs. sugar experiment
Date
Tue, 04 Feb 1997 20:50:11 +0000
Newsgroups misc.consumers.frugal-living
A few months ago, I saw Richard Simmons on "The
Tonight Show". Jay mentioned to
Richard that he looked thinner than the last time they had seen each
other. Richard said that he had quit
drinking diet sodas and teas, and just started drinking water. The change resulted in losing 15 pounds. Richard described the water as getting all
the "ca-ca" (Spanish for sh*t) out.
Obviously even when a drink doesn't have calories, there's stuff in it
that isn't doing your body any favors.
366. ANN: Protein Supplement for Vegetarians
Date
Sun, 02 Feb 1997 15:22:52 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.fibromyalgia
I am still looking for a balanced protein/fat/carbos
snack bar without aspartame (makes me ill.) Any suggestions would be
appreciated!
367. AOL/Pain Message Boards/Headaches &
Migraines/Headache Triggers
Subj:
Nutrasweet/Chocolate
Date: 97-01-03
12:43:47 EST
I'm new to this so excuse me if I'm repeating earlier
advice. I'm 36 and have experienced
migraines for 10-12 years (I'm thinking I started getting them about the time
Nutrasweet was introduced heavily into the marketplace). I get the aura before
I experience the migraine (I'm learning this is a relatively uncommon
experience for migraine sufferers).
Anyway, good news for you women....when I was pregnant and/or
breastfeeding, my migraines went down considerably.
However, when I weaned my daughter, they came back with a
vengence. So I finally decided to cut
out chocolate and Nutrasweet...Voila...only 2 migraines in 3 mos!!!!! PLEASE try this...I always thought my
migraines were hormone induced (some of them are, I still believe). But now, I'm certain chocolate and/or
nutrasweet are my triggers...AVOID THEM.
worked for me!
368. Re: Sugar Substitute (long)
Date
Tue, 04 Feb 1997 23:29:41 +0000
Newsgroups
misc.consumers.frugal-living
xxxxxx, thank you for posting that information about the
dangers of aspertame. I just sent the
info. to everyone I know. My mother has long
said that she gets hives using anything with aspertame. I also know some women that suffer from
chronic fatigue and I'm going to give them the URL for the aspertame
commission.
369. NeuroWeb
http://132.183.145.103/neurowebforum/MultipleSclerosisArticles/ASPARTAME.htmlASPARTAME
This response
submitted by on 9/18/96.
I read an article not long ago in this forum from someone
who had done some research about the chemical make up of Nutrasweet & how
it is altered in hot drinks like coffee. It basically produces a gas similar to
methane at a certain temperature. Would you ever put methane into your body?
Stay away from it if you can & use real sugar or nutrasweet. My headaches
have ceased without it in my diet.
370. Date:
Sat, 21 Dec 1996 18:12:29 -0500
Sender:
"PARKINSN: Parkinson's Disease - Information Exchange Network"
<PARKINSN@LISTSERV.UTORONTO.CA>
Subject:
Aspartame update
Some time ago *someone* on the list asked me to post a
report about what--if anything--changes when Peter and I stopped using
aspartame (Equal) as a sugar substitute.
It has nowbeen several months, and the only thing I can report is
something that I'm not sure is related, except that it coincided with going
back on sugar for both of us: Peter had
had almost continuous swelling of feet and ankles, which is not uncommon and which
had now disappeared completely. I had
developed a swelling of my left foot only, which the doc said was probably from
arthritis, and that too has gone for good. Was the swelling due to Equal, of
which we used a lot? Who knows??? In any
case, that's the "update" FWIW,for whoever it was who asked and
whoever is interested.
371. Date: Wed, 1 Jan 1997
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: aspartame & blood clots...
You see, I am a 31 yr.old female, with brain clots (2)
and jugular (2), and subclaclavean vein clots on both sides.... and I have
clots in my arm.. I don't have children,
and now they say I can't, due to the clotting and damage to my veins.....
anyway, the brain clots were causing alot of pressure in my head, and the dr's.
called it pseudo-tumor cerebri, due to the pressure from the clots.in my
brain.... somone with a small inoperable brain tumor told me to get off all
aspartame products..... she said it made a big difference with her pressure
head pain.... I was drinking equal in my tea in the morning, diet coke during
the day and koolaid and crystal lite sweetened with nutrasweet, all evening....
nothing touched my lips unless it was aspartame.... anyway I stopped using and
I am doing so much better!! THey may not
even do the brain surgery now to relieve the pressure.....
372. Re: PVCs and Magnesium revisited
Date 7
Jan 1997 11:13:59 -0800
Newsgroups
sci.med.cardiology
Like to mention you may want to look into any
relationship between heart problems and Aspartame/NutraSweet. I've had several
bad attacks of PVCs following consumption of NutraSweet products and to this
day will still have a reaction if I consume the junk. I also remember one or
two other people in this group posting similar reactions.
Speaking of which, did anyone see 60 Minutes a week or so
ago? Seems that many Doctors and Scientists are convinced NutraSweet is not a
healthy substance. The head scratcher is it was mentioned during the segment
that the then head of the FDA approved NutraSweet even though several of his
collegues suggested further study. That former head of the FDA soon left for
the top position in the public relations department of the manufacturer of
NutraSweet. Hmmm.
373. To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame Poisoning Victim
Date: Thu, 19 Dec 1996 12:14:09 -0600
I am a victim of aspartame/monosodium glutamate (MSG)
poisoning. I use to develop headaches
all the time. My symptoms ranged from
minor headaches to migraine headaches and vomiting. I also have memory loss. Once I discovered
the cause, 95% of my headaches went away.
I read product labels and avoid Aspartame/MSG like the plague. Try as I might, I still occasionally get poisoned
due to the use of these drugs by restaurants and/or disguised labels. I am very concerned about this occasional
poisoning because in addition to getting a headache, I also feel as if my mind
gets very cloudy. Memory recall and
concentration are definitely affected as well as vision.
374. AOL/General disAbilities/ ** Seizure Disord **
Subj: Re:Nutra
Sweet Problems
Date: 96-12-08
13:12:15 EST
Nice to know there is someone else who has BIG problems
with this poison. I spoke with someone who works for the FDA, they are aware of
the serious effects of it and can not do anything because they approved it as a
Food Substance not a chemical additive. I tell everyone I know, especially those
who are tryng to conceive, the serious problems it can cause.
375. Re: Nutrasweet/Aspartame
Thu, 26 Dec 1996 21:47:06 +0000
Also from personal experience, I do know that aspertame
causes me extreme confusion, stress, and general mayhem the few times I have
tried to use it and this was years before I found out it was just not me. and
last, just about a week ago, I heard a doctor on a local talk radio list
aspertame as the 2nd most deadly food we could possibly ingest. With the advent
of olestra (synthetic fat) that the FDA says will definitely make you sick if
you eat to much, I see no problem with them approving a sweetener that can kill
you. just my $0.02
376. LUPUS-L Mailing List
Re: Aspertame Report
Sat, 23 Nov 1996 11:08:50 -0500 (EST)
I personally avoid aspartame like the plague. it makes me
moody, achey & just plain yuckey feeling. (how's that for a scientific description?)
i've gotten my mom and some of my friends to stop using it and they all said
they felt better after stopping their use of it. drinking regular sodas instead
of diet didn't increase my weight or anything else detrimental. i wasn't as
hungry after returning to regular soda. nutrasweet seems to make me hungry
(huh, how's that for a diet food?)
i really don't recommend anyone use it. i know that
saccharin is not exactly good for you but it seems to be a hell of alot better
than aspartame.
377. Subject:
Re: Let's all SUE Monsanto - maker of Nutra-Sweet. The non-sugar sweetner
that is KILLING US ALL!
Date:
1996/12/11
Newsgroups:
alt.mock.the.court
I have always been alergic and/or experienced awful side
effects from diet soft drinks and from nutra sweet in gereral. My throat swells
up and I can not breathe. I just don't use it and thanks to this posting my suspicions
have been realized.
378. To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Date: 3 Jan 97
13:24:43
Subject: RE: Aspartame Effects
Thank-you very much for your advice. I am just in the process of printing out
material from your web page to give to my Doctor. She told me that she would be very interested in reading any of the
information that I had obtained, because she said that a large number of her
patients complained of head-aches (that were often unexplainable). She said that she hadn't heard much about aspartame, but she obviously wants to learn
more (which is a good sign).
Since quitting aspartame my health / wellbeing has
undergone a significant improvement. For
me, there is no doubt that this product is dangerous. I am very grateful that you have included information
on the internet. You have helped me
enormously.
379. To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Nutrasweet
Date: Sun, 15 Dec 1996 23:59:26 EST
Everyday for 3 months I had throbbing earaches .I drank approximately 6- 8
cups of coffee a day and would use 2
packets of Nutasweet for very cup. In
addition to this I would consume diet soft drinks and food products with Nutrasweet.
Since reading your page on the Net I started to use sugar again. My throbbing earaches stopped within 3
days! After a few weeks of not using Nutrasweet I drank a diet soda by mistake.
Almost immediately my ear started to throb. I have also notice an
improvement in my short term memory.
380. Subj:
Aspartame
Date:
97-01-05 14:24:30 EST
To:
xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Thanks for the information on Aspartame. I have never been able to intake anything
with Aspartame in it. People thought I
was crazy when I told them that I would have a
reaction to the "Diet" stuff.
One night I drank some fruit punch with NutraSweet in it without knowing. I thought I was going to die before it began
to wear off. Never again, I always read labels. At least now I know why. Thanks again.
I will pass this information along.
381. Elimination of Aspertan
Date
Tue, 17 Dec 1996 12:02:15 -0500
Newsgroups
misc.health.diabetes
After reading articles on this newgroup and the
literature referred to, I decided to give up anything containing Nutrasweet (at
that time I consumed a large quantity of Diet Coke (4-6 bottles per day) and diet
Yogurt). I now take nothing with
Nutrasweet (having substituted water for Diet Coke.
At the time of the above decision, I took 20 units of U
in the morning and also the evening in addition to 13 units of R at each
mealtime. The bloodsuger was frequently unpredictable. After 3 months on the lack of Nutrasweet, I
found that I had to reduce the insulin which I have done gradually over the
past month. Now I take 15 units of U
twice a day and 10 units of R before each meal. Note that nothing happened for the
first 3 months.
382. Date: Sat, 21 Dec 1996 20:18:37 +0500
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: aspartame reaction..?
I am going crazy keeping everyone I talk to supplied with
copies from your site. Talk about reactions..! It seems everyone I know is
using (or was anyway) aspartame for weight control. Now they're questioning the
use. I feel like a one-woman Paul Revere! I have been off the drug for 1 month
& am having no headaches. That in itself is amazing!! I'm getting my vision
checked 12/31/96 and we'll know if that has gotten any worse. I can't thank you
enough for what you are doing..I'll try to stay in touch.
383. Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 22:02:46 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Nutrasweet poisoning
XXXXXX, after
reading your article I stopped drinking 4 cans of diet coke a day, and the bad
headaches I have been experiencing several times a week are just about gone
after two weeks. Also the pain and stiffness in my neck and shoulders is
getting much better.
384. AOL/Pain Clinic/Headache Triggers
Subj:
Re:Aspartame
Date: 96-11-15
22:23:11 EST
Wow! I have found
others with the same trigger!!! Most of
the folks act like I'm some kind of freak!
When I started reading labels and avoiding aspartame, not only did the
ha's ease off, but the hives, and 'thick' throat and all did too.
385. Date: Sun, 8 Dec 1996 20:04:44 -0500
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: FYI:FDA on Aspartame-An Aside
As an aside <chuckle> I am finally off aspartame
(knowingly ingested) for ONE
(1) WEEK now... My daily splitting headaches have 90+%
reduced in frequency and severity... The first three days it felt like my body
was going through some sort of withdrawal...was THAT foggy and disoriented and
unwell feeling...
The fog is clearing... Am not discounting the
"wishful thinking" factor...BUT... i think we can add another
anectdotal account to the file...actually add two...husband has been off
aspartame as well for the same short period and is reporting a reduction in
headaches also.
386. Re: Nutrasweet and Migraine
Date
Sun, 15 Dec 1996 12:58:55 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
I have found that cutting Nutrasweet from my diet has
stopped my migraines by about 90%
387. Re: Diet drinks question
Date
Mon, 16 Dec 1996 01:29:02 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.food.fat-free
Besides these problems, large amounts of aspartame have
been shown to increase anxiety. I know,
I found out the hard way from drinking too much diet 7-Up.
388. Re: Nutrasweet and Migraine
Date
Tue, 03 Dec 1996 10:37:46 +0000
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
For what it's worth, Nutrasweet definitely seems to
contribute to my various types of headaches, (migraine, tension, sinus) so I
just stay away from it.
389. Re: amitriptyline and migraines
Date Wed,
4 Dec 1996 15:11:39 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.support.mult-sclerosis
390. On the subject of migraines, I discovered the cause
of mine to be nutrasweet. I cut out all the diet drinks and sugar free food and
they went away. Rarely do I have them now, which I can handle considering I was
having them almost everyday.
391. Date: Mon, 30 Dec 1996 11:39:17 -0500
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Aspartame
Has anyone considered a class action suit to get this
dangerous product off the market? I had
a reaction to it and feel my quality of life has suffered to a great
degree. I try to warn my friends but
until their symptoms appear, they do not seem to believe.
Happy New Year! and looking for a very special buddy
Date 2
Jan 1997 10:31:46 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
Now, I'm ready.
And I have some thoughts about what I want to do, and do differently. So, here is my strategy and New Year's
resolutions: - Avoid Nutrasweet. Without
getting into the whole debate about the nefarious nature of Nutrasweet, I did
find that it seemed to make me, shall we say, less than mentally alert. Also, while I don't think I really became
addicted to the stuff, I did definitely use it as a crutch.
392. Re: 60 Minutes: What's the deal with nutrasweet?
Safe or not?
Date 3
Jan 1997 15:24:19 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition
The headaches seemed to be the most common side effect,
but those with CFS, FMS, MCS and organ disease should be particularly
careful....*we* can get horrible symptoms from things that don't bother a
healthy person. I was drinking 2 liters a day of diet soda to assuage my
craving for sweets. I would have drunk more if I could have afforded to. I was
drinking a can of diet Pepsi as I was reading the data on Gold's website...I
couldn't even finish it. I kept thinking of Monsanto and all the chemicals they
make for home products and how bad they make me feel when I'm exposed to them.
I also remembered a huge exhibit they had at Disneyland (telling my age here)
when it first opened---indoctrinating innocent children <vbg>...the ride
was pretty cool tho. Well, I went cold-turkey off this stuff and within 3 days,
my craving for sweets stopped!!! Just like that! I still eat them, but I don't
*crave* them the way I used to. This has made me feel the whole thing is even
more insidious than I previously thought.
393. AOL/General Health Discussions/Migraines
Subj: Eliminate
NutraSweet!!
Date: 96-11-23
23:06:00 EST
I suffered with migraines for years. After trying several drugs and stress reducing
methods, I discovered I was sensitive to NutraSweet, a.k.a. Aspartame. This artificial sweetener is made up of three
chemicals one of which is methanol (wood alcohol).
394. Date: Sat, 30 Nov 1996 18:44:59 -0500 (EST)
To: betty@pd.org
Subject: nutrasweet
You do not have to convince me how bad nutrasweet
is. After I lost my significant other I
lost my appetite for a few days. Well I
was thirsty and decided to have a diet coke.
I found that it was affecting my heart beat.
Since I had only had the diet soda I immediately came to
the conclusion that the nutrasweet was giving me the heart palpitations. I had only just begun to drink the diet
drinks, because frankly I couldn't stand the taste. Luckily I found out early what affects the
drug was causing and I am very careful not to eat anything which lists it as an
ingredient.
395. Subject: Re: Antidote to Nutrasweet?
Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 03:54:15 GMT
Newsgroups: alt.support.diet.low-carb
I learned a lot about stevia, but nothing about an
antidote to Nutrasweet. I was
accidentally given Nutrasweet (someone had earlier mixed Coke and Diet Coke
into a Coke bottle) and had a major reaction to it (headaches, hot flashes, sensitivity
to light and noise, etc.). A can of Coke will only add weight. A can of Nutrasweet-sweetened soda will knock
me out of commission for days.
396. Re: artifical sugars
Date
Mon, 23 Dec 1996 07:05:50 -0500
Newsgroups
misc.health.diabetes
I can't use NutraSweet as it makes me sick to my stomach.
397. Subject:
Re: META: <OFF-TOPIC AND PROUD OF IT!>
Date:
1996/12/31
Newsgroups:
rec.arts.comics.misc
I'd definitely drink too much, but the hot lemon drink
flu medicine I grabbed off the shelf the last time I HAD to venture out of the
house had aspartame in it. Nutrasweet,
by any other name, would still give me a nasty headache. Oh great...
I get something to make me feel better and the main (inactive)
ingredient makes my head hurt.
398. Subject: ASPARTAME
To: XXXXXXX@XXXXX.XXXXX.XXX
Date: Mon, 04 Nov 96 15:17:31 EST
HI THERE - I AM A 22 YEAR OLD COLLEGE STUDENT AT THE
UNIVERSITY OF MAINE. I SPENT APPROX. 10 YEARS DRINKING 1-2 LITERS OF DIET SODA
A DAY. THIS PAST YEAR, THAT FINALLY
CAUGHT UP TO ME. I BEGAN TO EXPERIENCE DAILY BOUTS OF DISEQUILIBRIUM, MEMORY
LOSS, AND OTHER ADVERSE EFFECTS.
[continued]
399. Date: Fri, 29 Nov 1996 21:39:52 -0500
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Follow up
I cannot tell you the difference in my disequilibrium,
memory loss, etc... Wow! I wouldn't say it's 100% gone or over. But I am 75% of the way thanks to your info
in both your e-mail and on the internet.
You're doing something wonderful and necessary. I'm spreading the word to all my friends and they've
dropped the stuff instantly. I know
sometimes you must feel like you don't do enough and wonder what it all means
in the grand scheme of things. But let
me tell you, it means EVERYTHING to me.
You've done what half a dozen doctors, thousands of dollars, and months
of my time and misery couldn't do - Given me the information that gave me my
life back - freed me to be a 22-year old college girl again. Free to go out dancing instead of sitting in
a bookstore pouring over medical books.
Free to spend my days in classes, not doctors' offices. Free to spend my
time thinking about who did what with so-and-so, instead of analyzing the human
neurological system and its correlation with the central balance center. Free
to spend my money on a dangerous black dress that will surely get me in
trouble, not a CAT scan or a blood test. Just free. And that feeling, xxxxx, that freedom to just
be, is absolutely priceless.
340. Subject:
Re: Aspartame
Date:
1996/11/30
Newsgroups:
sci.med.diseases.lyme
This is truly interesting... It so happens that I care
for a head trauma patient, who is severely damaged. His Mother had caught the
last few sentences of a documentary on TV, of not to use Aspartame with any
neurological defects. My patient is over 200lbs, an ex-wrestler and gave us a
big fight. Here was uptight, biting on
his clothes, legs outstretched......very tense....we had him on a diet...yep he
got a low fat yogert at least once a day....(contained Aspartame) Its been
three weeks since we stopped it..and hes 90% better. More relaxed....still bites but not anything
like before. I have noticed that now,
however he's got swollen feet (pitting pedal edema) I'm wondering if Aspartame
has a diuretic affect also. Has anyone heard of that?
341. Re: Aspartame
Date
Fri, 29 Nov 1996 00:04:37 -0800
Newsgroups sci.med.diseases.lyme
ASPARTAME!
Nutrasweet! How I hate those two
words. From first hand experience, I
know that this stuff is really bad for some folks. My experience was with my Son (Autistic &
has CNS damage), who, 10 years ago suffered a grand mal seizure after a few
months of using diet soft drinks containing aspartame. Then again last year, the folks at the sheltered
workshop where he is employed, didn't read my notes, and allowed him to have
sodas containing aspartame; and again, he suffered a grand mal seizure. He is 30 years old and those are the only 2
episodes of seizures he has EVER had.
[continued]
342. Re: Aspartame
Date
Mon, 02 Dec 1996 01:13:00 -0800
Newsgroups
sci.med.diseases.lyme
No, Suz, sorry. I
haven't heard about Aspartame having any diuretic effect. But I'm glad that the young man is off of it
and that his behavior is so much better.
This Aspartame is so dangerous for some.
I can still remember how my son's behavior steadily deteriorated during the
few months that he was ingesting it...and then the seizure. The worst part was that if my husband and I
hadn't read that article, we never would have known what caused the
seizure. And in 1986, the docs actually
laughed at us when we told them about what we had read. Sound familiar?
343. Re: NutraSweet Making World News/Brain Tumor
Issue: Now as Paul Harvey would
say: This is the rest of the story! (fwd)
Date
29 Nov 1996 00:26:06 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.attn-deficit
Nutrasweet causing cancer? I beleive ya' but that's not the worst of it!!!! Nutrasweet makes me go ballistic!! My ADD symptoms--the bad ones--become severe if
I get near nutrasweet. My mind gets all
fogged up, my anger/frus. level increases and my brain functions, overall,
diminish. I do think there's a horrible
connection between that toxic junk and brain functions in ADD brains!!!
344. Date: Tue, 26 Nov 1996
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: nutrasweet
JUST A SHORT MESSAGE .
FOR YEARS I WAS SUFFERING FROM SEVERE HEADACHES ALMOST DAILY. I COULD NOT BE SURE, BUT FELT IT WAS CAUSED
BY A NECK PROBLEM OR POSSIBLY MIGRAINES. EACH EVENING CARPOOLING FROM WORK, WE
WOULD STOP AND GET A MUG OF DIET COKE.
THIS WOULD BE FOLLOWED BY A BOWL OF CEREAL SWEETENED BY EQUAL BEFORE BEDTIME. THE NEXT DAY-HEADACHES. FOUND A WARNING ON
THE INTERNET ABOUT NUTRASWEET AND DECIDED TO STOP DIET COKE AND SUBSTITUTE GOOD
OLD SUGAR COKE WHICH AS WE KNOW ISN'T ALL THAT
GOOD FOR US EITHER. IMMEDIATELY THE HEADACHES VANISHED
AND I CAN FUNCTION WITHOUT CONSTANT PAIN.
AN INTERESTING NOTE HERE: A MORMON FRIEND STOPPED DIET
COKE JUST BEFORE I HAD, THINKING IT WAS THE CAFFEINE CAUSING HIS
HEADACHES. HIS HEADACHES CEASED. HE FOUND HOWEVER, THAT BY DRINKING REGULAR
COKE HIS HEADACHES DID NOT RETURN. WE WERE THE LUCKY ONES I FEEL, BECAUSE THE
HEADACHES WERE THE WARNING THAT WE WERE BEING POISONED. HOW ABOUT THE UNLUCKY FOLKS WHO DON'T GET
THEM AND SUFFER SOMETHING MUCH WORSE DOWN THE ROAD. ITS TOO BAD THAT IN THIS SO
CALLED DEMOCRACY THERE IS APPARENTLY NOT ONE HONEST POLITICAL GROUP LET ALONE
ONE POLITICIAN WHO WOULD STAND UP TO THIS CORPORATE GIANT.
345. Re: Immune System and ALS
Date
27 Nov 1996 16:45:16 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.diseases.als
I will tell you everything I think I know right now. I
have tried many variations, but excess is best and avoid chemicals. This means no soda, aspartame, msg,
hydrolized protien or fats, artificial flavor (you get the picture). I felt
1000 times better the day I stopped dring diet cokes.
346. Date: Mon, 4 Mar 1996 05:22:36 GMT
To: epilepsy-list@calvin.dgbt.doc.ca
Subject: Re: [EPILEPSY-LIST:3325]
After reading here that epileptics should avoid artificial
sweetners, I threw out the aspartame (a ten year habit). Since that time (about
10 days) my seizure activity has lessened significantly and the intensity is
much milder. Based upon what I'm feeling, aspartame may be a trigger for me. My
doctor says any stimulant (caffine, cigs, stress, ect.) will trigger seizures.
While they are not the "Cause" of the seizures, stimulants aggravate
the condition, so he says. I have cut back on the caffine some, but I continue
to smoke. short of death, I have not yet figured out how to rid my life of
stress. Ha!
347. Re: Aspartame & Brain Tumors
Date
Tue, 26 Nov 1996 09:40:11 -0800
Newsgroups
rec.food.cooking
Members of my family have a sensitivity to this artifical
sweetener. We don't all live close by
one another, so it took a few years for each of us to put together that a
severe headache always followed drinking diet pop or eating something else
sweetened with aspartame. One niece and
I have the same reaction each time: the
headache is felt in the part of the skull right behind the right ear. If we read labels and watch carefully, we don't
have problems. But, if by mistake we get
something with aspartame, we'll know in short order.
348. Aspartame Responses to CNN article and Reactions
http://cnn.com/feedback/comments.html#0
Tuesday, November 19, 1996
. . . I recently chewed a stick of gum that had aspartame
in it and I got an immediate headache. I couldn't figure out why at first why
my head was aching so badly. When I spit out the gum the headache subsided in
about two or three minutes. I also use and like Equal sweetener in my coffee
but haven't noticed any unusual side effects although sometimes I do develop a
headache shortly thereafter. I attributed this to my job but I guess that
affects me too.
xxxxxx xxxxxxx
xxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx.xxx
My experience with aspartame has been very negative. For
months I would have reactions such as horrendous headaches accompanied by violent
regurgitation. It would only happen when I traveled by van so I thought it was related
to motion sickness. After months of having these reactions, I went to the doctor.
What was different from my normal, everyday pattern was that I was drinking diet
pop to settle my stomach when traveling (I do not drink pop normally). The
doctor surmised it was an allergic reaction to aspartame. I quit using
aspartame in any way, shape or form, and have not had a reaction since.
xxxxxx xxxxxx xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
349. To: epilepsy-list@calvin.dgbt.doc.ca
Date: Thu, 29 Aug 1996 17:08:22 -0400 (EDT)
Subject: Re: [EPILEPSY-LIST:5130] aspartame
Some time ago someone posted regarding aspartame and that
it could be a seizure-inducing drug.
Does anyone have any further information/proof about this theory?
I read an article a few years back [coulda sworn it was
in the NYTimes] about this sudden onset of adult epilepsy. Article was more
slanted to how-smart-scientists -figure-things-out. but the bottom line was
that the summer NutraSweet overthrew sacchrin, there were thousands of new
cases of seizures all over the country. I personally stay away from the stuff
as it does trigger seizures in me after heavy use. Well, more than 16 oz. of
diet soda per day and I'll seize.
350. Date: Wed, 20 Nov 1996 21:46:58 -0600
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxxx
Subject: RE: request for info
I had been drinking large amounts of Diet Coke for years
and over that time my vision
(nearsightedness) went from -.75
to -4.25. Focus/ resolution has remained
good. The worse part was (and remains) a
feeling of the loss of alertness. I find
it harder to learn new things (computer
programming) and reading to comperhend is really difficult. There was a point in time just before I
stopped drinking Diet Coke that I could sit for hours and read the same page
and still not know what it said. I
remember thinking if I underline or highlight the words the meaning of the thought
would become clear. It did not work.
After stopping, I lost 35 lbs and started working out and
eating low fat food. I have now gained
some of it back, but have not drank a diet soda in 5 years. I do not believe I have regained the full
functioning of memory. I can now point
to other problems on the list and identify with them. I was told I had 'functional Hypoglycemia'
and the mood swings (and a list of others) were a result of it. I told the doctor that I was drinking large
amounts of Diet Coke and he did not seem to think it was a problem.
I have taken your information and printed it and have
been making copies for people I know that are drinking a lot of diet sodas.
351. Re: *I* Migraines
Date
Sat, 23 Nov 1996 00:53:17 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.fan.pratchett
Have found one migraine trigger - aspartame (Nutrasweet)
- no diet sodas for me any more...
352. Subj:
Not Typical
Date
20 Nov 96 01:01:33 UTC
Newsgroups
alt.support.ibs
I had my first onset of this when I was under a great
deal of stress and now I am aware of certain foods that set me off like pork,
beef and aspertame.
....
353. Date: Tue, 19 Nov 1996 01:10:16 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nutrasweet
NBC show today spurred me to explore the internet and
write you re: my experience with Nutrasweet.
I was a diet coke aholic for 12 years and had the following symptoms on
occasion:
1: "classic" migraines
2. panic attacks
3. irregular heart beat (I was put on medication)
4. hip pain
Then, last November, I started experiencing the
following:
1. Chronic brain fog to the point of thinking I was dying
2. "classic" migraines much more than usual
3. sense of urgency from bladder with no infection
Dr. ruled out bladder infection, was willing to put me on
medication (Prozak I assume) I was so
addicted to diet coke that I only considered seeing if getting off might help
out of total desperation because I was feeling so terrible. I knew I was not
crazy, but felt I was being treated as such. (the Dr. pooh-poohed me when i
asked if I should get off Nutrasweet).
When I did, ALL of my symptoms disappeared within a week or so. I was thinking clearly for the first time in
several months. I have had no migraines.
I think back and my first migraine was in l983. Did it build up in my system to the point
that I was having an extra strong reaction?
http://www.hotwired.com/cgi-bin/interact/replies_all?msg.30913
T H R E A D : Ask Dr. Weil
T O P I C : Subtract the additives
NutraSweet / Aspartame
Ryan Ross (spotorola) on Sun, 17 Nov 96 01:10 PST
Mmm...poison. Stop ingesting this crap NOW. Anyone who
thinks they are doing their bodies a favour by substituting aspartame for sugar
are foolish. Aspartame breaks down into poisonous constituents, the most being
methyl alcohol. Yes, wood alcohol. Go to the drug or hardware store and read
the warning label on a jug of wood alcohol. Yes, blindness. Read on... Personally,
I have seen the effects of persons ingesting too much aspartame, particularily
in the form of diet soft-drinks. Having researched aspartame in my spare time,
I can see one particular case of aspartame poisoning (no, that word is NOT too
harsh) in hindsight.
My Grade 13 Calculus teacher was a self-professed Diet-Coke-aholic.
I dropped by his house once to help him out with his computer, and confirmed
his self-confession by the cases and cases of it in his fridge. He often had
one or two during class, especially in the summer.
He seemed fine in the colder months of the year since, as
I suspect, he was drinking less fluids. When, in the final months of the school
year, when summer came about, he started having these terrible lapses while
lecturing. He would start copying down an equation to the board, and then completely
lose his train of thought and not be able to finish it. Relatively simple
textbook homework questions would sometimes baffle him. Many times he had to
dismiss us, he had become either so flustered and frustrated, or just disoriented.
My first thought was that it was the heat, and his slightly overweight
condition. The classrooms, however, were air-conditioned. Something else, he
constantly complained about having to update his glasses prescription. Most likely,
he was drinking more diet colas in the summer months, and hence, the symptoms
manifested much more severely. Go and look up some of the confirmed and most notorious
effects of aspartame...what are they?
Memory loss, and vision impairment. The cases of alzheimer's
have increased since the approval and mass usage of aspartame as a sweetener in
the late 70s. Aspartame does NOT cause alzheimer's syndrome, but is sure as
hell produces some similar symptoms. My own mother, for heaven's sake, was big
into those "Free and Clear" fruity sparkling drinks in a big way
until I faxed her some papers on the subject of their magic ingredient. NOW she can
actually remember my phone number. NOW she no longer complains about eyestrain
and blurred vision. She doesn't forget
where she put things minutes ago. In other words, take heart...her symptoms
seemed to turn around when she got off the aspartame /NutraSweet products. The effects may not be permanent.
ASPARTAME IS NOT A DIET PRODUCT. It was not discovered out of efforts to
produce alternative sweeteners. Some
chemist just HAPPENED to taste this stuff one day, and got excited $$$ when he noticed
how damned sweet it was.
If you're already smart enough to be here, in this discussion
forum, you're smart enough to go off and research this poison for yourself.
Please do it, and tell all your friends. ASPARTAME IS POISON. (and no, I am not at all into any conspiracy
theories)
354. http://www.hotwired.com/cgi-bin/interact/replies_all?msg.30913
T H R E A D : Ask Dr. Weil
T O P I C : Subtract the additives
nutrasweet
alyson coburn (coburnah) on Fri, 15 Nov 96 05:43 PST
I avoid nutrasweet most of the time--it gives me terrible
hearaches, and I've heard that it may cause neurological damage.
355. http://www.hotwired.com/cgi-bin/interact/replies_all?msg.30913
T H R E A D : Ask Dr. Weil
T O P I C : Subtract the additives
Aspartame
Ronda Foust (rondaf) on Sun, 17 Nov 96 16:53 PST
In some people, aspartame seems to irritate both kidney
and bladder. Neither my mother nor
sister
can use aspartame without having a kidney or bladder
infection. While it could be related to not
enough water, it seemed odd that the difficulties would disappear when they
quit drinking products with aspartame.
356. Subject:
Nutrasweet and Migraine
Date:
1996/11/19
Newsgroups:
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Hi, I'm new to this list, and I'm sorry if this has
already made the rounds, but I feel it is too important NOT to say
anything. I'm 40 y/o f, and have
suffered migraines since teens. My
grandfather had them also, and a few cousins and my brother suffers also. I started off mainly getting them (hormonal),
but the've increased throughout the years.
I've been getting both classic and common for the past 12 years or
so. I've been on Inderal 160 x2, and
Elavil 50 x1 for about the last 10 years.
I abort with Imitrex injections.
It works great for me. About 5 years ago I started waking up around 3 or
4 am with pounding throbbing pain.
Doctor of course increased my rx.
I felt like a zombie. The last 2
months, the classic aura has become a every other day thing, sometimes twice a
day. I again called my DR. and he
increased my rx again. I was having
migrain every day, and taking imitrex injections every day. I finally called again and got an appointment
for tomorrow. This is the kicker! Last week, my mom told me to try 'stopping
all nutrasweet'. Guess What! No more migraines. Now, it's only been a week, but I feel
soooooooooo much better. My energy level
has increased. I really thought I was
going crazy, and I deal with ADD (attention deficit disorder) also, and my
short term memory is totally gone. So, I
got to looking into this Nutrasweet theory, and what do I find at the top of
the list....YUP, migraine. I'm sure my
hormonal headaches will still plague me.
I'm wondering why it isn't published more that Nutrasweet can be a BIG
trigger of migraine. I want to sue...
I'm so mad that I (and who else) has suffered oh so bad, for the sake of the
mighty $$. I say we get a class action
lawsuit going against Nurtasheet. Any
one else??? If anyone else has had
similar stories, I'd love to hear from you.
You can e-mail me at xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxxx. I'm just using a 50 free hours on AOL I got in
the mail at home (TEMP). So contact me
at the above address. Thanks!
Oh, I cancelled my Dr. and called the nurse. I wanted to know why they never told me about
Nutrasweet being a possible trigger. The
nurse was very snobby about it (like we can't list all the possible......) The nerve....
[still headache-free]
357. Date: Mon, 13 Jan 1997 15:14:50 -0800
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xx
Subject: Aspartame poison
After approx 10 years of being addicted to diet coke, and
suffering of migraine headaches which got progressivly worse, to daily
migraine's, someone suggested I stop drinking diet coke, and guess what! No more daily headaches. Since, I have found 2 other migraine
triggers. I'm so mad at the government
for allowing this poisen to be considered safe.
Let me know what I can do to help!
358. Subject:
Re: gharlane of Eddore
Date:
1996/11/16
Newsgroups:
rec.arts.sf.tv
What can you tell us about "aspartame" and its
effect on beta-sites and possibly calcium channels? Or does it just mess with midbrain receptor
sites? My blood pressure has dropped
fifteen points in the last week and a half, just from eliminating diet soda pop
from my diet.... It appears I'd have been better off with the sugar!
359. Re: don'tholdyourbreath!!
Date
13 Nov 1996 03:30:10 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.stop-smoking
I have a friend with panic attacks ..the Mayo clinic
discovered thru elimination that it was Nutrasweet!!! As soon as she stopped
with the diet drinks and using qual..and other things made with NutraSweet..the
attacks went away for good...whatever it is accumulates in your body..
360. Date: Wed, 13 Mar 1996
Weights Digest 1205
http://network23.cso.uiuc.edu/search.html
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet
About aspartame: I have to relate my experience. I had never been bothered with very bad headaches
until we had been using the product instead of suger for several months. I was having debilitating headaches until I
stopped using Equal to sweeten tea, etc.
Didn't consult physician, but haven't had such bad headaches since
stopping. I you're having headaches, I'd
stop using it for a while and see what happens.
361. Subject:
Re: sugar cravings
Date:
1996/11/16
Newsgroups:
alt.support.anxiety-Panic
But then there are those of us who are allergic to
NutraSweet, makes my mouth numb and therefore sends me into a hell of a PA. My
throat sometimes gets involved and headaches are then added on for good
measure.
362. Date: Mon, 11 Nov 1996
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: RE-OK> DIET SODA-POISON
No i live in the States now but my ex husband was
stationed in Germany when i was pregnant with our second and third
children. i wrote Robert more about what
we believe the aspartame did to our son, Jonathan. Unfortunately, i don't have
his medical records from that time and i don't know for sure that there is any
confirmation of him being what the German doctors called a "Nutrasweet
baby"..or maybe it is "aspartame baby". Either way, he still
cannot tolerate aspartame, nor can i and the other two children. We don't consume it deliberately and i can
taste the stuff a mile away. :-)
363. Date: Mon, 21 Oct 1996
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame
I believe that I have suffered some of the effects of Aspartame
after being a diet coke drinker for over 12 years. It began with symptons of insomnia and then
severe joint pain. I am currently being
treated for rheumatoid arthritis, but I eliminated aspartame completely from my
diet about two weeks ago. I have noticed
a marked improvement in my joints and I have also lost about 6 pounds. I understand that it also causes weight gain
in some people. I am very interested in more information on this subject and am
prepared to help spread the word.
[followup]
364. Date: Mon, 16 Dec 1996 09:16:14 -0500
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: NutraSweet update
As promised, I have enclosed my case history about
aspartame and intend to give the information about it to my rheumatologist when
i see him in the new year. In order to give a complete chronicle of my
aspartame problems I will start at the point that I began to have physical
problems and continue up to today. I will follow up with more information in
another sixty days. In the fall of 1995 I began to have some problems in my
right knee and left shoulder. My family
doctor treated me for migratory bursitis.
The medication seemed to work as the symptoms would go away in a couple
of days. At first it would only happen every few weeks or so.
By the spring of 1996, I began to have joint pain about
once or twice a week. A couple of more months with anti inflammatory drugs and
they seemed to help mask the pain, but not deal with it effectively. In early summer, my family doctor sent me to
a rheumatologist. I was put on a daily
dose of ibuprofen and chloroquine in late August 1996. The pain joint had then progressed to the
point where it occurred daily and in several joints at a time. I began to feel that I might be crippled with
this disease for life. It began to affect
my physical, social and mental life. I
stopped exercising for fear that I might do more damage to my weakened
joints. After a couple of months
on the program I began to feel marginally better, but
then began to search the internet for a solution.
I first looked at my diet, since that can be the cause of
many ailments, and realized that while not perfect, my diet was not that
bad. The only thing that I consumed too
much of was diet coke. I had known for quite a while that I was addicted to
diet coke, but never wanted to quit.
After all, it contained no sugar and only a 20% of the caffeine of a
regular coffee and I don't drink coffee.
On the internet I found Mission Possible who sent me information on
aspartame. So in early October I
completely quit ingesting aspartame, almost exclusively from the consumption of
diet coke. I didn't think that I would
be able to do it, but it was quite easy because of the side effects of
aspartame and the potential benefits of removing it from you diet.
Since quitting aspartame about two months ago the
improvements to my life have been:
1. My joint pain
has been reduced to a manageable level.
I still get pain in my joints when I am sleeping or sitting for long
period of time. However, once I get
moving the pain goes away very quickly.
2. The biggest
surprise is that I have lost 10 pounds in the 2 months that I have eliminated
aspartame from my diet. I have not
changed my diet with the exception of the fact that I drink a lot more water
and have the or regular coke. It is way
too sweet and rarely finish a full can.
3. I have begun to
exercise on a regular basis again and feel much better when I am exercising
that when I am resting. I even have the
ability to play squash.
4. My short term
memory seems to improve, but that one is a bit harder to put a finger on.
5. I have much
more energy at the end of the day than before I quit aspartame.
365. Date: Sat, 2 Nov 1996 21:50:56 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: HTML version?
My mother had complained for some time about aches in her
joints or muscles when she would exert herself at all. After she read that email, she quit
aspartame, and her problem disappeared.
My friend also had problems, with vision and skin, which went away when
he quit using nutrasweet--after reading your warnings. On behalf of them, and all the others who
benefit from your work, thank you.
366. Date:
Sat, 2 Nov 1996 21:46:37 -0500
Subject:
Nutrasweet/Formaldehyde/MCS
To: Multiple recipients of list ALLERGY
<ALLERGY@TAMVM1.TAMU.EDU>
Hats off to Lieberman, another knowledgeable member
on-line, who conveyed the message about
the metabolizing of Nutrasweet into Formaldyhyde !
[update]
367. Date: Mon, 18 Dec 1996
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
My story: Back in
92 I was on a diet, and consuming sugar free bubblegum, alot, and my vision
started going out , I mean completely to black for about 2 minutes at a
time. It was extremely scary, and my neurologist said it was due to aspertame,
as well as MSG. Now, I stay away from
the stuff like its poison, and tell everyone I can. Alot of people get horrible migraines as
well. My twelve year old son is allergic
to it as well with disabling headaches. Secondly, could you tell me other names that
aspertame commonly disguises itself under, such as other AKA's? Oh well that's probably coming in when I send
my request to you.
368. Subj:
Thanks for helping me lose weight
Date
Mon, 4 Nov 1996 12:54:23 -0800
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
I read in great detail the postings on the warnings
against consuming Aspertame, or "Equal". I just didn't understand why I was putting on
weight. I was blaming it on the Seattle
winters, it was the large consumptions of equal packages and diet aspertame
teas daily. Aspertame does mess with
your sorotin levels. I was craving
carbohydrates excessively. I would eat a
whole bag of rice cakes at one setting and a 1/2 bag of fat free corn chips,
etc. Now it's been 4 months that I don't
consume that product and I have lost the 8 lbs I had gained during the last two
years.
I still watched my weight, but my unusual cravings were anathema
to me. I'm so glad I read the warnings
and postings against this unnatural product.
I hope it helps someone else to see the cause of those cursed and
unwanted carbo cravings.
369. America Online/Diabetes/Diet & Nutrition
Discussion
Subj: Aspartame
Date: 96-08-23
12:44:37 EST
I'm amazed that there aren't more posts reguarding
NutraSweet. I drank a lot of the stuff plus all the extras(gum, puddings,ice
cream etc) thinking that it was safe...WRONG!. I had vision problems,
neuropathy, pains in my shoulders, headaches, ringing in my ears etc. All
symptoms but the pain were gone within two weeks after i stopped. Aspartame
triggers fibromyalgia which I now have and it doesn't seem to be going away.
When you are diabetic there is a tendancy to blame all the little aches and
pains on that...but it's not always diabetes. I've told non-diabetic friends
who have stopped drinking diet drinks and lost their migranes. They are always
surprised – and grateful. One of the most disturbing symptoms is a mental
clouding and lack of concentration. It's nice to have my brain back and be able
to read a book. comments?
370. Date: Tue, 9 Apr 1996
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: NutraSweet Horror - TO EMBALM..OR NOT TO
EMBALM
I am a type II diabetic diagnosed less than three
years. Yesterday, suddenly, I am having
trouble with my right eye. I cannot
imagine how anything come on so fast.
Yes, I do use Nutrasweet, and i would like some information.
[continued]
371. Date: Sat, 18 Oct 1996
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: NutraSweet Horror - TO EMBALM..OR NOT TO
EMBALM
My right eye is much better, although there are still
floaters. They are somewhat faded. The flashes are gone. Of course, no more nutrasweet
headaches. Did you know that at the
initial diabetes classes at the hospital, aspartame is encouraged, pushed for
your sugar substitute? You can sign up
and see for yourself, actually.
372. Re: Irregular heartbeat
Date
28 Oct 1996 12:16:06 -0800
Newsgroups
sci.med.cardiology
What _is_ this Snapple-diet-iced-tea ? It sounds diabolical. *8-( It's this Nutra-Sweet poisoned,
caffeinated garbage so many people seem to like. Someone begged me to try a bottle a month
ago, sent my ectopic heart beat into high gear. Drink more water people!
373. Date: Wed, 16 Oct 1996 21:46:42 -0700
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Aspartame Consumer
Safety Network Questionnaire
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
Peripheral vascular collapse, anaphalaxis
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
It was a process of elimination. I tracked the reactions,
and what I had eaten just before. Then I had a collapse shortly after eating
something I had no idea had nutrasweet. I've since had at least one other
similar event.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Certainly.
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
Long ago. He couldn't figure out what was causing it. He
suggested tracking what I ate.
Did Doctor think it related to aspartame?
Didn't know. He's dead now. Haven't consulted another
about this since I can control it if I'm careful.
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food &
Drug Admin.) or any other group?
No. Didn't know I could.
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were
you consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
Diet drinks - served at restaurants in place of regular
drinks ordered. Cookies with dietetic jam.
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each time, etc.)
First time, full glass of diet soda. Now, only a few sips, or half a diet cookie.
How long had you been consuming these products before
you experienced the symptoms?
Events take place from 15-30 minutes after consumption.
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT: Did you begin using
products with aspartame when you began a restricted
calorie diet?
No.
Did you use aspartame products only for some of your
meals to save calories?
Never intentionally consumed Aspartame
374. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
14 Oct 1996 23:36:22 GMT
Newsgroups sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
I too used to consume sodas with Nutrasweet. I used to get headaches, severe mood swings,
etc. I finally figured out where it was
coming from: Nutrasweet. Then I
researched and information made me believe even more so this was the case. My
wife received a liver transplant 4 years ago and the hospital suggested that
she stay away from dark colas, and one person suggested to stay away from
Nutrasweet. Neither of us touch anything
with this substance. It is definitely
bad stuff. We bought Vita Mix
mixer/juicer and what we made blows anything a soda could ever taste like. And it is way cheaper too when you handle
fruits right.
375. Nutrasweet.
Bad stuff. Very bad.
Date: Tue, 22 Oct 1996 12:14:29 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: sendme help
I've been staying away from aspartame for a while now,
ever since I found myself experiencing incredible periods of depression for
absolutely no reason (other than the fact that I was constantly drinking Diet
Coke!). Fortunately, my grandmother gave me a bit of Old-World advice when she told
me to stay away from any of that "synthetic junk." Now, I can't even look
at the stuff. Please send me any
information you have on aspartame--you're right, it is *POISON*.
Hello, I'm new to all this.
Date
Tue, 01 Oct 1996 18:34:31 -0500
Newsgroups alt.med.fibromyalgia
I got diagnosed with FM about 2 years ago after I was in
a bad auto accident. I'd love advice on
how to deal with the chronic fatigue and sleep disturbances.. and achyness in
the morning. I've already read enough to
realize I need to give up caffeine.. I already gave up diet coke and
nutrasweet... which helped alot with the hip pain.
376. Date: Wed, 9 Oct 1996
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: The poison aspartame.
xxxxx, I, like
xxxxxxx also suffered from aspartame poisoning From June of 1995 to June of
1996 I was using about 3 1/2 pkgs of Equal per day. During this year I suffered from diarrhea (all
the time), painful sore eyes, two blackouts similar to those suffered by xxxxxxx, painful upper arms,
painful neck, sharp pains of unknown origin, bleeding stomach, disorientation, and
constant intestinal problems. I too
found the answer on the internet. I
immediately quit using aspartame. Two
days later almost all my problems disappeared!
The pain in my upper arms is almost gone and my neck pains are greatly
diminished. There is no question that
aspartame caused my health problems.
377. Date: Sat, 19 Oct 1996 12:36:03 -0700
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame and the Eye
Dr. Roberts just wrote a paper on Aspartame and the Eye
that I have available on email
Could you please forward this article to me. I need it to
forward to my opthamologist. Several years ago I was diagnosed with Anterior
Membrane Corneal Dystrophy and have had one surgery because of it and was told
to expect more. A few months ago I
learned of the connection between Aspartame
and eye conditions and gave up drinking diet drinks and any known product with
aspartame. I stopped having corneal
tears and my vision stabilized (my vision would change as the day
progressed).. I still had my doubts and
wondered how much was pyschological.
After a complete eye examination yesterday it was confirmed that my eyes
have improved!
378. Date: Fri, 25 Oct 1996 14:14:36 -0500 (EST)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame questionnaire
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
Headaches
Short dizzy spells (10 seconds or so)
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
They seemed to increase the more I consumed the stuff
(Equal in tea, Diet Coke)
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
Yes (and in two cases when I fell off the wagon, I had
enormous headaches two hours later).
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
I mentioned it to my doctor during my annual pelvic exam.
Did Doctor think it related to aspartame?
She seemed a little skeptical, but told me to report back
to her how I felt after kicking it for a week.
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food &
Drug Admin.) or any other group?
No. How would I go about that?
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were
you consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
Equal, Diet Coke
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each time, etc.)
Tea: once or twice a day, two Equal packets 3-5 Diet Cokes
a day
How long had you been consuming these products before
you experienced the symptoms?
I've consumed them for several years, and I've also had
headaches for several years; I just didn't see a connection for a long
time. The brief dizzy spells happened in
the last two months, when my schedule became more hectic (my husband and I have
started a business) and I began drinking more caffeinated, artificially
sweetened beverages in order to cope.
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT: Did you begin using
products with aspartame when you began a restricted calorie diet?
Several years ago, but it was out of concern for cutting
down on sugar, not calories.
Did you use aspartame products only for some of your
meals to save calories?
No.
Did aspartame seem to help you lose weight at first?
No. I've noticed that my weight is affected far more by
whether I watch my fat intake and exercise rather than which sweetener I use.
What were the long term weight loss effects of using
aspartame.
Not much (for reason stated above)
Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
24 Oct 1996 21:31:00 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
I know people who have no reactions to the above products
whatsoever, however, if I ingest anything that contains these products, I get violently
ill, ranging (depending on the quantity ingested) from hives and headaches to anaphylactic
shock. I, for one, MUST AVOID ALL USE of these products in any form and any
product. Believe me, I read labels VERY carefully.
379. Date:
Thu, 19 Sep 1996 22:38:44 -0400
Reply-To:
"PARKINSN: Parkinson's Disease - Information Exchange Network"
<PARKINSN@LISTSERV.UTORONTO.CA>
Subject:
Re: Hello: Aspertame?!
I advocate for special needs children. I can't tell you how many mothers of children
with seizure disorders have told me about the dangers of Nutrasweet. Apparently, it increases seizures and
decreases mobility in children with some neurological defects. I've heard the warnings so many times that
I've taken to cautioning parents with impaired children about diet drinks.
380. Date: Sun, 29 Sep 1996
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: How to tell if aspartame is in a product?
Newsgroups: sci.med.nutrition
My daughter got a seizure when she had diet orange
soda. It was a grand mal one. I now do
not allow her to have nutrisweet, or MSG. Is there a chemical test that can be
performed on food to test it for this poison? I am afraid of giving my daughter
this poison if it is included in foods and not so labled. When I
think of all the children out there that could be poisoned I feel I
should do something about it. Our "government" now seems to be involved in dealing crack. Somehow, this does not suprise me since they allow this poison in the
supermarket. Where do these FDA criminals by their food? Or don't
they care? It seems tht the govenments top priority is reducing the population, by whatever means.
381. Diabetic Mailing List
Nutrasweet & Weight Gain
Fri, 04 Oct 1996 08:46:14 -0400 (EDT)
xxxxxx noted: that there have been some studies to
suggest that large amounts of Nutrasweet can possibly increase your appetite. This
is true, xxxxxx. Usually I'm in the sack
and sawing wood by 8:00, but last night I stayed up till 11 p.m. reading email
notes that were posted by several people who belong to various lists. A lot of people said they had started using
Nutrasweet/Aspartame as part of their diet to lose weight. Instead of losing,
they gained, as their appetite increased.
Some people have even experienced tingling and/or numbness in their
extremities and once they removed N/A from their diet their symptoms decreased
and even went away. I've noticed that
with myself. HOWEVER, YMMV. I've been w/out any N/A for over 24 hours now
and this is the first morning I've been able to get ready for work and not feel
like I was going to throw up.
[update]
382. Diabetes Mailing List
Aspartame/NutraSweet
Wed, 17 Sep 1997 10:27:47 -0400
First, it's my opinion that considering the FDA's track
record of late, that you not rely heavily upon their judgement, for now at
least. I'm sure you read the same article many of us have that exists on the
interent. Anyway, I've been w/out any Aspartame or Nutra-Sweet in my diet for a
year now and I can tell you my life's been a lot less complicated physically. Each
person reacts or doesn't react differently to Nurtra Sweet. For me, it was
gastric upset after gastric upset. No dx of gastroparesis was made after
expensive tests for it. Only until I cut out the Aspartame/Nutra-Sweet in my
diet did my gastric problems go away. I also lost 7 pounds after discontinuing the
"embalming" ingredient. My two sisters and my niece get severe
headaches from injesting it, so they avoid it like the plague, as well. YMMV.
383. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
Tue, 01 Oct 1996 10:35:02 GMT
Newsgroups sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
I'll add my 2 cents here:
I personally know one woman who was hospitalized with a severe headache
that wouldn't go away. After all the testing
to rule out tumors, etc, he doctors finally discovered that her problem was
caused by NutriSweet. She stopped
consuming the stuff and had an amazing recovery. Is this an isolated case? I don't think so.
Personally, I avoid all products that have the NutriSweet
logo like the plague because I think they taste disgusting. Do people actually *enjoy* the taste of diet
sodas??? It seems that our foolish
desire to think we are consuming something that keeps us from getting fat
prevents us from listening to our own bodies telling us what is good and what
isn't.
384. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
Tue, 1 Oct 1996 17:10:45 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
I only add to this thread because I blame Nutrasweet for
a symptom haven't seen mentioned yet.
Nutrasweet makes me stupid. I'll
try to remember somthing that I know I know - and I know is there in my head
but I can't get at it. Anyhow, haven't
had Nutrasweet in 2+ years and I'm back to my normal stupid self.
385. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date 9
Oct 1996 20:01:30 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilep
Some more anecdotal evidence. I have avoided Nutrasweet
for nine years now. My symptoms were not as dramatic as some mentioned, mearly
headaches. Sort of sore eye/thudding headaches every second day or so. Since I
was 16 and taking a lot of exams. I didn't think much of it I had been having headaches
at this frequency since I was about 9 year old. My headaches got a lot less
frequent when I stopped the nutrasweet, despite the fact that it was three
weeks before my O'levels. I would have expected the stress to increase.
I don't think I changed anything else in my life,
although another explanation may be that it was a placebo effect: I believed
the headaches would go and they did. However I think this is unlikely, as like other
people I have had headaches having unwittingly eaten nutrasweet.
386. Date:
Thu, 24 Oct 1996 23:24:31 -0400
Subject:
Re: excitotoxins (MSG & NutraSweet)
To: Multiple recipients of list ALLERGY
<ALLERGY@TAMVM1.TAMU.EDU>
Any time I eat or drink anything which contains
aspartame, I get an instant, violent migraine which will last for up to 12
hours despite medication. My neurologist says that this is not uncommon.
387. Re: NutraSweet causes weight gain?
Date Sun, 06 Oct 1996 09:32:25 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
NutraSweet gives me nasty cramps, so I don't use it at
all. ....
388. Date:
Fri, 25 Oct 1996 22:16:39 CST
Subject:
Re: Feeling out of sorts? NutraSweet?
To: Multiple recipients of list ALLERGY
<ALLERGY@TAMVM1.TAMU.EDU>
Initially, he was feeling great! But for past few weeks has severe headaches
daily, complains of feeling foggy and has a difficult time consentrating at
work (he is an engineer), and pain in eyes on focusing. (eye test was
20/20) He also has had what sounds like a panic attacks. All of
these reactions have been reported by those who have adverse
reactions to NutraSweet. I tried NutraSweet (aspertame)
ONCE and the adverse reaction was so strong I never tried it again.
389. Date: Tue, 1 Oct 1996 23:28:07 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: WE'VE MOVED. UNPACKED THE NEW
COMPUTER....
I actually stopped using Nutrasweet after reading
Constantine's book. I now have a lot less headaches, but I don't know if much
else has changed. My wife says I sometimes forget little things, but that's probably
more because my mind is cluttered up with a lot of work, etc. I used to drink a
lot of diet coke with Nutrasweet (or limonade with
nutrasweet)-- often a couple of liters a day. Any
long-lasting damage that can be expected, or anything I should have noticed
when I quit many months ago?
390. Has knowing family history helped your treatment?
Date 6
Oct 1996 02:32:49 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
My causes/triggers include dropping barometric pressure,
hormonal, cigarette smoke, perfume/other fragrances. sunlight/heat, nutrasweet,
sometimes dairy products, sometimes wine, and probably others I can't think of
right now.
391. Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 11:01:10 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame testimonial from xxxxx xxxxx, DN
To Whom It May Concern:
I, xxxxx xxxxx, DN, am a nutritionist who has had
physical problems due to consumption of Aspartame. In 1989 I made the connection between the consumption
of Aspartame and gastro-intestinal symptoms, including pain, gas
and bloating. This
was discovered by my keeping of a diary of food consumption and associated
symptoms. I confirmed this assumption by
way of multiple trials and abstentions.
Upon realising the connection I contacted the manufacturer, the Searle Company. I was informed that the company would not
take complaints. Since that time I have read articles which tell of the dangers
of Aspartame. In counseling patients/clients I always warn them of the dangers
of the uae of this product.
Thank you for helping to spread the truth about
Aspartame.
392. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
Sat, 28 Sep 1996 21:49:28 -0500
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
I used to be in the same boat. I started drinking Diet Coke
since it first came out with NutraSweet. I liked the Taste (that kinda burning-lots
of carbonation taste). In the past few years, I was drinking about 6 1-litre
bottles a Day! Geez. It seemed that I would start to develop a headache, and
when I drank anything with Nutrasweet, it would go away. After years, my headaches
just would Not leave. It was the kind of Dull Pain headache, all over. I
started to read some stuff on nutrasweet, and was horrified. I decided 2 years
ago to Quit cold turkey! I Quit, and for the next 3 days was bed-ridden with
the most intense Migrane's I have had ever had! The pain was so intolerable. It
was like
Ice Picks and C-Clamps going into my head from all over. After
3 days of torture, the just suddenly stopped. I have had only 2 headaches since
that last day.
One was attributed to my Aunt making some Jello for
Thanksgiving later that same year, and she is diabetic. I didnt know she used
Nutrasweet, but about 30-45 Minutes after finishing
Dinner, I started to get a Migrane again. It lasted for
about 3 hours and then subsided. The Other Headache was attributed to Beer
(Superbowl Party). I have been Nutra sweet free for 2 years now, and I now
dream! Since I can remember, I never had dreams while drinking Diet Coke. After
quitting Nutrasweet, I really dream vividly. I dont remember ANY dreams until I
quit.
In any case, its bad stuff. Stay away from it.
393. Re: NUTRASWEET
Date
27 Sep 1996 18:12:39 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.epilepsy
The nutrasweet/epilepsy connection is not nonsense -- it
has been well documented both scientifcally and anecdotally. If I consumer over
16oz/day of anything containing nutrasweet, my normally-controlled grand mals
return with a vengence.
394. Re: Nutrasweet warning?
Date
21 Sep 1996 18:18:19 -0400
Newsgroups misc.kids.health
I am the Director of the Childrens Health and Nutritional
Aid Foundation. Our goal is to teach parents and children as well as schools to
make correct food choices. As well as
nutritional awareness... Yes, the rumor is correct. NutraSweet as well as other sweetners have harmful
effects on the human body. That starts with bad eye sight, blurry vision, upset
stomach, loose stool, hair loss, urinal trac infections and much more.
Chest pains
Date
25 Sep 1996 05:31:39 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.anxiety-panic
i have also found drinking things with nutra-sweet
increases the chance I will suffer chest pain and headaches. which really sucks
because I, not unlike models and lab rats, have developed a taste for the
stuff.
395. Re: NUTRASWEET (> 300 lines)
Date 6
Oct 1996 05:05:39 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.med,sci.med.pharmacy,mi
sc.health.diabetes,alt.conspiracy,alt.drugs,alt.med.allergy,alt.support.epilepsy
Perceived? PERCEIVED? Would you like my doctor bills? I
loved my caffeine-free Diet Cokes - had to have 3 or 4 every day. Then one day,
I ended up in the emergency room (C-F diet coke in hand) with major heart disturbances...PVCs,
they called it. Said to get the heck off
of nutrasweet, but beware - it would take a while. After a couple of weeks, there was a
significant difference. After a year, the PVCs were *almost* a memory. Now after 17 months, I KNOW that my PVCs are
the result of nutrasweet. I still have them, but I am hopeful that in five
year's time, they will be completely gone.
*Perceived* my foot.
396. Subj:
Re: Lupis * Nutrasweet
Date:
96-09-22 11:08:56 EDT
To:
xxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx
INCREDIBLE! xxxxxx, I had already made a similar
discovery a few years ago. I used to drink diet coke by the gallon, and would
suffer these monster migraine-type headaches lasting for days at a time. My
boss mentioned reading
that there can be a connection between such headaches and
nutrasweet. I was grasping at straws, but stopped all nutra immediately and ---
as if by magic: no more headache. My lupus symptoms were pretty bad at that
time, but have lessened over time. Remission finally came with a combination of
three factors: an agressively positive attitude change about my health;
carefully moderating everything from stress to diet; and (I give the prize to
this) the two drugs Plaquenil and Zoloft. Needless to say, I strictly avoid
nutrasweet and its sisters, because hey - what else might it be doing?!
397. Date: Thu, 26 Sep 1996 01:36:41 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: Re: Aspertame
Several winters ago my wife was having headaches, and she
didn't know what was causing them. Then
we got a cold spell, and she stopped drinking iced tea - it's popular down here
even in the winter - but during this cold snap she switched to warm beverages -
and the headaches suddenly stopped. She had
been using an iced tea mix that contained aspertame, and so she postulated that
it was the aspertame that caused the headaches - so she
abandoned it, but was afraid to share her experience for
fear of being ridiculed.
One Sunday morning that spring we were sort of listening
to television – you have it on the channel that you had last listened to, but
you're not paying attention - until we heard them talking about aspertame - and
then we both listened to the show and learned how bad it could be.
Well, I am blessed with not having headaches, so I agreed
with her staying away from it, but I kept on with my diet drinks. She had suggested that I try stopping them
for a while. I'm hard headed, Nancy, but
no so much so that I didn't jump on your article to try to learn more. The URL suggested by Kathrynne Holden was
particularly damning. To be fair, I'd
like to see some defense, but I doubt that there could be much.
398. Date: Tue, 24 Sep 1996 14:45:31 -0400
To: lowcarb@manual.com
Subject: Weight loss and aspartame/Nutrasweet
I am growing to believe the aspartame critics are
right. In whole or in part I can't say,
but my own personal experience, and stories I'm hearing from others, is getting
too hard to ignore. My wife an I both had frequent mild headaches for
years. We never attributed this to
aspartame. They headaches were mild
enough (a couple of
aspirin or Tylenols would fix them usually) we just
thought they were normal, or that they were allergy-related.
Within days of giving up nutrasweet we both noticed a
drop in the frequency of our headaches.
The longer we were off the more it helped; it's been about a month now
and headaches are starting to seem unusual rather than a
part of everyday life. More compellingly, we started
noticing only a week after quitting that our cravings for sweets dropped
dramatically.
399. Date: Sun, 22 Sep 1996 19:11:15 -0400
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Regarding asparatame
From the Desk of: xxxxxxx
Sunday, Sep 22, 1996
I attach a virus free text document Ascii, dealing with
my own case history and aspartame. I've more , two of the three of the other
line pilots at Xxxxxxxx Air developed side effect from diet soda, supplied via;
Mcdonnalds,
and the Company vending machine. That's three out of five
employee's!
Sincerely Yours,
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
To Whom it may concern;
In reading : Aspartame: :"What you don't konw can
hurt you", I rememberd an expriance
with this substance a few years ago, It really
wasn't until this year I through independant research, I could link my own
medical problems and those of my colleagues to Aspartame poisining. The case
hisotry I will relate is frightning, and I hope serves as a Warning to others
that are obese to avoid Aspartame in their diets.
It was summer of 1992, After loading my aircraft the load
master told me if I didn't lose weight, they would have to get a new pilot; Is
that motivation? I went to the Aeromedical examiner; was put on a 1000 caloire
diet witch included, diet soda, inclusive in my instructions were ."you
can have as much diet soda, tea or coffee you desire". So my Cokacola's
became those sweetied with Nutra sweet, and I started using it in baking etc.
to reduce the calorie content of my meals anyway I could.
Within six months I stated to experiance joint aches, difficulty
remembering, ,mostly number strings and so did my aged father; a diabetic, The
symptoms were insidious in onset and to be honest it started with difficulty
copying instrument clearances, so I insatlled a computer to do that; then it
was vertigo-, time for a innner ear check?; then the joint pain, dismissing the
vertigo to wieght loss and an increase my exercise bringing on the joint pain, then it was inritablibility; outburst
of temper over the smallest incident. I then developed skin liesions, on my
scalp, and arms, which required surgical exorcison. By accident while , I was
crusing the net, that I found information about Aspartame, I then computed the
amount of the toxic subtanse I had recieved; and discointued using any product
that constained aspartame. My symptoms are
reversing; the Ironic thing is, I did lose my job, and the Company had to get a new pilot it wasn't
becasue of my wieght; it was due to the fact I couldn't function at my job. The
FAA sent me a letter wishing to review
my qualification to hold an airmans
medical -- saying I may not be qualifed, due to a known medical problem-- Were
they was really saying; "you've been using aspartame and because of that
you are sick"!
I'm glad to get the heads up on this, at least it
afforded me the opportunity to do somthing for myself, and I do feel a lot better,
and my mental confusion, is no longer present, my ability to rememebr number
strings is improved, along with my ability to transfer objects to long term
memeory. My skin lesions are healing; and any intestional probelms I expeianced
are diminishing. even my wieght loss is improved, in that I no longer battle a
craving for chocolate.
My symptoms have reversed, I don't know if I'll be able
to ever get a medical; both my father and I feel, we've been made part of a
beta test in humans without our knowledge and consent, and as a result of
Aspartame, have lost our health to some degree. Now like any other medical
illness it's time to heal-- if that is\ possible! I intend to persue any legal
remidy, in that I have lost my ability to be employed, and fully believe that
it was due to Asparatame poisoning!
Respecfully,
xxxxxxxxxx
400. Re: What do you wish you liked? (was Re: Uncanny
resemblance...)
Date
22 Sep 1996 20:10:11 GMT
Newsgroups
rec.food.cooking
No! Be glad! NutraSweet breaks down into BAD things in
your body!! In my case, it breaks down into migraines.
401. Date: Sat, 21 Sep 1996
To: xxxxxx@xxxx.xxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame
Mt mother, a faithful PD'er, tells me you have info on
Aspartame (NutraSweet). Since I stopped using it, I have not had a single
migraine headache, which I have had since I was 13 years old. Will you share your info with me, please?
(P.S. A friend
told me earlier today that Equal was the only thing he'd ever heard of that
even roaches wouldn't eat!) Thanks so
much.
402. Date: Thu, 19 Sep 1996 11:56:48 -0800
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: stevia
You certainly have permission to use my
"story", although i don't know how much of a story it really is...I
stopped
using nutrasweet and products containing aspartame about
2 months ago...I have hypoglycemia and ADD and also have many food allergies --
yeast, wheat, sugar, etc. Since I
stopped using nutrasweet and drinking diet sodas (I used to use about 1 to 2
packets a day, and drink about 1 diet soda a day) I feel 100% better....my
blood sugar level is now under control, and i no longer crave sugar or
unhealthy foods...i no longer have that "dieter's" mentality...i
simply eat whole, natural foods when i'm hungry...
The reason that i say i do not have much of a story is
that i am not sure whether to attribute this to getting off of
aspartame, or just adopting a more healthy diet overall
and eating lots of sunrider stuff...however, i have no doubt
that getting off of the nutrasweet and diet soda
helped...In addition, I used to suffer from short term memory loss and have
other symptoms which I attributed to candida...after reading a lot of your
testimonials, now i believe that it
was probably because of the aspartame in part, if not
entirely...
403. Date: Fri, 24 Jan 1997 20:57:19 -0800
To: xxxxx@xxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: stevia
I am doing much better now that i am off of nutrasweet
(which has been about 6 months). The one
or two times that i have had nutrasweet in that period (such as in a non-sugar
latte), i have experienced detectable "brain fog" and confusion. I just wish that stevia tasted better in
coffee, but i'm really getting quite used to herbal tea...
404. Date: Tue, 17 Sep 1996 20:56:32 -0000
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: RE: send me help
Yes, I got it to work and downloaded several
reports. Thanks to your effort, my
family is now aspartame free. We have
noticed numerous benefits including better memory and less fatique. Two weeks ago, I accidentally got a can of
pop with aspertame, and decided to go ahead and drink it. Never again. It actually gave me stomach cramps and
nausia.
405. Re: Nutrasweet, ok or best to avoid it?
Date
15 Sep 1996 07:22:38 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
I am not related to the sugar industry in anyway, but I
am definitely anti-nutrasweet. Now if a
person has diabetes than fine, it is an o.k substitute, but it causes
migraines, gas, diarreah, uncontrollable shaking and weakness in me if I even
accidentally ingest some (sometimes idiots assume that I want diet coke instead
of regular coke, because I am
overweight). My
husband also gets headaches from it, but his are minor. I know a few people who
have problems with it, so I would suggest that if a person can have a healthier
alternative that they try to find it.
406. Re: Diet Soft= Migraine Trigger
Date
Sat, 14 Sep 1996 19:32:07 -0700
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Most definitely, aspartame in anything triggers my worst
headaches, especially at certain time of month.
MSG is second worst culprit, followed by pickled or brine-packed
foods.
407. Diabetic Mailing List
X-Url:
http://www.Lehigh.EDU/lists/Archives/diabetic/0890.html
Re: A1C & more :)
Thu, 12 Sep 1996 00:18:20 -0400 (EDT)
It does mine! Two cans of Diet Pepsi raised my bg from
121 to 309, and held it there for 7 hours. Weirdest thing, that was the only
time I've had 4 widely spaced tests come out at EXACTLY the same figure! I must
mention here that I AM ALLERGIC to NutraSweet. YMWACV (Your Mileage Will Almost
Certainly Vary)!!!! Oh well, heck of a reason to
be harassed for 5 years then laid off by AT&T and
become active online,
408. Diabetic Mailing List
X-Url: http://www.Lehigh.EDU/lists/Archives/diabetic/0890.html
Re: A1C & more :)
Thu, 12 Sep 1996 13:35:02 -0500 (EST)
I know in my case, Nutrasweet has been known to cause
migranes. I have always tried to stay
away from the stuff myself, but with getting under control, there is not a
whole lot out there anymore.
409. Subj: Re: Nutrasweet
Date: 96-07-17 00:11:10 EDT
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxx
I have a very good
health fooe store here and the owner is the first one who told me about the
danger of aspertame. The day she told me, I had just missed a talk at her store
by an ex FDA employee who told them Nutrasweet paid a big chunk of$ to someone
in the FDA to slide it through. Wish I knew more about it,but I don,t. Seems like everyone is afraid to say anything.
Do we already have a"big brother is watching you" government?
410. Re: Diet Softdrink = Migraine Trigger?
Date Mon, 16 Sep 1996 01:23:13 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
I can't have anything diet without a migraine attack
lasting several days. The last time was a piece of gum with nutrasweet. I was in bed 2 days. I'd say there's a link, but that's based only
on my own experience. I know that I can't take much nutrasweet. It gives me headaches big time! There has been research on it and I know for
a fact that pilots are strongly advised NOT to drink/eat any Nutrasweet before
a flight. I don't think it's good stuff for a lot of people.
411. Re: It's my Birthday -- everyone's invited!
Date
Sat, 14 Sep 1996 00:57:03 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.books.m-lackey
Well, I can't eat anything with nutrasweet in it because
it gives me a kidney infection. I don't
know if it affects everyone's kidneys, or if it's just because I was put
together with Superglue and rubber bands.
I have heard that you should not give it to children, though.
412. Re: It's my Birthday -- everyone's invited!
Date
12 Sep 1996 11:20:25 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.books.m-lackey
If that's the case, remind not to make a banana
milkshake, because I'm allergic to the stuff.
I get the nastiest migraine from it in any quantities over thatcontained
in a stick of gum. Might as well put me
in a black, soundproof, padded room until it's out of my system.
413. Re: Diet Softdrink = Migraine Trigger?
Date
Thu, 12 Sep 1996 05:42:40 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Yeah, I've heard that NutraSweet has long been considered
a cause of headaches as well as other things. I also have the suspiscion that
MSG makes me headache prone too. Could this be possible? Both are major
triggers for me. I really find that
Chinese food is a killer, and I will not drink diet drinks no matter what, if
you do, follow up with as much water as you can, it seems to help flush your system.
Leslie
414. Re: Knowledgable Fitness People PLEASE HELP ME
Date
Thu, 12 Sep 1996 16:30:01 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.fitness.misc
I can play 'psychic' now with people who use lots of it
by describing their symptoms to them without asking. I stopped using it because
I needed to remember my home phone number.
But that's just another blip on the list of things people experience
with this wonderful product! The whole story is such a classic example of
Americans and
the world being hosed by some truly evil pinheads, it
almost reminds me of my other favorite food ... Olestra! ;)
415. Date: Sun, 21 Jul 1996
From: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxx.xxxx
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Thanks xxxxxx
My brother-in-law is an aspartame junky (drinks several
diet pop drinks a day) and he now has many health problems. I've tried to get him off that poison, but
he's the sort who figures that if it's legal, it must be safe
kind of nonsense.
But, I figure with your articles, maybe it will help set him
straight. Problem is, with some people,
they are addicts or... just plain stubborn.
[continued]
416. Date: Thu, 12 Sep 1996 12:50:09 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Thanks xxxxxxx (2)
It was difficult to get him to initially quit. But he finally decided to stop drinking diet
soft drinks (and all other Aspartame tainted stuff) after his symptoms
worsened. His doctor was about to
prescribe him all sorts of wonderful anti-inflamatories, however, I pleaded
with my brother-in-law to give up Aspartame first, before trying all those
drugs. After a couple of weeks, he called me up thanking me... Apparently his achy
joints, fatigue all disappeared. My
sister said he's a new man now. They came up last weekend, and he was
definately looking better. We
talked about it, and he now realizes that the Aspartame
was responsible.
417. Date: Thu, 12 Sep 1996 10:13:09 -0400
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: Re: Pop or Soda? (was Re: Canadian Shows)
I've been interested in the aspartame thing since its
introduction. While I'm not the person who brought the subject up, I did
respond (stroke, blindness, etc.). I recognized the problem the first time
(only time) I ingested it -- I
had the worst blinding migraine, veins bulging in
forehead, etc. This was within the first month that it was on the market, and I
had been given a diet Coke when I ordered a regular one. I had only had one
really bad headache in
my life prior to this episode.
418. Re: Too much diet coke
Date 9
Sep 1996 02:30:48 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
You should watch the aspertame in the DIET drinks. Since giving up Diet Pepsi, my chronic UTI
(bladder infections) are gone!!! I do
drink regular Pepsi now with no problems.
419. Re: Is Coke a poison?
Date 5
Sep 1996 21:36:52 -0400
Newsgroups
sci.med.nutrition
My mother-in-law has problems with diet Coke,
particularly aspartame. I saw some interesting (and scary) postings recently
on: http://www.vitawise.com You should
check it out if you drink anything with aspartame.
420. Date: Tue, 09 Jul 96 08:44:58 cst
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: Alzheimer's notice
I live and work in San Antonio, and I received the
message on "aspartame" with the letter accompanying it. Is this a "REAL" world problem
that really does do what the letter says it will to humans? Of course, I
am concerned since most of my family uses Sweet n Low and drinks diet drinks.
[continued]
421. Date: Thu, 05 Sep 96 07:34:23 cst
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re[4]: Alzheimer's notice
Thanks for asking.
My wife and I both quit drinking diet anything and actually threw out
some cooking stuff that had aspartame in it, and now after 8 weeks+, we both
feel much better, have more energy and memory has returned to even better than
before, but that's hard to comprehend since I never knew it was going. Haha But, I have since made several
copies of the information that you sent me, plus others, and distributed to my
entire family and as many friends as I can find that will listen to me about
this killer.
Every time I see
someone at work drinking a diet soda, I give them a copy of the original thing
you sent me, and so far, most have complied to see if it does make a difference
in them or their family members. It's a shame that the damned FDA will not pull
this substance from the shelves, but we both know the power of money and
politics, so it may be a moot point for some time to come, unless you can find
a STRONG politician to get this banned from human consumption.
Your efforts are appreciated by those of us who have
experienced the effects of this drug, and your efforts will one day pay off, so
please keep pressing and the good work will pay off some day.
422. Subject:
my wonderful daughter
Date:
1996/08/17
Newsgroups:
alt.support.mult-Sclerosis
My name is xxxxxx. I was diagnosed about two years ago.
In that time my most persistant and consistant symptom has been muscle spasms.
These got to be so bad that I couldn't sleep at all and could barely walk. In
my search for relief, I met an osteopathic doctor who told me to cut out diet
soft drinks.Now I am somewhat overweight and have been drinking Diet Coke as a
way of life for years. Within five days of stopping, my spasms dissappeared.
Shortly after that I had a small glass of Diet Coke to see if I could at least
have a little. The spasms returned immediately.
The reason I called this "my wonderful daghter"
is we were given a report by my doctor about aspartame as a neurotoxin.My
daughter posted that report here hoping to save some of you from the same kind
of agony that I experienced. I know that some of you have heard more than
enough about the dangers of nutrasweet, but please read just this one more
piece. I know from personal experience just how nasty this stuff can be.
423. Subject:
Re: diet 7 UP
Date:
1996/08/18
Newsgroups:
alt.support.anxiety-Panic
I, too, have strong reactions -- blazing headache,
dizzyness, irritability after consuming aspartame (NurtaSweet). Best reason I know of to remain a sucrose
abuser!
424. Subject:
Re: No Aspartame
Date:
1996/08/19
Newsgroups:
misc.health.diabetes
I quit using aspartame around the end of June. I'm
drinking LOTS more water, which has to be good! When I want to enjoy a
"social" beverage or have a taste for something just a little sweet
and fizzy, I've been trying all kinds of fruit juices in mineral water -- about
1 to 3, fruit juice to mineral water. Obviously we can't overdo the fruit
juice, but I usually drink about one of these a day, and I really enjoy it.
Also, you can get somewhat of the same thing in a can at the health food store.
Knudsen makes a Light Spritzer -- about 100 calories for 12 ounces -- just
fruit juice and mineral water -- in interesting flavors. Good luck. I won't
enter into the war of words on the aspartame subject,
and I don't know which studies to believe. I do know that
I'm feeling much, much better.
425. Subject:
Food and drinks
Date:
1996/08/20
Newsgroups:
alt.support.crohns-Colitis
I have a spastic colon. I find that fruit juice or cider
irratates it. Also recently I've been drinking diet 7up with nutra sweet and it
seems it gives me alot of gas and dirrea after I drink it.
426. Subject:
Re: My Personal Nutrasweet Nightmare
Date:
1996/08/22
Newsgroups:
misc.health.alternative
Nutrasweet is horrible!!
After drinking it for years, I finally realized it was the cause of intense
migrane headaches and short term memory loss.
427. Subject:
Re: Aspartame
Date:
1996/08/22
Newsgroups:
ne.food
I've recently switched to Stevia - an herbal sweetener
that comes in liquid or powder form. It doesn't effect my blood sugar levels at
all, unlike Nutrisweet or fructose. I had a hard time finding Stevia at health food
stores. Found it in the *dietary supplement* section at Bread & Circus,
strangely enough not in the sweetener section. Its hard to bake
with because it doesn't do the same things to the
consistency of the baked goods as sugar, but I don't bake much so it hasn't
adversely affected my life.
428. Date: Tue, 10 Sep 1996 12:02:07 -0400
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx
xxxxxx, here is my story. A few years ago I decided to
lose a few pounds. So I watched by fat and cut out the sugar. I bought diet jello, soda, etc. and it all
contained aspartame. Within a week I started having headaches, my head felt
stuffed up and generally not feeling like myself. I made an appointment for a
physical. A couple of days before my appointment, my mother saw on our local
news a story about aspartame and the sideeffects. My mother said to me you have
all the side effects. Lets cut out all the aspartame and see what happens. So I
stopped all the aspartame and and within a few days I started to feel like my
old self. I know it was the aspartame because about a month later I
accidentally had a piece of gum with aspartame in it and within 15 min. had a
splitting headache. I know avoid aspartame all together.
429. Subject:
Re: DHEA
Date:
1996/08/08
Newsgroups:
alt.folklore.herbs
I was recently very pleased to find that I could purchase
DHEA troches here in Sydney Australia. What I need to know is- what do they
make the actual troche from. Mine is very green and has a very strong mint
flavour as well as being quite sweet. The Pharmacist trained in the USA so I
presume he follows the same recipe. I am concerned that the troche may contain
aspartame (nutrasweet) and artificial coloring. The day after a use a troche I
have a migraine and visual disturbances much the same as if I inadvertently
ingest either of the above mentioned substances.
430. Re: lost memory
Date Mon, 2 Sep 1996 12:57:26 +0100
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
BTW it's been a lot better since I eliminated aspartame.
431. Re: soft drinks as triggers?
Date 2
Sep 1996 05:05:14 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.support.headaches.migraine
I stay away from diet soda due to the fact I react
negatively to the asparatame and/or nutrasweet. (are they the same)? Anyway, those give me a headache so I stay
awa from it in all products.
432. Re: nutrasweet and diarrhea
Date
Mon, 02 Sep 1996 19:17:14 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.health.diabetes
[diarrhea]
The very same thing had been happening to me, so as an
experiment I stopped drinking anything with Nutrasweet in it. The d_____
.problem stopped cold, and hasn't recurred. I now drink tea with sweet &
low.
433. Date: 23 AUG 1996 13:29:36 GMT
Newgroups: misc.health.diabetes, rec.food.drink,
sci.med.pharmacy, misc.health.alternative
Subject: Re: Artificial Sweeteners was Re: My Personal
Nutrasweet Nightmare
I have totally eliminated my migrane headaches by
eliminating aspartame from my diet.
434. Date: Fri, 30 Aug 1996 23:09:44 -0400
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: Nutrasweet Story
I remember when Nutrasweet first came out. I liked it and started using it. I drank diet
sodas (a couple each day) and used it in my coffee. After a year I became mysteriously ill. I had headaches and was nauseous most of the
time. I would have
dizzy spells. The doctors could find anything wrong. I became desperate after being so sick for so
long and eliminated everything that contained chemicals from my life--I even
quit smoking I was so desperate to find some relief. I only ate food I made myself from fresh ingredients--no
prepared mixes. I finally felt well
again. In time, I added things back into
my diet. (I even went back to
smoking--oh well) but the one thing that turned out to be a trigger was the nutrasweet. A year after I quit using it I wondered if
maybe I had just been consuming too much so I tried 1 diet soda. I had the worst reaction I had ever had. I had the airplane spins and was sick as
though I'd been drinking lots of alcohol (I hadn't had any alcohol). I've avoided it religiously since. Sometimes sodas get mixed up in a
restaurant. Even a small amount makes me
sick to my stomach.
I am concerned because my reaction and others seem to be
neurologically related. I am very
concerned because they now use it in children's food. Everyone is so worried about Joe Camel
appealing to children--what about nutrasweet! It's scary to think the affects
it could have on children as they are developing. Yet it's put in foods that are specifically
targeted to children. I don't get
it. I cringe everytime I note a new
children's product with it.
And now that it's going off patent people can't rely on
seeing the Nutrasweet trademark prominently displayed. Now people like me will have to read ingredients
labels carefully. Most won't even
notice. People will be less
likely to suspect they are having a reaction to it when
it becomes an ordinary food additive like riboflavin so reactions to it will be
less likely to be diagnosed. At least
get it out of children's food!
435. Subject:
UPDATE- caffeine and Nutrasweet
Date:
1996/08/30
Newsgroups:
alt.support.anxiety-Panic
I recently stopped using anything with caffeine and
Nutrasweet (aspartame) in it.... I am happy to tell you I HAVE noticed a
difference in my anxiety levels. It took a few days for the effects to start,
and perhaps for my body to detoxify itself. But I now believe I will avoid
these altogether. I was a diet soda Junky and now am drinking regular
(non-caffeine) Pop and lots of flavored water. The results have been worht it
for me.... Just thought it might help someon else out there...
436. Subject:
Re: Diet Softdrink =3D Migraine Trigger?
Date:
1996/08/28
Newsgroups:
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Is the a link between diet softdrinks and migraines? YES
YES YES!!! One of my worst! I think it
is the nutra sweet.
437. Subject:
Re: Nutrasweet
Date:
1996/08/09
Newsgroups:
alt.support.eating-Disord
I missed the original post, but this is an interesting
subject. For a long time while
"dieting" I used to get really bad headaches and just passed it off
to stress, hunger, whatever. I finally
came to realize that they were being caused by Nutrasweet. It never fails, every time I imbibe the stuff
I get a raging headache, and I don't normally suffer from headaches. It's happened to me accidentally, too, so
it's not just "in my head".
Since I started bringing it up to people, I've found out that I'm far
from being the only one to suffer such side effects. Anyone else notice anything similar?
438. Subject:
Re: Novel words and repetition and popsicles!
Date:
1996/08/12
Newsgroups:
bit.listserv.autism
My son loves popsicles.
His favorite was orange until I moved him to sugar free and then he got
hooked on Dole! We finally had to take
them away all together -- between the Nutrasweet and the food coloring, he was
out of
control.
439. Subject:
Re: MY EYES HURT HELP!
Date:
1996/08/15
Newsgroups:
alt.support.diet.rx
I had a problem with dry eyes, very thick mucousy tears,
etc. for quite some time. My doctor (and
my eye doctor) mentioned allergies and getting older, but didn't really
help. Then I read in some holistic
publication that aspartame contains something like 10% wood alcohol, and excess
use can cause eye problems. Since I was
drinking about 6 diet sodas/day, I took note of this and decided to quit. My eye problems cleared up immediately. I don't use aspartame (Equal) any more,, and
find that cold water is just as satisfying to me as the diet sodas used to
be. Hope this is of some help.
440. Subject:
Re: Aspartame
Date:
1996/08/24
Newsgroups:
ne.food
Back in the early '80s I was a bit of a Diet Pepsi fiend –
probably consuming 4 to 6 cans a day at work.
One day I was in the John reading the newspaper when I noticed a odd
flickering. The flickering became so bad
that I couldn't read any more. Aside
from flickering, everything had rainbow fringes around it. Now I suppose 10
years earlier, I might have paid good money for a drug that did that, but the
accompanying headache - and the need to be able to read - made this an unpleasent
and frightening experience. I drove home
(foolish youth!) and in about 2 hours of laying in a dark room the headache
disappeared. My opthomologist said I had
a classic migraine headache. Maybe,
although I never heard anyone describe symptoms like that to their migraines. I
don't remember how many additional episodes it took before I decided to heed a
co-workers earlier advise that I stop drinking that poison. Aside from an
additional episode when I drank some Crystal Lite at a picnic, I've never had
those migraines again.
441. Subject:
Re: WARNING! NUTRASWEET IS A NEUROTOXIN
Date:
1996/08/24
Newsgroups:
alt.support.mult-Sclerosis
Look, I don't know exactly how badly it reacts with
others, but most of my symptoms faded when I stopped drinking diet coke. I'm
not trying to tell people to stop or keep going, just relating my own experience.
For all I know, it could just be a remission. I've been off diet coke for
several months now, and the only thing that still bothers me from time to time
is the fatigue.
442. Subject:
Re: Diet Softdrink =3D Migraine Trigger?
Date:
1996/08/25
Newsgroups:
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Is the a link between diet softdrinks and migraines? I
have definitely found a relationship between aspartame and my ha's. I have
eliminated diet sodas, etc. from my diet and found some improvement.
443. Subject:
Re: Diet Softdrink =3D Migraine Trigger?
Date: 1996/08/26
Newsgroups:
alt.support.headaches.migraine
Nutrasweet is murder for me! I tried to start drinking diet/caffeine free
cokes, and developed terrible headaches almost on a daily basis. I can use
saccrin in my ice tea w/o any problems, but n/s is a major trigger.
444. Re: UPDATE- caffeine and Nutrasweet
Date
Fri, 30 Aug 1996 17:20:37 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.anxiety-panic
I also stopped drinking diet soda and anything with
NutraSweet in it a few years back.
Within a few weeks there was a noticeable difference. I stopped feeling
shaky and sick all of the time and the panic and anxiety symptoms didn't
disappear (I am still dealing with it) but they did get better. I hope this can help someone else!
445. Re: Need supplement advice
Date
Sat, 31 Aug 1996 05:29:43 GMT
Newsgroups
bit.listserv.autism
I can't help with the aggression, but as far as the itchy back goes, several
members of my family had this and a medical friend suggested the removal of
nutrasweet and other artifical sweeteners ....and it worked! No more itchy back, sounds crazy but you
might want to try it, I doubt you're
letting him drink diet soft drinks
:-) but you'd be amazed at what
nutrasweet is in (ie like childrens vitamins...). I could swear I've also read about it in relation
to
aggravating exzema,
maybe someone else can comment.
446. Date: Thu, 29 Aug 96 00:52:14 PDT
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: My lack of response
I am feeling better, in fact I haven't felt this good in
years! Thanks for the concern. I ended
up going in the hospital for 2 weeks.
The week before I went into the hospital I weighed 378 lbs. on a very
broad but only 5'6" frame. When I
got out I weighed 315 lbs. and I now weigh 310 lbs. I was so full of fluid that I could hardly
move.
I am still aspartame free. The joint pain in my hands and fingers, though
still there, is not debilitating. I
suspect what I am feeling is probably arthritic. I am going to paste the diary I never
finished here and then notate the complaints:
May 12, 1996
I have been free of aspartame now for 2 weeks. Today I
received all the articles from Betty, and printed them out. I noticed that dry mouth
is a symptom of aspartame poisoning( what I choose to call this situation ) and
that I have not experienced this for over a week now. I also started noticing
yesterday that I am getting some more feeling
in my legs and feet. It is in short periods like a light
switch being turned on and off but mostly off. But it's there.
I need to list the problems that I am experiencing:
1.) Dry mouth [ * mostly gone I am on a ton of diuretics]
2.) Loss of
feeling in my legs,feet, hands, and to some degree my forearms.[* diminished
but some probably due to fluid expulsion]
3.) Joint pain in
all the joints of my 10 fingers, wrists(mostly), elbows and
shoulders(frequently) [* 90% gone]
4.) Insomnia [* better but I have sleep apnea]
5.)
Vision--Blurred( snaps in and out ), floaters(occas.),
"fogginess" both vision and mentally(occas) [* about gone but I need
to have eye exam because of diabetes]
6.) Depression---
Dr. has given me an Rx for Paxil
7.) Fatigue-
always tired [* great except when sugars
get too high]
8.)
Palpatations [* gone]
9.) Sudden
aprehensions [* gone]
10.) Vertigo, different degrees(occas.) [* very, very
rarely]
11.) Locomoting--unsteady gait, loss of balance [* not even close to the degree I experienced
in the past]
* Indicates
8/29/96 notation
------------------------------------------------------------------------
May 13, 1996
Today I am having a terrible time with joint pain in my
fingers, but worst of all in my shoulders.
It's rainy today. I have been disoriented most of the day and have had
to really think hard to accomplish mundane tasks in the lab. My vision is foggy
and at times blurrs. Today is day 18 without aspartame.
_____________________________________________________________________________
May 14, 1996
Ditto fingers and shoulders. Vision ok
__________________________________________________________________________
May 15,1996
Fingers are much better even though it's rainy! Rt.
shoulder is still painful.
------------------------------------end of
diary----------------------------
I hope this is of some help to you. I'm sorry I didn't keep it up but I was
already getting sick at this time. I'm
sure there was a profound withdrawal reaction that I experienced, and it was
really bad for a time. If you can use
this info or any of my e-mails you have my permission to use it to help
others. I am carrying on the crusade but
people are difficult to convince, or they are playing ostrich with their heads
in the sand. Thank you!
447. Date: Wed, 21 Aug 1996 22:54:01 +0600
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxxx
Subject: RE: Your aspartame story to Betty Martini
I broke my hip in 1975 and the doctor told me to expect
the onset of arthritis. Four years later
I had severe neck pains that became a stifling dull ache. The VA hospital diagnosed me with
osteoarthritis in the neck. About that time along came aspartame and because my
six-foot frame was carrying 195 pounds I decided to use it vice four spoons of
sugar in my 12 ounce mug of coffee. For
upwards of fifteen years I consumed aspartame in the product Equal...
approximately 32 packets a day. Since around 1982 I have experienced long
periods of time with strong arthritis-like (very limiting) pain and over the
years I tried just about every arthritis medication brought to market. Only one, Daypro, did much of anything
positive. When it first came out I got a prescription for it and it made me
feel ten years younger (pain-level and limitations wise). But only two and a half months later it
quit! I have since learned that many doctors
prescribe it for its painkilling capabilities, and that a large percentage who
take it for an extended time discover that it stops working.
Since 1979 I have visited approximately twenty different
doctors, and NONE of them ever told me that my problem was NOT arthritis. By
1989 my pain had become so bothersome and limiting I spent $17,000 borrowed
dollars to build a home addition, in which to house a heavy-duty two-seater
medical-grade jacuzzi that cost $5700.
Two to four soaks a day kept me suitable for work (not much else) until
1995, when I had progressed to the point where getting in and out of the tub
was becoming dangerous (tinnitus and a balance mechanism I could no longer
trust) and more significantly, a fifteen to twenty minute soak at 105-108
degree water only benefited me until I cooled down. This very expensive aid was no longer worth
the effort.
Over the years I
did have some very significant mood changes, all negative, and dark. My ability to recall events, people and even
electronic procedures (things I have done often during my 41 years in the
business!) became severely degraded, and often this was a source of embarrassment. My eyesight also changed for the worse,
almost as if though on a schedule. I saw a specialist on the tinnitus and he
could find no cause.
A little over
three years ago I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. No history of it on either side of my
family. At 83 my grandfather Firring had
a grossly enlarged prostate that made him stop working (self-employed) and finally
made him bedridden until he had an operation... but no cancer. Eight years ago,
my father who had complained of severely limiting arthritis pains expired from
his decision to not treat a urinary problem... but no cancer. I seriously entertain the idea that aspartame
had a role in my cancer, which has destroyed all capacity for completely
enjoying my wife of thirty-five years, cost thousands of dollars to treat, and
continues to cost around $800.00 a MONTH to contain!
Sometime after radiation treatments for cancer my left
hand slowly became numb. Later, in early
1996, it began in my right hand. The
muscles and joints on my right arm between the elbow and shoulder became a
serious limitation to dressing, work, and everything else. Starting around early 1995 I began to
experience very severe shooting-stabbing pains... anywhere and any time. Pains bad enough to stop me from whatever I
was doing, cause me to wince, grimace, and sometimes cramp up... and almost
always embarrassing. The heels of both
feet had long bouts of what I called burning heels, very painful and
limiting. I had not slept well in years...
and purposely stayed up very late (one to three in the morning) so I would be
tired enough to overcome the pain. (Over
the counter pain
products such as Motrin, Advil, and the like were out of
the question because in order to be effective I had to take far too many of them,
and I had already been told I had liver damage.)
Of course, this compounded the problem, and during the
last three years the lack of decent rest has also
affected my work.
Between diminished mental powers, ever increasing pain, and falling
asleep on the job things were going downhill very fast. Like the proverbial snowball going down the
hill! The only thing that made my desk
job palatable was several years ago I purchased an expensive executive-style
high-back (on casters) chair that minimized the discomfort. About the beginning
of this year I began occupying in an identical chair I have in my home-office,
all day long... and often slept in it as well. Around 1994 I stopped taking
baths (I used to enjoy sitting and soaking in very hot water because it helped
reduce the pain) because getting in and out of the tub... even changing
positions, became too much of a painful problem.
My lovely wife is less than half my size (100 pounds vice
245, four foot eight vice six foot) and she was not able to help much. So despite my onetime insistance on looking
sharp, my appearance and hygiene suffered, as well. Around the beginning of 1996 I settled for
what the hospital calls "sponge baths". On several occasions during
1995 I started to walk down four steps from the kitchen to my home office...
steps I had used for 22 years, and without
warning I found myself at the bottom, sprawled on the
floor, wondering what had happened. I am
still wondering, but now that I have discovered the SOLE cause of my most major
affliction... aspartame, I wonder a lot less.
During
1995, realizing my condition seemed to be getting worse
at an accelerating rate, I installed a heavy-duty bannister going up those four
steps. Where once I was an excellent mechanically-inclined handyman, installing
it was no
longer an easy task.
For the first half of this year the bannister was essential to my
entering and leaving my house. I often
used a cane. Once, at dusk, I stumbled
while in the middle of the street, lost my balance, and wound up spraining my
foot and had to use crutches. On one
occasion I felt so bad I had to use a motorized cart to do the shopping with my
wife. (I used to do all the shopping,
without any problems!) After that I
contented myself with driving my wife to and from the store... until I stopped
doing even that around the end of May.
In essence, I was not unlike a large ship with a
significant leak that had taken on the critical mass of water, just to the
point of beginning to plunge to the bottom. In the words of my wife. Over the past two years, in particular, she
could only sit by and pray, and watch me rapidly
degenerate on all fronts: mood, capabilities, attitude, memory... you name
it. She confessed to my daughter how
frustrated she was that she could only watch, and brace herself
for the day that I would no longer be around. There were several crushing episodes of me
crying like a baby on her shoulder, in total agony at my loss of control and
worsening condition. Those episodes
reinforced her feelings that my days were numbered. After her tragic childhood in Spain, losing
her mother to cancer, and many of her family to other tragedies... she didn't deserve
to have her primary reason for living... die! Yet, after seeing the
rhumatologist, spending lots of money on tests and exotic drugs to perhaps
counter some equally exotic disease, all to no avail, I actually wondered to
myself if Kevorkian had a full dance card! The ONLY thing good that came out of
seeing this specialist... was his assurance that my pain should NOT be from
arthritis. So when all his remedies
failed, I knew to keep looking for something else.
Then, around the fifteenth of June, shortly after writing
that specialist off as yet another waste of time and money, I chanced to
discovered the real cause of my affliction while surfing the Internet... one of
the few things I could still do and do well.
The cause of years of worsening pain, ever-greater physical limitation,
negative and marriage threatening mood and attitude changes, failing memory,
failing eyesight, and perhaps even the cancer and tinnitus... was a US
GOVERNMENT APPROVED POISON called ASPARTAME!
Now, going on ten weeks after stopping all use of aspertame, I have no more
shooting-stabbing pains or burning heels, no more use for the bannister,
greatly reduced pain, almost no numbness in either hand, a fluctuating visual
condition that makes me believe my body is trying to
repair the damage, and now that I can see the light at
the end of that proverbial tunnel, my mood and attitudes have improved dramatically.
I am once again shopping with my wife, working around the
yard, picking up after myself (mainly because I can bend or kneel... and get UP
again!). Only time will tell how much of the damage is permanent. Of course, the prostate cancer can't be
erased. Likewise, the years of lost
participation in family life, and the significant income wasted on non-cures,
can never be undone. The knowledge that
this was allowed to happen by my own government, and further condoned by a powerful
senator through inaction, sickens me at heart.
With all my being I wish for them all the hottest spot in hell!
448. Date: Wed, 28 Aug 1996 12:04:22 -0500 (CDT)
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: aspartame case history
I took the "no aspartame test" some ten years ago
now after hearing that it caused headaches and depression. I was in the middle of a major depressive
episode, and had been drinking some 6-8 Diet Cokes per day (I was in college;
it was available at meals and I was trying to watch my weight). After a couple of months off of the soda, I
was at a speaking competition and doing very well, so in a good mood and
functioning well. I purchased a can of
diet soda and drank it; within minutes I felt teary and was shaking. I've not had so much as a stick of nutrasweet
gum since
that time and have had no more depressive episodes. I attribute this to staying off of
nutrasweet.
Thanks for spreading around the information--I've passed
it on to friends and family too.
449. Date: 5 JUL 1995 00:03:00 GMT
Newgroups: misc.health.diabetes
Subject: ALTERNATIVE SWEETNERS/STEVIA
I agree with you:) I am one who gets seizures from
aspartame and I am also chemically injured from formaldehdye. I cannot use this
artifical sweetner as per my medical situation and Drs orders...
450. To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Nutra Death
Date: Tue, 13 Aug 1996 11:36:22 -0400
For years I have been wary of NutraSweet and products
containg aspartame. Me and my father managed to convince my mother that nutrasweet
was responsible for her aching legs and migraines. Since she quit, the aching
in her legs has gone away, and she has had only one migraine since she quit,
and it has been at least three years. I
also had a friend at college who had crippling menstural cramps, and convinced
her to quit nutrasweet as well. The cramps
all but disappeared.
451. America Online Email
Subj: Nutrasweet
Date: 96-08-25 13:48:04 EDT
To: xxxxxxx
I don't mean to be an information pig, but could you
please send me all of the articles you mentioned in your message board
posting? I am new to this board, and I
was just passing through on my way from the Lyme Disease board and it caught my
eye. I have noticed for three years,
ever since I got Lyme disease, that I have had strange reactions to diet drinks. I get very shaky before meals, especially if
I've had a diet Coke. I also cannot
drink more
than two per day or I get shaky. I used to drink Cokes by the two-liter bottle. I've noticed that sometimes my stomach gets very
upset just by drinking a small amount of aspartame or from chewing gum. I've had bad
migraine headaches also.
I've blamed all these problems on Lyme disease, but now you all have me
wondering if aspartame could be a contributor.
Thanks for the info! (I've also
noticed that I feel better on weekends, at home. I
don't drink this stuff on weekends!)
452. Date: Wed, 21 Aug 1996 12:40:55 -0700
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: aspartame experience
I quit using aspartame about a month ago because I was
experiencing fuzzy headaches, memory loss, and word poverty in my speech, along
with chronic fatigue. Some of the symptoms occurred immediately after drinking diet
cola. I am feeling much better with my energy level much improved and words are
coming to me much more fluently in my
conversation. I haven't had any more of those fuzzy headaches that make it
difficult to concentrate or even read. The most noticeable improvement is the
disappearance of chronic depression and anxiety. Where can I get more
information on the documentation of aspartame health affects? The newsgroup
called ?"nutrapoison" was responsible for leading me to believe that
aspartame could be the root of some of my problems. Let me know what I can do
to help spread the truth about aspartame. I'm a
registered critical care nurse so I need to be able to back up my
assertions with good research.
453. Date:
Tue, 6 Aug 1996 11:41:14 +0000
Subject:
Re: What is Nutrasweet?
To:
Multiple recipients of list HERB <HERB@TREARNPC.EGE.EDU.TR>
NutraSweet is anything BUT natural. In addition to potentially causing headaches
it can also induce asthma attacks along with a host of other problems. Also, it really hasn't been studied for
"long term" effects. I was
having headaches which ceased once I stopped using it. There is a natural
herbal sweetener that is not derived from sugar called Stevia. It has zero calories and no chemicals. Stevia is under scrutinization by the FDA for
safety although its been used in Europe for many years. From the articles I've
read it would appear that NutraSweet was very
expensive to develop.
As you know, you can not patent an herb and so Stevia is a huge threat
to the makers of NutraSweet and they will do anything and everything to prevent
the product from being developed into an over-the-counter sweetener (including
lobbying the FDA to disallow the distribution of the herb). Right now in the USA you can buy Stevia at
the healthfood store but the label may not contain any information of product use
as a sweetener.
454. Date: Tue, 20 Aug 1996 07:05:29 -0700
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: Re: Aspartame (NutraSweet)/Brain Cancer
I sometimes get head aces from aspartame and therefore
will avoid it, but also it tastes absolutely terrible (bitter)
to my mouth. I am
56. My younger sister actually becomes ill from ingesting this chemical. She is 46. I don't know how accurate all of
your posting is but there is definitely something wrong with aspartame!
455. To: YEAST-L@PSUHMC.BITNET
(Multiple recipients of list YEAST-L)
Date: 96-05-31 14:42:03 EDT
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet, was Re: Small towns
Quite interestingly, I had absolutely no problem w/
nutrasweet or MSG 'till I consciously went w/o them for 8 months or so. I did it because Nutrasweet can cause
intestional spasming (amongst other things)--the last thing I needed when my
gut hurt all the time anyway. Also, I
found all carbonation (even Perrier) to be irritiating when I was in
die-off. MSG was giving me headaches so
I decided to hold off on it for awhile too.
I looked at it as an experiment.
As my above diet coke episode indicates, I recently tried to have
nutrasweet and I reacted. And I react
worse to MSG than ever before.
My naturopath says that the body's immune system can get
worn down so much that it doesn't send off red flags for some harmful things.
Once we give the body a rest and heal the immune system, then it has the energy
to set
off red flags for harmful substances. I think this is what happened for me.
456. Date:
Mon, 15 Jul 1996 14:54:09 EDT
Subject: BLADDER
PROBLEMS
To: Multiple recipients of list ALLERGY
<ALLERGY@TAMVM1.TAMU.EDU>
I also found that I was fairly severly affected by
aspartame. However, this would send me into a depressed sleep,
impossible to overcome. I gave up Nutrasweet rather easily. It always gave me a disgusting aftertaste,
and I'd drink it only if there was nothing else available. A few months ago I found that someone
had given me a "diet" drink despite my request for the
straight variety. I waited for the
inevitable collapse, but none came.
Therefore I assume that it is in the type of allergy that can be controlled by
rotation diets or other means of avoiding frequent use.
I'm not going to experiment with caffeine. I've been in great shape without it for at
least ten years.
457. Re: Nutrasweet
Date 2
Aug 1996 21:33:12 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.support.eating-disord
At the urging of a fellow addict, I gave up NutraSweet,
cold turkey. That was just this Tuesday. The first few days were rough. Would
you believe that I no longer crave carbo's??? I no longer crave really sweet
things?? I used to drink 2+ liters daily. Now I drink at least a gallon of
water..sometimes with some natual fruit juice. Do you know the worst thing
about NutraSweet??? Since I started drinking a lot of it, I gained 100+ lbs. Some
peoples bodies store NutraSweet just as they would sugar. What does stored
sugar turn into??? FAT. As a result of going cold turkey this past Tuesday..I
stepped on the dreaded scale...I LOST 5 LBS. in only four days. Give up NutraSweet...you
will find your cravings less..Drink that water...
458. Date:
Wed, 31 Jul 1996 19:52:16 -0400
Subject:
Re: Attn: Lisa
To:
Multiple recipients of list HERB <HERB@TREARNPC.EGE.EDU.TR>
I break out in an itchy rash and get a headache when I
eat MSG or
Nutrasweet, so I stay far away from those additives. ....
459. To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx (Aspertame Consumer
Survey)
Date: Fri, 02 Aug 1996 09:52:20 -0400
Subject: No Subject
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network Questionnaire
Medical problems that you believe are caused from
using aspartame:
arthritic and joint pain, chronic fatigue,
Why do you believe aspartame caused these problems?
Problem cleared up afer discontinued use.
Did the symptoms go away when you stopped using the
products?
YES.
Did you see a Doctor about symptoms?
no
Did you report your symptoms to the FDA (Food &
Drug Admin.) or any other group?
no
What specific products(s) containing aspartame were
you consuming when you experienced these symptoms?
Diet Coke and other soft drinks.
On the average, what quantity were you consuming (how
often, how much each time, etc.)
3 to 4 sodas a day
How long had you been consuming these products before you
experienced the symptoms?
5 to 6 years.
FOR THOSE CONCERNED ABOUT WEIGHT: Did you begin using
products with aspartame when you began a restricted
calorie diet?
yes
Did you use aspartame products only for some of your
meals to save calories?
no
Did aspartame seem to help you lose weight at first?
no
What were the long term weight loss effects of using
aspartame?
none
460. ASPARTAME - my 2c worth.
Date
Sun, 28 Jul 1996 11:51:17 GMT
Newsgroups misc.health.diabetes
I have for some time now been suffering strong burning
feelings and numbness of the toes. (And yes,
I *KNOW* I should have seen my doctor ... I just hadn't got that far
yet) The burning feelings have been
mostly felt in the late afternoon and evenings.
This largely coincides with the times spent at my computer desk (a
neccessity as I earn my living at the computer), and had not been experienced while away from
the desk, as for example, out for the evening with my wife, Along with the burning, I have also had some
numbness of my toes. I had come to the
conclusion that the condition as such was something to be expected as a not-as-controlled-as-I-should-be
type 2 diabetic, and that possibly my chair at the desk was aggaravating it by
interfering with circulation. I was
getting to the stage where I was going
to buy a new chair to see what happened.
Then I spotted John's posting, and I couldn't help but wonder what would happen
if I stopped drinking Tab, and it's aspartame content. The way I saw it, it couldn't harm me, and if
there was anything in the postings, it might even help. The results were, to
me, amazing ....
Up to Thursday, the burning feelings were strong, long
lasting to being almost continuous, and bordering on downright painful. I
stopped drinking Tab on Friday afternoon.
This was the only change I have made in the past 3 days. Friday evening, the burning feelings were drastically
reduced. Saturday they were practically
non-existant,
and what few there were, were very mild, and went away
very quickly. As I write this, Sunday morning, the numbness has definitely
eased, although it is, I admit, difficult to quantify. The feet just feel somehow
"better" this morning. I realize that 3 days is hardly a definitive
test, and it seems impossible, but all I can say is that my feet are feeling
MUCH better in that period, and the only change I've made is to stop drinking
Tab. If thats what
giving up Tab can do, I can live without the Tab, thank
you very much.
After a month I
tried it again and within a day I was getting uncomfortable feelings in my legs
again which again vanished on ceasing ingestion of this drink. Obviously I
haven't got this far yet, but assuming that I have no
recurrances within a week, I fully intend to try this
test as well. The bottom line, as far as I'm concerned, is that one should at
least TRY before de-crying, and getting hot under the collar about the
qualifications or otherwise of those opposing aspartame.. Certainly most, if
not all, of the problems aspartame is being blamed for are very likely things
that will be experienced anway, but as far as I can see, they can be agravated
or advanced by aspartame, and thats an unacceptable price to pay. It's bad enough that these
"nasties" are in the future without advancing them.
From what I've seen in various postings, and from
information I have received yesterday from xxxxxxx, one of the problems with
aspartame is that it breaks down into methanol/wood-alcohol ....(which nobody
seems to be
disputing) I think we all know what consuming methanol
does to humans .....
461. Date: Fri, 26 Jul 1996 18:12:44 -0500
To: xxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: Nutra-Sweet
I was shocked to read all the negative information on
N-S. I have used it for years and recently
stopped, for the most part. I don't add
it to foods usually, but do buy products that contain it. Since not adding it to coffee ect... my daily
headaches have stopped. I must admit to
have felt fuzzy headed for a while now, without any real reasons why. I assumed it to be alergies.
462. Re: What's going on
Date
Wed, 24 Jul 1996 10:05:53 -0400
Newsgroups
c20.0056
My wife has rather violent reaction to Nutrasweet. Manifestation is nightmares. She can tell you that real Coke has
Nutrasweet in it even though they claim not to.
Must still be enough in their pipes from the Diet Coke run. It's kind of like the princess and the
pea. I never notice but she does.
463. Reply to Steve Marshman re K.D. Qwitt
Date
Tue, 23 Jul 96 15:52:48 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.health.diabetes
With reference to your request for information on how I
reached the concklusion that aspartame was responsible for the pain in my legs,
I established this very simply. I was guzzling between 1 and 2 litres (I live
in Canada 1 litre is
approximately 1 U>SQuart)of a pleasant tasting Key
Lime flavoured "low calorie sparkling water beverage". The ingredient list is as follows:
Carbonated water, citric acid, natural flavour, potassium
citrate, aspartame (on the label it staes in brackets "contains
phenylalanine"), potassium benzoate.
Listed under Nutritional Information per 250 mL serving
(1 Cup)
Energy 4 calories or 20 KJ, protein 0.1g, fat 0.0g,
carbohydrate 0.0g, aspartame 132 mg, sodium 12 mg,potassium 82 mg.
At the rate of 2 litres/day and therefore 8 cups/day I
was ingesting 1056 mg or a little over 1 gram per day of aspartame. I stopped
all ingestion of this product completely with NO OTHER changes in my diet. Within a week the pain had almost entirely
gone and feeling was returning in my feet.
After a month I tried it again and within a day I was getting
uncomfortable feelings in my legs again which again vanished on ceasing
ingestion of this drink.
I believe that this in itself is adequate evidence that
the problem was caused by the product, and since the body does require levels
of potassium and sodium they were unlikely the causative factor especially
since my diet contains considerable quantities of sodium.
As a trained investigator I am well aware of procedures
for establishing causative factors and have a lot more than a psssing
acquaintance with chemistry and physics and other scientific fields. I am not an ill-informed or uneducated
adolescent, being 68 years old with many diverse fields of interest and have
travelled widely.
464. Date: Sun, 21 Jul 1996 21:25:56 GMT
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxxxx.xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Nutrasweet Poison?
Lastly, about Nutrasweet. I have been drinking several
cans of diet drinks a day for the last six months. The first thing that was
noticed was the drop in visual acuity from 20/20 to 20/25. Since there was no history
of any eye problems from heredity, I was perplexed why the change had taken
place. My eyes were checked again after four weeks
and still the change was there. I accidentally saw
xxxxxxxxxxxx's Nutrsweet waring on usenet. I immedately stopped all sugar
substitutes including drinking diet drinks which all contain Nutrasweet. When
talking to a friend of mine,
I was told billberry is very good for diabetics with
vision problems. Billberry tablets and capsules are available in most health
food and vitamin stores.
Lo and behold. My vision has improved. The slight haze or
blurriness is gone. The colors are more vibrant. In the past my eyes could not tolerate
the glare in bright sunlight. I notice that it is also gone. I am *fully*
convinced that Nutrasweet in the diet drinks was the cause of all my eye troubles.
Bless xxxxxx for bringing Nutrasweet Danger to everyones attention. But for her
message, I would still be consuming Nutrasweet and be losing my vision
irreversibly.
Moral of the story is very simple: DIABETICS SHOULD KEEP OFF NUTRASWEET
COMPLETELY.
[update]
465. Date: Tue, 28 Oct 1997
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Update
Couple of days ago I visited my opthamologist who checked
my vision and told me that my vision has become crisper that he saw me last
time about a year ago. I am still keeping off of Aspartame and all other sugar
substitutes. I am terrified to think what would have happened if I had not
found your msgs on Internet and stopped Aspartame.
466. Re: History of fellow sufferer
Date
Sun, 21 Jul 1996 14:21:12 +0100
Newsgroups
sci.med.prostate.prostatitis
For what it's worth, when my prostate was acting up diet
soda irritated it quite a bit. The same soda with sugar didn't bother it at
all.
467. Re: History of fellow sufferer
Date
24 Jul 1996 14:24:31 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.prostate.prostatitis
One of my worst flare-ups was after a few weeks of
drinking diet soda. The sugar type is
bad enough. Switch to water, fruit juices,
or diluted juices and you may feel better.
468. Date: 19 JUL 96 03:01:31 UTC
Newgroups: alt.conspiracy, alt.destroy.the.earth,
alt.drugs, alt.education.disabled, alt.kids-talk, alt.med.allergy, alt.med.cfs,
alt.med.fibromyalgia, alt.politics.ec, alt.support.attn-deficit, alt.support.cancer,
alt.support.depression, alt.support.diet, alt.tv.tv-nation, bionet.biology.cardiovascular,
bionet.general, bionet.neuroscience, misc.health.diabetes, sci.med,
sci.med.immunology, sci.med.nutrition, sci.med.pharmacy
Subject: Re: FDA POISONS THE WELL/NUTRASWEET/PRESS
RELEASE
It provokes nausia and headaches faster than ANYTHING...
if I drink a can of diet soda... (IF I can drink the whole thing), I'll feel
terrible for hours. Not only does it
taste terrible, it makes me sick.
469. Re: KILLER NUTRASWEET [Re: Warning Bulletin on
...]
Date 23 Jul 1996 20:01:56 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.fitness.weights,sci.med.nutrition,sci.med.immunology,sci.mi sc,alt.support,epilepsy,alt.support.headaches-migraine
Personally, I have experienced NutraSweet side
effects. I can get a headache from
eating something as small as a Cert candy.
Diet drinks may me very sluggish and headachy. Once I fell in love with a banana Gelato ice
cream and ate a bowl full, the next morning I awoke to a severe case of morning
sickness (I'm sure this was not for some other reason...) and a migraine. This lasted for a couple of days, until I
realised that the icecream had aspartame in it and I gave it to my
roomate. I am positive that the
aspartame was the reason for my illness.
470. America Online / Abdominal & Digestive
Disorders / IBS
Subj:
Re:artificial sweeteners
Date: 96-04-01
16:04:02 EDT
From: Lzcait
I'm positive that diet Coke creates great problems for
me...lots of stomach cramps, etc. I have
also found that anything with sorbitol (often found in sugar free chocolates)
sends me running for the bathroom. Works better than prunes! Good luck.
471. Re: NutraSweet Horror - TO EMBALM..OR NOT TO
EMBALM
Date
Thu, 18 Jul 96 00:31:23 GMT
Newsgroups
sci.med.pharmacy,
The same thing happened to me. Blinding headaches (never had headache
before) appeared. It took me about a
week to figure out it was the yogurt. It
had aspartame in it. Headaches
disappeared.
472. Re: aspartame
Date
Fri, 19 Jul 1996 20:43:24 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.med.allergy
I have fibrocystic breast disease but have had no effects
since I stopped drinking caffine (over 15 years now). However, recently I started eating a high
fiber cereal and all of a sudden my breasts started to hurt. All of the ingredients were benign except aspertame.
I asked my doctor if that could be causing my problems; she said no.
However, I stopped eating the cereal and no more
pain. I never eat anything with
aspertame and have never had pain again.
473. Re: aspartame/nutrasweet
Date
15 Jul 1996 17:19:11 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.kids
Me, too! If I drink too much Diet Coke, I get addicted in
a big way. And it isn't the caffeine, because regular coke doesn't do it. I got very irritated and annoyed in the
morning before I got the diet coke, then I had to have one in the afternoon.
And nothing but Diet Coke would do. I quit
drinking them and felt better. I imagine if I cut out caffeine,
also, I would feel even better, but that's a huge
hurdle. I had a friend who was a diet
coke fanatic. She would leave parties to go to the convenience store to get a
diet coke. And movies, and your house,
and whatever. It was weird. I don't think it is psychological, either. I think
it is truly addicting. It's a
plot...(insert sarcasm) against women by coca-cola. :)
474. Aspartame
From
anon@the.net (Anon)
Date
Tue, 16 Jul 1996 22:26:19 -0700
Newsgroups
alt.med.allergy
Just remember, we each are in control of what we
eat. No one is force feeding you products
with aspartame.
When a product appears on the store shelves in this
country the public assumes that the appointed "health care
professionals" have done their duty. The public has the right to be able
to trust the particular "health care professionals" whose PAID
responsibility it is to warn and protect them from toxic substances. When the
very people who are accountable for protecting the public against such things
allow the toxins to be mixed into food and beverage and then tell the public
after they have been poisoned for years that no one is forcing them to use it,
it is the absolute pinnacle of unmitigated arrogance as well as a breach of the
public's trust. I won't even get into the exploitative aspect of this travesty
of "service to humanity."
It is time to wake up. It is obvious that you don't
realize that your denial does not release you from the ultimate resposibility
for the fruits of what you say.
Signed,
An Aspartame Victim
475. Date: Sun, 14 Jul 1996 18:20:30
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxxx.xxx
Subject: ASPARTAME
I am a former diet-soda drinker. Approximately six months ago I discovered (on my own with NO help from the 3
Family Physicians, 2 Psychiatrist, or the 3 Pschologist) that this was what was
responsible for my five years of anxiety/panic attacks, insomnia, heart
palpitations, and the list goes on and on.
[updated information]
476. From: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx
To: xxxxx@xxxx.xxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: Warning Flyer
I suffered from panic/anxiety attacks, insomnia, heart palpitations,
tachycardia, shaking, numbness and tingling in toes and hands and arm, nausea,
dizziness, memory loss, muscle spasms, breathing problems, depression, slurred
speech, and a constant feeling of uneasiness.
Somewhere around December of 1995 I quit drinking diet drinks. Two weeks later I noticed I was feeling
somewhat better. About two months later
I was feeling and doing so much better I decided to start drinking diet
7Up. Even though I had stopped using
caffeine several times in the past without noticing any change I thought maybe that
was what had made the difference this time.
Within two days of starting back drinking the diet 7Up I started having
symptoms again. That's when I decided to take a good look at the ingredients in
diet drinks. I had never heard anything
negative about NutraSweet but I decided to try to find out what it was. I went to a public library and found
something that said it could cause several different symptoms including panic
attacks. I didn't have very much time so
I wasn't able to read the whole thing.
So, I wasn't aware until June of 1996, when we bought a new computer and
started using the internet, what the real scoop was on aspartame. I now tell almost everyone I see, and it is unbelievable
how many people have or either know someone that's had bad reactions to
aspartame. I can't believe I lived five
years of my life frightened and constantly feeling bad beause of a diet
drink. I'M FURIOUS!
477. Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 11:58:56 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxxx.xxx
Subject: Re: Scanned and edited Press Release (fwd)
Dear xxxxxx,
Thanks for your concern about the withdrawel
symptoms. My headaches are over and I am
feeling much calmer still. I am sure
that the asp was affecting my serotonin levels.
When I was drinking the diet drinks I must have been
constantly "buzzed". I can breathe through my nose for the first
time in years and my sinus infections have stopped. I am however still experiencing nervous system/hormonal
problems. I seem to have developed
hypersensitivities to some foods, food additives, medicines, birth control
pills, and airborn particles. Even though I eat a pretty good diet, I am having
problems with constant low blood sugar.
Your release with the clip about pancreatic tumors concerns me.
478. Subj: Nutrasweet
Date: 96-07-14 14:08:37 EDT
To: xxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Hi, I read your
info about Nutrasweet on xxxx. I am severely allergic to aspertame and I have
to look at the ingredients of everything to be sure it isn't there.
479. Veg Web Board/Health
http://vegweb.com/wwwboard/misc/
Subject: Re:
Healthy substitutes for Diet Coke!
Date: July
05, 1996 at 16:47 GMT
I, too, am a former Diet Coke addict.
....
Aside - when I had to give up caffeine, I discovered just
how toxic aspartame can be. It gave me horrible headaches. I guess having it in
Diet Coke and in my coffee had been cancelling out the headache due to the
caffeine. When I feel the need for flavor, I drink fruit juice. Watch the calorie
content, but juices are more filling than either water or Diet
Coke, and so I find I don't overdo on them (which it is
possible to do because of the natural sugars they contain). Keep an eye out for
added sugar.
[continued]
480. Veg Web Board/Health http://vegweb.com/wwwboard/misc/
Subject: nutrasweet
Date: July 25, 1996 at 16:46 GMT
I don't come onto this board too often. So I was
surprised by some of what I read on this topic further down the page. Someone
actually thinks nutrasweet/aspartame is safe? (All right, it can ONLY cause blindness.)
I can't believe I actually used to ingest this stuff! It was definitely
responsible for (or at least contributed to) my chronic headaches (which
subsided drastically when I stopped ingesting the stuff), and may be
responsible for my memory loss problems.
I'll take bee barf in my tea, thank you. Dump the Equal.
481. Re: aspartame/nutrasweet
Date
Sat, 13 Jul 1996 09:36:59 -0800
Newsgroups
misc.kids.pregnancy
I think this is real excessive. I looked up aspartame and pregnancy in the
medical journals and found no cause for alarm.
I really believe the medical community doesn't have a
clue as to its real nature. Eight years ago when pregnant they told me they
didn't *think* it would be bad. Five
years ago they told me they weren't sure and to avoid it if I thought best.
"Fortunately" for me, I'm one of those who gets terrible headaches if
I use it, so I never took any anyway. This time, my caregiver, in telling me
what definitely to avoid, included Nutrasweet on the same list as cigarettes,
drugs and alchohol.
482. Re: confessions
Date
Sun, 14 Jul 1996 09:02:32 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.punk
Aspartame has been implicated as one the probable
aggravating factors in clinical depression in a number of people. When I was suffering that lovely affliction
last year my doctor suggested that I avoid aspartame absolutely. He said that in his experience he had found
that almost 75% if his patients that were sufferin from depression they were
regular drinkers of diet coke or diet pepsi.
It aparently affects the levels of seratonin in your brain.
483. Date: Fri, 12 Jul 1996 00:44:44 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx
Subject: Re: NutraSweet
Thanks xxxxxx for posting this info. I got flamed for
saying that a person should do a word search on Nutrasweet on the webb. There
are a lot of NASTIES out there. God Bless you. Keep up the good work. My legs
used to hurt so bad I couldn't sleep at night but when I suspicioned (sp) what
it was and stopped using Nutrasweet the pain went away. That stuff is POISON. I
know because I've experienced it! Thank
You!!!
484. Re: Will he ever 'go' again???
Date
12 Jul 1996 21:06:52 -0400
Newsgroups
misc.kids.breastfeeding
Are you drinking or eating anything with aspartame in it
or anything else that might be constipating?
The reason I ask is that I gave aspartame up about a week and a half ago
(thanks to this news group) and my daughter seems to go more frequently
now. Sometimes she would go every other
day and now she goes at least twice a day.
485. Re: aspartame/nutrasweet
Date
Fri, 12 Jul 1996 21:28:10 -0400
Newsgroups
misc.kids.pregnancy
Agreed. I always
felt slightly ill when I switched to aspertame/nutrasweet in my morning
coffee. No headaches, just
"queasy".
My father also had odd symptoms from long-term use of nutrasweet. He had tingling and numbness in his
extremeties, and also had trouble losing unwanted pounds. He stopped using it about two months ago and
the tingling & numbness went away immediately, and he's lost weight as
well. He hasn't looked so good in 25
years! Just because the AMA hasn't
documented something, doesn't mean that it won't in the future. Better safe than sorry, ESPECIALLY when you
are pregnant!
486. nutrasweet
Date
Fri, 12 Jul 96 14:56:47 EDT
Newsgroups
alt.support.mult-sclerosis
After reading about the dangers of Nutrasweet on the Web,
this list, and in the library I gave up Nutrasweet earlier this year. Oddly
enough, I've lost about 10 pounds (no, I haven't been on a diet or changed my
eating habits at all, nor have I taken up extra exercising). And I've noticed that I don't get as many headaches
as I used to. Those are the only changes
I've noticed, but they're enough for me to believe that Nutrasweet isn't very good
for humans. ;-)
487. Re: Equal-allergic
Date
12 Jul 1996 14:32:58 GMT
Newsgroups alt.food.fat-free
You are not far off.
It is estimated that 25% of the population is sensitive to
nutrasweet(aspertame). A small
percentage of these being potentially fatal reactions (stroke,
anaphylaxis). You will find plenty of
people to sign up for your new group.
Many of the people won't even know that they are sensitive either from
mild symptons or blaming it on something else.
I discovered that I was sensitive after not having nutrasweet for about
6 weeks then drinking a diet soda water.
I developed a raging headache.
One can build up a tolerance to anything when under constant exposure.
[updated case...]
488. Date: Wed, 08 May 1996 09:51:22 -0800
To: xxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame Poisoning remedies
Dear xxxxxxx,
I think that I may have had an adverse response to
aspartame. I used it for about 15 years. I am experiencing some
problems with motor control, specifically in my arms. I
obviously don't use it any more! I have been off the aspartame for two weeks
now. I no longer have unexplained headaches and I sleep much better but the
motor control is still a problem.
[update]
489. Date: Fri, 12 Jul 1996 14:12:00 -0800
To: xxxxxx@xxxxx.xxxx.xxx
Subject: Aspartame Poisoning
xxxxxx, I wrote to you some time ago about my motor
control problems (in my arms) which I suspected were related to my use of Equal
(6 or more packets a day for nearly 15 years!). You gave me some good
suggestions. I stopped
using Equal in April and now, 3 months later, I can say
that the motor control problems are completely gone. In have also changed my
diet. I am now following the regime of the "Zone" diet by Dr
Robert(?) Sears. In any event, I no longer have unexplained headaches, I sleep
like a baby and my arms play guitar just fine!!
Thanks for you advice.
490. Re: aspartame/nutrasweet
Date
Tue, 09 Jul 1996 14:34:27 -0500
Newsgroups
misc.kids
I have always been of the opinion that Nutrasweet (as
well as saccharin) has been allowed to stay on the market because the companies
that make all this diet, sugar-free crapola (oops!) did not want to lose their
business,
nor do inveterate dieters and those on sugar-restricted
diets want to lose their "easy" way to satisfy their sweet tooth.
Now, for the personal story. I was a Diet Coke fiend for
many years. I could drink 2 liters a day, easy, never mind all the other stuff –
diet pops, puddings, cookies, etc. When
I was 26, I started having seizures, and was diagnosed with temporal lobe
epilepsy. No evidence of head trauma,
and the doctors could never give me an answer of where it came from. Medication
helped, athough the enormous amount of it I had to take was debilitating (every
time I had another seizure, the neurologist upped my dosage). I was pretty much a potted plant at that
point. I read an
article (sorry, kids, I lost it years ago) and read in a
book (Jane Brody's Nutrition Book) about aspartame's connection to seizure
activity. I gave up Diet Coke and all other forms of nutrasweet then and there.
Gradually my seizures decreased, and I weaned myself down from 1000 mgs a day
to 400 of my medication, without my doctor's okay (I know, I know, but the
doctors dismissed my questions about
aspartame as silly, and I simply could not live the poor excuse for a life that
1000 mgs of tegretol a day afforded me).
Coincidence? Maybe.
But from 1000 mgs a day and at least one seizure a month, I take 400 and haven't had a seizure in a year
and a half (and it had been a year and a half, at least, before that one). I was frightened when I became pregnant about
what the medication could do to the baby, but a seizure could have hurt him
worse than the amount of medication. Luckily, he was perfect. So that the story
of why I think aspartame is bad for you.
I'm not trying to run anyone's life, just relating what happened to
me. And yes, I gained some weight when I
ditched nutrasweet. But for me, better
that than seizures.
[continued]
491. Re: Equal-allergic
Date
Wed, 10 Jul 1996 13:52:44 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.food.fat-free
Wow, I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who is
allergic to nutrasweet! I have the same
reaction - debilitating migraines.
Me too!! Big old mother headaches after having aspartame
in any quantity. We're not alone!
492. Date: Sat, 6 Jul 1996 18:58:14 -0400 (EDT)
To: xxxxxxxx@xxxx.xxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: Re: NutraSweet
What is all the fuss about NutaSweet? I would be VERY courious to find out because
I, my sister, and my Father have a reaction to it. I even suspect It was a contributing factor
in my mother's stroke. It gives me and my sister almost migrain headaches. With my father, after he eats aspartame, he
gets an upset stomach- very upset!!
493. Date: Mon, 1 Jul 1996 18:17:47 +0000
To: xxxxxxxxxx@xxxxxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: Re: FDA POISONS THE WELL/NUTRASWEET/PRESS
RELEASE (fwd)
I avoid it at all costs - it gives me a terrible
headache. It is especially pronounced if
I chew it in gum. It is behind my eyes,
almost like a sinus headache, but sharper and there's no way to get rid of it,
it eventually goes away.
494. Re: NutraSweet is poison - PERIOD! (fwd)
Date 4
Jul 1996 12:37:10 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet
I don't use nutrasweet or other aspartame products. They simply effect me like nothing else
does. They make me feel shaky and
week. They also kind of wire me up in a
way I don't like. I stopped using them
long ago and haven't gone back.
495. Re: Equal-allergic
Date 5
Jul 1996 14:32:01 GMT
Newsgroups
alt.food.fat-free
xxxxxxxxxxxx writes:
I am allergic to Equal.
I have the most dreadful migraines after I have it. Does any one know of
a source of recipes using saccharine instead?
Hi xxxxxxxxx!
Wow, I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who is
allergic to nutrasweet! I have the same
reaction - debilitating migraines. Anyway, I'm wondering if you are on a
diabetic diet, or just trying to cut down on sugar. I don't use saccharine (lab rats and all,
plus I don't like the aftertaste), so I just reduce sugar in recipes as much as
I possibly can. I sometimes substitute
fruit puree in recipes. If you can't use sugar, and must use saccharine as a
sweetner, I would
try your public library for cookbooks using saccharine.
496. Date: Mon, 27 May 1996 10:55:55 -0700
To: xxxxxxxxx@xxxxxx.xxxxx
Subject: Re: CFIDS NEWS-CFS (fwd)
Thanks for the inquiry. Actually getting off the stuff is
harder than one would anticipate. I can say that we have both
cut our intake by at least 80% and in general feel much
better for it.
497. Re: Nutra-sweet
Date 2
Jul 1996 17:15:21 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.kids.breastfeeding
However, I am very skeptical about nutrasweet, even in
small quantities. I developed a
nutrasweet reaction in the early 80s after they started using it in diet soda
(I was a diet soda addict). I finally found
I had to give it up ENTIRELY to avoid the reaction -- even one or two sodas a
month, or "mistakenly" getting it in a drink, was enough to cause the
problem.
498. Re: Med: "false hunger"
Date Sat, 29 Jun 1996 06:43:50 -0500
Newsgroups
alt.med.cfs
Recently I had a problem with bad water. My "false hunger" became almost constant
and turned into heartburn. I went to
distilled water and quit drinking Diet Coke with Aspartame - my stomach
improved almost immediately.
499. Subject
Missing Aspartame Person
Date
29 Jun 1996 15:10:02 GMT
Newsgroups
misc.health.alternative
I'm looking for the individual who gave me advice about 3
months ago regarding aspartame and a burning tongue. I wish to thank this
person, since stopping the use of aspartame has cured the problem. This burning
tongue has been ongoing for years and after a week of eliminating aspartame the
burning is gone. If you see this - thanks again -and send e-mail.
500. Re: migraines and p/f
Date
29 Jun 1996 08:16:07 -0400
Newsgroups
alt.support.diet.rx
ASPARTAIME! If by
chance, you're using Nutrasweet on foods, drinking diet soda, coffee, etc. you
may be taking in too much! It's known to
promote headaches...lasting much of the day for me. It may also inhibit the production of
seritonin, which I understand is an appetite suppressent. Be careful out there!
Ann Hensz's story (addicted to Aspartame via drinking top brand diet drinks)
Ann Hensz's story (addicted to Aspartame via drinking top brand diet drinks)
Want to read more testimonies? Here's the next 400+ complaints.
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