Aspartame... How much is safe??

[alakdan168]

Hi fellows.

I chanced upon an article in the internet revealing the ill effects of aspartame, such as leukemia, auto-immune diseases etc. It even suggested that aspartame is even worse than sugar itself. It suggested that 1 can of soda is enough intake of aspartame for a day. Kind of controversial because of the commercial implications to the beverage industry.

Recently, i saw a lot of powdered drinks (buko pandan, gulaman, melon, buko, pineapple) being peddled in the sidewalks of a know commercial area. These "drinks" are in 500 grams packages which the label claims is enough for 10 liters of juice drink. Obviously, these are aspartame drinks because so little powder can sweeten a lot of water. Question is, are these safe? Yes it claims it has FDA approval but does it mean that anyone can consume it in any quantity?

Scarier though is that the buyers of these powdered aspartame drinks sell it in school canteens, because it is profitable and convenient. But what is the long term effect of consuming so much aspartame at such a young age? I would not want want my kids drinking too much of these things.

How about you, fellow tsikoteers??

[1D4LV]

sa akin, anything that is too much is harmful.
yung mga nagtitinda ng samalamig, they are using sub-grade aspertame, which makes it more harmful. if you consume a glass everyday, definitely, it will take its toll on you soon.

asan ba si otep?

[uls]

i'm gonna die

i drink a lot of coke zero

[ghosthunter]

So its the choice of looking slim and dying of some cancer early or getting a bit fat and living longer?

[uls]

ummm...

that's tough

[alakdan168]

So its the choice of looking slim and dying of some cancer early or getting a bit fat and living longer?

Good if YOU made the choice.

But when these powdered aspartame drinks come in the form of natural fruit drink (like buko juice, melon, mango) and is being peddled in side street or malls or tiangges or worse school canteens, are you making a choice here?

[shadow]

Kung mamatay, mamatay ka talaga kahit US marine ka pa!


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[lowslowbenz]

Am sweet enough ..

[vinj]

Am sweet enough ..

Nasobrahan nga ata eh...

So how much is too much? Too much of anything is just bad really...

[niky]

Meh. Those warnings about aspartame are mostly myths. But truthfully, you shouldn't drink too much aspartame, anyway... and you should always be conscious of the "Best before" date on the label of anything containing it.

Also be warned that you cannot cook it, because that breaks down the aspartame into something pretty nasty.

[alakdan168]

Meh. Those warnings about aspartame are mostly myths. But truthfully, you shouldn't drink too much aspartame, anyway... and you should always be conscious of the "Best before" date on the label of anything containing it.

Also be warned that you cannot cook it, because that breaks down the aspartame into something pretty nasty.

Yes, a year or two back, the stories behind the aspartame were just myth. But more and more new researches are opening the so called Pandora's box.

Actually at my age, (not that Im old), I wouldn't be concerned too much on the long term effects of these laboratory grown sweeteners. What concerns me is that these drinks are actually being consumed by kids without anybody knowing except by the aspartame company.

[lowslowbenz]

Aspartame is killing the Philippine sugar industry ...... it should be banned!

[alakdan168]

Aspartame is killing the Philippine sugar industry ...... it should be banned!

Actually, it should be TAXED...HEAVILY... just like the cigarettes and alcohols... to cover for the losses in the Phillippine sugar industry, and to cover for the health problems that come with its consumption.

[lowslowbenz]

AFAIK Coca Cola is using aspartame in its beverages already.

See here: Sugar groups firm on boycott vs Coca-Cola | Inquirer News

and here: DAILY STAR: Top Stories

"Pre-mix" sounds and reads like something artificially sweet.

[alakdan168]

What is alarming is actually this:

When I go to the grocery to buy a powdered drink (like ice tea), I would know that it contains aspartame (1x50 grams sachet = 1 liter).

But when I buy a drink outside like malls or canteen, how will I know (and hence monitor) my aspartame intake when the melon, or gulaman, or pineapple, or buko juice or even milk tea, that i drink contains aspartame - when these drinks are readily available in powdered form in sidewalks for every enterprising juan de la cruz.

[niky]

Coke indeed does use Aspartame. In Coke Zero.

Aspartame, honestly, is not hard to detect. The aftertaste is very distinctive. And regular Coke doesn't have it. Why the hell would you turn off your customers by using an expensive, yucky sugar replacement for cheap high-fructose corn syrup?

Hell, I'm starting to get sick of Coke Zero because they've reformulated it with too much aspartame. Ugh.

Yes, a year or two back, the stories behind the aspartame were just myth. But more and more new researches are opening the so called Pandora's box.

Actually at my age, (not that Im old), I wouldn't be concerned too much on the long term effects of these laboratory grown sweeteners. What concerns me is that these drinks are actually being consumed by kids without anybody knowing except by the aspartame company.

Aspartame will be banned if and when it is proven to be unequivocally dangerous. As it is, too many "studies" stretch to find a causative link instead of controlling for co-factors.

And that's the problem. If you don't control all the other factors, then a study merely becomes a lifestyle study that finds that "X" is simply part of a very unhealthy lifestyle.

Like the "study" that positively linked diet soft drinks to heart disease... where the control group did not eat red meat, whereas the soda drinkers did.

-

I know what you mean about those mixed drinks. And it's very obvious with some. Personally, I don't buy any drinks at cantinas or fast foods if possible. I bring my own or buy bottled water.

Then again, most eateries won't tell you there's MSG in the food, either. And MSG is proven to be harmful (allergenic) to some.

-


No "conspiracy" can keep Aspartame on the shelves if it truly is carcinogenic or disease causing. Hell, they banned saccharine.

Then they changed their minds when it turned out that humans and rats are not 100% identical in their response to possible carcinogens. Whoops.

Aspartame is one of those favorite whipping dogs of the nature-nuts, for no special reason other than it being "artificial". There are worse sweeteners out there. Including those that make you crap out weird colors. Amongst a lot of nasty stuff, Aspartame is relatively harmless.

[Walter]

So its the choice of looking slim and dying of some cancer early or getting a bit fat and living longer?

Best to ask the resident health Guru ... OB!!!

[safeorigin]

Aspartame per se isn't bad. It's the metabolite(stuff that is broken down by the liver) that is bad about it. Problems should only arise on long term intake when it accumulates in the body.

Further reading:

Peer Reviewed PRO-aspartame studies
Peer Reviewed ANTI-aspartame studies

[timrev]

ang 2grams ng Aspartame ay 2kilos of sugar sa tamis...halos lahat ng powdered juice meron nyan...tama yun coke zero yan ang gamit pampatamis

hehehe gumagamit kami nyan dati...

[niky]

Well, the point is this:

ang 2grams ng Aspartame ay 2kilos of sugar sa tamis...halos lahat ng powdered juice meron nyan...tama yun coke zero yan ang gamit pampatamis

hehehe gumagamit kami nyan dati...

You use so little aspartame to replace so much sugar. Ingest that much sugar in one sitting and I assure you that you will induce diabetes. Even better, high blood sugar actually increases cancer risks (and this has actually been proven in well-controlled studies), and caramel (burnt or cooked sugar) is a carcinogen.

-

I've eaten Krispy Kreme, and they don't use it. They don't have sugar free. gonuts has sugar free donuts, but they use maltodextrin, as far as I know.

Again, aspartame is not used in all kinds of food, just beverages. For baked goods, it's useless because it breaks down when cooked.

-

And again, people obsess over Aspartame because it is "artifical", when a bigger cancer and overall health risk is staring them in the face every time they add a spoon of sugar to their coffee. And yes, it don't matter if it's white or brown.