Over the course of the last month serotonin has come up often in conversation while Aspartame is my favorite food to hate on.
My general thesis is: Aspartame is negatively affecting serotonin and creating long lasting and debilitating health issues.
1. Serotonin keeps our brains running, our moods high, our weight in balance and our world spinning on the perfect axis. Without it “we” are depressed, obese, anxious even paranoid blobs of aches and pain.
2. The phenylalanine in aspartame lowers the seizure threshold and depletes serotonin. Lowered serotonin triggers manic depression, panic attacks, anxiety, mood swings, insomnia, rage, etc. [2]
Little did I know what was to be found. As I began to research and write on this the amount of information was extreme. From Neurologists to MDs to PHDs there were opinions on both sides. And like many things when you begin to turn over the rocks of life the unexpected is suddenly in view ready for examination. Some like Betty Martini were forefront with their concerns and independent studies others lay just below the surface. These below the surface people caught my eye. Like pieces in a puzzle it felt like each one had a bit of the answer.
I knew I could easily show the potential for negative affects and back it up with medical and psychological doctors writings. What I wasn’t expecting was how awful the affects could be and often were. I also wasn’t expecting to find that this chemical was so harsh it could be nearly impossible to quit. That the addiction level and body damage could be on the level of meth. Don’t worry the FDA says it’s fine. To a point.
The toxicity data on aspartame were used by the JECFA, SCF and COT to establish an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) of 40 mg/kg body weight/day and an ADI of 50 mg/kg bw/d was established by the FDA. A 12 US fluid ounce (355 ml) can of diet soda contains 180 milligrams (0.0063 oz) of aspartame, and for a 75 kg (165 lb) adult, it takes approximately 21 cans of diet soda daily to consume the 3,750 milligrams (0.132 oz) of aspartame that would surpass the FDA’s 50 milligrams per kilogram of body weight ADI of aspartame from diet soda alone. – This doesn’t mean it’s safe for you. What if the FDA and the others got it wrong? What if you remove the kg body weight from the formula? Then one soda would be over 3 times the amount noted as acceptable. Then would the reactions being noted fall into the noted risk – YES.
The average American Super Sizes to a 32 oz drink – if this happens 3 times a day that is 9 of the 21 drink limit. That’s if they add no other aspartame food into their meals – that doesn’t seem to be possible due to it’s prolific use.
From www.nutrasweet.com
How much aspartame is contained in various products?Below is the approximate aspartame content in several product categories. For specific information regarding individual products, the manufacturer should be contacted, as exact formulations differ with each manufacturer.
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With these rocks turning and the article growing I decided it needed to be more than just a quick intrigue article with a huge number of footnotes and references.
For those who already realize they need to remove nutrasweet/equal/aspartame and the over consumption of phenylalanine from their diet here is a smoothie to set you in motion:
The withdrawals off this chemical are very much like withdrawals form any addictive drug so it is best to seek the help of a qualified medical professional.
That said I altered this smoothie recipe using ingredients known to have a quantity of tryptophan and boosted it with Smoothie Essentials Blends to support the transition.
To this recipe I suggest an addition of one scoop of any of the following Smoothie Essentials Blends -
MultiVitamin Blend – to boost vitamin intake -vitamins such as Vitamin C, Vitamin E and and Beta Carotene can help reduce if not block MDMA. [1]
Antioxidant Blend – This powerful blend is an excellent source of Vitamins A, Vitamin C & Vitamin E. It is a select combination of vegetables and other natural plants that together form a high quality source of antioxidants.
Women’s Blend – Though made with the active stress and demands of women in mind the benefits of this blend are not limited by gender.
Personally I often will put more than one blend into a smoothie and love the benefits. Adding a scoop of Smoothie Essentials Protein Blend or Smoothie Essentials Soy Protein Blend or Smoothie Essentials Whey Protein Blend make this into a lovely meal replacement smoothie.
Matcha GT Smoothie 16 oz (frozen yogurt)
6 oz milk
2 oz almond milk
2 scoop of Matcha GT
1 scoop of either Multi-Vitamin Blend, Antioxidant Blend or Women’s blend
6 oz vanilla frozen yogurt
1 banana
4 oz ice
Blend
1. http://www.erowid.org/chemicals/mdma/mdma_article3.shtml
2. http://www.aspartame.ca/page_a13.html
