This page was reviewed or revised on Tuesday, November 24, 2009 5:05 PM
As people become more health conscious, foods sweetened with aspartame have become more popular. There has been a lot of press warning people about the dangers of aspartame. Knowing more about it may give aspartame users less cause for concern.
Sold as "Equal" or "Nutrasweet", aspartame is a man-made substance composed of two amino acids (aspartic acid and Phenylalanine) which naturally occur in food proteins. Methyl alcohol is a third breakdown product of aspartame which is also in everyday foods. Aspartame-sweetened soft drinks contain the same level of methyl alcohol as a similar amount of fruit juice, thus it poses no health risk.
Aspartame is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. Although it contains the same number of calories as sugar (4 calories per gram) far less needs to be used because it is so much sweeter. Therefore, most foods sweetened with aspartame have fewer calories than the same foods that contain sugar.
Since 1981, the federal government of Canada approved the use of aspartame as a table-top sweetener ("Equal") and as an additive to soft drinks, gelatin, desserts, pudding mixes, breakfast cereals, beverages, chewing gum, dairy products, and many foods and drugs.
Aspartame will lose its sweetness over time, mainly in warm temperatures and in liquids. Heat breaks down the amino acid link causing aspartame to lose its sweetness.
For this reason, aspartame cannot be used in cooking and baking.
Since diet colas sell quickly, they often do not sit on a shelf long enough to lose their sweetness. A powdered drink mix with aspartame will likely not be sweet after a year on a warm shelf. Highly acidic foods are also likely to change in taste after a year.
Aspartame, like a small piece of protein, is digested like a protein fragment. The body breaks it down into parts, phenylalanine, aspartic acid and methanol. These are then used in the same way by the body as if they had come from a food source. Aspartic acid and phenylalanine are safe when consumed as a part of a normal diet. However, in very large amounts, they can cause adverse health effects.
Years of research with this sweetener were done before it became legal in Canada. These studies showed little proof of any behavioural or physical side-effects from moderate aspartame use. The Health Protection Branch of the Canadian Government have suggested an Acceptable Daily Intake (A.D.I.) for aspartame based on current data. This is 40 mg for each kg of body weight per day. This means that a person could consume up to 40 mg of each kg of his/her body weight over a lifetime without harm. An adult weighing 70 kg would have to use more than 75 packets or 150 tablets of "Equal" daily to reach this amount. This same amount would be reached by drinking 5250 ml (21 cups) of aspartame-sweetened drink in a single sitting (or 7-8 large bottles of diet pop).
A lot of research has been done on the safety of aspartame. The only persons who can't use aspartame-sweetened products are those with phenylketonuria (PKU). These people have a genetic disorder, which prevents them from metabolizing phenylalanine.
Aspartame is an additive. Like all additives, a small percentage of people may be "hypersensitive" to it and notice allergic type symptoms or behavioural changes. These people should avoid using aspartame.
Present research does not show a need to eliminate the use of aspartame during pregnancy. It is recommended to limit consumption to a moderate level. Aspartame-containing foods should not replace more nutritious foods that are needed for both baby and mom.
Remember children have a small body size so they reach the safety limit for their body size sooner than an adult does. Again, aspartame-containing foods should not replace more nutritious foods needed for the active growing child.
Based on all the available data aspartame is a safe food ingredient. It provides us with sweetness without the calories or cavity potential. As long as it maintains its safe image, taking aspartame in moderation is not considered a health risk.
Produced by Public Health Dietitians/Nutritionists in Ontario, 1994. May be reproduced without permission provided the source is acknowledged. Distributed by Family Health Services..