FAMILY MEDICINE® COLUMN
By John C. Wolf, D.O.
Associate Professor of Family Medicine®
Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine

SUGAR MIGHT PROVE MORE DANGEROUS TO READER THAN ASPARTAME

Question: I recently received an e-mail message about serious health problems caused by aspartame. As you probably know, aspartame is the generic name for NutraSweet, the artificial sweetener. I drink Diet Coke that contains aspartame almost every day. Do I need to worry about brain tumors, seizures, multiple sclerosis and systemic lupus as the e-mail claims?

Answer: I have received a similar message from two different friends and have seen a printed version on another occasion. I suspect that the message you received was this same frightening missive. Each of my friends expressed the same concerns that you have: Is this information true? If so, should I stop using aspartame?

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved aspartame for sale as a sugar substitute in 1983. It was initially used in soft drinks and later incorporated into other products. It has been a huge success, as shown by its use in thousands of foods. Shortly after its introduction, a flurry of complaints came to the FDA about it. It was alleged to be the cause of headaches, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, seizures, fibromyalgia, and a host of disorders of the nervous system.

The FDA doesn't approve a food additive such as aspartame for sale without scientific studies demonstrating safety. These studies are conducted on a relatively small number of individuals, so it is possible that some rather rare health problems could be missed. To address this concern, the FDA also maintains a system for monitoring complaints about a product once it has been approved for use. This complaint system is quite good at identifying uncommon negative effects.

Since the 1983 introduction of aspartame there have been numerous high quality studies done to assess the safety of the product. These studies have been conducted to address the questions posed by the various consumer complaints reported to the FDA. And to our relief, these newer studies continue to show that aspartame is overwhelmingly safe. The claims that aspartame is a poison are totally unfounded.

Let me insert one small caveat. There is reliable information that a small number of individuals experience increased frequency of simple headaches when they consume aspartame. If you are not in this category, you can dismiss these unwarranted claims and use aspartame as much as you want or need to!

An obvious additional question that you haven't asked springs from the same e-mail. Is there collusion between government and big corporations to suppress claims of health risks? I certainly don't think so. It is easy to allege that impersonal big government and big business are conspiring against the common person. There just isn't information to support this assertion.

An additional important facet of the discussion about aspartame are the health risks imposed by the alternative "natural" sweetener, sugar. Sugar is a potentially dangerous substance. Its link to tooth decay, obesity and diabetes is undeniable. I'm sure that if it were a new product today, the FDA would require a warning label on foods that contain it. As years of use have shown, however, either product - when used with moderation and good judgment - is safe.

Family Medicine® is a weekly column. To submit questions, write to John C. Wolf, D.O., Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Grosvenor Hall, Athens, Ohio 45701.