Kid's Healthwatch: Aspartame

I admit it, I was addicted. I wanted anything and everything with artificial sweetners. I remember the satisfaction I would get by drinking my first Diet Coke of the day...the first of six before bed. I'd gobble down treats with words like "Nutra-Sweet" and "Equal" on the label, secretly delighted I was keeping my sugar count low.

On February 7th, 2008 my sugarless life changed. My neurologist --who originally was convinced I had Multiple Sclerosis-- told me about the research coming out on aspartame and its similarity in symptoms to MS. I was instantly stripped of my Diet Cokes and yummy treats....cold turkey.

Here's the skinny on aspartame. It consists of three molecules joined together:

-50% phenyl alanine, an amino acid found in food, which can be neurotoxic in high quantities
-40% aspartic acid, also an amino acid found in food.
-10% methanol or methyl alcohol, which is also called wood alcohol. Free methanol can be quite toxic in low quantities. It is metabolized into formaldehyde (a known neurotoxin and carcinogen) and formic acid (the poison in ant stings).

Over 75% of the complaints made to the FDA's Adverse Reaction Monitoring System have been about aspartame.

Some of the more common side effects are: headaches, migraines, seizures (several pilots have had to stop flying because of aspartame induced seizures), hyperactivity (especially in kids), anxiety, aggresiveness, and severe depression.

Dr. Christine Lydon wrote an article about apartame for Oxygen Magazine and stated this troubling fact:

"Prior to birth and during the first 12 months of life, the blood-brain barrier is incomplete; thereby allowing dangerous excitotoxins, such as aspartic acid and phenylalanine, free access to the nervous system. Additionally, the concentrating effects of the placenta are able to magnify the levels of phenylalanine in the blood by as much as four-to six-fold in a fetus. Fetal phenylalanine has the potential to reach levels that kill cells in tissue culture. It's not much of a stretch to presume these concentrations harbor the threat of birth defects in the developing infant. Experimentally, it has been determined that infants are four times more sensitive to excitotoxins than adults. During the first year of life, irreversible brain damage can occur through agents contained in breast milk. Despite this, the American Dietetic Association still recommends aspartame for pregnant and nursing women."

I suggest you do your own research, and come to your own conclusions. As for my family, we are aspartame free. I drink about (6) La Croix sparkling waters a day. Occasionally, we have an awkward moment when my kids (ages 1 and 4) are offered an artificially sweetened treat at a playdate, but other than that, I'm the only one that knows the difference. I feel it everyday.

For more information, follow this link, that contains 50+ articles on aspartame.

Kid's Healthwatch Thursday: Pesticide Exposure

Spending for organic food is worth it when it comes to our children. Their developing bodies are especially vulnerable to toxins found in our food and environment. Switching to organic food has an immediate effect on the body. Within 36 hours, pesticides may no longer be detected in a child's urine. On my website Project Green Girl, I have an article titled "Go Organic" which lists the produce with the highest levels of pesticides. This is a great list to start with, and the cost is minimal.

Recent Studies:

• A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition tested 815 2-year olds, and found those with an organic dairy diet experienced less eczema and wheezing than those consuming non-organic dairy.
• The BBC reported in 2006 that pesticide exposure from food can cause depression and memory problems.
• An organic plant-based nutrition program is believed to help ADD sufferers.
• Pesticide levels in children raise in the winter when more food is imported.
• Amniotic fluid and breast milk can pass pesticides to the fetus and infant, so the mother should also follow an organic diet.

For more information:

• "Organic Diet Cuts Kids' Food Pesticide Levels" from WebMD.
• "Organic A Choice For Our Children" from Dr. Greene.
• "Children And Organic Diet"--This is a must read if you're still not convinced.
• "Got Milk? How About Local Organic Milk?"--A short article from NRDC that tells you everything you need to know about milk.
• "Children's Exposure to Pesticides and Related Health Outcomes"--A very comprehensive article from the EPA.