Bitter-Sweet Tale

More alarming, though, is the alleged long-term side-effects of aspartame, the artificial sweetener. In his book Diet for a Poisoned Planet, David Steinman says aspartame accounts for over 75 per cent of the adverse reactions to food additives reported to the Food and Drug Administration (fda) of the US. Several of these reactions are very serious, even leading to seizures and death, as disclosed in a February '94 report submitted by Department of Health and Human Services of the US. The report lists some 90 different symptoms said to be linked to aspartame. Among those listed: headaches/migraines, dizziness, seizures, nausea, numbness, muscle spasms, weight gain, rashes, depression, fatigue, irritability, insomnia, vision problems, hearing loss, heart palpitations, breathing difficulties, anxiety attacks, slurred speech, loss of taste, tinnitus, vertigo, memory loss and joint pain. In fact, according to the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, the risk to infants, children, pregnant women, the elderly, and persons with certain chronic health problems from aspartame could be significant.

However, the problem is that so far there is not a single independent study that has investigated the side-effects of aspartame. Most of the studies on the basis of which the fda gave its approval were sponsored by Monsanto, the biggest maker of aspartame. As of now, evidence about the ill-effects of aspartame is largely anecdotal. But slowly, many people who believe they have suffered because of diet colas are organising campaigns against its use.

Scientists convinced of the risks of aspartame aver that much of the food safety research has become a no-rules, public relations playground for food companies. Poorly-designed studies, guaranteed to put a product in a good light, are certainly not limited to the aspartame and monosodium glutamate industries. These industries, claim anti-aspartame activists, seem capable of designing the most worthless and deceptive 'research' which rivals some of the research done in the past by the tobacco companies.

The debate doesn't even exist here. Most doctors and nutritionists are ignorant about the alleged effects of aspartame. The Diet Pepsi can does carry a warning,'Not Recommended For Children',but it is not because it might cause serious health problems but because it has no nutritive value. And who's going to stop young girls aspiring to be fashionably slim from quaffing diet colas rather than their sugared versions?