Aspartame and headaches???

[disnutt]

I'm a diet drink addict. I even did 4 marketing jobs on the side last month for Crystal Lite On-the-Go and loved it because I could sample the product. Well, after the 2nd event I had a headache that I attributed to not having lunch and trying to be "up" for the event. Got the same headache after the next 2 events.

This past week I've had a headache most days. They don't start until after my morning Diet Coke break. I usually drink 2-3 cans/day while working. The headaches wouldn't go away until well into the evening hours after the last can.

Today I went without my Diet Coke and felt pretty good ( I got my caffeine fix from green tea a pretty poor substitute but I CAN'T drop caffeine and Diet Coke at the same time) until I chewed 2 pieces of sugarless gum sweetened with aspartame. I didn't think about the sugarless gum being a problem until a milder version of the headache hit about 3 minutes after I started chewing the gum.

I know there are official studies that show there is no connection between the sweetner and headaches but there also seems to be a large group of anecdotal reports that it does. Has anyone ever had similar problems? Did cutting the sweetner out end the headaches? I'm going to try it for a week or two.

 

[KristiKelly]

I had headaches with both Equal and Splenda even though they are 2 different types of sweetners. Diet Dr. Pepper is my caffeine, I drank them even though I got headaches. Once I got pregnant, I couldn't drink them, they seemed to syrupy and the carbonation nauseated me. I would drink tea sweetened with Splenda and would get bad headaches. I stopped using all artificial sweeteners about 2 monthes ago and haven't had any headaches. I can drink tea sweetened with plain sugar and I'm fine. I used to use a lot of Equal and would go through periods of a few weeks at a time where I felt really depressed, I switched to Splenda and didn't have that problem. Equal = depressed, Splenda = headache, sugar= just fat. What's a girl to do???

 

[FreshTressa]

I'm fine with splenda, but aspartame makes me headachy and stomachy, and I don't care what scientists say, that is what happens to me EVERY time.

 

[JennSaint]

I get headaches when I drink diet soda and crystal light etc. My doctor told me to stop drinking them. Occasionally I still drink one and don't get a headache. But when I drink them everyday I will get a headache.

 

[Talking Hands]

Drink or eat anything with aspartame and I am one sick person. Headache, muscle pain and weakness, nausea and associated other problems and severe deperession. Seem to do fine with Splenda but I actually drink less soda and more water and tea now. Absolutely no aspartame ever now.

 

[RadioNate]

Aspartame is highly addictive more so than caffeine. You can also "overdose" on it. There is pleanty of research out there that says that aspartame is toxic. Headaches are one of the biggest symptom of aspartame posioning.

 

[krissy3483]

is aspartame still linked to cancer? Seems like every time I try to drink something a little healthier than regular soda (diet soda, crystal light, minute maid lite), it ends up having aspertame in it.

 

[Figment2]

Count me in as one of those people who get (severe) headaches from Aspertame. Even the least little bit gives me a headache.

I was at a party and tried a ribbon jello that a friend made. About a 1/2 hour later, I mentioned to her that I was getting a headache. She confessed that she used sugar free jello for one of the ribbons (and it was a thin ribbon at that). She felt bad for the rest of the evening that she didn't tell me beforehand.

Now I read the ingredients on everything including gum and breath mints. It seems like it's in everything.

Cyn

 

[Serena]

I can't and won't touch the stuff. Straight natural sugar is all I'll use.

 

[Pooh67_68]

I don't get headaches from Aspertame, but it does make me sick to my stomach. I have no problems with Splenda.

 

[MouseClubMom]

My daughters and I all get migraines from any type of artificial sweetener - aspartame, nutrasweet, etc... We cant do Sugar Free anything - candy, kool-aid, etc... because these are added.

Cut out the diet stuff and see if that helps. Good luck!

MCMom

 

[Talking Hands]

My daughters and I all get migraines from any type of artificial sweetener - aspartame, nutrasweet, etc... We cant do Sugar Free anything - candy, kool-aid, etc... because these are added.

Cut out the diet stuff and see if that helps. Good luck!

MCMom

Aspartame, nutrasweet, equal all are the same thing under different names. Have you tried Splenda? I have to really read the labels and make sure it has no aspartame (nutrasweet, equal) in it. I also don't do well with the sugar alcohols used in some diabetic candies so unless it is Splenda sweetened I go without. Btw I am diabetic as well so sugar is not a real choice for me.

 

[gshoemate]

I get terrible migraines. I can usually squeeze one diet drink in and I am ok but if I have more then one a day or if I have then several days in a row, I get a headache that takes days to get rid of.

 

[Pixie_Dust]

I'm glad people are starting to realize (after all these years!) that this stuff is so bad for you. It used to be if I said something about it on a message board I would get flamed by people who did not want to believe it! Here is one of the many links on the topic (a new one since I read so much about aspartame I thought I'd look up and see what they said about Splenda too):

http://www.holisticmed.com/splenda/

 

[ballroombelle]

I, too, have read the many studies that show that the connection between aspartame and migraines is "inconclusive". I don't believe it-I suspect it's a cover-up by the aspartame producers or whoever else has an interest.

I rarely get migraines or headaches. Once, at an Inn where beverages were complimentary but they never seemed to have anything but Diet 7-Up, I'd consumed several servings (I'm not usually a diet soda drinker) and the headaches I suffered the days after were unbearable, nearly debilitating. I thought I was dying, that I was suffering some kind of aneurysm. Three days of persistent throbbing and then I was fine.

There's too much anecdotal evidence to ignore that something isn't right about these sweeteners. Anyway, studies or not, I think I can live without that foul substance.

 

[Snowysmom]

I get really bad headaches if I use aspartame or any other artificial sweetener. When it first came out many years ago, I drank alot of diet sodas and got headaches. It took a while but I did connect it to the artificial sweetener. Now I use sugar in coffee and tea and drink sparkling water (no sweeteners in it.)

 

[Pixie_Dust]

I, too, have read the many studies that show that the connection between aspartame and migraines is "inconclusive". I don't believe it-I suspect it's a cover-up by the aspartame producers or whoever else has an interest.

It is a "cover-up." Their "scientific" studies that conveniently do not show the build-up of formaldehyde you read about are done outside the body, not in an applicable test setting.

 

[Dakota_Lynn]

I'm fine with splenda, but aspartame makes me headachy and stomachy, and I don't care what scientists say, that is what happens to me EVERY time.

I was a science major and believe very stronly in scientific testing. However, the scientists who have "tested" aspartame and determined it safe are WRONG. Too many people have experienced horrible side effects from the stuff!

Several years ago, I started getting frequent headaches, but for me, it was far more than that. I developed problems with my vision and numbness, weakness and tingling in my legs. I saw a movie about Annette F, and after watching her story I was concinced I had MS becuase I had ALL the symptoms. I punched MS into the search engine, and up there at the top was aspertame! I read that many people feel that aspertame brings about MS-like symptoms. I read a lot of info about it and decided that it couldn't possible be aspertame that was causing my problems! After all, it was government approved, right? I decided to stop drinking diet sodas for a few days just to see if it helped and my problems COMPLETELY went away within three days. I thought for sure it was a coinicidence so after about a month, I had only one diet soda and within 12 hours I had a temporary return of my symptoms. At that point, I gave up all products with aspertame. That was more than three years ago and I haven't had those problems since.

While I deeply respect science, I also know that it isn't ALWAYS right. I do believe that aspartame is dangerous and I refuse to allow my daughter to go near the stuff!

 

[ballroombelle]

While I deeply respect science, I also know that it isn't ALWAYS right. I do believe that aspartame is dangerous and I refuse to allow my daughter to go near the stuff!

It's not that science isn't "right", per se. The researchers or their benefactors have selectively chosen what they want to publicize. I'm certain they're well aware of the dangers. How they can live with themselves is beyond me.

You're right though, we just have to stay informed as consumers. It's getting so difficult that you wonder exactly who out there is looking out for the public interest?

 

[CJMickeyMouse]

I must be in the minority, but I drink Diet Coke every day all day and I don't have headaches, etc. I know, I know.... you'll tell me that someday it will catch up with me. I guess until I start to see a problem, I am not going to worry about my "habit".

There are much worse things!!