Guys I am new to the board but wanted to add some info that I have posted at other sites about things people might want to understand better. i hope the info is helpful.

This thread might be jacked as it is but I will put up some info that I know about diet sodas. I used to drink them and they were my staple of liquids injested. I would often drink 3-4 glasses at a meal. One day something changed for me. I started to be at resturants and half way thru my meal I would have to hit the bathroom. Mostly liquid right thru me. I thought this was doe to the stuff they put on lettuce etc. It kept happening. I stopped eating salads and still happened. I ate alot cleaner type meal and still happened. I stopped drinking diet cokes and swiched to water and it did not happpen. So I wondered if it was the amount I was drinking or just the drink itself. I read up on sweeteners, water, beer, and juices. I figured for me the natural water and lemon was the solution. Not sure what diet coke and pepsi has in it or why it started after I had been drinking them for a while, but I feel better to have them out of my life. Mixed drinks are the only time I will have one now.

FYI
Analysis Shows Nearly 100% of Independent Research Finds Problems With Aspartame
An analysis of peer reviewed medical literature using MEDLINE and other databases was conducted by Ralph G. Walton, MD, Chairman, The Center for Behavioral Medicine, Professor of Clinical Psychiatry, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine. Dr. Walton analyzed 164 studies which were felt to have relevance to human safety questions. Of those studies, 74 studies had aspartame industry-related sponsorship and 90 were funded without any industry money.

Of the 90 non-industry-sponsored studies, 83 (92%) identified one or more problems with aspartame. Of the 7 studies which did not find a problems, 6 of those studies were conducted by the FDA. Given that a number of FDA officials went to work for the aspartame industry immediately following approval (including the former FDA Commissioner), many consider these studies to be equivalent to industry-sponsored research.

Of the 74 aspartame industry-sponsored studies, all 74 (100%) claimed that no problems were found with aspartame. This is reminiscent of tobacco industry research where it is primarily the tobacco research which never finds problems with the product, but nearly all of the independent studies do find problems.

The 74 aspartame industry-sponsored studies are those which one inveriably sees cited in Page Ranking/news reports and reported by organizations funded by Monsanto/Benevia/NutraSweet (e.g., IFIC, ADA). These studies have severe design deficiencies which help to guarantee the "desired" outcomes. These design deficiencies may not be apparent to the inexperienced scientist. Healthcare practitioners and scientists should print out the all of the documents on the Monsanto/NutraSweet Scientific Abuse web page, the Scientific FAQs web page and the Aspartame Toxicity Reaction Report Samples.

Aspartame Ingestion Causes Formaldehyde Accumulation in the Body
Excerpt from:

Trocho, C., et al., 1998. "Formaldehyde Derived From Dietary Aspartame Vinds to Tissue Components in vivo," Life Sciences, Vol. 63, No. 5, pp. 337+, 1998


"These are indeed extremely high levels for adducts of formaldehyde, a substance responsible for chronic deleterious effects that has also been considered carcinogenic.
....
"It is concluded that aspartame consumption may constitute a hazard because of its contribution to the formation of formaldehyde adducts."


"It was a very interesting paper, that demonstrates that formaldehyde formation from aspartame ingestion is very common and does indeed accumulate within the cell, reacting with cellular proteins (mostly enzymes) and DNA (both mitochondrial and nuclear). The fact that it accumulates with each dose, indicates grave consequences among those who consume diet drinks and foodstuffs on a daily basis." (Neuroscientist Russell Blaylock, MD)



Aspartame and MSG Cause Painful Fibromyalgia Symptoms
Ann Pharmacother 2001 Jun;35(6):702-6
Relief of fibromyalgia symptoms following discontinuation of dietary excitotoxins.
Smith JD, Terpening CM, Schmidt SO, Gums JG. Malcolm Randall Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Gainesville, FL, USA.

BACKGROUND: Fibromyalgia is a common rheumatologic disorder that is often difficult to treat effectively. CASE SUMMARY: Four patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia syndrome for two to 17 years are described. All had undergone multiple treatment modalities with limited success. All had complete, or nearly complete, resolution of their symptoms within months after eliminating monosodium glutamate (MSG) or MSG plus aspartame from their diet. All patients were women with multiple comorbidities prior to elimination of MSG. All have had recurrence of symptoms whenever MSG is ingested. DISCUSSION: Excitotoxins are molecules, such as MSG and aspartate, that act as excitatory neurotransmitters, and can lead to neurotoxicity when used in excess. We propose that these four patients may represent a subset of fibromyalgia syndrome that is induced or exacerbated by excitotoxins or, alternatively, may comprise an excitotoxin syndrome that is similar to fibromyalgia. We suggest that identification of similar patients and research with larger numbers of patients must be performed before definitive conclusions can be made. CONCLUSIONS: The elimination of MSG and other excitotoxins from the diets of patients with fibromyalgia offers a benign treatment option that has the potential for dramatic results in a subset of patients. PMID: 1140

Aspartame and Brain Tumors
A published study in Sweden that looked at various possible causes of brain tumors (e.g., cell phones, aspartame) found a link between use of diet drinks and certain types of large brain tumors in middle-aged and elderly population groups.


Aspartame is composed of two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine, as the methyl ester. Amino acids are the building blocks of protein. Aspartic acid and phenylalanine are also found naturally in protein containing foods, including meats, grains and dairy products. Methyl esters are also found naturally in many foods such as fruits and vegetable and their juices.