A study conducted by the University of North Dakota found that even safe doses of aspartame cause changes in the neuro-behavioral level.
Don't store avocado like this: it's dangerousSometimes attention is rekindled on the issue of aspartame, an artificial sweetener that the Food and Drug Administration has considered safe since the 80s despite several studies highlighting its dangerousness or at least the possible damage due to excessive and prolonged use over time.
Also l'Ue, through EFSA (European Food Safety Authority) deemed this substance safe while drafting a new risk assessment at the end of 2013. Not all of the scientific community, however, agrees and Report also dedicated an episode to this sweetener, arriving at diametrically opposite conclusions compared to those of official sources.
Now comes another voice out of the chorus. This is the study conducted by a team of researchers from the University of North Dakota and published in Pub Med in which we wanted to analyze the effects of aspartame on a group of 28 healthy students subjected to a double-blind test lasting 4 weeks.
The dose considered safe by the Food and Drug Administration is 50mg per kilo per day (in Europe it is 40mg / kilo), but the researchers chose to test only half of this dose. Participants were given three meals and two snacks that contained large amounts of aspartame (8 mg / kg body weight per day) for 25 days. including puddings, jellies, ice cream, drinks, etc. At the end, the participants took a two-week off period and then switched to an aspartame-reduced diet for another 8 days.
The results highlighted that even considered safe doses of aspartame cause neurobehavioral changes including lower cognitive functions, depression and irritability. It was also noted that when participants were on a high aspartame diet, the ability to orient oneself on a spatial level it was lower than when they were not taking this substance. All this confirms the results of a previous study conducted on 90 university students which had among other things highlighted real memory lapses in students who took a lot of aspartame.
Research on the neurobehavioral effects of aspartame consumption is still in short supply and is more necessary than ever, the team of scientists stressed. The long-term effects still have to be evaluated of the consumption of this substance.
Given that the matter still seems to be controversial and that it is not a natural substance, if in doubt it is better to avoid it, using other types of sweeteners and being careful to read the labels of the products on the market.
Read also:
- Aspartame: is it bad or not for health?
- Aspartame: for the EU it is safe
- Natural sweeteners: 10 valid alternatives to white sugar
