Aspartame Consumer Safety Network Fact Sheet
80% of all consumer complaints to the FDA are aspartame related
[5 deaths registered prior to 1987]

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THE BITTER TRUTH ABOUT ASPARTAME AND NEOTAME
"Aspartame/Neotame - the most dangerous substances in our food supply today." - Mary Nash Stoddard
[Founder ACSN & Pilot Hotline]

Illegal Actions Gained FDA Approval:

FDA approved the new genetically engineered molecule in 1974, following a spate of criminal acts committed by G.D. Searle pharmaceutical employees and contractors. That approval was rescinded before aspartame got to market, because it was revealed a component of aspartame [diketopiperazine] caused brain tumors. Tests were "falsified." Second approval occurred in 1981 under President Reagan's new FDA Director, Dr. Arthur H. Hayes. In 1983, Hayes' office approved the new molecule for aqueous solution [soft drinks, etc.] and three months later, Dr. Hayes left government, went to work for the NutraSweet public relations firm, Burson Marsteller for $1,000 a day. Hayes continues to craftily dodged all media requests for interviews on the topic. In fact, many government officials connected with this issue have defected - going to work for the industry whose products they were entrusted to approve or reject.

In the laboratory, aspartame produced:

* Brain Tumors
* Breast Tumors
* Uterine Tumors
* Pancreatic Tumors
* Seizures
* Deaths

These went unreported, as did the deaths and seizures of other animals in the original tests. Tumors were removed then animals put back in test as tumor free, animals who died were brought back to life on paper when results officially submitted by G.D. Searle pharmaceutical to FDA.

Aspartame changes DNA:
In tests, the third generation of pups born to animals fed aspartic acid [component of aspartame] were born:

1. Morbidly obese and
   
2. Sexually Dysfunctional
   Components of aspartame and its breakdown products can adversely affect the brains and central nervous systems of children and adults who consume it.

"When you harm the brain, you harm the very expression of one's self." - Peter Breggin, M.D. [Psychiatrist - Bethesda, MD]

Reported psychological symptoms:

* Suicidal Depressions
* Panic Attacks and Anxiety [PAD] - Manias
* Sleep Disorders
* Severe Mood Disorders [rages, mood swings]
* Brain Chemical Imbalance
* Brain Wave Malfunctions [shows up in EEGs]
* Personality Disorders
* Hallucinations
* Aberrant Behaviors

Medicine In Our Food?

Aspartame Components & Breakdown Products:

Phenylalanine 50% - Lowers the seizure threshold. Causes mental retardation in some. Blocks production of serotonin [key neurotransmitter which controls: Moods / Sleep Patterns / Satiety ] Cultured in e-coli bacteria in the lab.

Aspartic Acid 40% - Caused lesions or holes in the brains of lab animals. Neuroexcitatory [excites brain cells to death] amino acid. Causes motor-neuronal disorders in studies.

Methanol 10% - Also known as "methyl alcohol", "moonshine", "Sterno." Damages the liver and eye. Two teaspoons can be lethal to humans. [Not processed the same in humans and animals, so lab tests do not show full impact of toxicity] Breaks down into formaldehyde [embalming fluid] and formic acid [venom in insect stings] at temperatures exceeding 86 degrees Fahrenheit. [Body temperature is 98.6 F] Implicated in birth defects and fetal alcohol syndrome in newborn infants. As a constituent of other foods in nature, it is found in combination with ethyl alcohol, which counteracts or neutralizes the toxic affects of methanol as it is metabolized by the body. There is no ethyl alcohol in aspartame, therefore methanol in aspartame is in "free form" and is immediately absorbed into the bloodstream. For every molecule of aspartame, there is a molecule of methanol released. Classic signs of methanol poisoning include: lethargy, confusion, leg cramps, back pain, severe headache, abdominal pain, slurred speech, fainting, visual loss/blindness, labored breathing.

Diketopiperazine [DKP] - Caused brain tumors in laboratory tests. Thirteen out of 320 lab animals developed brain tumors in testing. Aspartame breakdown products cross the blood brain barrier to damage the brain.

Aspartame is known to exacerbate or trigger onset of the following medical conditions:

* Epilepsy
* Parkinson's
* Alzheimer's
* Multiple Sclerosis
* Chronic Fatigue Syn.
* Lymphoma
* Fibromyalgia / Eosinophilia Myalgia
* Mental Retardation / Birth Defects
* Diabetes / Hypoglycemia
* Graves Disease
* Heart Disease
* Lung Disease
* Liver Disease
* Kidney Disease
* Brain Tumors [astrocytoma/glioblastoma]
* Pancreatic Disease
* Kidney / Adrenal Disease
* Arthritis
* Blindness
* Tinnitus
* PMS
* Carpal Tunnel
* Lyme Disease
* Muniere's Disease
* Other: Rare / Hard to diagnose disorders

[Aspartame has been called a "systemic" toxin - which means it may virtually adversely affect the function of every organ of the body. The effects are "cumulative" and do not show up in short term testing.]

Aspartame and the Media:
1990, The Guardian [London newspaper] was sued for publishing headline story - "NutraSweet Faked Tests to Get Sweetener Approved." Later settled out of court. NutraSweet sent intimidating press releases to all U.S. media warning they were suing.

Documented instances are on record where the manufacturers of aspartame, threatened to sue and/or withdraw advertising dollars, from media. Health care professionals, scientists and medical schools have been "bribed" or intimidated into silence.

Aspartame and Flying Safety:
Many military, general aviation and commercial airline pilots have lost medical certification to fly based on seizures which occurred while they were ingesting aspartame. Grand mal seizures have been reported in flight in the cockpits of commercial airliners. A pilots' hotline in Dallas,TX was established by ACSN, in 1988 for the anonymous reporting of adverse reactions and safety-of-flight incidents. USAF Flying Safety magazine published warnings re: aspartame use by pilots. Pilot's publications around the globe have warned readers. The FAA will not send out an official memo - because the FDA refuses to recall aspartame as a safety hazard to consumers. Is aspartame the unacknowledged "terrorist" in every cockpit on every flight?

Legal:

ACSN co-founders Turner & Stoddard have both qualified in court as medical Expert Witnesses. Many consumer lawsuits have been dropped or settled out of court since the mid-eighties. The Washington D.C. Supreme Court refused to hear a case brought against the FDA by James Turner, Esq. Aspartame is illegal because it violated The Delaney Clause, which states no substance can be approved that is shown to cause cancer.

In 1995, a stealth law crept across the land, which made it illegal to say anything disparaging about a perishable food product -example: yogurt sweetened with aspartame. Oprah was later sued under this law. [Agricultural Defamation Act]

In 1985, G.D. Searle and NutraSweet Co. became wholly-owned subsidiaries of Monsanto Chemical in St. Louis. Controversial Supreme Court Judge, Clarence Thomas is a former Monsanto attorney.

Monsanto sold their sweetener divisions to current owner, the J.W. Childs Partnership.

1998, Monsanto applied for FDA approval for a monster molecule, "based on the aspartame formula" with one addition: 3-dimethylbutyl [listed on EPA's most hazardous chemical list]. Thus, Neotame becomes 13,000 times sweeter than sugar.

July 5, 2002 - Neotame, Monsanto's super bio-manipulated molecule [newest fake sweetener] was approved by FDA over formally registered objections of the Aspartame Consumer Safety Network and others. Long term effects on humans are unknown.

Aspartame is in over-the-counter drugs like: Tums, Pepsid AC, Metamucil, Alka Seltzer Plus, tooth whiteners, breath mints/strips and more.


Diabetes and Aspartame / Neotame:

Diabetics are most insidiously harmed , because they are told aspartame is their "life line" to good health, when, in fact, just the opposite is true. Remember, aspartame caused pancreatic tumors in the lab. A diabetic may see the real life effects of aspartame on blood sugar by performing this simple test with a finger-stick test kit:

* Confirm blood sugar levels to be well within normal limits. If they are, then continue. Drink 2-3 cans [or the bottled equivalent] of Diet Soda containing aspartame, without stopping. Then, begin to retest for blood sugar level readings approximately one hour later. In this way, the adverse effects on blood sugar levels may be proven. This test is NOT recommended for anyone except individuals who already drink more than 2 diet drinks per day.

The American Diabetic Association and The American Dietetic Association [Registered Dietitians] have been "bought out" by the sweetener manufacturers. [ACSN has proof!]

Parents the FDA does not protect your children.

Greed and avarice have made government officials, industry and mainstream science, turn a deaf ear to the truth. Children are at least 4 times more susceptible to aspartame toxicity because of the developing central nervous system. Read labels. If it says:"phenylalanine" don't buy it. Insist your child's pediatric medical records contain this warning - "Never prescribe any medications containing phenylalanine [always present in aspartame and neotame]." Aspartame is a multi-billion dollar a year industry in more than 7,000 food products, chewing gums, children's antibiotics and meds, children's vitamins and pain medications for kids. In the lab, aspartame caused tragic birth defects.

Action Agenda:

* Copy and distribute this Fact Sheet to everyone. 
* Post this brochure on the Internet. ------->>>>> WE DID!!!
* Tell everyone about this problem.------->>>>> WE DO!!!
* Ask the next 5 people you see using aspartame if they have had any of the symptoms.
* Get off the substance for a period of 4-6 weeks to see your physical and mental condition improve.
* If you have sought medical treatment for any of these symptoms and you are/were an aspartame user - have your doctor enter into your official medical record that you believe aspartame may have caused some or all of your symptoms and that you are ceasing use of the sweetener and want to be "monitored" by your health care team as you get better. Very important.
* Join over 10,000 concerned consumer members of Aspartame Consumer Safety Network worldwide who are fighting this battle to educate the consuming public about artificial sweeteners that masquerade as "natural."
* Take all aspartame products back to the store and exchange them for healthy "real" food. This sends a message back to the manufacturer that we will no longer tolerate neurotoxins in our foods and children's items. Register a powerful complaint where it counts.
* Write letters to the FDA and food manufacturers who use aspartame. Copy the editor of your local newspaper, stating your displeasure about the conspiracy of silence and illicit cover up of the facts by government and industry.
The tobacco industry got away with it far too long. Let us learn a lesson from that and vow not to repeat mistakes that let them get away with it. The "real villains" in today's society are those who poison our food supply and that of our children - for profit.
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Published by:
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network
Mary Nash Stoddard, Founder and President
P.O. Box 780634 - Dallas, TX 75378-0634
214.352.4268
website:   http://web2.airmail.net/marystod/
email: [email protected]
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Books / Videos [send a $30 donation per item ordered to ACSN at above address] :

* Deadly Deception Story of Aspartame by Mary Nash Stoddard [Food Safety Expert/ Consultant] - 200 pg. compilation of research studies from peer reviewed medical journals and others, documenting the deadly effects. Lists children's meds - addresses flying safety.
* Deadly Deception - 90-Minute Book on Audio Cassette tapes
* Excitotoxins The Taste That Kills by Dr. Russell Blaylock, M.D. - A respected Neurologist/ Neurosurgeon's excellent review of aspartame toxicity
* Cooking With Stevia by James Kirkland - gives conversion charts and lots of great recipes

* Deadly Deception Story of Aspartame Video - One hour lecture at a Science Symposium by founder of anti-aspartame consumer movement.
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The world owes Dr. John Olney, of Washington University Medical School of Psychiatry, in Saint Louis, MO, a huge debt of gratitude. This soft spoken scientist and researcher , with James Turner, Esq., first uncovered the shocking unreported research study results on aspartame, tucked away in a dismal warehouse. Dr. Olney, the world expert on amino acids, cares more about the truth than popularity with his peers and government officials. We salute Dr. Olney for his efforts and sacrifices on our behalf.

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Mary Nash Stoddard, Founder and President
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network and Pilot Hotline [1987 - 2002]
Author: "Deadly Deception - Story of Aspartame" [Odenwald Press 1998]
* Expert Medical Witness [1992-2002]
* Guest Presenter Gulf War Veterans Annual Conference - [Las Vegas 1999]
* Visiting Professor: U. T. Southwestern Medical School [1997]
* Visiting Professor: American University School of Journalism [1999]
* Visiting Professor: University of North Texas at Denton Dept. of Science [1990]
* Invited speaker: Hebrew Univ. Jerusalem - [1997]
* Keynote speech: Mexican Government's Conference on Sweeteners [1999]
* Appointed Judge - State of Texas [1977-1984]
* Broadcast Journalist - [1965-2002]
* President's Council on Food Safety - [1998-1999]
* International Lecture Tours - [1996-2002]
* Testimony to Senate Committee Hearing on Safety of Aspartame - Washington [1987]
* Panelist at National News Conference Announcing Brain Tumor/Aspartame Connection - Washington D.C. [1998]
* Member Texas Radio Hall of Fame [2002]

WEBSITE: http://web2.airmail.net/marystod