Concerns about the artificial sweetener aspartame, which is found in thousands of products, often disguised under different names, have once again been raised.
New research suggests that regularly consuming fizzy drinks laced with the artificial sweeteners could raise the risk of heart and brain damage
Aspartame, which is found in Diet Coke, Pepsi Max and Sprite, and products like Extra chewing gum, to name but a few, has long been linked to health concerns including cancer, high blood pressure and strokes.
BYPASS THE CENSORS
Sign up to get unfiltered news delivered straight to your inbox.
You can unsubscribe any time. By subscribing you agree to our Terms of Use
In 2023 after the World Health Organization classified aspartame as ‘possibly carcinogenic to humans’.
Madonna Exposes Illuminati Blood Sacrifice Rituals in Leaked Footage: ‘The Currency is Kids' Blood'
Now, researchers from Spain say consuming high levels of the additive may also age the brain and stiffen the heart.
The Mail Online reports: In a study on mice, higher aspartame intake – roughly equivalent to three servings every fortnight – was linked to around a 20 per cent increased risk of mild cardiac hypertrophy, a condition in which the heart muscle becomes thickened, as well as accelerated cognitive decline.
The researchers also found that body fat dropped by around a fifth in the animals.
Writing in the journal Biomedicine and Pharmacotherapy, the researchers at the Centre for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials in San Sebastián, urged officials to review current aspartame consumption guidelines.
They said: ‘Aspartame does indeed reduce fat deposits by 20 per cent in mice, but it does so at the cost of mild cardiac hypertrophy and decreased cognitive performance.
‘Although this sweetener may help achieve weight loss in mice, it is accompanied by pathophysiological changes in the heart and, possibly, in the brain.
‘These findings suggest aspartame at permitted doses can compromise the function of major organs, and so it would be advisable to reassess the safety limits for humans.’
In the study, mice were given a dose of 7mg of aspartame per kilogram of body weight. This was administered over three consecutive days every two weeks.
By comparison, the World Health Organization, the European Medicines Agency and the US Food and Drug Administration advise that people should consume no more than 50mg per kilogram of body weight per day.
Over a year-long follow-up, mice exposed to aspartame showed a reduction in heart output in both ventricles – falling by 26 per cent in the left ventricle and 20 per cent in the right.
The researchers also found septal curvature – the thick muscular wall separating the heart’s right and left ventricles – was reduced by 25 per cent.
The mice showed ‘signs of altered neurobehavior’ and ‘possible pathophysiological changes in the brain’, the study said.
However, the scientists acknowledged several limitations, including the length of the study, and said longer-term research would be needed.
The International Sweeteners Association (ISA) urged caution in interpreting the findings, arguing they could not be directly applied to humans.
