Avoiding formaldehyde allergic reactions in children, aspartame,

Avoiding formaldehyde allergic reactions in children, aspartame,
vitamins, shampoo, conditioners, hair gel, baby wipes, Sharon E Jacob,
MD, Tace Steele, U. Miami, Pediatric Annals 2007 Jan.: eyelid contact
dermatitis, AM Hill, DV Belsito, 2003 Nov.: Murray 2008.03.27
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.htm
Thursday, March 27, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1532
____________________________________________________


"It is generally recommended that exposure to products containing
formaldehyde, FRP's, and aspartame (NutraSweet) be avoided
in children."

"Through metabolism, aspartame is converted metabolically
in the liver to methanol,
which is in turn metabolized to formaldehyde. 8"


www.pediatricannalsonline.com/showPdf.asp?rID=3D21306

Avoiding formaldehyde allergic reactions in children
Pediatric Annals. 2007 Jan.; 36(1): 55-6. PMID: 17269284
Sharon E. Jacob, MD, Director, Contact Dermatitis Clinic,
Dept. of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery, U. of Miami,
1295 NW 14th St., Miami, FL 33125, fax 305-243-6191

Sharon E. Jacob, MD
Assistant Professor of Medicine (Dermatology)
University of California, San Diego 200 W. Arbor Drive #8420
San Diego, CA 92103-8420
Tel: 858-552-8585 =D73504  Fax: 305-675-8317   sjacob@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Steele, BA

Sharon E. Jacob, MD, was Director, Contact Dermatitis Clinic,
Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery,
University of Miami, Miami, FL.
Tace Steele, BA, is with the Department of Dermatology,
University of Miami, Miami, FL.
Address correspondence to: Sharon E. Jacob, MD,
Director, Contact Dermatitis Clinic, University of Miami,
Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery,
1295 NW 14th St, Miami FL 33125; fax 305-243-6191;
or email: sjacob@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 authors disclosed no relevant financial relation****p
http://contactderm.med.miami.edu/x20.xml
http://contactderm.med.miami.edu/x21.xml
[ photos ]
http://contactderm.med.miami.edu/x11.xml
Assistant Professor
Director, Contact Dermatitis Clinic
Director, Medical Student Education
1295 NW 14th St.
South Building Suite L
Miami, FL 33125  tel: 305-243-6704
Board Certifications
Diplomat of the American Board of Dermatology
Practice Locations
University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Medical Center
Miami Veterans Affairs Medical Center
Cedars Medical Center
Education
Hamp****re College
Amherst, MA Undergraduate
Temple University, School of Medicine
Philadelphia, PA Graduate
Jackson Memorial Hospital, University of Miami
Affiliated Medical Education Program Residency

[ See also:

formaldehyde from many sources, including aspartame, is major
cause of Allergic Contact Dermatitis, SE Jacob, T Steele,
G Rodriguez, Skin and Aging 2005 Dec.: Murray 2008.03.27

http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.htm
Thursday, March 27, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1533
]


Formaldehyde is a well-known sensitizer in children, and allergy
to this substance is a more widely recognized problem in recent
years. 1-3

In some children, even small amounts of formaldehyde can
trigger and maintain an eczematoid-type dermatitis, headache,
or symptoms of asthma. 4-7

Allergy to formaldehyde is not surprising, given the large number
of products containing formaldehyde and
formaldehyde-releasing preservatives (FRPs).

As with the more immediate allergic reactions that occur to peanuts
and latex, for example, it is known that an allergic reaction doesn't
occur at the first exposure to the allergen.

Rather, with each exposure to the allergen, the person is more likely
to reach the threshold/dose
at which they express the allergic reaction.

Through metabolism, aspartame is converted metabolically in the
liver to methanol, which is in turn metabolized to formaldehyde. 8

Most people with formaldehyde allergy don't recount a specific
exposure that made them sensitive.

Following patch testing, the gold standard to diagnose contact
dermatitis and with subsequent allergen education,
patients are often able to identify
the products in their daily routine that contain formaldehyde.

It is generally recommended that exposure to products containing
formaldehyde, FRPs, and aspartame (Nutrasweet)
be avoided in children.

Formaldehyde allergy in children is a problem that is potentially
avoidable by substituting products free of this sensitizing chemical.

SIDEBAR
Names of Formaldehyde-Releasing Preservatives
(FRPs) in Personal Hygiene Products and Cosmetics 9

2-bromo-2- nitropropane-1,3 diol (Bronopol)
Diazolidinyl urea (Germall II)
DMDM hydantoin (Glydant)
Imidazolidinyl urea (Germall)
Tris (hydroxymethyl) nitromethane (Tris Nitro)
Quaternium-15 (Dowicil 75, Dowicil 100, Dowicil 200)

TABLE.
Examples of Products Containing Formaldehyde or FRPs

Product

Type With Formaldehyde/FRPs

--------- Without Formaldehyde/FRPs

Shampoo

Avon Kids 2-in-1 Super Gentle Shampoo for Normal Hair,
Avon; Dove Shampoo, Extra Volume, Unilever; Johnson's
Baby Shampoo/Softwash Baby Shampoo, Kissably Baby
Soft, Johnson & Johnson

--------- Dhs Regular Shampoo, Person & Covey; Free & Clear
Shampoo, Pharmaceutical Specialities; Head & Shoulders
Anti-Dandruff 2-in-1 Shampoo, Smooth & Silky,
Procter & Gamble

Conditioner

Avon Kids Super Gentle Conditioner/Detangler, Avon; Dove
conditioner, Intense Moisture, Unilever; Nizoral A-D Non-
Medicated Daily Conditioner, Janssen Pharmaceutica

--------- Advance Techniques Daily Results Conditioner, Avon;
Dhs Conditioning Rinse, Person & Covey; Free & Clear
Conditioner, Pharmaceutical Specialities

Hair Gel

Avon Kids Super Gentle 2-in-1 Soft Styling Gel, all hair
types, Avon; Dove Shape & Lift Volumizing Gel, Unilever; Iso
Multiplicity Discipline Smoothing Gel, Innovative Styling Options

--------- Advance Techniques for Men Styling Gel, Avon; Clinique
Light Control Styling Gel, Estee Lauder; Free & Clear
Hair Spray, Firm Hold, Pharmaceutical Specialities

Baby Wipes

Huggies Natural Care Baby Wipes, Unscented, Kimberly-
Clark; Huggies Newborn Baby Wipes, Fragrance Free,
Kimberly-Clark; Pampers One-Ups! Baby Wipes, with Aloe,
Alcohol Free, Procter & Gamble

--------- Seventh Generation Unscented Baby Wipes with Aloe
Vera & Vitamin E, Seventh Generation; Tu****es Baby
Wipes with Aloe Vera; Lansinoh Clean & Condition Cloths

Vitamins

Flintstones Children's Complete Multivitamin, Chewable
Tablets, Bayer; Centrum Kids Complete Vitamins, Chewable
Tablets, Wyeth; One-A-Day Kids Scooby-Doo! Multivitamin
plus Calcium, Chewable Tablets, Bayer

--------- L'il Critters Gummy Vites Kids Multivitamin, Northwest
General Products; GNC Multiples Multibite Plus Minerals
& Calcium Multivitamin For Kids, Chewable Orange
Tablets; Poly-Vi-Sol Multivitamin Supplement Drops for
Infants and Children, 0 to 3 Years, Mead Johnson


REFERENCES

1. Boyvat A, Akyol A, G=FCrgey E.
Contact sensitivity to preservatives in Turkey.
Contact Dermatitis. 2005; 52(6): 333-337.

2. Schnuch A, Geier J, Uter W, Frosch PJ.
Patch testing with preservatives, antimicrobials and
industrial biocides: Results from a multicentre study.
Br J Dermatol. 1998; 138(3): 467-476.

3. Pratt MD, Belsito DV, DeLeo VA, et al.
North American Contact Dermatitis Group patch test
results, 2001-2002 study period.
Dermatitis. 2004; 15(4): 176-183.

4. Shackelford KE, Belsito DV.
The etiology of allergic-appearing foot dermatitis:
a 5-year retrospective study.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2002; 47(5): 715-721.

5. Garrett MH, Hooper MA, Hooper BM, Rayment PR,
Abramson MJ.
Increased risk of allergy in children due to formaldehyde exposure
in homes.
Allergy. 1999; 54(4): 330-337.

6. Van den Eeden SK, Koepsell TD, Longstreth WT,
van Belle G, Daling JR, McKnight B.
Aspartame ingestion and headaches: a randomized crossover trial.
Neurology. 1994; 44(10): 1787-1793.

7. Rumchev KB, Spickett JT, Bulsara MK, Phillips MR, Stick SM.
Domestic exposure to formaldehyde significantly increases the risk
of asthma in young children.
Eur Respir J. 2002; 20(2): 403-408.

8. Hill AM, Belsito DV.
Systemic contact dermatitis of the eyelids caused by formaldehyde
derived from aspartame?
Contact Dermatitis. 2003; 49(5): 258-259.

9. Rietschel RL, Fowler JF.
Fisher's Contact Dermatitis, 4th ed. Williams & Wilkins, 1995.
____________________________________________________

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http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1067
eyelid contact dermatitis by formaldehyde from aspartame,
AM Hill, DV Belsito, Nov 2003: Murray 2004.03.30 [ 150 KB ]

[ Comments by Rich Murray are in square brackets. To increase
the readability of the dense, specialized, condensed text of a brief
scientific letter (usually not peer reviewed), I have added spacing
without altering text, while correcting minor typos.

I then offer some critical analyses and extensions of the references,
since the relevant scientific literature is contaminated by long-term,
systematic influence by cor****ate vested interests. ]

"A 60-year-old Caucasian woman presented with a 6-month history
of eyelid dermatitis...

By strictly avoiding formaldehyde and all formaldehyde releasers for
the next 3 weeks, she improved only slightly.

Her problem, however, was subsequently solved when
a local pharmacist advised her to avoid aspartame.

She had begun using an aspartame-based artificial sweetener
5 months prior to the onset of her dermatitis. [ 12 months of
low-level aspartame use until stopping. ]

Within 1 week of discontinuing the aspartame, her eyelid dermatitis
resolved completely and has not recurred over 18 months without
specific treatment....

Our patient was consuming an average of 80 mg (1.13 mg/kg)
of aspartame daily, well below the levels previously studied."

[ A packet of tabletop sweetener gives 37 mg aspartame,
while a 12 oz diet soda gives 200 mg aspartame. An aspartame
reactor can have immediate strong symptoms from an
under-the-tongue wafer with 4 mg aspartame.
(Appendix A, for comments, abstracts, and links.) ]

Contact Dermatitis. 2003 Nov; 49(5): 258-9.
Systemic contact dermatitis of the eyelids caused by formaldehyde
derived from aspartame?
Hill AM, Belsito DV. DBelsito@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 of Dermatology, University of Kansas Medical Center,
3901 Rainbow Blvd., Kansas City, KS 66160, USA.
PMID: 14996049

A. Michele Hill and Donald V. Belsito
Division of Dermatology, University of Kansas Medical Center
3901 Rainbow Blvd., Kansas City, KS 66160, USA
[ (Appendix B, for more abstracts by Donald V. Belsito,
selections, and institutions) ]

Key Words: allergic contact dermatitis; aspartame; eyelids;
formaldehyde; systemic contact dermatitis.

Formaldehyde is a common and ubiquitous contact allergen.
Sources of exposure include hair and skin care products, cosmetics,
topical medications, permanent press clothing, cleaning agents,
disinfectants, paper and even smoke. [ Also, new buildings,
mobile homes, furniture, carpets, drapes, particleboard,
medical and mortuary facilities, methanol, aspartame,
dimethyl dicarbonate, dark wines and liquors ]

Sensitization is re****ted in between 2.2 and 9.6% of patients
patch tested (1,2).
[ (Appendix C, for abstracts on rates of formaldehyde sensitivity in
control groups, as a possible first estimate of the impact of
widespread exposure to aspartame since 1981.) ]

Case Re****t

A 60-year-old Caucasian woman presented with a 6-month history
of eyelid dermatitis.
A corticosteroid-containing opthalmologic ointment improved
but did not clear the rash.
She failed to improve when she discontinued the use of all eyelid
cosmetics and nail polishes for 2 months.
She had had a facial dermatitis in 1995, for which she had been
patch tested and found to be allergic to formaldehyde,
quaternium-15 and fragrances.
She had also had incidental, non-relevant reactions to neomycin
and ethylenediamine.
Her dermatitis had resolved with a change to formaldehyde-,
quaternium-15 and fragrance-free facial and nail cosmetics.

There was no personal or family history of atopy or psoriasis.
Her only oral medication was celecoxib that she had taken for
years prior to the onset of her blepharitis.
She had also taken multivitamins, calcium and flaxseed oil
for many years.
She worked as a homemaker and library volunteer. [ It is relevant
as to whether she had the standard urban diet with high protein and
animal fats, meats, milk products, some inorganic fruits and
vegetables, high sugars, and processed foods. Mercury dental
amalgams and mercury contaminated fish could also play a role.
Was her water fluoridated or otherwise contaminated? Were there
toxic mold exposures in her environment? Was she exposed to
pesticides in her area? ]

Her eyelid dermatitis was kept clear with tacrolimus
0.03% ointment X2 daily.
She underwent patch testing to the North American Contact
Dermatitis Group standard tray, the University of Kansas'
supplemental standard tray, and to her cosmetics, cleansers,
skin and hair care products and topical medications.
She had relevant positive reactions at days 2 and 4 to
formaldehyde (++), quaternium-15 (++), diazolidinyl urea (+),
DMDM hydantoin (+) and imidazolidinyl urea (++),
her hair care products and cleansers containing multiple sources
of these allergens.

She was extensively instructed in avoidance of formaldehyde and
formaldehyde releasers, as well as that of her multiple, currently
non-relevant allergens, including fragrance, benzalkonium chloride,
neomycin, bacitracin, p-phenylenediamine and black rubber mix.
[ As a medical layman, I'm disturbed to see all these chemicals
that I know nothing about. ]

By strictly avoiding formaldehyde and all formaldehyde releasers
for the next 3 weeks, she improved only slightly.

Her problem, however, was subsequently solved when
a local pharmacist advised her to avoid aspartame.

She had begun using an aspartame-based artificial sweetener 5
months prior to the onset of her dermatitis. [ 12 months of low-level
aspartame use until stopping. Aspartame reactors discover this
possibility usually from the Net, alternative medicine providers,
media, nurses, friends, and pharmacists, rarely from physicians. ]

Within 1 week of discontinuing the aspartame, her eyelid dermatitis
resolved completely and has not recurred over 18 months without
specific treatment.  [ This quick healing response is typical of cases
of low-level use with few symptoms. Long-term heavy users,
above 2 L, about 6 12-oz cans daily for years, often have severe
craving and withdrawal symptoms for weeks, with gradual recovery
for months. H. J. Roberts, MD has summarized over 1200 cases.
(Appendix H) Three recent case re****ts are added here.
(Appendix I) ]

Unfortunately, she refused to undergo rechallenge with the sweetener.
[ This is usually the case. Commonly, there is inadvertent reexposure,
with immediate painful symptoms, even with low doses. ]

Discussion

The artificial sweetener, aspartame, is consumed by
54% of adults in the USA (3).

It has been re****ted to cause dry eyes and difficulty in wearing
contact lenses (3) but never allergic contact dermatitis.
[ Reference (3) is given in full here. (Appendix H)
Roberts H J. Dry eyes from use of aspartame
(Nutrasweet): Associated insights concerning the Sjogren syndrome.
The Townsend Letter for Doctors, January 1994.
Appendix H also quotes several cases of eyelid dermatitis from his
review of 1200 cases in Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic
(2001). ]

Aspartame, an L-aspartyl-L-phynylalanine methyl ester, is
hydrolysed in the intestine to phenylalanine (50%),
aspartic acid (40%) and methyl ester (10%).

The methyl ester is then converted to methyl alcohol (methanol)
and carried by the ****tal vein to the liver.

Methanol is there oxidized to formaldehyde that is converted into
formic acid (formate) by alcohol dehydrogenase,
aldehyde dehydrogenase and the microsomal oxidase pathway.

This occurs not only in the liver, but also in other organs containing
high levels of these enzymes, including the eye (4,5).

Formaldehyde binds proteins and nucleic acids, forming adducts
difficult to eliminate via metabolism.

Trocho et al. (6) demonstrated the formation of formaldehyde
adducts with DNA and proteins after administration of 20 mg/kg
14C-labelled aspartame to rats, concluding that these adducts
were responsible for functional alterations of proteins and for DNA
mutations leading to autoimmunity, cell death or malignant
transformation.  [ (Appendix E) gives links, comments, and quotes
for the debate on the key Trocho study. ]

In contrast to Trocho et al. (6), McMartin et al. (7) studied
formaldehyde levels after large doses (3,000 mg/kg) of
14C-labelled methanol and 14C-labelled formaldehyde in monkeys, which
unlike rats are sensitive to the toxicities of methanol.

No increased formaldehyde derived from methanol was found.

High levels of formic acid were found in all monkeys that were given
methanol or formaldehyde.

[ (Appendix F) reviews the major studies.
Oppermann et al (1973, 1976)
found that 30% of the methanol from aspartame fed to monkeys remained
in body tissues, indubitably as toxic products of
formaldehyde and formic acid.
They did not test methanol product retention in humans.
McMartin et al (1979) re****ted significant formaldehyde retention
in the midbrain of one monkey from oral aspartame, and substantial
formic acid in liver, kidney, optic nerve, cerebrum, and midbrain
in two other monkeys.
It is clear that his formaldehyde assays were too insensitive to give
valid measurements.
There has been a dearth of relevant primate and human studies ever
since. ]

Based on the work of McMartin and al. (7), Tephly (8) concluded
that the radioactive carbon from methanol, which was found in DNA
and protein by Trocho et al., was due to the normal physiologic flow
of single-carbon units through the folate pathway.

Stegink et al. (9) have shown that doses of 100 mg/kg or greater of
aspartame are required to increase methanol blood levels (and thus,
presumable formaldehyde formic acid levels) above control.

This would be equivalent to consuming 35 cans of diet beverage at
one sitting for a 70 kg person. [ This is a typical aspartame industry
PR ploy, well designed to plant the impression that only absurdly
huge amounts of diet soda might supply damaging amounts of
methanol-derived formaldehyde and formic acid toxic residuals
in body tissues, thus reducing methanol blood levels. So, it is a
classic red herring tactic to focus on methanol blood levels.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/910
formaldehyde & formic acid from methanol in aspartame:
Murray: 2002.12.09

It is certain that high levels of aspartame use, above 2 liters daily
for months and years, must lead to chronic formaldehyde-formic
acid toxicity, since 11% of aspartame
(1,120 mg in 2L diet soda, 5.6 12-oz cans) is 123 mg methanol
(wood alcohol), immediately released into the body after drinking
(unlike the large levels of methanol locked up in pectin molecules
inside many fruits), then quickly transformed into formaldehyde,
which in turn becomes formic acid, both of which in time are
partially eliminated as carbon dioxide and water.

However, about 30% of the methanol remains in the body as
***ulative durable toxic metabolites of formaldehyde and
formic acid -- 37 mg daily, a gram every month.
[Metabolism of aspartame in monkeys.
Oppermann JA, Muldoon E, Ranney RE.
J. Nutrition 1973 Oct; 103(10): 1454-1459.]
If 10% of the methanol is retained as formaldehyde, that would give
12 mg daily formaldehyde ac***ulation, about 60 times more
than the 0.2 mg from 10% retention of the 2 mg EPA daily alarm
limit for formaldehyde in drinking water.

Bear in mind that the EPA alarm limit for formaldehyde in drinking
water is 1 ppm, or 2 mg daily for a typical daily consumption of 2 L
of water.

[ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/835
RTM: ATSDR: EPA limit 1 ppm formaldehyde in drinking water
July 1999 2002.05.30 ]

This long-term low-level chronic toxic exposure leads to typical
patterns of increasingly severe complex symptoms, starting with
headache, fatigue, joint pain, irritability, memory loss, and leading
to vision and eye problems, and even seizures.
In many cases there is addiction.
Probably there are immune system disorders, with a hypersensitivity
to these toxins and other chemicals.
(Appendixes D, E, F, G, H, I, J) ]

Leon et al. (10) studied doses of 75 mg/kg of aspartame daily for
24 weeks and found no change in blood or urine methanol levels
and no symptoms of methanol toxicity.

The dose used in Leon's study is 25 times the 90th percentile daily
consumption of aspartame (11). [ Appendix E gives an abstract by
Davoli (1986), using a properly sensitive assay, that proved a
tem****ary rise in blood methanol levels in humans from a single
aspartame dose.
Trocho pointed out that formaldehyde adducts are persistent and
thus ***ulative.
It is reasonable to state that with long-term chronic
formaldehyde exposure, it may take a long time to both ac***ulate
adducts and develop markedly increased sensitivity and a series of
complex symptoms . Adequate studies would have to test
substantial exposures over a year or longer with large numbers of
vulnerable types of people and record all symptoms. ]

Our patient was consuming an average of 80 mg (1.13 mg/kg) of
aspartame daily, well below the levels previously studied.
[ A packet of tabletop sweetener gives 37 mg aspartame,
while a 12 oz diet soda gives 200 mg aspartame. An aspartame
reactor can have immediate strong symptoms from an
under-the-tongue wafer with 4 mg aspartame.
(Appendix A, for comments, abstracts, and links.) ]

However, it is possible that the eye, with its high level of metabolic
activity, could be affected by methanol (and subsequently
formaldehyde) released from these low levels of aspartame and
respond as a localized target organ to minute amounts of her known
allergen, formaldehyde, or its metabolite, formate.

It is also possible that the amplifying effects of cell-mediated
immunity might detect trace amounts of a chemical not identified by
more standard assays, such as blood or urine levels.
[ (Appendix D gives Thrasher's data about immune system reactions from
long-term, low-level formaldehyde exposure,
while Martin Pall gives a complex general theory, specifically
discussing formaldehyde as a major trigger.)

http://www.drthrasher.org/formaldehyde_1990.html
full text
Jack Dwayne Thrasher, Alan Broughton, Roberta Madison.
Immune activation and autoantibodies in humans with long-term
inhalation exposure to formaldehyde.
Archives of Environmental Health. 1990; 45: 217-223.
"Immune activation, autoantibodies, and anti-HCHO-HAS
antibodies are associated with  long-term formaldehyde inhalation."
PMID: 2400243

Confirming evidence and a general theory are given by Pall (2002):
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/909
testable theory of MCS type diseases, vicious cycle of nitric oxide &
peroxynitrite: MSG: formaldehyde-methanol-aspartame:
Martin L. Pall: Murray: 2002.12.09

FASEB J 2002 Sep; 16(11): 1407-17.
NMDA sensitization and stimulation by peroxynitrite, nitric oxide, and
organic solvents as the mechanism of chemical sensitivity in multiple
chemical sensitivity.
Pall ML. PMID: 12205032 [ 162 references, received 1.3.2 ]
School of Molecular Biosciences, Wa****ngton State University,
Pullman, Wa****ngton 99164-4660, USA. martin_pall@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 ]

Such a hypothesis might explain why her dermatitis was limited to the
eyelids and give clinical sup****t to Trocho's theory of formaldehyde
adducts.

Unfortunately, without rechallenging her with aspartame,
we cannot test this hypothesis.

Nonetheless, her long-lasting remission following discontinuation of
aspartame intake suggests that its breakdown to formaldehyde
may have been a possible mechanism for her prior blepharitis.

References

1. Christophersen J, Menne' T, Tanghoj P,
Andersen K E, Brandrup F.
Clinical patch test data evaluated by multivariate analysis.
Contact Dermatitis 1989: 21: 291-299.

2. Fransway AF, Schmitz N A.
The problem of preservation in the 1990s.
II. Formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing biocides: incidences
of cross-reactivity and the significance of the positive response to
formaldehyde.
Am J Contact Dermat. 1991: 2: 78-88.

3. Roberts H J. Dry eyes from use of aspatame (Nutrasweet):
Associated insights concerning the Sjogren syndrome.
The Townsend Letter for Doctors, January 1994.
[ full text in Appendix H ]

4. Murray T G, Burton T C, Rajani C, Lewandowski M F,
Burke J M, Eells J T.
Methanol poisoning: A rodent model with structural
and functional evidence for retinal involvement.
Arch Opthalmol 1991: 109: 1012-1016.

5. Eells J T.
Methanol-induced visual toxicity in the rat.
J. Pharmacol Exp Ther 1991: 257: 56-63.

6. Trocho C., Pardo R, Fafecas I, Virgili J, Remesar X,
Fernandez-Lopez, J A.
Formaldehyde derived from dietary aspartame binds to tissue
components in vivo.
Life Sci 1998 1988: 63: 337-349.
[ abstract and quotes in Appendix E )

7. McMartin K E, Mrtin-Amat G, Noker P E, Tephly T R.
Lack of a role for formaldehyde in methanol poisoning in the monkey.
Biochem Pharmacol 1979: 28: 645-649.
[ abstract, quotes, discussion, related studies in Appendix F ]

8. Tephly T R: Comments on the pur****ted generation of
formaldehyde from the sweetener aspartame.
Life Sci 1999: 65: 157-160. [ letter, usually not peer-reviewed,
abstract in Appendix E ]

9. Stegink L D, Brummel M C, McMartin-Amat G., Filer L J,
Baker G L, Tephly T R.
Blood methanol concentrations in normal adult subjects administered
abuse doses of aspatame.
J Toxicol Environ Health 1981: 7: 281-290.

10. Leon A S, Hunninghake D B, Bell C, Rassin D K, Tephly T R.
Safety of long-term large doses of aspartame.
Arch Intern Med 1989: 149: 2318-2324.

11. Tschanz C., Butachko H, Stargel W, Kotsonis F N (eds).
The Clinical Evaluation of a Food Additive: *****sment of Aspartame
Boca Raton: CRC Press, 1996.
____________________________________________________


Appendix A:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/846
aspartame in Merck Maxalt-MLT worsens migraine,
AstraZeneca Zomig, Eli Lilly Zyprexa,
J&J Merck Pepcid AC (Famotidine 10mg) Chewable Tab,
Pfizer Cool Mint Listerine Pocketpaks: Murray 7.16.2 rmforall

Migraine MLT-Down: an unusual presentation of migraine
in patients with aspartame-triggered headaches.
Newman LC, Lipton RB Headache 2001 Oct; 41(9): 899-901.
[ Merck 10-mg Maxalt-MLT, for migraine, has 3.75 mg aspartame,
while 12 oz diet soda has 200 mg. ]
Headache Institute,
St. Lukes-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, NY
Department of Neurology newmanache@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
Innovative Medical Research RLipton@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Blumenthall & Vance:
aspartame chewing gum headaches Nov 1997 2002.07.28

Harvey J. Blumenthal, MD, Dwight A Vance, RPh
Chewing Gum Headaches.
Headache 1997 Nov-Dec; 37(10): 665-6.
Department of Neurology,
University of Oklahoma College of Medicine,
Tulsa, USA. neurotulsa@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 a popular dietetic sweetener, may provoke headache
in some susceptible individuals. Herein, we describe three cases of
young women with migraine who re****ted their headaches could be
provoked by chewing gum sweetened with aspartame.
[ 6-8 mg aspartame per stick chewing gum ]

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/782
RTM: Smith, Terpening, Schmidt, Gums:
full text: aspartame, MSG, fibromyalgia 1.17.2 rmforall

Jerry D Smith, Chris M Terpening, Siegfried OF Schmidt,
and John G Gums
Relief of Fibromyalgia Symptoms Following Discontinuation
of Dietary Excitotoxins.
The Annals of Pharmacotherapy 2001; 35(6): 702-706.
Malcolm Randall Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Gainesville, FL.
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.
PMID: 11408989

Siegfried O. Schmidt, MD Asst. Clinical Prof. siggy@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Health and Family Medicine, U. Florida, Gainesville, FL
Shands Hospital West Oak Clinic Gainesville, FL 32608-3629
352-376-5071

Several recent pro-aspartame reviews simply ignore these re****ts by
eminent mainstream researchers, as well as the tidal surge of
complaints by users.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/957
safety of aspartame Part 1/2 12.4.2: EC HCPD-G SCF:
Murray 2003.01.12 EU Scientific Committee on Food, a whitewash

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1045
http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/scf2002-response.htm
Mark Gold exhaustively critiques European Commission Scientific
Committee on Food re aspartame (2002.12.04):
59 pages, 230 references

J Am Diet Assoc. 2004 Feb; 104(2): 255-75.
Position of the American Dietetic Association: use of nutritive and
nonnutritive sweeteners.
American Dietetic Association. PMID: 14760578

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1068
critique of aspartame review by American Dietetic Association
Feb 2004: Murray 2004.01.04

"Survey of aspartame studies:
correlation of outcome and funding sources," 1998, unpublished:
http://www.dorway.com/peerrev.html
Walton found 166 separate published studies in the peer reviewed
medical literature, which had relevance for questions of human safety.

The 74 studies funded by industry all (100%) attested to aspartame's
safety, whereas of the 92 non-industry funded studies, 84 (91%)
identified a problem.

Six of the seven non-industry funded studies
that were favorable to aspartame safety were from the FDA,
which has a public record that shows a strong pro-industry bias.

Ralph G. Walton, MD, Prof. of Clinical Psychology,
Northeastern Ohio Universities, College of Medicine,
Dept. of Psychiatry, Youngstown, OH 44501
Chairman, The Center for Behavioral Medicine,
Northside Medical Center, 500 Gypsy Lane,
P.O. Box 240 Youngstown, OH 44501 330-740-3621
rwalton193@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 ]
____________________________________________________


Appendix B:

D. V. Belsito has 71 items in PubMed since 1982.

Donald (Don) V. Belsito, MD Professor,
Division Director Dermatology
+1 913 588-3840 fax +1 913 588-4060 DBelsito@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Phone  (913) 588-6028 Fax  (913) 588-8300
Mailing Address: 4008 Wescoe Pavilion Mail Stop 2025
3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Kansas City, KS 66160-7319 USA

The University of Kansas Medical Center
3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Kansas City, KS 66160
913-588-5000, 913-588-7963 TDD KU Medical Center is a
campus of the University of Kansas and is affiliated with
The University of Kansas Hospital.
The School of Medicine has a campus in Wichita.

http://www.centerwatch.com/professional/pro503.html
University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute
3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Kansas City, KS 66160-7702 USA
Phone: 913-588-1242 Fax: 913-588-5729 lkemble@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 University of Kansas Medical Center comprises the
School of Medicine, School of Allied Health, School of Nursing,
and an independently run hospital with 415 staffed beds.
KUMC is a regional health center treating approximately 35,000
emergency room patients, 17,000 inpatients, and more
than 180,000 outpatients per year.
KUMC is a 35 building, 50 acre campus with a staff
of nearly 5,000 employees.

The University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute is
a private, non-profit cor****ation established to promote and
sup****t medical research.
The Division of Clinical Trials at the Research Institute serves as
the central liaison between the pharmaceutical industry, faculty
investigators at KUMC, and the Institutional Review Board.
The Division of Clinical Trials
also assists the sponsor with identifying suitable clinical
investigators.

http://author.emedicine.com/DERM/topic549.htm
Dermatologic Manifestations of Neurologic Disease
Authored by Theresa Conologue, DO, Staff Physician,
Department of Dermatology,
National Capital Consortium/Walter Reed Army Medical Center
Coauthored by Jeffrey Meffert, MD, Program Director,
Dermatology Service,
San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium.
Theresa Conologue, DO, is a member of the following medical
societies:
Association of Military Surgeons of the US
Edited by Donald Belsito, MD, Program Director,
Professor, Department of Internal Medicine,
Division of Dermatology, University of Kansas;
Richard Vinson, MD, Chief, Department of Dermatology,
William Beaumont Medical Center;
Jeffrey P Callen, MD, Chief, Professor,
Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Dermatology,
University of Louisville School of Medicine;
Catherine Quirk, MD, Clinical Assistant Professor,
Department of Dermatology, Brown University;
and Dirk M Elston, MD, Consulting Staff,
Department of Dermatology, Geisinger Medical Center
Author's Email: Theresa Conologue, DO
Editor's Email: Donald Belsito, MD
eMedicine Journal, March 19 2003, Volume 4, Number 3
INTRODUCTION Section 2 of 12

Many disorders have a combination of neurologic and dermatologic
findings in patients. This chapter provides an overview of
neurocutaneous disorders and organizes them into clinically relevant
groupings of use to the practicing physician.

http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/ac/99/transcpt/3564t1.pdf
Center for Drug Evaluation
Dermatologic and Opthalmic Drugs Advisory Commitee
Thursday, November 4, 1999
Ballroom, Hilton Hotel, 620 Perry Parkway, Taithersburg Maryland
Guest Speaker: Donald Belsito, M.M.
6516 Aberdeen Road, Mission Hills, KS 66208

http://www.simplywhispers.com/htdocs/html/Press%20Releases/bodypiercing.html=

Dr. Donald Belsito, professor of Dermatology at the
University of Kansas in Lawrence and a member of the
North American Contact Dermatitis Group, notes,

"Nickel allergies are on the increase -- from 10.5 % cited in studies
done from 1985 to 1989 to 14.3 % in studies done in 1996.

More men are showing up with nickel allergies;
coincidentally more men are having their bodies pierced.

This indicates a possible correlation between piercing and
allergies to nickel."

In addition to setting off allergic reactions, Dr. Belsito, notes,
"Piercing cartilage around the top of the ear poses greater
risks than piercing the lobe.
Cartilage is an inert material with very little blood supply
and takes a long time to heal from the puncture.
Also, when cartilage becomes infected, it is difficult to treat
because of its low blood supply.

"Also, the growth of overwhelming scars known as keloids
can occur and the condition is particularly prevalent among
African Americans," says Dr. Belsito, adding,
"Keloids can grow to be as big as the ear itself. The cure
requires administering medication that reduces the tendency
to develop scars.
If scars do develop, they need to be removed by a plastic surgeon.
The risk, of course, is that people who tend to scar, may not fare
well in surgery which can promote new scar tissue."
When it comes to protecting the consumer, Dr. Belsito adds,
"I think hypoallergenic is a bad term since it only tells you that the
product is manufactured without an ingredient to
which most people are allergic.
But it doesn't tell you other possible allergy provoking ingredients.
For example, some rubber gloves labeled hypoallergenic
are made without certain chemicals. However, these gloves
could be made of latex which is lethal to some people."

Drs. Bendetsen, Scheinman and Belsito favor legislation governing
body piercing due to the risk of nickel allergies, loss of sensation
and
communicable diseases resulting from poor sterilization procedures.
To date, Arizona, California, Georgia, Michigan and Wa****ngton
have passed legislation requiring parental consent for body piercing
if you are a minor.  Several states including Delaware, Missouri,
Texas and Hawaii have legislation pending.

D. V. Belsito has 9 additional items
that include formaldehyde in PubMed:

2. Ravis SM, Shaffer MP, Shaffer CL, Dehkhaghani S, Belsito DV.
Glutaraldehyde-induced and formaldehyde-induced allergic contact
dermatitis among dental hygienists and assistants.
J Am Dent Assoc. 2003 Aug; 134(8): 1072-8. PMID: 12956347

3: Thompson TR, Belsito DV.
Regional variation in prevalence and etiology of allergic contact
dermatitis.
Am J Contact Dermat. 2002 Dec; 13(4): 177-82. PMID: 12478532

4: Rietschel RL, Mathias CG, Fowler JF Jr, Pratt M, Taylor JS,
Sherertz EF, Marks JG Jr, Belsito DV, Storrs FJ, Maibach HI,
Fransway AF, Deleo VA;
North American Contact Dermatitis Group.
Relation****p of occupation to contact dermatitis: evaluation
in patients tested from 1998 to 2000.
Am J Contact Dermat. 2002 Dec; 13(4): 170-6. PMID: 12478531

5: Deleo VA, Taylor SC, Belsito DV, Fowler JF Jr, Fransway AF,
Maibach HI, Marks JG Jr, Mathias CG, Nethercott JR, Pratt MD,
Reitschel RR, Sherertz EF, Storrs FJ, Taylor JS.
The effect of race and ethnicity on patch test results.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2002 Feb; 46(2 Suppl Understanding):
S107-12.  PMID: 11807472

6: Suneja T, Belsito DV.
Comparative study of Finn Chambers and T.R.U.E. test
methodologies in detecting the relevant allergens inducing contact
dermatitis.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2001 Dec; 45(6): 836-9. PMID: 11712026

7: Suneja T, Belsito DV.
Thimerosal in the detection of clinically relevant allergic contact
reactions.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 2001 Jul; 45(1): 23-7. PMID: 11423830

8: Shaffer MP, Belsito DV.
Allergic contact dermatitis from glutaraldehyde
in health-care workers.
Contact Dermatitis. 2000 Sep; 43(3): 150-6. Review.
PMID: 10985631

9: Marks JG, Belsito DV, DeLeo VA, Fowler JF Jr, Fransway AF,
Maibach HI, Mathias CG, Nethercott JR, Rietschel RL,
Sherertz EF, Storrs FJ, Taylor JS.
North American Contact Dermatitis Group patch test results for
the detection of delayed-type hypersensitivity to topical allergens.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 1998 Jun; 38(6 Pt 1): 911-8.
PMID: 9631997

10: Fowler JF Jr, Skinner SM, Belsito DV.
Allergic contact dermatitis from formaldehyde resins in permanent
press clothing: an underdiagnosed cause of generalized dermatitis.
J Am Acad Dermatol. 1992 Dec; 27(6 Pt 1): 962-8.
PMID: 1479102
____________________________________________________


Appendix C:

"Sensitization is re****ted in between 2.2 and 9.6% of patients
patch tested (1,2)."

Widespread use of aspartame since 1981 must cause some of the
formaldehyde sensitization found in many studies of control groups,
so I offer a relevant abstract, which is the only data I know of that
starts to *****s the prevalence of aspartame disease in otherwise
healthy people:

"One (2 percent) control subject had a reaction to glutaraldehyde,
and one other (2 percent) had a reaction to formaldehyde."
"51 nondental professionals "

Aspartame use must sensitize some users. This study's control group
hints that about 2% of a control group of 51 professionals showed a
sensitivity to formaldehyde in a skin patch test.
Are there any data for nonusers of aspartame?

J Am Dent Assoc. 2003 Aug; 134(8): 1072-8.
Glutaraldehyde-induced and formaldehyde-induced allergic contact
dermatitis among dental hygienists and assistants.
Ravis SM, Shaffer MP, Shaffer CL, Dehkhaghani S, Belsito DV.
University of Miami, USA.

BACKGROUND:
Research has found that among health care workers, dental
personnel are especially likely to have reactions
to glutaraldehyde and formaldehyde.
METHODS:
The authors conducted patch test evaluations with a voluntary
cohort of randomly recruited, healthy dental hygienists, or DHs,
and dental assistants, or DAs, and nondental professionals
to determine the incidence of glutaraldehyde-induced and
formaldehyde-induced allergic contact dermatitis, or ACD;
the potential for coreactivity
between glutaraldehyde and formaldehyde;
and the correlation between training methods in safe handling of
sterilizing solutions and the sensitivity to
glutaraldehyde and formaldehyde among DHs and DAs.
RESULTS:
The researchers enrolled 101 DHs and DAs and 51 nondental
professionals in the study.
All except one DH/DA subject were female.
The dental subjects' mean age was
34.3 +/- standard deviation of 10.7 years;
the nondental subjects', 33.8 +/- 11.0 years.
DHs and DAs had worked in their profession
for a mean of 11.0 +/- 9.3 years.
Among the dental professionals,
80 (79.2 percent) had had a known exposure
to cold sterilizing solutions,
while the remainder were unable to provide a known history
of exposure.

Eleven (10.9 percent) dental professionals had clear reactions to
glutaraldehyde,
four (4.0 percent) were questionably allergic to glutaraldehyde, and
two (2 percent) were definitively allergic to formaldehyde.
One (2 percent) control subject had a reaction to glutaraldehyde,
and one other (2 percent) had a reaction to formaldehyde.
CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL: IMPLICATIONS:
The authors found a statistically significant disparity in the rates
of
glutaraldehyde sensitivity among healthy DHs and DAs
versus healthy control subjects
(10.9 percent versus 2 percent reactively; P =3D .02).
They found no evidence of cross-reactivity between glutaraldehyde
and formaldehyde.
The preponderance of reactions among the DHs and DAs suggests
that their present safety practices are largely ineffective in
protecting
against sensitization to glutaraldehyde in sterilizing solutions.
PMID:
12956347
____________________________________________________


two detailed critiques of industry affiliations and biased science in
99
page review with 415 references by BA Magnuson, GA Burdock
and 8 more, Critical Reviews in Toxicology, 2007 Sept.: Mark D
Gold 13 page: also Rich Murray 2007.09.15: 2008.03.24

http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.htm
Monday, March 24, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1531
____________________________________________________


"Nearly every section of the Magnuson (2007) review has research
that is misrepresented
and/or crucial pieces of information are left out.

In addition to the misrepresentation of the research,
readers (including medical professionals) are often not told that
this review was funded by the aspartame manufacturer, Ajinomoto,
and the reviewers had enormous conflicts of interest."


[ See also:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1453
Souring on fake sugar (aspartame), Jennifer Couzin,
Science 2007.07.06: 4 page letter to FDA from 12 eminent
USA toxicologists re two Ramazzini Foundation cancer studies
2007.06.25: Murray 2007.07.18


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/957
safety of aspartame Part 1/2 12.4.2: EC HCPD-G SCF:
Murray 2003.01.12 EU Scientific Committee on Food, a whitewash

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1045
http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/scf2002-response.htm
Mark Gold exhaustively critiques European Commission Scientific
Committee on Food re aspartame ( 2002.12.04 ):
59 pages, 230 references

bias, omissions, incuriosity =3D op****tunity, aspartame safety
evaluation, Magnuson BA, Burdock GA, Williams GM, 7 more,
2007 Sept, Ajinomoto funded 98 pages html [ $ 32 pdf ]:
Murray 2007.09.15
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2007_09_01_archive.htm
Saturday, September 15, 2007 ]

"Of course, everyone chooses, as a natural priority, to enjoy
peace, joy, and love by helping to find, quickly share, and positively
act upon evidence about healthy and safe food, drink, and
environment."

Rich Murray, MA Room For All rmforall@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 1943 Otowi Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87505

http://RMForAll.blogspot.com
 new primary archive

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/messages
group with 120 members, 1,533 posts in a public archive

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartame/messages
group with 1,085 members, 22,467 posts in a public archive

Hawaii Senate Health Committee will consider resolution SCR191
by Sen. Suzanne Chun Oakland, and 10 other of 25 Senators,
to have FDA ban aspartame
and for National Academy of Sciences to review research:
Murray 2008.03.14
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.htm
Friday, March 14, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1527

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1525
House Concurrent Resolution #132 for Health Department panel
to decide aspartame ban by early 2010,
Hawaii Rep. Josh Green MD, Health Committee Chair:
Murray 2008.03.12
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.htm
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
____________________________________________________


Note: many recent aspartame bans.....

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1426
ASDA (unit of Wal-Mart Stores WMT.N) and Marks & Spencer
will join Tesco and also Sainsbury to ban and limit aspartame,
MSG, artificial flavors dyes preservatives additives, trans fats, salt
"nasties" to protect kids from ADHD: leading UK media:
Murray 2007.05.15

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNMmessage/1451
Artificial sweeteners (aspartame, sucralose) and coloring agents
will be banned from use in newly-born and baby foods,
the European Parliament decided: Latvia ban in schools 2006:
Murray 2007.07.12

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1341
Connecticut bans artificial sweeteners in schools, Nancy Barnes,
New Milford Times: Murray 2006.05.25

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1369
Bristol, Connecticut, schools join state program to limit artificial
sweeteners, sugar, fats for 8800 students, Johnny J Burnham,
The Bristol Press: Murray 2006.09.22


bias, omissions, incuriosity =3D op****tunity, aspartame safety
evaluation, Magnuson BA, Burdock GA, Williams GM, 7 more,
2007 Sept, Ajinomoto funded 98 pages html [ $ 32 pdf ]:
Murray 2007.09.15
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2007_09_01_archive.htm
Saturday, September 15, 2007

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1491
industry scientists praise aspartame safety and benefits in Paris on
2006.05.30, Herve Nordmann, Andrew G. Renwick,
Carlo La Vecchia, Tommy Visscher, Jaap Seidell, France Bellisle,
Adam Drewnowski, Margaret Ashwell, Anne de la Hunty,
Sigrid A. Gibson, Alan R. Boobis: Murray 2007.11.18

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1070
critique of aspartame review, French Food Safety Agency AFSSA
2002.05.07 aspartamgb.pdf (18 pages, in English), Martin Hirsch:
Murray 2004.04.13

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/957
safety of aspartame Part 1/2 12.4.2: EC HCPD-G SCF:
Murray 2003.01.12 EU Scientific Committee on Food, a whitewash

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1045
http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/scf2002-response.htm
Mark Gold exhaustively critiques European Commission Scientific
Committee on Food re aspartame ( 2002.12.04 ):
59 pages, 230 references

http://www.eatright.org/Nutritive(1).pdf
J Am Diet Assoc. 2004 Feb; 104(2): 255-75.
Position of the American Dietetic Association: use of nutritive and
nonnutritive sweeteners. American Dietetic Association.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1068
critique of aspartame review
by American Dietetic Association Feb 2004,
Valerie B. Duffy & Madeleine J. Sigman-Grant: Murray 2004.05.14



http://www.dorway.com/upipart1.txt
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/262
aspartame expose 96K Oct 1987 Part 1/3: Gregory Gordon,
UPI re****ter: Murray 2000.07.10

http://www.dorway.com/enclosur.html
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/53
aspartame history Part 1/4 1964-1976: Gold: Murray 1999.11.06

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/927
Donald Rumsfeld, 1977 head of Searle Corp.,
got aspartame FDA approval: Turner: Murray 2002.12.23

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1483
Donald Rumsfeld CEO 1977-85 G.D. Searle & Co., got new
President Reagan to prohibit FDA opposition to aspartame
1981.01.25, history by lawyer James S. Turner:
Murray 2007.10.29

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/928
revolving door, Monsanto, FDA, EPA: NGIN: Murray 2002.12.23

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/858
Samuels: Strong: Roberts: Gold: flaws in double-blind studies re
aspartame and MSG toxicity: Murray 2002.08.01

"Survey of aspartame studies: correlation of outcome and funding
sources," 1998, unpublished: http://www.dorway.com/peerrev.html
Walton found 166 separate published studies in the peer reviewed
medical literature, which had relevance for questions of human
safety.
The 74 studies funded by industry all (100 %) attested to
aspartame's safety, whereas of the 92 non-industry funded studies,
84 (91 %) identified a problem.
Six of the seven non-industry funded studies
that were favorable to aspartame safety were from the FDA,
which has a public record that shows a strong pro-industry bias.

Ralph G. Walton, MD, Prof. of Clinical Psychology, Northeastern
Ohio Universities, College of Medicine, Dept. of Psychiatry,
Youngstown, OH 44501,
Chairman, The Center for Behavioral Medicine,
Northside Medical Center, 500 Gypsy Lane, P.O. Box 240
Youngstown, OH 44501 330-740-3621 rwalton193@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Controversy, in Wikipedia democratic
encyclopedia, 72 references (including AspartameNM # 864
and 1173 by Murray, brief fair summary of much more research:
Murray 2007.01.01


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1513
metabolic syndrome is tied to diet soda, PL Lutsey, LM Steffen,
J Stevens, Circulation 2008.01.22: role of formaldehyde and
formic acid from methanol in wines, liquors, or aspartame?:
Murray 2008.02.21

"But the one-third who ate the most fried food increased their risk
by 25 percent, compared with the one-third who ate the least, and
surprisingly, the risk of developing metabolic syndrome was 34
percent higher among those who drank one can of diet soda a day
compared with those who drank none.

"This is interesting," said Lyn M. Steffen, an associate professor of
epidemiology at the University of Minnesota and a co-author of the
paper, which was posted online in the journal Circulation on Jan. 22.
"Why is it happening?  Is it some kind of chemical in the diet soda,
or something about the behavior of diet soda drinkers?""

"The diet soda association was not hypothesized
and deserves further study."


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1143
methanol (formaldehyde, formic acid) disposition:
Bouchard M et al, full plain text, 2001:
substantial sources are degradation
of fruit pectins, liquors, aspartame, smoke:
Murray 2005.04.02


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1511
vinyl acetate, ethyl alcohol, or aspartame in womb increases later
cancers in adults with lifetime exposure in many studies, M Soffritti
et al, Ramazzini Foundation, Basic Clin. Pharm. Toxicol. 2008 Feb.:
Rich Murray 2008.02.07

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1016
President Bush & formaldehyde (aspartame) toxicity:
Ramazzini Foundation carcinogenicity results Dec 2002:
Soffritti: Murray 2003.08.03 rmforall

p. 88 "The sweetening agent aspartame hydrolyzes in the
gastrointestinal tract to become free methyl alcohol,
which is metabolized in the liver
to formaldehyde, formic acid, and CO2. (11)"
Medinsky MA & Dorman DC. 1994;
*****sing risks of low-level methanol exposure.
CIIT Act. 14: 1-7.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1453
Souring on fake sugar (aspartame), Jennifer Couzin,
Science 2007.07.06: 4 page letter to FDA from 12 eminent
USA toxicologists re two Ramazzini Foundation cancer studies
2007.06.25: Murray 2007.07.18

30 female pet store rats drinking lifelong 13.5 mg aspartame,
1/3 packet of Equal, had 33% with obvious tumors -- also bulging,
sick, and missing eyes, paralysis, obesity, skin sores -- agrees with
Ramazzini Foundation results, Victoria Inness-Brown:
Murray 2008.02.15
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.htm
Friday, February 15, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1521


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1490
details on 6 epidemiological studies since 2004 on diet soda (mainly
aspartame) correlations, as well as 14 other mainstream studies
on aspartame toxicity since summer 2005: Murray 2007.11.27

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1340
aspartame groups and books:
updated research review of 2004.07.16: Murray 2006.05.11


old tiger roars -- Woodrow C Monte, PhD -- aspartame causes
many breast cancers, as ADH enzyme in breasts makes methanol
from diet soda into carcinogenic formaldehyde -- same in dark
wines and liquors, Fitness Life 2008 Jan.: Murray 2008.02.11
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.htm
Monday, February 11, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1517

"Alcohol dehydrogenase ADH is required for the conversion of
methanol to formaldehyde (112).

ADH is not a common enzyme in the human body -- not many cells
in the human body contain this enzyme.

The human breast is one of the few organs in the body with a high
concentration of ADH (190b), and it is found there exclusively in the
mammary epithelial cells, the very cells known to transform into
adenocarcinoma (190c) (breast cancer).

The most recent breast cancer scientific literature implicates ADH
as perhaps having a pivotal role in the formation of breast cancer,
indicating a greater incidence of the disease in those
with higher levels of ADH activity in their breasts (190a)."

role of formaldehyde, made by body from methanol from foods
and aspartame, in steep increases in fetal alcohol syndrome, autism,
multiple sclerosis, lupus, teen suicide, breast cancer, Nutrition
Prof. Woodrow C. Monte, retired, Arizona State U., two reviews,
190 references supplied, Fitness Life, New Zealand
2007 Nov, Dec: Murray 2007.12.26
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2007_12_01_archive.htm
Wednesday, December 26 2007
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1498


Since no adequate data has ever been published on the
exact disposition of toxic metabolites in specific tissues in humans
of the 11 % methanol component of aspartame,
the many studies on morning-after hangover from the methanol
impurity in alcohol drinks are the main available resource to date.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1469
highly toxic formaldehyde, the cause of alcohol hangovers, is
made by the body from 100 mg doses of methanol from
dark wines and liquors, dimethyl dicarbonate, and aspartame:
Murray 2007.08.31

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1052
DMDC: Dimethyl dicarbonate 200mg/L in drinks adds methanol 98 mg/L
( becomes formaldehyde in body ): EU Scientific Committee on Foods
2001.07.12: Murray 2004.01.22

http://europa.eu.int/comm/food/fs/sc/scf/out96_en.pdf

"...DMDC was evaluated by the SCF in 1990 and considered
acceptable for the cold sterilization of soft drinks and fruit juices
at levels of addition up to 250 mg/L (1)
=2E..DMDC decomposes primarily to CO2 and methanol ...

[ Note: Sterilization of bacteria and fungi is a toxic process,
probably due to the inevitable conversion in the body of methanol
into highly toxic formaldehyde and then formic acid. ]

The use of 200 mg DMDC per liter would add 98 mg/L
of methanol to wine which
already contains an average of about 140 mg/L from natural sources.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1286
methanol products (formaldehyde and formic acid) are main cause
of alcohol hangover symptoms [same as from similar amounts of
methanol, the 11% part of aspartame]: YS Woo et al, 2005 Dec:
Murray 2006.01.20

Addict Biol. 2005 Dec;10(4): 351-5.
Concentration changes of methanol in blood samples during
an experimentally induced alcohol hangover state.
Woo YS, Yoon SJ, Lee HK, Lee CU, Chae JH, Lee CT, Kim DJ.
Chuncheon National Hospital, Department of Psychiatry,
The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea.
http://www.cuk.ac.kr/eng/
sysop@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Campus: 02-740-9714 Songsim Campus: 02-2164-4116
Songeui Campus: 02-2164-4114
http://www.cuk.ac.kr/eng/sub055.htm
eight hospitals

[ Han-Kyu Lee ]

A hangover is characterized by the unpleasant physical and mental
symptoms that occur between 8 and 16 hours after drinking alcohol.

After inducing experimental hangover in normal individuals,
we measured the methanol concentration prior to
and after alcohol consumption
and we *****sed the association between the hangover condition
and the blood methanol level.

A total of 18 normal adult males participated in this study.

They did not have any previous histories of psychiatric
or medical disorders.

The blood ethanol concentration prior to the alcohol intake
(2.26+/-2.08) was not significantly different from that
13 hours after the alcohol consumption (3.12+/-2.38).

However, the difference of methanol concentration
between the day of experiment (prior to the alcohol intake)
and the next day (13 hours after the alcohol intake)
was significant (2.62+/-1.33/l vs. 3.88+/-2.10/l, respectively).

A significant positive correlation was observed
between the changes of blood methanol concentration
and hangover subjective scale score increment when covarying
for the changes of blood ethanol level (r=3D0.498, p<0.05).

This result suggests the possible correlation of methanol
as well as its toxic metabolite to hangover. PMID: 16318957

[ The toxic metabolite of methanol is formaldehyde, which in turn
partially becomes formic acid -- both potent ***ulative toxins
that are the actual cause of the toxicity of methanol.]

This study by Jones AW (1987) found next-morning hangover
from red wine with 100 to 150 mg methanol
(9.5 % w/v ethanol, 100 mg/l methanol, 0.01 %).
Fully 11% of aspartame is methanol --
1,120 mg aspartame in 2 L diet soda,
almost six 12-oz cans, gives 123 mg methanol (wood alcohol).

Pharmacol Toxicol. 1987 Mar; 60(3): 217-20.
Elimination half-life of methanol during hangover.
Jones AW. wayne.jones@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 of Forensic Toxicology,
University Hospital, SE-581 85 Linkoping, Sweden.

This paper re****ts the elimination half-life of methanol in human
volunteers.
Experiments were made during the morning after the subjects had
consumed 1000-1500 ml red wine
(9.5 % w/v ethanol, 100 mg/l methanol)
the previous evening. [ 100 to 150 mg methanol ]
The washout of methanol from the body
coincided with the onset of hangover.
The concentrations of ethanol and methanol in blood were
determined indirectly by analysis of end-expired alveolar air.
In the morning when blood-ethanol dropped
below the Km of liver alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH)
of about 100 mg/l (2.2 mM),
the disappearance half-life of ethanol was 21, 22, 18 and 15 min.
in 4 test subjects respectively.
The corresponding elimination half-lives of methanol
were 213, 110, 133 and 142 min. in these same individuals.
The experimental design outlined in this paper can be used
to obtain useful data on elimination kinetics of methanol
in human volunteers without undue ethical limitations.
Cir***stantial evidence is presented to link methanol
or its toxic metabolic products, formaldehyde and formic acid,
with the pathogenesis of hangover. PMID: 3588516

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1047
Avoiding Hangover Hell 2003.12.31 Mark Sherman, AP writer:
Robert Swift, MD [ formaldehyde from methanol in aspartame ]:
Murray 2004.01.16

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1048
hangovers from formaldehyde from methanol (aspartame?):
Schwarcz: Linsley: Murray 2004.01.18


Thrasher (2001): "The major difference is that the Japanese
demonstrated the incor****ation of FA and its metabolites
into the placenta and fetus.
The quantity of radioactivity remaining in maternal and fetal tissues
at 48 hours was 26.9 % of the administered dose." [ Ref. 14-16 ]

Arch Environ Health 2001 Jul-Aug; 56(4): 300-11.
Embryo toxicity and teratogenicity of formaldehyde. [100 references]
Thrasher JD, Kilburn KH. toxicology@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Trust, Alto, New Mexico, USA.
www.drthrasher.org/formaldehyde_embryo_toxicity.html full text

http://www.drthrasher.org/formaldehyde_1990.html
full text
Jack Dwayne Thrasher, Alan Broughton, Roberta Madison.
Immune activation and autoantibodies in humans
with long-term inhalation exposure to formaldehyde.
Archives of Environmental Health. 1990; 45: 217-223.
"Immune activation, autoantibodies, and anti-HCHO-HSA antibodies
are associated with long-term formaldehyde inhalation."
PMID: 2400243



formaldehyde in FEMA trailers and other sources (aspartame,
dark wines and liquors, tobacco smoke): Murray 2008.01.30
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_01_01_archive.htm
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1508

The FEMA trailers give about the same amount of formaldehyde
daily as from a quart of dark wine or liquor, or two quarts
(6 12-oz cans) of aspartame diet soda, from their over 1 tenth gram
methanol impurity (one part in 10,000),
which the body quickly makes into formaldehyde -- enough
to be the major cause of "morning after" alcohol hangovers.

Methanol and formaldehyde also result from many fruits and
vegetables, tobacco and wood smoke, heater and vehicle exhaust,
household chemicals and cleaners, cosmetics, and new cars, drapes,
carpets, furniture, particleboard, mobile homes, buildings,
leather ...
so all these sources add up and interact
with many other toxic chemicals.

BN Ames and LS Gold, 1998, have presented detailed information
that there is no increase in recent decades for most cancers,
and that common carcinogens do not result in significant exposures
to the average human population.

However, individuals are not average -- each person has a unique
genetic makeup, resulting in a huge range of variation of
vulnerability
to specific chemicals, as is well evidenced in the case of methanol,
formaldehyde, and formic acid, especially with regard
to behavioral effects.

Each is subject to very wide ranges of exposure levels.

Many are in especially vulnerable groups, depending on diet, obesity,
***, exercise, life stress, age from conception to very old, unusually
severe toxic exposures, injuries, and diseases.

It is clear that a variety of multiple chemical sensitivity syndromes
do
exist, often with remarkable hypersensitivity.

Methanol, formaldehyde, and formic acid toxicity are unusual, in that
humans are far more vulnerable than any other mammal, as much as
ten to sixty-fold, which complicates the utility of animal data.

The unusally long human life span also increases the role of long-term
chronic low-level exposure.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1455
FEMA slow to safety test Katrina toxic trailers, Charles Babington,
Associated Press -- 1 ppm formaldehyde in air is about half the daily
dose from 3 cans aspartame diet soda and ten times the 1999 EPA
alarm level for drinking water: Murray 2007.07.23



http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1277
50% UK baby food is now organic - aspartame or MSG
with food dyes harm nerve cells, CV Howard 3 year study
funded by Lizzy Vann, CEO, Organix Brands,
Children's Food Advisory Service: Murray 2006.01.13

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1271
combining aspartame and quinoline yellow, or MSG and
brilliant blue, harms nerve cells, eminent
C. Vyvyan Howard et al, 2005 education.guardian.co.uk,
Felicity Lawrence: Murray 2005.12.21


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1373
aspartame rat brain toxicity re cytochrome P450 enzymes,
especially CYP2E1, Vences-Mejia A, Espinosa-Aguirre JJ et al,
2006 Aug, Hum Exp Toxicol: relevant abstracts re formaldehyde
from methanol in alcohol drinks: Murray 2006.09.29


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1463
Direct and indirect cellular effects of aspartame on the brain,
Humphries P, Pretorius E, Naude H, U. Pretoria, South Africa,
Eur J Clin Nutr. 2007 Aug 8: Murray 2007.08.12

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNMmessage/1452
phenylalanine and aspartic acid from low dose aspartame
in rabbits interfere with blood coagulation,
Pretorius E and Humphries P, U. of Pretoria,
Ultrastruct Pathol 2007 March: Murray 2007.07.14



http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1459
third study by expert Greek team of neurotoxicity in infant rats by
aspartame (or its parts, methanol, phenylalanine, aspartic acid), KH
Schulpis et al, Food Chem Toxicol 2007.06.16: Murray 2007.08.05

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNMmessage/1447
second study by expert Greek team of neurotoxicity in infant rats by
aspartame (or its parts, methanol, phenylalanine, aspartic acid), KH
Schulpis et al, Toxicology 2007.05.18: Murray 2007.07.04

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNMmessage/1444
expert Greek group finds aspartame (or its parts, methanol,
phenylalanine, aspartic acid) harm infant rat brain enzyme activity,
KH Schulpis et al, Pharmacol. Res. 2007.05.13: Murray 2007.06.23

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/939
aspartame (aspartic acid, phenylalanine) binding to DNA:
Karikas July 1998: Murray 2003.01.05 rmforall
Karikas GA, Schulpis KH, Reclos GJ, Kokotos G
Measurement of molecular interaction of aspartame and
its metabolites with DNA. Clin Biochem 1998 Jul; 31(5): 405-7.
Dept. of Chemistry, University of Athens, Greece
http://www.chem.uoa.gr
gkokotos@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Schulpis inchildh@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 ; G.J. Reclos reklos@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 recent aspartame re****ts by S Tsakiris, KH Schulpis, I Simintzi,
with responses to critiques by AG Renwick and
by EB Abegaz, RG Bursey, 2005-2008 2008.03.05

Pharmacological Research 57 (2008) 89-90
Letter to the Editor
Answer to Letter sent to the Editor by
Drs. E. Abegaz and R. Bursey
(Ajinomoto Cor****ate Services LLC, Wa****ngton, USA)
related to Simintzi et al. re****t published in
Pharmacol Res 2007; 56: 155-9
Letter to the Editor / Pharmacological Research 57 (2008) 89-90

Stylianos Tsakiris a,?  stsakir@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 H. Schulpis b inchildh@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Department of Experimental Physiology, Medical School,
Athens University, P.O. Box 65257, GR-15401 Athens, Greece

b Inborn Errors of Metabolism Department, Institute of Child
Health, Research Center, Greece
? Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses:
S. Tsakiris  stsakir@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Schulpis  inchildh@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Research 57 (2008) 87-88
Response to "The effect of aspartame on the acetylcholinesterase
activity in hippocampal homogenates of suckling rats"
by Simintzi et al.

Eyassu G. Abegaz ?
Robert G. Bursey
Ajinomoto Cor****ate Services LLC,
Scientific & Regulatory Affairs,
1120 Connecticut Ave., N.W., Suite 1010, Wa****ngton, DC 20036,
United States

? Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 202 457 0284;
fax: +1 202 457 0107.
E-mail addresses: abegazee@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 (E.G. Abegaz),
burseyb@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 (R.G. Bursey)

Keywords:
Aspartame; Aspartate; Phenylalanine; Methanol; AChE activity

Tsakiris S, Schulpis KH.
Answer to letter sent by Professor A.G. Renwick
(University of Southampton, UK)
related to Simintzi et al. re****t published in Food and Chemical
Toxicology 2007; 45(12): 2397-401.
Food Chem Toxicol. 2008 Mar; 46(3): 1208-9.
Epub 2007 Oct 25. No abstract available. PMID: 18054419
doi:10.1016/j.fct.2007.10.016
Copyright =A9 2007 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.

Renwick AG.
The effect of aspartame metabolites on the suckling rat frontal cortex
acetylcholinesterase. An in vitro study. By I. Simintzi, K.H.
Schulpis,
P. Angelogianni, C. Liapi and S. Tsakiris.
Food Chem Toxicol. 2008 Mar; 46(3): 1206-7.
Epub 2007 Oct 26. No abstract available. PMID: 18061330

1: Simintzi I, Schulpis KH, Angelogianni P, Liapi C, Tsakiris S.
The effect of aspartame metabolites on the suckling rat frontal cortex
acetylcholinesterase. An in vitro study.
Food Chem Toxicol. 2007 Dec;45(12):2397-401.
Epub 2007 Jun 16. PMID: 17673349

2: Simintzi I, Schulpis KH, Angelogianni P, Liapi C, Tsakiris S.
L-Cysteine and glutathione restore the reduction of rat
hippocampal Na+, K+-ATPase activity
induced by aspartame metabolites.
Toxicology. 2007 Jul 31;237(1-3):177-83.
Epub 2007 May 18. PMID: 17602817

3: Simintzi I, Schulpis KH, Angelogianni P, Liapi C, Tsakiris S.
The effect of aspartame on acetylcholinesterase activity in
hippocampal homogenates of suckling rats.
Pharmacol Res. 2007 Aug;56(2):155-9.
Epub 2007 May 13. PMID: 17580119

4: Schulpis KH, Papassotiriou I, Parthimos T, Tsakiris T, Tsakiris S.
The effect of L-cysteine and glutathione
on inhibition of Na+, K+-ATPase activity by aspartame metabolites
in human erythrocyte membrane.
Eur J Clin Nutr. 2006 May;60(5):593-7. PMID: 16391576

5: Tsakiris S, Giannoulia-Karantana A, Simintzi I, Schulpis KH.
The effect of aspartame metabolites on human erythrocyte membrane
acetylcholinesterase activity.
Pharmacol Res. 2006 Jan;53(1):1-5.
Epub 2005 Aug 29. PMID: 16129618



C. Trocho (1998):
"In all, the rats retained, 6 hours after administration, about 5 % of
the
label, half of it in the liver."

They used a very low level of aspartame ingestion, 10 mg/kg, for rats,
which have a much greater tolerance for aspartame than humans.
So, the corresponding level for humans would be
about 1 or 2 mg/kg.
Many headache studies in humans used doses of
about 30 mg/kg daily.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/925
aspartame puts formaldehyde adducts into tissues, Part 1/2
full text, Trocho & Alemany 1998.06.26: Murray 2002.12.22

http://ww.presidiotex.com/barcelona/index.html
full text
Formaldehyde derived from dietary aspartame
binds to tissue components in vivo.
Life Sci June 26 1998; 63(5): 337-49.
Departament de Bioquimica i Biologia Molecular,
Facultat de Biologia, Universitat de Barcelona, Spain.
http://www.bq.ub.es/cindex.html
L=EDnies de Recerca: Toxicitat de
l'aspartame http://www.bq.ub.es/grupno/grup-no.html
Sra. Carme Trocho, Sra. Rosario Pardo, Dra. Immaculada Rafecas,
Sr. Jordi Virgili, Dr. Xavier Remesar, Dr. Jose Antonio
Fernandez-Lopez, Dr. Mari=E0 Alemany [male]
Fac. Biologia Tel.: (93)4021521, FAX: (93)4021559
Sra. Carme Trocho "Trok-ho" Fac. Biologia Tel.: (93)4021544,
FAX: (93)4021559 alemany@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 male rats were given an oral dose of 10 mg/kg aspartame,
14C-labeled in the methanol carbon.
At timed intervals of up to 6 hours, the radioactivity in plasma
and several organs was investigated.
Most of the radioactivity found (>98 % in plasma, >75 % in liver)
was bound to protein.
Label present in liver, plasma and kidney was in the range
of 1-2 % of total radioactivity administered per g or mL,
changing little with time.
Other organs (brown and white adipose tissues, muscle, brain,
cornea and retina) contained levels of label
in the range of 1/12th to 1/10th of that of liver.
In all, the rats retained, 6 hours after administration,
about 5 % of the label, half of it in the liver.

The specific radioactivity of tissue protein, RNA and DNA
was quite uniform.
The protein label was concentrated in amino acids,
different from methionine, and largely coincident
with the result of protein exposure to labeled formaldehyde.
DNA radioactivity was essentially in a single different adduct base,
different from the normal bases present in DNA.
The nature of the tissue label ac***ulated was, thus,
a direct consequence of formaldehyde binding to tissue structures.

The administration of labeled aspartame to a group of cirrhotic rats
resulted in comparable label retention by tissue components,
which suggests that liver function (or its defect) has little effect
on formaldehyde formation from aspartame
and binding to biological components.

The chronic treatment of a series of rats with 200 mg/kg of
non-labeled aspartame during 10 days results in the ac***ulation
of even more label when given the radioactive bolus,
suggesting that the amount of formaldehyde adducts
coming from aspartame in tissue proteins and nucleic acids
may be ***ulative.

It is concluded that aspartame consumption may constitute
a hazard because of its contribution
to the formation of formaldehyde adducts. PMID: 9714421

[ Extracts ]
"The high label presence in plasma and liver is in agreement with the
carriage of the label from the intestine to the liver via the ****tal
vein.
The high label levels in kidney and, to a minor extent, in brown
adipose tissue and brain are probably a consequence
of their high blood flows (45).
Even in white adipose tissue, the levels of radioactivity found 6
hours
after oral administration were 1/25th those of liver.
Cornea and retina, both tissues known to metabolize actively
methanol (21,28) showed low levels of retained label.
In any case, the binding of methanol-derived carbon to tissue proteins
was widespread, affecting all systems,
fully reaching even sensitive targets such as the brain and retina....

The amount of label recovered in tissue components was quite high
in all the groups, but especially in the NA rats.
In them, the liver alone retained, for a long time, more than 2 % of
the methanol carbon given in a single oral dose of aspartame,
and the rest of the body stored an additional 2 % or more.
These are indeed extremely high levels for adducts of formaldehyde,
a substance responsible of chronic deleterious effects (33),
that has also been considered carcinogenic (34,47).
The repeated occurrence of claims that aspartame
produces headache and other neurological and psychological
secondary effects --
more often than not challenged by careful analysis --
(5, 9, 10, 15, 48)
may eventually find at least a partial explanation in the permanence
of the formaldehyde label,
since formaldehyde intoxication can induce similar effects (49).

The ***ulative effects derived from the incor****ation of label in the
chronic administration model suggests that regular intake of
aspartame may result in the progressive ac***ulation
of formaldehyde adducts.
It may be further speculated that the formation of adducts can help to
explain the chronic effects aspartame consumption may induce on
sensitive tissues such as brain (6, 9, 19, 50).
In any case, the possible negative effects that the ac***ulation of
formaldehyde adducts can induce is, obviously, long-term.
The alteration of protein integrity and function may needs some time
to induce substantial effects.
The damage to nucleic acids, mainly to DNA,
may eventually induce cell death and/or mutations.
The results presented suggest that the conversion of aspartame
methanol into formaldehyde adducts in significant amounts in vivo
should to be taken into account because of the widespread utilization
of this sweetener.
Further epidemiological and long-term studies are needed to
determine the extent of the hazard that aspartame consumption
poses for humans."



Many scientific studies and case histories re****t: * headaches
* many body and joint pains (or burning, tingling, tremors, twitching,
spasms, cramps, stiffness, numbness, difficulty swallowing)
* fever, fatigue, swollen glands * "mind fog", "feel unreal",
poor memory, confusion, anxiety, irritability, depression, mania,
insomnia, dizziness, slurred speech, ***ual problems,
poor vision, hearing (deafness, tinnitus), or taste
* red face, itching, rashes, allergic dermatitis, hair loss,
burning eyes or throat, dry eyes or mouth, mouth sores,
burning tongue * obesity, bloating, edema, anorexia,
poor appetite or excessive hunger or thirst
* breathing problems, shortness of breath
* nausea, diarrhea or constipation * coldness * sweating
* racing heart, low or high blood pressure, erratic blood sugar levels
* hypothryroidism or hyperthyroidism * seizures * birth defects
* brain cancers * addiction * aggrivates diabetes, autism, allergies,
lupus, ADHD, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome,
multiple chemical sensitivity, multiple sclerosis, pseudotumor cerebri
and interstitial cystitis (bladder pain).


http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/870
Aspartame: Methanol and the Public Interest 1984: Monte:
Murray 2002.09.23 rmforall

Dr. Woodrow C. Monte Aspartame: methanol, and the public health.
Journal of Applied Nutrition 1984; 36 (1): 42-54.
(62 references) Professsor of Food Science [retired 1992]
Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287
woodymonte@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 woodymonte@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 methanol from 2 L of diet soda, 5.6 12-oz cans, 20 mg/can, is
112 mg, 10% of the aspartame.
The EPA limit for water is 7.8 mg daily for methanol (wood alcohol),
a deadly ***ulative poison.
Many users drink 1-2 L daily.
The re****ted symptoms are entirely consistent with chronic methanol
toxicity. (Fresh orange juice has 34 mg/L, but, like all juices, has
16
times more ethanol, which strongly protects against methanol.)

"The greater toxicity of methanol to man is deeply rooted in the
limited biochemical pathways available to humans for detoxification.
The loss of uricase (EC 1.7.3.3.),
formyl-tetrahydrofolate synthetase (EC 6.3.4.3.) (42)
and other enzymes (18) during evolution sets man apart from all
laboratory animals including the monkey (42).

There is no generally accepted animal model
for methanol toxicity (42, 59).

Humans suffer "toxic syndrome" (54) at a minimum lethal dose
of <1 gm/kg, much less than that of monkeys, 3-6 g/kg (42, 59).

The minimum lethal dose of methanol
in the rat, rabbit, and dog is 9.5, 7.0 , and 8.0 g/kg, respectively
(43);
ethyl alcohol is more toxic than methanol to these test animals (43)."

Recent research [see links at end of post] sup****ts his focus on the
methanol to formaldehyde toxic process:

"The United States Environmental Protection Agency in their
Multimedia Environmental Goals for Environmental *****sment
recommends a minimum acute toxicity concentration
of methanol in drinking water at 3.9 parts per million,
with a recommended limit of consumption below 7.8 mg/day (8).

This re****t clearly indicates that methanol:

"...is considered a ***ulative poison due to the low rate of excretion
once it is absorbed. In the body, methanol is oxidized to formaldehyde
and formic acid; both of these metabolites are toxic." (8)...

Recently the toxic role of formaldehyde (in methanol toxicity) has
been
questioned (34).
No skeptic can overlook the fact that, metabolically, formaldehyde
must be formed as an intermediate to formic acid production (54).

Formaldehyde has a high reactivity which may be why it has not been
found in humans or other primates during methanol poisoning (59)....

If formaldehyde is produced from methanol and does have a
reasonable half life within certain cells in the poisoned organism
he chronic toxicological ramifications could be grave.

Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen (57) producing squanous-cell
carcinomas by inhalation exposure in experimental animals (22).
The available epidemiological studies do not provide adequate data
for *****sing the carcinogenicity of formaldehyde in man (22, 24, 57).

However, reaction of formaldehyde with deoxyribonucleic acid
(DNA) has resulted in irreversible denaturation that could interfere
with DNA replication and result in mutation (37)..."



It is certain that high levels of aspartame use,
above 2 liters daily for months and years,
must lead to chronic formaldehyde-formic acid toxicity.

Fully 11 % of aspartame is methanol -- 1,120 mg aspartame
in 2 L diet soda, almost six 12-oz cans, gives 123 mg methanol
(wood alcohol). The methanol is immediately released
into the body after drinking .
Within hours, the liver turns much of the methanol into formaldehyde,
and then much of that into formic acid, both of which in time
are partially eliminated as carbon dioxide and water.

However, about 30 % of the methanol remains in the body
as ***ulative durable toxic metabolites of formaldehyde
and formic acid -- 37 mg daily,
a gram every month, ac***ulating in and affecting every tissue.

If only 10 % of the methanol is retained daily as formaldehyde,
that would give 12 mg daily formaldehyde ac***ulation -- about
60 times more than the 0.2 mg from 10 % retention
of the 2 mg EPA daily limit for formaldehyde in drinking water.

Bear in mind that the EPA limit for formaldehyde in drinking water is
1 ppm, or 2 mg daily for a typical daily consumption of 2 L of water.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/835
ATSDR: EPA limit 1 ppm formaldehyde in drinking water July 1999:
Murray 2002.05.30

This long-term low-level chronic toxic exposure leads to typical
patterns of increasingly severe complex symptoms,
starting with headache, fatigue, joint pain, irritability, memory
loss,
rashes, and leading to vision and eye problems, and even seizures.
In many cases there is addiction. Probably there are immune system
disorders, with a hypersensitivity to these toxins and other
chemicals.

J. Nutrition 1973 Oct; 103(10): 1454-1459.
Metabolism of aspartame in monkeys.
Oppermann JA, Muldoon E, Ranney RE.
Dept. of Biochemistry, Searle Laboratories,
Division of G.D. Searle and Co. Box 5110, Chicago, IL 60680
They found that about 70 % of the radioactive methanol in aspartame
put into the stomachs of 3 to 7 kg monkeys
was eliminated within 8 hours, with little additional elimination,
as carbon dioxide in exhaled air and as water in the urine.
They did not mention that this meant that about 30 % of the methanol
must transform into formaldehyde and then into formic acid,
both of which must remain as toxic products in all parts of the body.
They did not re****t any studies on the distribution of radioactivity
in body tissues, except that blood plasma proteins after 4 days
held 4 % of the initial methanol.
This study did not monitor long-term use of aspartame.

The low oral dose of aspartame and for methanol
was 0.068 mmol/kg, about 1 part per million [ppm]
of the acute toxicity level of 2,000 mg/kg, 67,000
mmol/kg, used by McMartin (1979).
Two L daily use of diet soda provides 123 mg methanol,
2 mg/kg for a 60 kg person, a dose of 67 mmole/kg,
a thousand times more than the dose in this study.
By eight hours excretion of the dose in air and urine had leveled off
at
67.1 +-2.1 % as CO2 in the exhaled air
and 1.57+-0.32 % in the urine, so 68.7 % was excreted,
and 31.3 % was retained.
This data is the average of 4 monkeys.
"...the 14C in the feces was negligible."

"That fraction not so excreted (about 31%) was converted to body
constituents through the one-carbon metabolic pool."
"All radioactivity measurements were counted to +-1 % accuracy..."
This indicates that the results could not be claimed to have a
precision
of a tenth of a percent. OK, so this is a nit-pick -- but I believe
espousing spurious accuracy is a sign of scientific insecurity.

The abstract ends, "It was concluded that aspartame was digested to
its three constituents that were then absorbed
as natural constituents of the diet.
Thus, the concept is very subtly insinuated that methanol, as a
constituent of aspartame, is absorbed as a natural constituent
of the diet.
Nowhere in this re****t are mentioned the dread words,
"formaldehyde" and "formic acid".

Of course, methanol and formaldehyde toxicity studies are highly
relevant to the issue of aspartame toxicity.
[ Aspartame has to be turned into its toxic products,
formaldehyde and formic acid, in the body, before it is toxic,
so some pro-aspartame reseach studies test aspartame outside the
body, and then proclaim that they have proved that it is not toxic. ]



http://www.dorway.com/tldaddic.html
5-page review
Roberts HJ Aspartame (NutraSweet) addiction.
Townsend Letter 2000 Jan; HJRobertsMD@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 sunsentpress@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Sentinel Press P.O.Box 17799
West Palm Beach, FL 33416
800-814-9800 561-588-7628 561-547-8008 fax

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/669
1038-page medical text "Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic"
published May 30 2001 $ 60.00 postpaid data from 1200 cases
available at http://www.amazon.com
over 600 references from standard medical research

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/790
Moseley: review Roberts "Aspartame Disease: An Ignored Epidemic":
Murray 2002.02.07 rmforall

Roberts, Hyman J., 1924- ,
Useful insights for diagnosis, treatment and public heath: an updated
anthology of original research, 2002, 798 pages,
aspartame disease, pages 627-685, 778-780

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/859
Roberts: the life work of a brilliant clinician: aspartame toxicity:
Murray 2002.08.02 rmforall



Russell L. Blaylock, MD 601-982-1175 Madison, Mississippi
"Excitotoxins: The Taste that Kills", 1977, 298 p., 493 references.
"Health and Nutrition Secrets that can save your life", 2002, 459 p.,
558 + 30 references, $ 30 http://www.russellblaylockmd.com/

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1090
aspartame, MSG, excitotoxins, NMDA glutamate receptors,
multiple sclerosis: Blaylock: Murray 2004.06.09

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/97
Lancet website aspartame letter 1999.07.29:
Excitotoxins 1999 Part 1/3 Blaylock: Murray 2000.01.14
The Medical Sentinel Journal 1999 Fall; (95 references)
http://www.dorway.com/blayenn.html



http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/935
Comet assay finds DNA damage from sucralose, cyclamate,
saccharin in mice: Sasaki YF & Tsuda S Aug 2002:
Murray 2003.01.01
[ Also borderline evidence, in this pilot study of 39 food additives,
using test groups of 4 mice, for DNA damage from for stomach,
colon, liver, bladder, and lung 3 hr after oral dose of 2000 mg/kg
aspartame -- a very high dose. Methanol is the only component of
aspartame that can lead to DNA damage. ]

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/961
genotoxins, Comet assay in mice: Ace-K, stevia fine;
aspartame poor; sucralose, cyclamate, saccharin bad:
Y.F. Sasaki Aug 2002: Murray 2003.01.27
[A detailed look at the data] ]


MSG and Aspartame -- A Personal Story, TV health re****ter
Dick Allgire (vegetarian) healed of migraines and panic attacks:
Murray 2008.02.12
http://rmforall.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.htm
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartameNM/message/1520



http://groups.yahoo.com/group/aspartame/messages
group with 1,080 members, 22,439 posts in a public archive
E. Bryant Holman bryanth@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Guilford CarolGuilford@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 mgold@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Toxicity Information Center Mark D. Gold
12 East Side Drive #2-18 Concord, NH 03301 603-225-2100
http://www.holisticmed.com/aspartame/abuse/methanol.html
"Scientific Abuse in Aspartame Research"

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/GFCFKids/
 excellent group
Gluten Free Casein Free Kids
This list is unmoderated and unrestricted.
The principle aim of this list is to provide a discussion forum for
parents of children on the autism spectrum who are avoiding gluten
and casein and other substances in their children's diets.
9,108 members, 234,968 posts in public archive since Dec. 1998
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/GFCFKids/links

A very detailed, highly credible account of the dubious approval
process for aspartame in July, 1981 is part of the just released
two-hour do***entary "Sweet Misery, A Poisoned World:
An Industry Case Study of a Food Supply In Crisis"
by Cori Brackett:  cori@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 520-624-9710
2301 East Broadway, Suite 111 Tucson, AZ 85719

Mary Nash Stoddard
Toxicology Sourcebook: "Deadly Deception Story of Aspartame"
Aspartame Consumer Safety Network and Pilot Hotline
[since 1987]
P.O. Box 2001 Frisco, Texas 75034 U.S. [ North of Dallas ]
Phone/FAX: 214.387.4001
marystod@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 http://www.aspartamesafety.com
http://www.aspartamesafety.com/en_espanol.htm

http://www.sweetpoison.com/
http://www.issplendasafe.com/
http://www.sweetpoison.com/food-additives-to-avoid.html
Dr. Janet Starr Hull, PhD, CN jshull@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 Is It Safe Or Not?

http://www.truthinlabeling.org/
Truth in Labeling Campaign [MSG]
Adrienne Samuels, PhD The toxicity/safety of processed
free glutamic acid (MSG): a study in suppression of information.
Accountability in Research 1999; 6: 259-310. 52-page review
P.O. Box 2532 Darien, Illinois 60561
858-481-9333 adandjack@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
 an excellent group
These web pages provide:
independent information about the effects of food on behaviour,
health and learning ability in both children and adults.
sup****t for families using a low-chemical elimination diet free of
additives, low in salicylates, amines and flavour enhancers
(FAILSAFE) for health, behaviour and learning problems.
Food Intolerance Network, Sue Dengate sdengate@[EMAIL PROTECTED]