I was intrigued by the posting for the conference Aspartame: Nutrapoison??, unfortunately I was unable to make it. However, I have had personal experiences with Aspartame that I would like to share. About 10 years ago my grandmother became ill and the illness progressed until it became so violent that it forced her to the emergency room. It began with flu like symptoms and progressed to the point of affecting her vital signs with bouts of extreme stomach illness. At the time of her hospitalization they were unaware of the cause of her illness because the symptoms disappeared shortly after her hospitalization. The correlation was drawn to Aspartame when family members brought in “diet Ginger Ale” and the illness returned. At this time they determined that she was “allergic” to it. I had assumed at this point that it was not harmful to everybody, just her because of some rejection by her body.
I myself was unaware of its negative side effects until recently when I had to seek several forms of treatment for debilitating migraines. It wasn’t until a mere coincidence that my eye doctor warned me that the cause may be Aspartame. I immediately stopped consuming diet soda and have been migraine- free for 8 months!! I have grave concerns however, because I have seen several primary care doctors and not one of them warned me of the possible Aspartame/migraine correlation. Is there any way that this information can be educated to the public, especially the physicians?