It seems that food allergies are a major part of the
conversation regarding health these days. Most people have heard of allergies
to shellfish, peanuts, dairy and gluten – all of which can make a person feel
miserable if they haven’t figured out the culprit. A lesser-known allergen can
be found in foods with artificial sweeteners. Three major offenders-aspartame,
sucralose and saccharin- can be found in the sweetener selection on almost
every restaurant table.
To fully understand the symptoms associated with each, let’s
break down the chemical composition of each:
Aspartame is an artificial non-saccharide sugar substitute in
some foods and beverages that is 200 times sweeter than table sugar.
What is in it? Phenylalanine, aspartic
acid and methanol. The taste is
different from regular sugar in that the sweetness lasts longer and less is
needed to achieve a sweet flavor. It is often combined with other sweeteners
for a taste closer to sugar.
You could have an allergy if you are experiencing the following:
Headaches Fibromyalgia
Anxiety Memory loss
Arthritis Abdominal pain
Nausea Depression
Heart
palpitations Irritable
Bowel Syndrome
Seizures Neurological
disorders
Vision problems Weight
gain
Sucralose is found
in many food and beverage products, used because it is a no-calorie sweetener,
does not promote dental
cavities, is deemed as safe for consumption by diabetics as
non-diabetics, and does not affect insulin levels.
What is in it? Sucralose is a synthetic additive created by
chlorinating sugar. Manufacturers say the chlorine in sucralose is no different
from that in table salt. Most
ingested sucralose is not broken down by the body, so it is consider non-caloric.
You could have an allergy if you are experiencing the following:
Migraines
Head
and muscle aches
Stomach
cramps and diarrhea
Bladder
issues
Skin
irritation
Dizziness
and inflammation
Saccharin is an artificial
sweetener approximately 300 times as sweet as table sugar, but has a
bitter or metallic aftertaste
at high concentrations. It is used to sweeten products such as drinks, candies,
cookies, medicines, and toothpaste.
What is in it? Saccharin
is a sulfa-based
sweetener; its primary ingredient is benzoic
sulfimide. Saccharin does not react chemically with other food
ingredients and it stores well. Blends of saccharin with other sweeteners are
used to mask the bad taste of each other.
For
those with sulfa allergies, saccharin may cause:
Nausea
Diarrhea
Skin
Problems
Other
allergy-related symptoms
Although artificial sweeteners may be a subject
of debate, no one can argue that sweeteners are made from chemicals, some of
which are known to be not only harmful, but truly toxic. Whether or not you
have an intolerance to artificial sweeteners depends on how responsive your own
body is against the chemicals they contain.
