Night terrors? Sleep Disturbances?
NO NEED TO SUFFER ANYMORE
For years, I suffered from night terrors and repeated night time awakenings.
Prior to this, I was a normal, healthy kid, who was generally enamored with life. Looking back, everything changed for me when I came across a now well known neurotoxin called aspartame.
One day I was at my dad's office, and was really hungry, so I grabbed a couple sugar cubes by the coffee maker, and saw some blue packets marked "Equal", which seemed harmless enough at first glance. I tore open a packet, and poured the white powder in my mouth, and immediately was like, "wow this is pretty good"! I was immediately hooked.
Little did I know that I was consuming a cumulative neurotoxin known as aspartame composed of phenylalanine, aspartic acid, along with an O-methyl group that released methanol. Once in the body, the methanol is oxidized first to formaldehyde and then to formic acid. Methanol alone is a potent neurotoxin. It's two by-products are even more toxic.
Together these components comprise a poisonous mixture that stimulates, "embalms" (e.g. formaldehyde), and can eventually overexcite the brain often resulting in a slew of nasty side effects and neurological injury. Since its introduction in 1981, there have been more consumer complaints regarding aspartame than any other food additive in the history of our food industry - yet for selfish financial gain irrespective of the widespread harm and suffering it causes, it still remains on the market. Aspartame is found in over 6,000 consumer goods from diet products, chewing gum, pickled ginger (at your favorite sushi restaurant), to the multivitamin you may be giving your kids, or taking yourself.
The book Prescription for Nutritional Healing, by James and Phyllis Balch lists aspartame under the category of "chemical poison." As you shall see, that is exactly what it is.
A TRULY INSIDIOUS MOLECULE
In addition to night terrors, I was also battling a number of other health issues that are strongly associated with aspartame use: depression, anxiety, and while in grad school I began experiencing breathing problems after moderate exertion. I exercised daily, often twice a day, and was in otherwise excellent physical condition with no prior history of asthma. I have to admit it was a bit scary at times.
Just a side note, but if you have low body fat, chances are you're more sensitive to chemicals such as aspartame.
There's a saying in chemistry that "like dissolves like" or "like attracts like." In chemical terms, organic molecules which have more "fatty" (non-polar) character -- the opposite of water, which is highly polar -- are attracted to other similar molecules. Considering the brain has a high concentration of fat, it acts like a "magnet" inadvertently attracting organic molecules and toxins such as methyl mercury, formaldehye, and aspartame to it.
SO WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE ANY OF THE ABOVE SYMPTOMS
The list of adverse events from aspartame is a long one. This is because it's a neurotoxin, and the brain and nervous system control and regulate virtually all cells, tissues, body systems, and organ function. The side effects range from depression/anxiety, seizures, dizziness, tinnitus, vision problems, behavioral disorders, cognitive dysfunction, weight gain, breathing difficulties, and Graves Disease, to name a few.
So, if you're consuming aspartame-containing products on a regular basis, and are experiencing some of the aformentioned health issues, the first thing to do is remove the poison.
The next is to correct any underlying nutritional deficiencies that could be contributing further to your problem, and taking additional neurosupportive, brain healing nutrients (e.g. magnesium, lithium, selenium, vitamin C, D3, etc).
The best form for magnesium is either glycinate or threonate (6-800 mg/d), and to optimize healing and reduce your recovery time, it's best to consult with a functional medicine specialist, who has experience in this area. A good broad-spectrum multi-vitamin containing selenium, boron, zinc, chromium, copper, iodine, and molydenum along with the entire B-complex will also be very beneficial in supporting neuro-repair and healing..
