Title : Dietary methanol as a factor in seizures, mood disorders and Autism
Abstract:
The artificial sweetener aspartame (L-aspartyl L-phenylalanine methyl ester) is a significant dietary source of methanol, a known neuro-toxic agent. Aspartame alone can almost double rat brain phenylalanine levels, while aspartame-carbohydrate combinations can raise brain tyrosine levels and suppress the usual physiologic increase in tryptophan that follows a carbohydrate rich meal. Such neurochemical changes are postulated to have potential behavioral impact, particularly in predisposed individuals. A series of case reports suggests a correlation between aspartame intake and seizures. In a double blind study, 40 patients with a history of unipolar depression and a similar number of individuals without a psychiatric history were recruited for a crossover study in which subjects were given aspartame 30mg/kg/day or placebo. There was a statistically significant difference in the groups, with individuals with a history of a mood disorder demonstrating significant sensitivity to this artificial sweetener. With regard to the issue of dietary methanol and autism, a prenatal dietary history was taken on 550 women who gave birth to a non-autistic child, and a similar prenatal dietary history obtained on 161 women who had given birth to a child with autism. The women who had given birth to a non-autistic child consumed an average of 66.71 mg of methanol per week, whereas women who had given birth to a child with autism consumed an average of 142.31 mg of methanol per week – a statistically significant difference.
