-- Richard C. Henneberry, Ph.D.
    Director, Neuroscience Program
    Conte Institute for Environmental Health

Alzheimer's: a neurodegenerative disease

There is an area of research for which the food industry, to date, has had no comment, contradiction or excuse. These are studies, designed to identify drugs with which to treat neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease -- diseases in which glutamic acid seems to play some role.

Discovery that MSG caused lesions in specific areas of the brains of laboratory animals and concomitant proliferation of neuroendocrine dysfunction came through interest in the brain. It was brain research that identified glutamic acid as a possible, probable, and now certain neurotransmitter, transmitting nerve impulses. Likewise, it was study of the brain that suggested that a group of these neurotransmitters, specifically the excitatory amino acids (EAA), possess properties that very likely play an important role in the development of certain neurodegenerative diseases.(172, 229-236)  Glutamic acid and aspartic acid are among the EAA that have great potential for involvement in neuro-degenerative disease. Aspartame is approximately 40% aspartic acid.

http://www.truthinlabeling.org/alzheimers.html

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Note:  It took me over seven weeks to kick my aspartame habit - withdrawals were terrible.  I literally drenchd the bed each night.  I knew that I had to quit when I saw how quickly mice died when they eat this "sweetner".  SLT