Aspartame is an artificial sweetener, sold under brand names like NutraSweet or Equal, used in a variety of foods and beverages. Developed in 1965, aspartame combines aspartic acid and phenylalanine. Although many reported health risks have been suggested as a side effect of aspartame consumption, most research indicates the sweetener is generally safe. Research on aspartame and blood pressure, though, has yielded mixed results.
Blood Pressure Research
A 2002 study published in "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" compared artificial sweeteners, such as aspartame, to sucrose. The participants consumed daily supplements of either sucrose or artificial sweeteners for 10 weeks. The group that consumed sucrose saw an increase in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure by 3.8 and 4.1 mm. Researchers found that the group given artificial sweeteners did not display an increase in blood pressure.
Low Blood Pressure
Aspartame may lower blood pressure. In an oft-cited study that was completed in 1986 and published in the "Journal of Neural Transmission," rats were injected with aspartame, tyrosine and phenylalanine. Another group of rats was injected with aspartic acid or methanol. The study found that rats injected with aspartame had significantly reduced blood pressure rates than the other groups. Tyrosine or phenylalanine also lowered blood pressure in the study; however, aspartic acid or methanol had no effects on blood pressure.
Vascular Disease Risk
In research presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference in Los Angeles in 2011, diet soda was linked to cardiovascular events, such as strokes or heart attacks. Lead researcher Hannah Gardener and colleagues followed more than 2,500 New Yorkers for nine or more years for the study. Research found that people who consumed diet soda daily had a 61 percent higher risk of vascular diseases. Although aspartame, in particular, was not cited as a possible reason for the increase in heart disease, most brands of diet soda contain aspartame.
Other Cardiovascular Disease
A 2011 study published in "Molecules and Cells" investigated the link between artificial sweeteners like aspartame and cholesterol levels. High cholesterol levels can cause hypertension, or high blood pressure, and the two serious conditions can lead to stroke or heart attacks.The study found that long-term consumption of artificial sweeteners may accelerate the buildup of fatty materials along the walls of the arteries, which can lead to high cholesterol and high blood pressure.
References
- "University of Maryland Cooperative Extension"; The Truth About Aspartame; Bernadene Magnuson, et al.
- "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention"; Evaluation of Consumer Complaints Related to Aspartame Use; November 1984
- "Journal of Neural Transmission"; Acute Effects of Aspartame on Systolic Blood Pressure in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats; P.J. Kiritsy, et al.; December 1986
- "MSNBC"; Daily Diet Soda Tied to Higher Risk for Stroke, Heart Attack; Linda Carroll; February 2011
- "Molecules and Cells"; Modified Apolipoprotein A-I by Artificial Sweetener Causes Severe Premature Cellular Senescence and Atherosclerosis with Impairment of Functional and Structural Properties of ApoA-I in Lipid-Free and Lipid-Bound State; W. Jang, et al.; May 2011
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Sucrose Compared with Artificial Sweeteners; A. Raben, et al.; October 2002
