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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think aspartame might be responsible for my severe chest pain?

48 replies

Istillfeelseventeen · 02/08/2011 07:48

I started the Dukan diet two days ago and have been making the pancakes which require a spoonful of artificial sweetener in the recipe. I've never touched the stuff before. Last night I woke up with the most excruciating chest pain, honestly wondered if was having a heart attack. DH managed to convince me i wasnt but googled description of my pain and the word 'aspartame' came up straight away as a possible reason. This has really frightened me, I had no idea it could cause this

OP posts:
bubbub · 02/08/2011 07:55

really?! thats weird, i had some strawberries last night and had ran out of sugar so pured a bit of aspartame sweetner into a bowl to dip them in as they were a bit sour.
i never eat this usually.
this morning my chest is tight, and painful i have a glass of water and go to look for inhaler, and have to run uostairs to be violently sick!
i wonder if its the same or if its just a bug

shabbapinkfrog · 02/08/2011 08:04

My DS4 (14 years old) googled aspartame, because he had heard it mentioned on TV. He drinks quite a lot of fizzy pop. When he read all the stuff he had googled he decided that he would find which pop did NOT have aspartame in it. He was shocked at the amount of fizzy drinks that had it in. He has avoided anything with it in for about the last 6 months and says he doesn't feel his heart racing like it used to when he didn't know about it. Can I add that he normally does not care what he eats or drinks.

Original poster
Istillfeelseventeen · 02/08/2011 08:06

Bubbub, thanks for replying. Hope you feeling OK now, i had really tight chest on left hand side, with very sharp intense stabbing pains that meant I couldn't take a proper breath. Has really scared me because it came out of nowhere.

OP posts:
Original poster
Istillfeelseventeen · 02/08/2011 08:09

Shabba, thanks for replying. My DS loves fizzy drinks too (as a treat) and I've always suggested he drink diet stuff because I was concerned for his teeth. Which drinks did your son discover do not contain aspartame?

OP posts:
shabbapinkfrog · 02/08/2011 08:14

Even many of the diet fizzy drinks have it in!!! We found that most of the Asda's own brand drinks didn't have it. When he finally drags his sorry bum out of bed I will ask him and let you know. When I shopped online with Asda he would click on the different drinks and they gave the contents - the majority had aspartame in them. He kept saying he had heartburn and there was a thread on MN that advised people to avoid it like the plague.....he has become quite the detective about it. I know that in the USA there is mild outrage about it being used in many foods.

I have a similar reaction if I drink Cinzano Bianco - that has a chemical in to make it lighter in colour and more appealing. I cant remember the damn name of the chemical!! I drank it once on holiday and had a massive panic attack straight after....then had to try it again to see if it was the drink causing it......and it was LOL.

Kallista · 02/08/2011 08:15

Erm, how did your DH know you weren't having a heart attack or angina, or a PE?? Is he a doctor?
If you have bad chest pain in future FGS please call 999, or at the very least your GP surgery (there will be an out of hours emergency number; or call NHS Direct.
They would rather you call & for it to be a false alarm.
Also you must see the GP about your chest pain - describe the symptoms precisely.
PLEASE promise that you will do those 2 things, OK?.
The asparatame thing could be just a coincidence. I'm only young but I get stress-related angina.

avoidingwork · 02/08/2011 08:17

or

It could be to the actual Dukan diet Hmm

squeakytoy · 02/08/2011 08:19

Aspartame is poisonous stuff. More and more manufacturers are banning it from their products.

You would be better off using a small amount of honey to get the sweetness you need than adding artificial crap.

shabbapinkfrog · 02/08/2011 08:21

Do you ever wish you hadn't googled something? Wont be doing that again in a hurry!! Think it best that we all try to avoid aspartame.....

avoidingwork · 02/08/2011 08:22

Where did my "due" go?..."It could be due to the actual dukan diet"

avoidingwork · 02/08/2011 08:25

By the way chest pain is one of the possible ill effects of a low carb/ketogenic diet

Kallista · 02/08/2011 08:28

Sudden L side intense chest pain is a POTENTIAL symptom of MI, you must get checked out by a DR asap please.

Poweredbypepsi · 02/08/2011 08:29

I agree with Kallista you should get checked by a doctor. What made yor Dh decide it WASNT anything sinister? or a warning sign of problems?

squeakytoy · 02/08/2011 08:29

I agree. When people start on Dukan, they are giving their body a massive change to its' system, which is bound to have noticeable effects.

I felt crap for the first few days, headaches from caffeine withdrawal and tired from the lack of carbs and sugar.

It really is not a diet that is sustainable long term.. and not much fun to be on either.

revolutionscoop · 02/08/2011 08:33

Strange, I googled it too & now feel pretty reassured as to the safety of aspartame. With 500 studies since 1974, the federal drug administration have said it's been more tested than almost any other substance, and still found to be safe. Op, I would suspect there's something other than Aspartame causing your symptoms; might be worth a visit to the gp.

seeker · 02/08/2011 08:34

If you thoughtnyou were having a heart attack, it is possible ( unlikely but possible) that you were. Chest pain is one of those symptoms you just shouldn't ignore. Get it checked out today- don't be distracted by the aspartame thing.

Original poster
Istillfeelseventeen · 02/08/2011 08:35

Thanks to everyone for messages - kallista, you are right of course, we should have called nhs direct. I will mention to my gp.

OP posts:
Original poster
Istillfeelseventeen · 02/08/2011 08:39

Have just made doctor's appointment for this morning, thanks for all concern.

OP posts:
Kallista · 02/08/2011 08:41

The chest pain could be due to the diet.
But it could be just a coincidence. It won't do any harm for you to get checked out. I won't post again, don't worry.

Kallista · 02/08/2011 08:48

Oh good, u are going to dr. Just get fed up as am SN but my own family don't listen to me! Sorry.
Hope it's nothing serious anyway but chest pain is just one thing u should always get investigated.
I've seen young women who had MIs - also if your GP brushes you off then see another one.
Take care :-)

GeneralCustardsHardHat · 02/08/2011 09:12

Aspartame is nasty stuff. It's in so many things from chewing gum to fruit squash (but not high juice) and everything in between.

lashingsofbingeinghere · 02/08/2011 09:17

Considering how widespread the use of aspartame seems to be, the fact is that someone somewhere will, quite coincidentally, have some sort of chest pain after consuming it. People look for reasons/patterns behind events when, as other posters have said, it is just a coincidence. IOW, get thee to a doctor, OP.

DouglasPouch · 02/08/2011 09:19

I get this too, also convinced I was having a heart attack and had an ECG, which was clear Dr's told me it was anxiety.

After reading this I am now wondering if it is connected with fizzy drinks, I don't drink them a lot but if I have one late at night I get a horrible blocked feeling, pain in my shoulder and shortness of breath.

This has been going on for 6 years now.

MumblingRagDoll · 02/08/2011 09:29

Ooh.....can you make them with a spoon of honey? I don''t think one spoon will mess the diet up...Aspartame is evil.

Scholes34 · 02/08/2011 09:31

Aspartame is the foodstuff of the devil. It tastes awful. I have a friend who is a chemist who won't touch the stuff, and it appears I've indoctrinated my own children to avoid it. If you shop at Sainsbury's, their own brand non-diet drinks don't have it in, so you can safely drink your Pimm's with Sainsbury's own brand lemonade without that nasty bitter after-taste.