Q: "I read somewhere that aspartame breaks down into methanol in the body. Is this true, and is it bad for me?"
(Name not supplied)A: Aspartame produces methanol which breaks down into formaldehyde and formic acid in the body. Don't be alarmed by the names. These are normal by-products of metabolism which in turn break down to carbon-dioxide and water.
Aspartame is manufactured by joining two amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine. These amino acids are found naturally in protein-containing foods. Aspartame is completely broken down in the digestive system into the two amino acids and methanol.
Methanol also occurs naturally in foods: it's found in fruit juices, fruits and vegetables. A soft drink containing aspartame provides one-fifth of the methanol as the same amount of tomato juice.
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