I Didn”t Know That...

Q: Does aspartame really cause multiple sclerosis, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, Gulf War syndrome and a host of other diseases, as claimed in an Internet alert?

A: Most emphatically no, according to the Food and Drug Administration, the American Medical Assn., the World Health Organization and other authorities. “Like other Internet-based health ‘alerts,’ this one is designed to scare the pants off of you--Internet terrorism,” according to the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter. The document, circulated via e-mail, “is packed with gobbledygook, strange anecdotes, misused jargon, mysterious doctors selling quack theories, and impressive-sounding organizations that may or may not exist,” the letter states. Aspartame’s only real danger is for people with a rare genetic disorder called phenylketonuria--a danger that the e-mail fails to mention.