Is Aspartame Safe in Breastfeeding
Question
I am a breastfeeding mother and i want to know if it is safe to use Aspartame? Is Aspartame safe for nursing mother and child? Does Aspartame extracts into breast milk? Does Aspartame has any long term or short term side effects on infants? Can Aspartame influence milk supply or can Aspartame decrease milk supply in lactating mothers?
Aspartame lactation summary
- DrLact safety Score for Aspartame is 1 out of 8 which is considered Safe as per our analyses.
- A safety Score of 1 indicates that usage of Aspartame is mostly safe during lactation for breastfed baby.
- Our study of different scientific research also indicates that Aspartame does not cause any serious side effects in breastfeeding mothers.
- Most of scientific studies and research papers declaring usage of Aspartame safe in breastfeeding are based on normal dosage and may not hold true for higher dosage.
- Score calculated using the DrLact safety Version 1.2 model, this score ranges from 0 to 8 and measures overall safety of drug in lactation. Scores are primarily calculated using publicly available case studies, research papers, other scientific journals and publically available data.
Answer by Dr. Ru: About Aspartame usage in lactation
Dipeptide amino acid (Aspartic acid and Phenylalanine) which is used as a sweetener. Only after a high ingestion of Aspartame phenylalanine would slightly increase in mother's milk with no harm effect on the normal child. It should not be cause of concern except in case of phenylketonuria.
Answer by DrLact: About Aspartame usage in lactation
Aspartame is not detectable in breastmilk after maternal ingestion because it is rapidly broken down in the mother's body. An extremely large intake of aspartame (equivalent to 17 cans of soda or 100 packets of Equal Sweetener) can slightly increase the amount of phenylalanine in breastmilk. Phenylalanine concentrations in milk return to baseline by 12 hours after a large single dose of aspartame. Although it is prudent to avoid the use of aspartame in women who are nursing an infant with phenylketonuria, amounts that are typically ingested in aspartame-sweetened foods and beverages do not result in any additional risk to breastfed infants with phenylketonuria.