Can anyone tell me what phenylalanine is? (in soda and splenda)?!
Can anyone tell me what phenylalanine is? (in soda and splenda)?
I would like to know
Answers: Phenylalanine is just an amino acid. It's part of what makes up a complete protein, and you eat it every day in most foods. It's needed to be converted into tyrosine, which in turn becomes, among other things, melanin! Aspartame (which is in Equal, not Splenda) is a combination of two amino acids--aspartic acid and phenylalanine. Combine the two and you get a sweet-tasting compound.
The only folks who even have to worry about phenylalanine intake are those with PKU, and if they have a high tolerance, even they don't have to worry about one stupid soda. They just either get the one with Splenda or sugar, or take the amount of phenylalanine out of their daily allowance (like a dietary budget they follow.) Phenylalanine is an amino acid. It's harmless and has absolutely no side effects (some people will tell you that it's a laxative, but it's not...they are thinking of phenolphthalein and that would be illegal to put in soda and splenda). You would only have to worry about phenylalanine if you have a rare genetic disorder called phenylketonuria (PKU) where excess phenylalanine would cause mental retardation. This is why they have to put a warning on diet soft drinks, splenda, etc...sorry not Splenda, splenda is sucralose...only aspartame would have phenylalanine (aspartame is Equal and Nutrasweet I think) It's an essential amino acid that is needed by our bodies for growth and metabolism. It's called essential because the body needs it but it doesn't produce it. You will find most of it in milk and eggs. If there is an accumulation of phenylalanine in the body due to a deficiency of the enzyme needed to convert it to another aminoacid TYROSINE (which is used to make epinephrine in the body), a condition called phenylketonuria. It is a genetic disorder. Most newborns are tested for this.