Artificial Sweetner Causes Dercums?

Dercum's Disease
#1

I work in a Chiropractic clinic and have lots of people in and out and one of the massage therapist in our office is a former army medic he is a super guy and has helped me with the pain in my neck, shoulders and arms. He constanly telling me that aspartame is the primary reason I have dercums. I have drank Diet sodas for years. He had another patient come in with dercums and he is covered with bumps and had them for forty years. He hasn’t had much luck getting help with it and is willing to do anything like the rest of us to get rid of it or at the very least ease our pain. My massage therapist tells me he has been addicted to diet drinks since he was young. He has tried to quit but always ends up with severe migrains.

I have never heard of any relation between the two but would love to hear from anyone who has heard if the two are related and share what they have heard. I am skeptical myself but am open to other opinions.

God Bless
Brennie

#2

I have also heard ths. Anyone out there who has DD but has never used artificial sweetners??I have used them for 40 years and have had DD for that long.

#3

Hello There Sylvia,

I never use any artificial anything. Nor do I use diet foods or additives. The real deal for me only. I believe that if it is a natural substance given to us by God it will not have any bad side effects but if it is man made it always has to have a good and bad about it. As long as I use natural products in moderation I should be Ok. Hope this makes sense to you. Why do you ask?

Gentle hugs
Davana

#4

I was on the phone with my sister when I saw this thread, and gave her the gist of the idea. She said, “I don’t think so! You’ve never used artificial sweeteners!”

And so I haven’t. I had trouble with hypoglycemia when I was quite young and the doctors then told me that I need whole grains and non-artificial sugars to keep my sugar levels in synch and I always took that to heart. I’ve never eaten anything twice that’s left an aftertaste, either, no matter the cause. (I hate alcohol, too.)

Dercum’s may be rare, and there may be some external cause but looking at family history - and a cousin was recently diagnosed with it, along with a grandmother and great-grandmother having symptoms - I think looking for an external cause is a fruitless search. My grandmother, if she were still living, would be 107 years old. Her diet was vastly different from mine, and I’m sure her mother’s was even more different.

All that is not to say that diet can’t make our situations worse. I just don’t think it’s causal.

FWIW.

me

#5

Nope… I don’t think so. I have never been a user of artificial sweetners. Not ever knowingly, that is. Never…

Phil

#6

I asked if anyone with DD had never used artifical sweeteners because of a thread by Brennie7660 that said that her chiropractor/employer told her that DD was caused by consumption of aspartame (one type of artificial sweetner).

#7

Artifical sweeteners - and where am I going too

I have been a diet coke a holic since i went to work at Arctic Circle when I was 16. It is my only real vice in life.

I would think if it was the cause, I would have shown symptoms earlier in my life.

I am trying reaaaal hard to cut back my diet coke, and add water, but its tough. Its the only thing I really enjoy, all though lately, several times, I have had that “funny taste” thing mentioned in another thread too. I thought maybe I got a bad 24 pak of diet coke, but its been other foods as well.

DANG IT i am itching soooooooo bad. The doc gave me a prescription for the itching, and it worked well the first few times I took it, but now I am having to take two pills to have any effect at all. Its scary to think that everywhere I am itching will be a new bump.

I am feeling more and more like there is more of this disease and less of me. It’s hard. It hurts. It itches. There is no hope of improvement. Its affecting my hands really bad now.

Hugs//

Calle//Carin

#8

Hi again Callie,

I have never drank anything diet but I put away a six pack of regular Pepsi a day.
I don’t think artificial sweeteners have anything to do with DD, I personally believe that we all had a predisposition for DD and then something brought it to life. My own DD started really bothering me after an on the job injury and several series of cortizone injections. and pregnizone tablets for swelling & inflammations. Whether the stress and pain or cortizone woke it up or a combination of the whole stressful situation. I’m not sure, but everywhere I had injections is where it is the worst for lumps and pain. Now when I overwork or get upset or too tired I have a bad flare . The weather makes it worse …too cold or hot. Some foods do seem to make me worse or just eating is a chore because it feels like my stomach is already full and eating makes me miserable and bloated, gassy, indigestion, etc. I too itch when I’m getting a new lump and just kind of itchy skin all over .

I use baby oil and it seems to help and it doesn’t seem to cause any trouble. I take 400 mgs x 2 a day of cimetidine (tagamet) and it helps my stomach and is suppose to shrink lumps by cutting down on acids that DD uses to grow. I take morephine 30 mg x 3 a day for pain and Darvocet N 100 for breakthru pain, and then when I can’t sleep I take zolpidem (Ambien) 10 mg. Dr Herbst prescribed some other things based on my particular situation but they’re not directly for DD.

I try to think of what I can still do and how lucky I am that I can still walk, talk, and laugh with my friends and family. They;re are many horrible diseases out there and yes I have a rare, horrible, unknown bugger to deal with but …IT COULD BE A LOT WORSE! I am not dying with a long horrible disease like Aids or Cancer or MS or Emphesyma, or, or,. I have bad days and feel awful sorry for myself and just make myself miserable until I remember to be grateful for all the wonderful blessings in my Life. I have friends and family who try to help me and understand what I’m going thru and that is so wonderful.

After having no one believe me for so long it is such a blessing to have Dr. Herbst’s support and the folks on this site. Someday they will figure this disease out and we will be a part of the reason why someone else won’t have to suffer like we have. I just take one day at a time and take it easy nowadays. I am a perfectionist and a control freak so this is a big lesson for me to learn to change and accept things the way they are instead of how I want them. I get frustrated and mad and wonder why me and I throw a fit and then I hurt even worse, sooooo… I’m slowly learning to pick my battles and figure out what’s really important in life. I hope you can find some relief for your pain and itchys and know your not alone. We’re all in the same boat and some days are the pits. Feel free to call me anytime you if you need to talk. 360-886-2265

Gentle Hugs
Davana

#9

I never use artificial sweetener either! The only study that has been done determines that DD is in fact a genetic disorder and did a study on the lipomas which I participated in. Dr. Herbst broke down the lipoma and has suggestions for meds to deal with the lipoma. My internist treats my symptoms as they come and took her advice and started me on 3 out of 6 of her suggested med treatments. I don’t believe this story on sweeteners. Only believe 1% of what you hear online.

Linda

#10

I have had some serious problems … and had ‘massive’ amounts of artificial sweetener, and completely cut it out of my diet… things have been getting better… still alot of painful lumps, especially when it pinches a nerve or something. Googled looking to see if there was any link with Dercum’s and Aspartame and stumbled across this thread. Diet coke… Vape (with aspartame in the ejuice it) Mio Artificial sweetener for my water. Cutting everything out of my diet and my energy has improved significantly, development of new tumors seems to have either slowed or stopped. Granted this is only anecdotal but if you have Dercum’s and are using artificial sweeteners I would suggest trying to take it out of your diet. So far with me it has moderately helped.

#11

This could be something else diagnosed as Dercum’s disease with how it presents as well.

#12

I have Derkum‘s disease diagnosed about six years ago. I have never in my life consumed aspartame. I’m not sure if that makes a difference or not. I just wanted you to know that it definitely didn’t affect me.