Editing Aspartame (section)

==Uses==

Aspartame is about 180 to 200&nbsp;times sweeter than [[sucrose]] (table sugar). Due to this property, even though aspartame produces roughly the same energy per gram when metabolized as sucrose does, {{cvt|4|kcal|kJ}}, the quantity of aspartame needed to produce the same sweetness is so small that its caloric contribution is negligible.<ref name=Magnuson/> The sweetness of aspartame lasts longer than that of sucrose, so it is often blended with other artificial sweeteners such as [[acesulfame potassium]] to produce an overall taste more like that of sugar.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.foodproductdesign.com/articles/2007/05/new-products-weigh-in.aspx |title=New Products Weigh In |publisher=foodproductdesign.com |access-date=19 June 2010 |archive-date=11 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711015222/http://www.foodproductdesign.com/articles/2007/05/new-products-weigh-in.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref>

Like many other [[peptide]]s, aspartame may [[hydrolyze]] (break down) into its constituent amino acids under conditions of elevated temperature or high [[pH]]. This makes aspartame undesirable as a baking sweetener and prone to degradation in products hosting a high pH, as required for a long shelf life. The stability of aspartame under heating can be improved to some extent by encasing it in fats or in [[maltodextrin]]. The stability when dissolved in water depends markedly on pH. At room temperature, it is most stable at pH&nbsp;4.3, where its [[half-life]] is nearly 300&nbsp;days. At pH&nbsp;7, however, its half-life is only a few days. Most soft-drinks have a pH between 3 and 5, where aspartame is reasonably stable. In products that may require a longer shelf life, such as [[syrup]]s for [[fountain beverage]]s, aspartame is sometimes blended with a more stable sweetener, such as [[saccharin]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/mail/goodanswer/us_fountain_beverages.pdf |publisher=[[The Coca-Cola Company]] |title=Fountain Beverages in the US |date=May 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320175404/http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/mail/goodanswer/us_fountain_beverages.pdf |archive-date=20 March 2009 }}</ref>

[[Descriptive statistics|Descriptive analyses]] of solutions containing aspartame report a sweet aftertaste as well as bitter and off-flavor aftertastes.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Nahon DF, Roozen JP, de Graaf C | title = Sensory evaluation of mixtures of maltitol or aspartame, sucrose and an orange aroma | journal = Chemical Senses | volume = 23 | issue = 1 | pages = 59–66 | date = February 1998 | pmid = 9530970 | doi = 10.1093/chemse/23.1.59 | doi-access = free }}</ref>