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Have you ever noticed the phrase “Warning: Phenylketonurics-contains Phenylalanine on a pack of gum or a can/bottle of soda and wondered what it means?

Phenylketonurics is a term used for people who have the disorder called Phenylketonuria where they have a deficiency of an enzyme which is required for proper digestion of an amino acid called phenylalanine .
well..great!..thanks!, that explains a lot!

It is similar to information being placed on a product which contain peanuts or milk to inform people that are allergic to peanuts or are lactose intolerant.

Phenylalanine is found in most foods that contain protein like meat for example. The reason why packets of gum and soft drinks contain the warning is because they contain a sweetner known as aspartame, which contains the amino acid Phenylalanine.
So, Phenylketonurics have to follow a low protein diet inorder to avoid Phenylalanine.

If Phenylketonurics intake a good amount of Phenylalanine, the amino acid will not digest properly and will build up in the blood in the form of an acid called Phenylpyruvic acid. If a lot of Phenylpyruvic acid builds up in the system, it can damage brain cells and cause a variety of other side effects such as progressive mental retardation.

You can get more information about this disorder at:
http://www.ess.sunysb.edu/tracy/whatis.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenylketonuria

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 13th, 2006 at 4:59 pm and is filed under Science. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.