WHAT THE FIZZ

Aspartame, one of the world’s most popular artificial sweeteners, has been labelled a possible carcinogen by the cancer research arm of the World Health Organization (WHO).

Aspartame is an artificial (chemical) sweetener widely used in various food and beverage products since the 1980s, including diet drinks, chewing gum, gelatine, ice cream, dairy products such as yoghurt, breakfast cereal, toothpaste, and medications such as cough drops and chewable vitamins. It is available as a tabletop sweetener under the brand names Equal and Nutrasweet.

The cancer agency of WHO, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), has classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B) on the basis of limited evidence for cancer in humans (specifically, for hepatocellular carcinoma, which is a type of liver cancer).

The classification of ‘possibly carcinogenic’ places aspartame below alcoholic beverages and eating red meat, alongside aloe vera extract, and above drinking coffee.

It is the lowest of three categories, with ‘probable carcinogen’ (such as the herbicide glyphosate) and ‘carcinogenic to humans’ (such as tobacco smoking and asbestos) the next possible steps.

The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additive (JECFA) has concluded that the data evaluated indicated no sufficient reason to change the previously established acceptable daily intake (ADI) of 0–40mg/kg body weight for aspartame. The committee therefore reaffirmed that it is safe for a person to consume within this limit per day. For example, with a can of diet soft drink containing 200 to 300mg of aspartame, an adult weighing 70kg would need to consume more than 9–14 cans per day to exceed the acceptable daily intake, assuming no other intake from other food sources.

SOURCES

www.who.int/news/item/14-072023-aspartame-hazard-and-riskassessment-results-released https://monographs.iarc.who.int/listof-classifications