This may be hard for a lot of diet soda lovers to swallow.<\/p>\n
The World Health Organization is set to declare aspartame, a common artificial sweetener, as \u201cpossibly carcinogenic to humans,\u201d Reuters reported. In other words, the WHO may be poised to say that consuming aspartame has the potential to cause cancer.<\/p>\n
Considering that aspartame is used to sweeten many popular products like Diet Coke, Snapple and Extra chewing gum, Google While several studies have attempted to uncover if aspartame has any major health effects \u2014 with one concluding that it may cause headaches, seizures and depression \u2014 the Food and Drug Administration and the American Cancer Society have both labeled aspartame as safe for human consumption, while noting that research into the sugar substitute remains ongoing.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve never seen a body this authoritative, this high-level, and this scientifically distinguished rule on aspartame in this way,\u201d Marion Nestle, professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University, told MarketWatch in response to the anticipated WHO announcement.<\/p>\n So here is what you need to know about aspartame:<\/p>\n Aspartame is an artificial sweetener that is used in some foods like desserts, gum and sugar-free cough drops, but is most commonly added to beverages.<\/p>\n As an artificial sweetener, aspartame is often used as a sugar substitute for \u201cdiet\u201d versions of products. Aspartame is 200 times sweeter than sugar, according to the Calorie Control Council, so a smaller amount can be used to sweeten products, allowing for a lower overall calorie count in a product.<\/p>\n Aspartame is used in many popular products that millions of people use every day, including Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi, Pepsi Zero Sugar and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, Mars\u2019 Extra chewing gum and some Snapple drinks, among many others.<\/p>\n Other popular products that may contain aspartame include some table sweeteners common in restaurants, such as Equal and NutraSweet, some sugar-free gum sold by Trident, as well as some low-sugar juices and condiments.<\/p>\n Representatives for Coca-Cola A carcinogen is a substance, organism or agent that is capable of causing cancer. The American Cancer Society notes, however, that a carcinogen doesn\u2019t always cause cancer in people, or every time there is any kind of exposure. Some substances may only be carcinogenic if a person is exposed in a certain way (for example, swallowing it as opposed to touching it). And some carcinogens may only cause cancer in people who have a certain genetic makeup.<\/p>\n The World Health Organization has not made an official announcement yet, but Reuters reports that the WHO\u2019s cancer research arm (the International Agency for Research on Cancer, or IARC) is poised to declare aspartame as \u201cpossibly carcinogenic to humans\u201d as early as July. It should be noted that while the IARC may consider whether a product is potentially hazardous or not, it doesn\u2019t consider how much of the product can be safely consumed, which is done by another agency.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t the first time that sweeteners have caught the WHO\u2019s attention. Last May, the WHO urged people not to use nonsugar sweeteners, including aspartame, for weight control, citing the potential risks of Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and mortality in adults.<\/p>\n \u201cThere has been this underlying message for a long time now that aspartame is not healthy,\u201d said Nestle.<\/p>\n The WHO has labeled some food items as carcinogens in the past if they\u2019re abused, such as red meat \u2014 and particularly processed red meat like cold cuts and bacon. But unlike aspartame, meat eaten in moderation also has nutritional value, such as protein, iron and vitamin B12.<\/p>\n There\u2019s no nutritional value to an artificial sweetener like aspartame, Nestle noted. \u201cYou\u2019re dealing with something here that is not an essential nutrient. It\u2019s discretionary. It\u2019s not a vitamin or a mineral.\u201d Nestle said. \u201cNobody is going to be harmed by eating less aspartame. Nobody except the companies that make it. There\u2019s no requirement for it in the diet.\u201d<\/p>\n Aspartame is not banned. And the FDA has ruled that aspartame and other artificial sweeteners are safe to consume, when used properly. As recently as May 30, 2023, the FDA said \u201cbased on the available scientific evidence, sweeteners authorized by the FDA are safe for the general population under certain conditions of use.\u201d<\/p>\n Those sweeteners labeled as safe include aspartame, acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), sucralose neotame, advantame and saccharin. And the FDA has set the acceptable daily intake (or ADI) for aspartame at 50 milligrams per kilogram (aka 2.2. pounds) of body weight \u2014 which the American Cancer Society amounts to drinking 36 cans or more of diet soda a day, since just a little aspartame goes a long way. In fact, the aspartame found in soft drinks can be three to six times less than the FDA\u2019s maximum permitted levels. So it\u2019s unlikely that most people are consuming more than the daily recommended amount.<\/p>\n An FDA official told MarketWatch that it would be \u201cinappropriate\u201d to speculate on other organizations\u2019 assessments of aspartame, adding that \u201cscientific evidence has continued to support its conclusion that aspartame is safe for the general population when made under good manufacturing practices.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to the WHO\u2019s warning earlier this year that artificial sweeteners could lead to heart disease and diabetes, several studies have also linked heavy drinkers of diet soda to an increased risk of stroke and brain disease.<\/p>\n That process is conducted by a separate panel. The IARC identifies potential hazards for consumers, and then an independent group called the Joint FAO\/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) will determine the probability of harm and dangerous exposure levels, a WHO spokesperson told MarketWatch. Updates on aspartame from those groups will be announced on July 14, 2023.<\/p>\n Part of the reason new information on aspartame from the WHO would be welcomed is that research into the sweetener is generally difficult to execute.<\/p>\n \u201cThe research is almost impossible to do because people don\u2019t consume aspartame in very large amounts. They consume it in very small amounts, and in a soft drink it doesn\u2019t take much to sweeten,\u201d Nestle said. \u201cThe research is difficult to do, and the research that has been done is contradictory \u2014 and some of it has been done by the companies that stand to benefit from aspartame.\u201d<\/p>\n Industry groups have argued that aspartame poses no harm. \u201cThere is a broad consensus in the scientific and regulatory community that aspartame is safe. It\u2019s a conclusion reached time and time again by food safety agencies around the world,\u201d the American Beverage Association, which describes itself as the voice for the non-alcoholic beverage industry in the U.S., told MarketWatch in an email.<\/p>\n For consumers, it\u2019s worth noting that a food being labeled as \u201csafe\u201d is not equivalent to it being healthy.<\/p>\n When comparing different artificial sweeteners to one other, like sucralose and aspartame, it isn\u2019t clear based on publicly available research if one has certain health benefits or risks vs the other.<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t have any idea,\u201d Nestle said, citing the aforementioned contradictory research for artificial sweeteners.<\/p>\n One piece of advice that Nestle did give was a possible move to sugar over artificial sweeteners.<\/p>\n Let\u2019s be clear: she\u2019s not telling people to eat more sugar. But she said that, \u201csmall amounts of sugar is not a problem for most people. It\u2019s the large amounts of sugar that are a problem.\u201d After all, the American Heart Association notes that American adults consume an average of 17 teaspoons of added sugar every day, which is more than two to three times the recommended amount.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can metabolize sugar. You need sugar for your brain,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n She says that, depending on the person, getting about 10% of your daily calories from sugar is not something to worry about. But you should check with your doctor or healthcare provider to determine how much sugar would be best for your daily diet.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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\n searches such as \u201cwhat products have aspartame\u201d and \u201cwhat is a carcinogen\u201d spiked more than 5,000% after the news was reported on Thursday morning.<\/p>\nWhat is aspartame?<\/h2>\n
Which foods and drinks contain aspartame?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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\n did not respond to MarketWatch\u2019s request for comment on this story.<\/p>\nWhat is a carcinogen?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
What is the WHO saying about aspartame?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Is aspartame banned? Is it safe?<\/h2>\n
So why haven\u2019t we come up with clear guidelines yet on how much aspartame, if any, is safe to consume?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Is sucralose better than aspartame?<\/h2>\n