Soda sweetener aspartame may cause cancer but safe within limits
A can of Diet Coke in a supermarket, as an artificial sweetener commonly used in thousands of products including diet fizzy drinks, ice cream and chewing gum is to be listed as posing a possible cancer risk to humans, according to reports.
The World Health Organization on Thursday classified the soda sweetener aspartame as a possible carcinogen, but said it is safe for people to consume within the recommended daily limit.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer, a WHO body, identified a possible link between aspartame and a type of liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma after reviewing three large human studies conducted in the U.S. and Europe that examined artificially sweetened beverages.
Aspartame is used in Diet Coke, Pepsi Zero Sugar and other diet sodas, as well as some chewing gum and various Snapple drinks as a substitute for sugar. Artificially sweetened beverages have historically been the biggest source of exposure to aspartame, according to Lancet Oncology.
Dr. Mary Schubauer-Berigan, a senior official at IARC, emphasized that the classification of aspartame as a possible carcinogen is based on limited evidence. The three studies could have been influenced by chance, bias or other flaws, Schubauer-Berigan noted. More research is needed to determine whether consumption of the artificial sweetener can actually lead to cancer, she said.
"This shouldn't really be taken as a direct statement that indicates that there is a known cancer hazard from consuming aspartame," Schubauer-Berigan told journalists during a press conference Wednesday before the findings were released to the public.
"In our view, this is really more a call to the research community to try to better clarify and understand the carcinogenic hazard that may or may not be posed by aspartame consumption," Schubauer-Berigan said.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration disagrees with IARC's conclusion that aspartame is a possible carcinogen in humans, an agency spokesperson said on Thursday. The FDA reviewed the the same evidence as IARC in 2021 and identified significant flaws in the studies, the spokesperson said.
"Aspartame is one of the most studied food additives in the human food supply," the spokesperson said. "FDA scientists do not have safety concerns when aspartame is used under the approved conditions."
Source: CNBC
