The artificial (chemical) sweetener aspartame, is a "possible carcinogen", but is safe to consume within recommended limits, two World Health Organization-linked groups have declared.
Aspartame is about 200 times sweeter than table sugar and is widely used in various food and beverage products as a sugar substitute, including diet drinks, chewing gum, gelatin, ice cream, dairy products such as yogurt, breakfast cereal, toothpaste and medications such as cough drops and chewable vitamins, according to the WHO.
What does the study say?
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) conducted independent assessments to assess the potential carcinogenic dangers and other health risks associated with aspartame consumption.
However, after reviewing available scientific literature, they've cited limited evidence for carcinogenicity in humans. "The assessments of aspartame have indicated that, while safety is not a major concern at the doses which are commonly used, potential effects have been described that need to be investigated by more and better studies.” said Dr Francesco Branca, Director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety, WHO.
Further, there was also limited evidence for cancer in experimental animals. “The findings of limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans and animals, and of limited mechanistic evidence on how carcinogenicity may occur, underscore the need for more research to refine our understanding on whether consumption of aspartame poses a carcinogenic hazard,” said Dr Mary Schubauer-Berigan of the IARC Monographs programme.
Is aspartame harmful?
"Aspartame is not ‘harmful’ in the way people might perceive," said Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, physician and co-chairman of the National Indian Medical Association COVID Task Force, told Boom.
"In fact, there is no convincing evidence that it causes cancer in humans or animals. The recent WHO review did not change the safe limit for consumption. To put this in perspective, even if an adult individual theoretically consumes 9-14 cans of diet soda, the safe limit will not be exceeded. (Excessive consumption of beverages however is not medically recommended)," said Dr Jayadevan.
However, some other studies linked prolonged use of artificial sweeteners among non diabetics with increased risk of getting diabetes. This needs further analysis to rule out unexpected correlation, he said. "That being said, the healthiest choice for a beverage is water."
What are the recommended limits to use it?
According to the WHO, 40 mg per kilogram body weight per day is considered safe. "This is far more than a regular person can consume in a day," said Dr Jayadevan.
When we hear the term “possibly carcinogenic”, people tend to panic. In fact, Aspartame’s cancer risk of 2b is the lowest among three IARC levels of carcinogenicity.
"Examples of those at level 1 (the highest level carcinogen) are tobacco, alcohol, diesel exhaust. Obviously not everyone who is exposed to these gets cancer. What matters is the duration and the intensity of the exposure, rather than the agent itself," Dr Jayadevan explained.
According to the WHO, "IARC and WHO will continue to monitor new evidence and encourage independent research groups to develop further studies on the potential association between aspartame exposure and consumer health effects."