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With the World Health Organization’s cancer agency deeming the sweetener aspartame — found in diet soda and countless other foods — a “probable” cause of cancer, a pan-India survey revealed the extent of artificial sweeteners consumption in the country.
The survey, which was conducted by the local constituencies, received more than 23,000 responses from consumers located in 295 districts of India. While 38% of urban Indians surveyed confirmed that they consume foods containing artificial sweeteners every month, 91% of food brands wanted to display the use of artificial sweeteners in front of the packaging.
The results showed that one in three of those who consume artificial sweeteners do so in the form of diet soft drinks and sugar-free chewing gum, while 26% of consumers of these products consume them in the form of energy drinks. The survey report said that about 18% of those surveyed eat artificial sweeteners in the form of sugar-free chocolate and ice cream.
About 66% of the respondents were men, while 34% were women. 42% of respondents were from Level 1, 34% were from Level 2, and 24% of respondents were from Level 3 and 4 and rural areas, according to local constituencies.
While the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a special branch of the World Health Organization, sounded the alarm about the sweetener aspartame, a separate expert group looking at the same evidence said it still considered the sugar substitute safe in limited quantities. The last group is a panel of experts chosen by the World Health Organization and another group of the United Nations, the Food and Agriculture Organization.
Aspartame joins a class of more than 300 other potential carcinogens, including things like aloe vera extract, Asian-style pickled vegetables, and chives.
However, the guidelines for using the sweetener do not change. “We are not advising consumers to stop eating (aspartame) completely,” said WHO’s director of nutrition, Dr Francesco Branca. “We just advise a little moderation.”
What is aspartame?
Aspartame is a low-calorie artificial sweetener that is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It is an odorless white powder and the most widely used artificial sweetener in the world.
Aspartame is permitted as a food additive in Europe and the United States and is used in many foods and beverages such as Diet Cola, candies, chewing gum, medicines including cough drops, and foods intended to aid weight loss. It is found in tabletop sweeteners sold as Equal, Sugar Twin, and NutraSweet.
Aspartame was approved in 1974 by the US Food and Drug Administration with an acceptable daily intake of 50 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. According to the Food and Drug Administration, a person who weighs 132 pounds (60 kilograms) would need to consume about 75 packets of aspartame to reach this level.
United Nations experts evaluated the safety of aspartame in 1981 and set the safe daily limit slightly lower, at 40 milligrams of aspartame per kilogram.
What did the two groups say?
The World Health Organization’s cancer agency, IARC, based its conclusion that aspartame “is possibly a carcinogen” on studies in humans and animals that found “limited” evidence that the compound may be linked to liver cancer.
In a separate evaluation, experts compiled by the World Health Organization and the Food Agency updated their risk assessment, including a revision of the acceptable daily intake. They concluded that there is no “convincing evidence” at currently consumed levels that aspartame is dangerous; Their guidelines regarding acceptable levels of consumption have not changed.
So what should consumers do?
Branca of the World Health Organization said it’s okay for people to consume a “very large” amount of aspartame without experiencing any ill effects. He said “large consumers” may want to cut back.
Dr. Peter Lowry, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, who previously nominated aspartame for IARC review, said there is an easy choice for consumers.
“At least when it comes to beverages,” he said, “our message is that your best option is to drink water or an unsweetened beverage.”
Most people, though, probably don’t pay much attention to IARC ratings. The agency previously classified processed meats such as sausage and bacon as carcinogenic, noting in particular their link to colon cancer. The move surprised even others in the scientific community – the UK’s largest cancer charity reassured Britons that eating a bacon sandwich every so often wouldn’t do them much harm.
Food and beverage producers say there is no reason to avoid products containing aspartame.
“There is broad consensus in the scientific and regulatory community that aspartame is safe,” the American Beverage Association said in a statement.
The WHO’s Branca said the agency generally advises food manufacturers to “use ingredients that don’t require a lot of added sugar”. After recent evaluations of aspartame, Branca said using sweeteners “is probably not the way forward.”
With inputs from the Associated Press
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