In an unprecedented joint evaluation by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA), aspartame, a popular non-sugar sweetener, has been classified as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” due to “limited evidence.”
Dr. Francesco Branca, Director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety at WHO, explained that “Cancer is one of the leading causes of death globally. Every year, 1 in 6 people die from cancer.”
Dr. Branca highlighted 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.”
Aspartame is a synthetic sweetener found in many food and drink items such as diet drinks, chewing gum, yogurt, breakfast cereal, and even some medications.
This latest evaluation by the two bodies signifies the first time aspartame has been evaluated by IARC and the third time by JECFA.
While both bodies noted limitations in the available evidence for cancer, the IARC moved to classify aspartame in Group 2B, a category used for agents that exhibit limited but not convincing evidence of carcinogenicity in humans or convincing evidence for cancer in experimental animals, but not both.
The classification came after evaluating evidence specific to hepatocellular carcinoma, a type of liver cancer.
Dr. Mary Schubauer-Berigan of the IARC Monographs programme pointed out that “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.”
On the other hand, JECFA reaffirmed the acceptable daily intake of 40 mg/kg body weight for aspartame.
“JECFA also considered the evidence on cancer risk, in animal and human studies, and concluded that the evidence of an association between aspartame consumption and cancer in humans is not convincing,” said Dr. Moez Sanaa, WHO’s Head of the Standards and Scientific Advice on Food and Nutrition Unit.
He further emphasized the need for “better studies with longer follow-up and repeated dietary questionnaires in existing cohorts.”
While the risk of cancer remains low at the current levels of aspartame consumption, the two international bodies will continue to monitor new evidence and encourage more independent research into the potential health effects of aspartame.
