Sweetener commonly used in Diet Coke ‘to be listed as cancer risk’
In the past, similar IARC rulings for different substances have raised concerns among consumers about their use
One of the world’s most common artificial sweeteners is set to be declared a possible carcinogen next month by a leading global health body, according to reports.
Two sources with knowledge of the process have told Reuters that aspartame, which is used in products from Diet Coke to Fanta Zero and Wrigley’s Extra chewing gum, will reportedly be listed in July as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” for the first time by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the World Health Organization’s (WHO) cancer research arm.
The IARC ruling, finalised earlier this month after a meeting of the group’s external experts, will determine whether something is a potential hazard or not, based on all the published evidence.
However, the findings do not take into account how much of a product a person can safely consume.
This advice for individuals comes from a separate WHO expert committee on food additives, known as JECFA (the Joint WHO and Food and Agriculture Organization’s Expert Committee on Food Additives), alongside determinations from national regulators.
In the past, similar IARC rulings for different substances have raised concerns among consumers about their use, led to lawsuits, and pressured manufacturers to recreate recipes and swap to alternatives.
JECFA, the WHO committee on additives, is also reviewing aspartame use this year. Its meeting began at the end of June and it is due to announce its findings on the same day that the IARC makes public its decision – on July 14.
