WHO says Aspartame is 'possibly carcinogenic.' What does that mean?
World Health Organization agencies released their findings on aspartame, the artificial sweetener found in thousands of sugar-free products like diet sodas, chewing gums, yogurts and energy drinks. The organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic to humans. A separate group, the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives, said that there was not convincing evidence of a link between aspartame and cancer in humans and that people could still safely consume the sweetener in moderate amounts.
The announcement does not mean that aspartame definitively causes cancer, WHO experts said in a news conference; instead, it is a call for additional research into its health effects. The WHO is not advising companies to withdraw products that contain aspartame or urging people to stop consuming it altogether, said Dr. Francesco Branca, director of the Department of Nutrition and Food Safety at the agency.
«We're just advising for a bit of moderation,» he said.How much aspartame is too much? According to the WHO, it is safe to consume up to 40 milligrams of aspartame per kilogram of body weight per day. Using diet soda as a measure, the limit means that, by some estimates, a 150-pound person would need to drink more than a dozen cans each day to surpass it. The Food and Drug Administration is slightly more permissive with its daily safety limit.
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