An ingredient used as an artificial sweetener in every health-conscious person’s favourite drink, Diet Coke (lol), will soon need to be labelled as a potential cancer risk on products that contain it.
Aspartame is approximately 200 times sweet than regular sugar, so on paper, it’s perfect for the job of making non-sugary foods taste like you’ve just inhaled a vat of sweetness.
However, after closer inspection, the World Health Organisation (WHO) will soon the non-saccharide (non-sugar) to its list of things that are “possibly carcinogenic to humans” according to several reports.
This list is known as Group 2B and also features things like gasoline, infection with HIV type 2, and working with asphalt.
If something appears on this list, it means that “there is some evidence that it can cause cancer in humans but at present it is far from conclusive“.
The decision was made by the WHO’s research arm, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
So what will this mean for you and your midnight takeaway order?
At this stage, it’s unclear whether this will prompt manufacturers to change their recipes.
Mars’ Extra chewing gum contains aspartame and it is used in about 6,000 food products across the world.
If you’re unsure whether something has Products like aspartame in it, look for the number 951 on the ingredients list.
You know you could be making healthier food choices when your meals made from numbers, not ingredients…
The full findings of IARC’s report are set to be published on July 14 per Gizmodo.
Interestingly, when Reuters posted its report to Twitter, it was hit with a Community Note.
“Group 2B is the IARC’s lowest-risk classification of carcinogens,” it read.
“This group also includes aloe vera & pickled vegetables; higher-risk groups include red meat, hot drinks, & being a hairdresser. To face increased risk, an adult would have to drink 12 to 36 cans of soda daily.”
At this stage, the WHO still hasn’t made a comment on exactly how much aspartame is safe for human consumption.
The timing is curious, very curious indeed, since Maccas actually removed Diet Coke from its menu in January.
The decision was met with horror and sadness by fans across the nation. Little did they know…
If you’re truly after a health-conscious alternative, there’s always the healthy Coke recipe TikTokers came up with featuring balsamic vinegar.
