How significant is the impact?, Aspartame may cause cancer? The International Beverage Association claims to be misleading! Urgent Clarification of Beverages by Domestic Brands | News | Domestic Brands
A news about the sweetener aspartame being listed as a "carcinogen" has caused a huge wave in the beverage industry.
On June 29th, Reuters reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter, that aspartame will be officially listed as a "potentially carcinogenic substance to the human body" by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a subsidiary of the World Health Organization, in July.
The report also stated that the above conclusion was made by IARC after convening an external expert meeting in early June, which mainly evaluated which substances were harmful to the human body based on all published research evidence. The Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives is also reviewing the use of aspartame and will announce its investigation results in July.
Aspartame is a sweetener commonly found in popular sugar free beverages. As soon as the news of possible cancer spread, domestic beverage manufacturers such as Yuanqi Forest and Naixue Tea quickly distanced themselves and emphasized that their products did not contain aspartame.
In response to the aforementioned media reports, on June 29th, the International Beverage Association Committee responded on its official website, stating that public health authorities should be vigilant about this view, as it contradicts decades of high-quality scientific evidence and conclusions drawn from low-quality scientific research may mislead consumers. It is expected that more extensive and comprehensive food safety reviews of aspartame will be conducted.
Who is IARC? Why does a piece of news make the industry so nervous?
IARC is an agency under the World Health Organization. According to its official website, the agency is interdisciplinary and brings together capabilities in epidemiology, laboratory science, and biostatistics to identify the causes of cancer, enabling preventive measures to be taken, reducing the burden of disease and related suffering.
According to publicly available information, IARC generally has five carcinogenic categories: Class 1, Class 2A, Class 2B, Class 3, and Class 4. If the above foreign media reports are true, then aspartame is listed as a "2B class" carcinogen.
The information provided by IARC itself is not mandatory, but its views may indirectly influence regulatory decisions, thus attracting industry attention. The meat industry has previously been influenced by IARC's views.
On October 26, 2015, IARC released a report listing familiar processed meat products such as sausages, ham, and bacon as "carcinogens", and fresh red meat such as beef and mutton as "more likely carcinogens". At that time, affected by this news, the stock prices of listed companies related to pig slaughtering and meat products fell to varying degrees.
Upon the news that aspartame may be classified as a carcinogen, on the evening of June 29th, the official Weibo account of Yuanqi Forest announced that all products of Yuanqi Forest do not contain aspartame. According to China Securities News, the person in charge of Yuanqi Forest stated that the ingredient list of Yuanqi Forest is cleaner, and Yuanqi Forest Cola has 0 sugar, 0 fat, 0 calories, and 0 aspartame, and all products do not contain aspartame. The person in charge of Naixue tea said that in November 2022, Naixue tea had announced that all products would use the upgraded natural sugar substitute "Arhat fructose".
What is aspartame? Which drinks have been added?
Aspartame belongs to artificial high magnification sweeteners, with a sweetness 200 times that of sucrose. When achieving the same sweetness, using such sweeteners can save costs.
Pengpai News reporters have sorted out 41 beverages related to the concepts of "sugar free" and "low sugar" through offline supermarkets and e-commerce platforms, covering common carbonated drinks, sparkling water, tea drinks, and other beverages on the market.
Most beverages that claim to be "sugar free" or "low sugar" actually do not use aspartame, only some products indicate aspartame, including Coca Cola Zero, Coca Cola Fiber+, Sprite Fiber+, Fanta Zero, Pepsi Zero, and Pepsi Light Coke. The companies behind the above products are global beverage giants Coca Cola and Pepsi.
As of the time of publication, beverage giants such as Coca Cola and Pepsi have not yet expressed their views on the possibility of aspartame causing cancer to the public.
In addition to the aforementioned beverages, other foods also use aspartame as a sweetener, such as Green Arrow Cube sugar free chewing gum.
The health controversy over aspartame has been going on for a long time. Can related beverages still be consumed?
"It's quite unexpected." According to Gu Zhongyi, a director of the Beijing Nutritionists Association and a master's degree in public health from Tsinghua University, aspartame has always been controversial. Decades ago, there were some controversies about neurotoxicity. In 2005, an animal experiment suggested that very high doses of aspartame may cause lymphoma and leukemia in rats, but authoritative institutions have not determined its carcinogenicity after verifying the evidence. "So personally, I am not worried that it is carcinogenic."
Gu Zhongyi believes that even if the authoritative agency officially declares aspartame as a potential carcinogen, it does not mean that this sweetener cannot be used normally. "This is a different concept from the general concept of toxicity," he said. In addition, there are currently many alternative sweeteners available, and the sweetness of aspartame is 200 times that of sucrose. Many large enterprises do not use aspartame in their products, and the daily consumption dose is still relatively small.
It is worth noting that insiders cited in the Reuters report did not disclose the level of carcinogenic potential identified by IARC for aspartame, that is, how much dose a normal person takes to have the risk of cancer.
Another nutrition industry practitioner also told The Paper reporter that even if it is ultimately announced that aspartame may cause cancer, it is highly likely that it will not have a significant impact on the dietary habits of ordinary people. Many foods or ingredients previously had clearer carcinogenic risks, such as betel nut and oral cancer, alcohol and liver cancer, but people are not completely away from betel nut or alcohol, and related industries have always existed and developed.
"Even the International Agency for Research on Cancer acknowledges that it is not an authoritative institution for risk assessment based on actual consumption situations, and it 'does not provide health recommendations'." ICBA Executive Director Kate Lotman said, "We still have confidence in the safety of aspartame because there is overwhelming scientific evidence and positive safety decisions made by food safety authorities in over 90 countries worldwide. Therefore, we welcome the broader and more comprehensive food safety review being conducted by the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives of the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations."
Sweeteners are emerging frequently, and long-term health risks need to be taken seriously
Although most sugar free beverages do not use aspartame, except for a portion of tea drinks, most beverages that claim to be "sugar free" contain at least two or more sweeteners. The most commonly added sweetener is sugar free pulsation, and out of the 13 ingredients listed in the ingredient list, five sweeteners are used, including erythritol, sucralose, acesulfame, xylitol, and so on.
It is worth noting that so-called "sugar free drinks" do not have absolute zero sugar. According to the General Principles for Nutritional Labeling of Prepackaged Food in accordance with the National Food Safety Standards, if the sugar content in food is ≤ 0.5g/100g or 100ml, it can be labeled as "sugar free food".
Furthermore, the health risks behind both aspartame and other sweeteners are controversial. Professor Mu Yiming, Chief Physician of the Endocrinology Department at the First Medical Center of the General Hospital of the People's Liberation Army of China, once told reporters from The Paper that in the long run, the emphasis on the potential risks of sugar free beverages is mostly based on the premise of long-term heavy consumption. "Long term consumption is on an annual basis, and current research also draws conclusions based on years." Occasionally drinking once without a change in blood sugar does not mean there is no long-term risk. ".
Gu Zhongyi also told a reporter from Pengpai News that from a health perspective, various sugary drinks and sweetener drinks should be avoided as much as possible. Drinking plain water is the healthiest option, or coffee, tea, regular soda water, etc. is a better choice.
