The world’s most-used artificial sweetener, aspartame, is set to be declared a possible carcinogen by the World Health Organisation’s cancer research arm.
Aspartame is used as a sweetener in a plethora of products, including soft drinks like Diet Coke.
According to a source-based report by Reuters, the sweetener will be listed as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” for the first time, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
The listing will happen on July 14, said the report.
The report comes months after the WHO’s warning against using artificial sweeteners. In a newly released guideline on non-sugar sweeteners (NSS), it had recommended against the use of such sweeteners to control body weight.
The IARC ruling, is intended to assess whether something is a potential hazard or not, based on published evidence, the Reuters report added.
However, the advice on how much of a product a person can safely consume is given by a separate WHO expert committee on food additives, known as the Joint WHO and Food and Agriculture Organization’s Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA).
JECFA’s findings on aspartame will also be out on July 14. The same day the IARC makes its decision public.
Earlier, The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India had made it mandatory that products containing the sweetener should clearly mention its name.
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