(NEXSTAR) – The World Health Organization is planning to declare aspartame, an artificial sweetener found in diet sodas, soft drinks, and other reduced-sugar gums and condiments, to be a possible carcinogen, according to a report published by Reuters. WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) will publicly announce its decision July 14, Reuters reported. Artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, saccharin and sucralose, among others, were already declared to be ineffective at helping users with long-term weight control. Aspartame is currently one of six artificial sweeteners approved by the Food and Drug Administration. But concerns over the sweeteners’ possible link to cancer dates back five decades, after early studies claimed cyclamate — an artificial sweetener — and a blend of cyclamate and saccharin contributed to bladder cancer in lab rats, according to the National Cancer Institute.

Source: The Star June 30, 2023 04:04 UTC