Experts list down harmful health effects of aspartame, a non-nutritive sweetener

Touted to be one of the ldquomost studied food additives in the human food supplyrdquo aspartame once widely considered safe for consumption under restricted amounts is now likely to be labelled a carcinogen The artificial sweetener mdash among the ingredients of several lowcalorie foods drinks and chewing gums mdash has come under the scrutiny of the International Agency for Research on Cancer IARC the cancer research arm of the World Health Organisation which is likely to declare aspartame ldquopossibly carcinogenic to humansrdquo later this monthAspartame is an ingredient in artificial sweeteners as well as sweetened soda Pic CourtesyWikimedia CommonsHours after the Reuters report hit headlines medical experts nutritionists and dieticians jumped in to discuss the developments on social media While some stuck to the stance that the nonnutritive sweetener was safe to consume in moderate quantities others discussed the detrimental properties of aspartame claiming that the writing is on the wall ldquoI didnrsquot believe itrdquo says Dr Siddhant Bhargava fitness and nutritional scientist and cofounder of the dailymeal subscription company Food Darzee Bhargava who has used his social media handle to assuage fear associated with aspartame says ldquoIrsquom not trying to demean the person associated with the research but the WHO comes out with a lot of hasty stuff Even during COVID19 they changed their stance so many times that no one believed them A lot of questions need to be asked mdash how has this randomly sprung up Have they been conducting a 20yearlong study whose findings are coming to light only now Has it been peerreviewed It is true that itrsquos better to avoid a substance that has carcinogenic properties regardless of the amount but none of the doctors will be able to provide a definitive answer because we all simply follow research The field of nutrition is so ambiguous that itrsquos tough to make a claimrdquoAmong the factors that have been widely questioned since the news hit headlines is the lack of discussion around the quantity of aspartame that can spell trouble for humans A 1981 report by JECFA Joint FAOWHO Expert Committee on Food Additives stated that an adult weighing 60 kgs would likely need to consume 12 to 36 cans of diet soda daily depending on the amount of aspartame in each can to be at risk ldquoBut how easy is it to keep a tab when you consume sodas chewing gums and other foods that may have itrdquo asks Luke Coutinho integrative lifestyle expert ldquoYou may be watchful of your daily salt intake But if you have one meal at a restaurant that alone could have four daysrsquo worth of your salt requirement Similarly you may not even know if a food brand has aspartame in it Most people wonrsquot realise it when they are breaching the safe consumption level This is a scam by the food lobbiesrdquo he said Coutinho points out that there have been previous studies on aspartamersquos negative impact on the gut ldquoAspartame has been known to cause this apart from ADHD in kids and fluctuating blood sugar levels When it comes to consuming artificial sweeteners people will go from the frying pan to the fire Have jaggery or sugar if you absolutely must But artificial sweeteners arenrsquot meant for human consumption Aspartame is linked to the leakygut syndrome Studies have shown that they create inflammation in the gutrdquo he remarksDr David Chandy and Dr Siddhant BhargavaRyan Fernando nutritionists and health coach adheres to a simple principle when encouraging his clients to adopt healthy habits ldquoIf something is not found in nature it will have longterm side effects even though these sideeffects havenrsquot been discovered yet From an evolutionary standpoint whatever is found in nature is always a better optionrdquo Although he has encouraged athletes who have trained under him to keep an armrsquos length from artificial sweeteners Fernando says he understands the views of a medical professional advocating their useLuke CoutinholdquoFor them itrsquos a battle between obesity and the side effects of sweeteners A doctor will advocate its use to simply help patients tackle obesity They know that a patient may not always be compliant when told to give up sugar so an equivalent of a drug that delivers sweetness without calories is promoted For them the priority is to control insulin resistance But many of my doctor friends have been switching to stevia which is a plantbased sweetenerrdquo says Fernando adding that it is feasible for experts who have the luxury of educating clients over a longrunning relationship to guide them on the illeffects of artificial foods ldquoBut during a single visit a patient may simply ask for a substitute without which they may want to seek another expertrsquos advicerdquo says Fernando who is more likely to be caught with a can of regular soda than one that has been artificially sweetenedRyan FernandoDr David Chandy consultant endocrinology at Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital seconds Fernandorsquos assertions when stating that plantbased stevia is a ldquosafer alternativerdquo and also warns against concluding that foods labeled as ldquounsweetenedrdquo are in fact healthy ldquoWhen it comes to tackling obesity several factors come into play Many artificially sweetened foods will have high amounts of fat in the form of creams or other ingredients Food items may be sugarfree but can still have a high calorific count Most studies have not found any benefit of nonnutritive sweeteners So it is advisable to have simple unprocessed foods instead of sugarfree or sweetened food Calling a food sugarfree is just a dot in the bigger picture In simple terms follow the habits that our grandparents didrdquoYou Should Knowgtgt What has happened The WHOrsquos cancer research branch IARC is likely to list aspartame as ldquopossibly carcinogenic to humansrdquo in July 2023gtgt What is the IARC The cancer research branch of the World Health Organisation focuses on assessing whether a substance poses a potential risk regardless of the quantity of the substance that is being consumedgtgt Where does quantity matter The WHOrsquos Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives JECFA is the committee that is responsible for providing advice on safe consumption levels Both the IARC and JECFA are expected to evaluate aspartame and announce their findings on July 14gtgt What should you know As per reports the findings of the IARC and JECFA are expected to be ldquocomplementaryrdquo