Aspartame

What this is

Aspartame is a zero-calorie artificial sweetener about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It’s widely used in diet sodas, sugar-free desserts, chewing gum, and other “no sugar” foods and drinks. Because it’s so sweet, only tiny amounts are needed to replace sugar. U.S. and European regulators have reviewed aspartame for decades and consider it safe for the general population at typical consumption levels. In July 2023, the World Health Organization’s cancer agency classified aspartame as a possible carcinogen based on limited evidence. Importantly, a WHO expert panel on food additives did not find any public health risk at common intake levels and kept the existing safety limits (acceptable daily intake) unchanged. One caveat: people with phenylketonuria (PKU), a rare genetic disorder, must avoid aspartame because it breaks down into phenylalanine, an amino acid they cannot safely metabolize.

Critical Endpoints

The key endpoints experts review in safety assessments (critical endpoints). This is not a prediction of harm.