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Aspartame

Aspartame
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Overall Aspartame is of moderate concern in food.

The overall ingredient concern is determined by using a weight of evidence evaluation of the known safety or hazards. In calculating an overall ingredient score multiple findings of low concern may lead to an overall moderate concern rating, or multiple moderate concerns may lead to a high concern rating. For more details read EWG's ingredient concern methodology.

Specific concerns for Aspartame

Concern
 
 
Source
Possibly carcinogenic to humans
 
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC): Agents classified by the IARC Monographs (through Volume 127)
Possibly carcinogenic to humans
 
International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC): Agents classified by the IARC Monographs (through Volume 127)
The European Union Scientific Committee on Food reports this substance may affect birth weight in animals at very high doses.
 
European Union Scientific Committee on Food. 1985. Sweeteners (opinion expressed on 14 September 1984). Reports of the Scientific Committee on Food (16th series). EUR 10210 EN.
The European Food Safety Authority reports this substance can cause hyperplasia in animals.
 
European Food Safety Authority. 2006. Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Food Additives, Flavourings, Processing Aids and Materials in Contact with Food (AFC) on the request from the Commission related to a new long-term carcinogenicity study on aspartame. EFSA Journal 356, 1-44.
European Union Scientific Committee on Food reports this substance shows limited evidence of nervous system effects in animals at high doses.
 
European Union Scientific Committee on Food. 2002. Update on the safety of aspartame (opinion expressed on 4 December 2002).
A peer-reviewed article reports this substance causes cancer in laboratory animals.
 
Morando Soffritti, Fiorella Belpoggi, Eva Tibaldi, Davide Degli Esposti & Michelina Lauriola. 2007. Life-span exposure to low doses of aspartame beginning during prenatal life increases cancer effects in rats. Environmental health perspectives 115(9), 1293-7.
A peer-reviewed article reports this substance causes cancer in laboratory animals.
 
Morando Soffritti, Fiorella Belpoggi, Marco Manservigi, Eva Tibaldi, Michelina Lauriola, Laura Falcioni & Luciano Bua. 2010. Aspartame administered in feed, beginning prenatally through life span, induces cancers of the liver and lung in male Swiss mice. American journal of industrial medicine 53(12), 1197-206.
A peer-reviewed article reports this substance causes cancer in laboratory animals.
 
Fiorella Belpoggi, Morando Soffritti, Michela Padovani, Davide Degli Esposti, Michelina Lauriola & Franco Minardi. 2006. Results of long-term carcinogenicity bioassay on Sprague-Dawley rats exposed to aspartame administered in feed. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 1076, 559-77.
A peer-reviewed article reports this substance causes cancer in laboratory animals.
 
Morando Soffritti, Fiorella Belpoggi, Davide Degli Esposti, Luca Lambertini, Eva Tibaldi & Anna Rigano. 2006. First experimental demonstration of the multipotential carcinogenic effects of aspartame administered in the feed to Sprague-Dawley rats. Environmental health perspectives 114(3), 379-85.
NTP Toxcast scored 1.5-2.5
 
National Toxicology Program (NTP): EWG Toxcast Analysis
 

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