Vita gazette – It has been stated that the World Health Organization (WHO) will declare an artificial sweetener called “aspartame” found in cola and chewing gum a “carcinogen”.

Artificial sugar replacement aspartame, found in thousands of “diet” replacements – like Diet Coke, Extra chewing gum and even toothpaste – to be declared carcinogenic to humans.

An artificial sweetener added to thousands of fizzy drinks, chewing gums and low-calorie foods will be declared a potential cancer risk, a bombshell report claimed today.

Aspartame is set to be listed as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” in a World Health Organization reclassification, according to insiders. It follows a major safety review into artificial sugar replacement involving 1,300 studies.

Particular products containing aspartame — which entered the market in the 1980s — include diet drinks, Diet Coke, Dr Pepper and some Fanta flavours, as well as Extra chewing gum and Muller Light yoghurts. Some toothpastes, dessert mixes, and sugar-free cough drops also contain it.

Aspartame, which is also used as a sugar substitute, is found in many cola and diet drinks, soft drinks, fruit yoghurt and milk, sauces such as ketchup, breakfast cereals and ready-made desserts.

What Is Aspartame?

According to the International Food Information Council Foundation, Aspartame is an artificial sweetener accidentally discovered by a scientist researching an anti-ulcer medication in 1965. It’s composed of two amino acids: aspartic acid and phenylalanine. When you consume aspartame, your body metabolizes the compound into its amino acids and also methanol, which is a simple alcohol also found in many natural foods, including fruits and vegetables.

Compared to table sugar, aspartame is about 200 times sweeter, which means a little goes a long way. To put it into perspective, one packet of aspartame (1 gram) with four calories equals the same sweetness as two teaspoons of table sugar (8 grams), which has 32 calories.

That’s a savings of 28 calories, which may not sound like much, but those calories can add up fast. One 12-ounce can of regular cola contains nearly ten teaspoons of sugar and 156 calories, while a 12-ounce can of diet cola sweetened with aspartame has zero teaspoons of sugar and only 7 calories.

What food and drinks contain aspartame?

• Diet Coke
• Coke Zero
• Pepsi Max
• 7 Up Free
• Dr Pepper
• Some Fanta flavours
• Muller Light yoghurts
• Wrigley’s Extra sugar-free chewing gum
• Some Lucozade drinks
• Tango Orange
• Irn Bru
• Powerade
• Ribena Light