Enlarge / Bottles of Diet Coke, which contains aspartame.
The World Health Organization’s cancer agency released an anticipated assessment late last week, finding that the common artificial sweetener aspartame “possibly” has the ability to cause cancer—specifically, a type of liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma.
The assessment, leaked to Reuters in June, was poised to set off alarms. But, a closer look at the designation itself, the safety evaluation of the current daily recommended limited, and the data underpinning the assessment should comfort anyone worried about their cancer risk and considering ditching their favorite diet drink or snack.
Low-confidence designation
The concern is all based on a designation from the WHO’s cancer agency—the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)—labeling aspartame a Group 2B agent, which is considered “possibly carcinogenic to humans.” Group 2B is one of four possible classifications, which span “carcinogenic” (Group 1), “probably” carcinogenic (Group 2A), “possibly” carcinogenic (Group 2B), and “not classifiable” (Group 3). This is the first time the IARC has evaluated aspartame—it’s not an update to a previous assessment.
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