Diet Coke has become the popular substitute soda for the original Coca-Cola because it doesn’t use high amounts of high fructose corn syrup. Instead, Diet Coke uses an artificial sweetener called Aspartame. There have been many rumors circulating that Aspartame causes cancer, making Diet Coke more dangerous to drink than Coca-Cola even with lower levels of sugar.
What exactly is Aspartame? The American Cancer Society defines it as an artificial sweetener made from amino acids, aspartic acid and phenylalanine. They also say it is found in brand names such as NutraSweet and Equal. So what is the benefit of putting Aspartame in foods and drinks if it could possibly cause cancer?
The American Cancer Society states that Aspartame is about 200 times sweeter than natural sugar, therefore less needs to be added to make something sweet, thus reducing calories and high levels of sugar. Aspartame cuts sugar levels but does it cause cancer?
A United Kingdom website about weight loss discusses the effects of Aspartame and cancer. They stated that there has been not enough evidence over the last 20 years of research and experiment to definitely conclude that Aspartame causes cancer… at least for now. Currently 130 have confirmed the safety of Aspartame in foods and drinks like Diet Coke according to the same website.
So all of you Diet Coke lovers seem to be safe… at least until a definitive conclusion is found!
Sources:
http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/athome/aspartame
http://www.weightlossresources.co.uk/diet/healthy_eating/aspartame.htm
According to the American Cancer Society, a lab study, conducted in 2005 on rats, showed that the rats who were fed more Aspartame were more likely to get cancer. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/artificial-sweeteners. The only downside that I see in this study is that the rats were given enough Aspartame that could be the amount found in up to 2,083 cans of diet soda daily, which is not realistic when compared to humans. First, the rats are much smaller and have a different anatomy than humans so the effects on their bodies are much different. Second, no one is drinking 8 to 2,083 cans of diet soda daily. I think that more research needs to be done before anything is said. The only thing I can say that would support this argument is that the Aspartame found in these diet sodas, is an artificial sweetener and anything artificial could be detrimental to our health, and potentially carcinogenic. This is why it’s important to stay away from anything artificial that we may put in our bodies.