by John Ely at Daily Mail
Aspartame will be declared a potential cancer risk to humans, a bombshell report claimed today.
The artificial sweetener, used in a multitude of soft drinks including Diet Coke and Dr Pepper, will be listed as ‘possibly carcinogenic to humans’ in a World Health Organisation reclassification within the next few weeks, insiders said.
But what is aspartame? What other products is it found in? And how much is safe to consume?
Here, MailOnline answers all your questions.
Aspartame, an artificial sweetener used in products like Diet Coke, could be declared as ‘possibly carcinogenic to humans’ by the WHO
Aspartame is an artificial sweetener first developed in the 1960s — completely by accident — and brought into market about 20 years later.
It is approximately 200 times sweeter than sugar.
This means less is needed gram per gram than sugar to achieve the same sweet result, meaning products that contain it tend to be less calorific.
Unlike sugar, it does not raise blood sugar levels, making it a handy alternative for diabetics.
Chemically, aspartame is made up of three substances — aspartic acid (40 per cent), phenylalanine (50 per cent) and methanol (10 per cent).