An independent study done by European Ramazzini Foundation of Oncology and Environmental Sciences in Italy shows the intake of aspartame at far less than daily allowable levels is multi-carcinogenic (lymphomas and leukemias) in laboratory rats. Aspartame is marketed as Nutrasweet, Equal, and Aminosweet and commonly found in “diet” products such as diet sodas.
First Experimental Demonstration of the Multipotential Carcinogenic Effects of Aspartame Administered in the Feed to Sprague-Dawley Rats
“Our study shows that APM is a multipotential carcinogenic compound whose carcinogenic effects are evident even at a daily dose of 20 mg/kg bw, much less than the current ADI for humans in Europe (40 mg/kg bw) and in the United States (50 mg/kg bw).
The results of carcinogenicity bioassays in rodents are consistent predictors of human cancer risks (Huff 1999; Rall 1995; Tomatis et al. 1989). The results of our study therefore call for an urgent reexamination of the present guidelines on the use and consumption of APM. The decision to use experimental data to protect public health is important because the time span of widespread APM use is still too brief to have produced solid epidemiologic data. Moreover, it is unlikely that sufficient epidemiologic data will be available in the near future, given the difficulty of finding a control group that has not been exposed to this widely diffused compound.”(1)
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization recognizes long-term bioassays conducted on rodents like this study as being good predictors of carcinogenic affects on humans.(2) I would be very, very wary of aspartame’s negative affect on the human body as the health ramifications go far beyond just cancer. This chemical is extremely toxic and should not be in the food supply at all.
Resources:
(1)http://ehp.niehs.nih.gov/members/2005/8711/8711.html
(2)http://www.rense.com/general68/moreproof.htm
