Diet Pepsi’s Change Not Sweet Enough

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The artificial sweetener in Diet Pepsi, aspartame, will be changed to two others, sucralose and acesulfame, in response to a 5 percent drop in sales in the United States last year.

 

These artificial sweeteners have all been called safe by the Food and Drug Administration, but PepsiCo Inc. apparently believes that customer concerns about aspartame are hurting sales. Diet Coke also contains aspartame, and its sales dropped by more than 6 percent last year.

 

Studies on Safety of Artificial Sweeteners

Aspartame: Several studies show increased tumor growth in rats given dosages of aspartame equivalent to those in humans (European Journal of Oncology, July, 2005;10 and Annals of Oncology, 2004;15:1460-1465). However, more than 100 subsequent studies failed to associate tumors with aspartame. People with a genetic disorder called phenylketonuria should not take it because they lack the ability to break down byproducts of aspartame.

 

Sucralose: Most studies show that it is safe even though an Italian animal study showed an association between sucralose and increased risk for leukemia.

 

Acesulfame: More than 100 studies show it is safe, even though one study shows that it increases insulin secretion, which suggests that it could increase risk for weight gain and diabetes (Hormone and Metabolic Research).

May Increase Risk for Weight Gain and Diabetes

Artificial sweeteners appear to change the huge colony of bacteria in our intestines to favor the harmful bacteria that increase risk for diabetes and weight gain. Scientists fed 10-week-old mice drinks containing one of the following:

• saccharin (the sweetener in the pink packets of Sweet'N Low)
• sucralose (the yellow packets of Splenda)
• aspartame (the blue packets of Equal)
• table sugar
• plain water

READ MORE

• Splenda (Sucralose) Found to Have Diabetes-Promoting Effects
• Sucralose vs. Aspartame: Which of These Top 2 Artificial Sweeteners is the Better Choice?