Zero Sugar Beverages: Are they really safe?
Via Healthline
Recently, the rise in popularity of zero-sugar beverages has been so rapid that everyone can feel it. Studies show that this trend has sprung from younger generations recognizing and prioritizing a healthy lifestyle and its benefits more compared to older generations. A study by the International Food Information Council found that 80% of millennials (those born between 1981 and 1996) demonstrated consideration of health benefits when selecting food compared to 64% of baby boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964). Furthermore, Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) demonstrated more behavior of prioritizing their health, supporting the statement once again: in a survey consisting of 2,000 adults in the US, Gen Z showed the most concern regarding their health with a result of 75% compared to 63% of baby boomers. Due to this trend, the zero-sugar beverage market reached a market size of 8.8 billion US dollars in 2022 with the market expecting to continue growing in the future. In addition to not containing any sugar, zero-sugar beverages also come in a variety of flavors and packaging, which appeal to busy consumers who purchase beverages on the go.
However, the concern for aspartame being a health hazard that causes various health problems like increasing the risk of blood-related cancers, such as leukemia and lymphomas, as well as liver cancer is currently rising. Aspartame is an artificial sweetener found in foods and beverages as well as some medicines, chewing gums, and toothpaste and has been used in the United States since 1980. This concern stemmed partly from a study result released by a group of Italian researchers in the year 2000 stating that symptoms of blood cancer were evident in lab rats, but the study turned out to be flawed and therefore inconclusive.
Moreover, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the cancer research agency of the World Health Organization (WHO), officially announced that aspartame is possibly carcinogenic (stated as a part of group 2B), or only has the potential to cause cancer, but there is limited evidence to state that there is a causation relationship between those two aspects. On top of this result, the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) added that the daily intake of aspartame should be 40 mg per kg of body weight as it may cause cancer. While the IARC and the JECFA conducted studies once again based on the potential carcinogenicity of aspartame as well as other health risks, the first study for IARC and the third one for JECFA, both parties failed to find sufficient available evidence to prove that consumption of aspartame does indeed cause cancer. Moez Sanaa, the head of the Standards and Scientific Advice on Food and Nutrition Unit at WHO states that “the evidence of an association between aspartame consumption and cancer in humans is not convincing” and, therefore, recommended to maintain the daily intake dose.
Although direct evidence has not been found to prove the causation relationship between the consumption of aspartame in zero-sugar beverages and the risk associated with blood and lung cancer (as well as other health risks), it can not be assumed that there is no side effect at all. While labeling “zero-sugar” may be appealing, the daily intake dose should be maintained and consumption should be limited at all times.
To limit the consumption of zero-sugar drinks, seeking alternatives may be a good choice. For instance, individuals could seek to make their own healthy drinks at home with vegetables or fruits that can be purchased at nearby supermarkets. That way, it will be easy to track the ingredients inside our drinks and help us avoid consumption of uncertain ingredients.