Медицинские услуги
© 2017-2021 Сайт «БЕЛМЕД.БАЙ», info@belmed.by
Questions about artificial sweeteners and cancer arose when early studies
showed that cyclamate, one of several types of artificial sweeteners, caused
bladder cancer in laboratory animals. However, results from research studies do
not provide clear evidence of an association between artificial sweeteners and
human cancer.
Cyclamate
Because the findings in animals
suggested that cyclamate might increase the risk of bladder cancer in humans,
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned the use of cyclamate in 1969. More
recent animal studies have failed to demonstrate that cyclamate is a carcinogen
(a substance known to cause cancer) or a co-carcinogen (a substance that
enhances the effect of a cancer-causing substance). However, other issues must
be resolved before cyclamate can be approved for commercial use as a food
additive in the United States.
Saccharin
Animal studies
have linked saccharin, another artificial sweetener, with the development of
bladder cancer. For this reason, Congress required that all food containing
saccharin bear the following warning label: “Use of this product may be
hazardous to your health. This product contains saccharin, which has been
determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals.” Congress also mandated that
further studies of saccharin be performed.
The National Cancer Institute,
a part of the National Institutes of Health, and FDA have looked at the possible
role of saccharin in causing bladder cancer in humans. People in the study
(which included a large number of elderly people) who used this artificial
sweetener had no greater risk of bladder cancer than people in the population as
a whole. However, researchers looked at the data for those people who were heavy
saccharin users (six or more servings of sugar substitute or two or more 8-ounce
servings of diet drink daily) and found some evidence of an increased risk of
bladder cancer, particularly for those who heavily ingested the sweetener as a
table top sweetener or through diet sodas. The results of the NCI–FDA study,
together with findings of additional research with laboratory animals, suggest
that consumption of saccharin is not a major risk factor for bladder cancer in
humans. For these reasons, Congress removed the warning label in December
2000.
Aspartame
Aspartame, an artificial sweetener
distributed under several trade names (e.g., Nutrasweet or Equal), was approved
in 1981 by the FDA after tests showed that it did not cause cancer in laboratory
animals, although not all of the laboratory experiments agreed. Interest in
aspartame was renewed by a 1996 report suggesting that an increase in the number
of people with brain tumors between 1975 and 1992 might be associated with the
introduction and use of this sweetener in the United States. However, an
analysis of then-current NCI statistics showed that the overall incidence of
brain and central nervous system cancers began to rise in 1973, eight years
prior to the approval of aspartame, and continued to rise until 1985. Moreover,
increases in overall brain cancer incidence occurred primarily in people 70 and
older, a group that was not exposed to the highest doses of aspartame since its
1981 introduction. These and other data do not point to a clear link, based on
animal or human studies, between the use of aspartame and the development of
brain tumors. The FDA still considers aspartame
safe.
Stevia
In recent years, a sweetening product called
stevia (stevioside or steviol) has received much public attention. It is 250 to
300 times sweeter than sugar. To date, the FDA has not approved it for use as a
sweetener in the United States, but stevia may be sold as a dietary supplement.
Researchers have found that the main chemical in stevia can be converted in the
laboratory to a compound that causes changes in genes. More study is needed to
learn whether the same changes, which might lead to cancer, could occur in
people.
Автоматический перевод на русский язык