Late last week, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), Parma, Italy, rejected a July 2005 report from the European Ramazzini Foundation (ERF), Bologna, Italy, that associated consumption of aspartame with increased incidence of cancer in rats. In addition to publishing its study results, ERF called for reevaluation of current guidelines for use and recommended consumption thresholds for the sweetener. The European Commission and EFSA immediately began investigating these results.
However, after extensive evaluation, the panel conducting the review noted several flaws in the study, including the fact that "a high background incidence of chronic inflammatory disease in the lung and other organs was observed in all the animal groups, including controls which did not receive aspartame," notes an EFSA press release dated May 5. "This was considered to be a major confounding factor."
In short, analysis showed that the researchers could not logically connect the incidence of cancer with aspartame intake. "The slight increase in incidence of cancers known as lymphomas and leukemias in treated rats was considered to be unrelated to aspartame treatment and most likely attributed to the high background incidence of inflammatory changes in the lung."
The EFSA release went on to state that "the panel concluded that, based on all the available data to date, there is no need to further review the safety of aspartame nor to revise the previously established Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) for aspartame (40 mg/kg body weight)." However, if new information should be come available, EFSA "will review these as a matter of priority."
The full text of the panel's findings is available at http://www.efsa.eu.int/science/afc/afc_opinions/1471_en.html.
FDA is also in the process of conducting its own review (see http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2006/NEW01369.html for details).
