In a scientific development that has sparked widespread debate about the safety of artificial sweeteners, a recent Spanish study revealed that regular consumption of aspartame-sweetened soft drinks may increase the risk of heart and brain damage, even at relatively low doses.
Aspartame as a sugar substitute in diet drinks
Aspartame, used as a sugar substitute in popular products like Diet Coke, Pepsi Max, Sprite Zero, and Extra gum, has been linked for years to health concerns including cancer, high blood pressure, and strokes.
Study Details
The study, published in the journal «Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy», was conducted by researchers at the Cooperative Research Centre in Biomedical Materials in San Sebastián on laboratory mice, and the mice were given a dose equivalent to 7 mg of aspartame per kilogram of body weight, three consecutive days every two weeks – a quantity much less than the globally permitted daily intake (50 mg/kg).
Increased heart muscle hypertrophy
The results showed a 20% reduction in body fat but with serious risks: an increase in mild heart muscle hypertrophy by 20%, a decrease in cardiac output (26% in the left ventricle, 20% in the right), and a reduction in heart septum curvature by 25%, also recording accelerated cognitive deterioration and signs of neurobehavioral changes, indicating potential brain damage.
Benefits and Harms of Aspartame
The researchers called for a reevaluation of the safe limits of aspartame in humans, warning that its benefits in reducing weight come at the expense of pathological changes in the heart and brain potentially, and acknowledged the study's limitations, such as its short duration, calling for long-term research.
For its part, the International Sweeteners Association (ISA) refused to generalize the findings to humans, pointing to physiological differences between mice and humans, and that thousands of studies confirm the safety of aspartame based on regulatory approvals, and also confirmed that sweeteners help in reducing calories without negative impact on weight.
World Health Organization Warning
It is noted that the World Health Organization classified aspartame in 2023 as «possibly carcinogenic» at very high consumption levels (like 14 diet cans daily for a 70 kg person).
