I’m a dentist. This is why people should NOT stop eating artificial sweeteners

A dentist is sounding the alarm over misinformation about the health risks of artificial sweeteners, warning that they are still “unclear” and that people shouldn’t rush the fake sugars.

Her warning comes after panic and controversy erupted earlier this year when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that aspartame, a type of artificial sweetener, is potentially carcinogenic or may cause cancer.

The WHO’s conclusion came after a major safety review by its subsidiary, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). However, experts say the link between artificial sweeteners and cancer is still tenuous.

Dr. Melissa Weintraub, a dentist in Providence, Rhode Island, told StatNews, “It’s clear that while the link between aspartame and cancer is unproven, the significant benefits of maintaining good oral health are worth chewing on.” .’

Aspartame is an artificial sweetener first developed in the 1960s that is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. Because it’s so much sweeter, it takes less than natural sugar to achieve the same taste, meaning products containing aspartame may have fewer calories.

Aspartame is found in a range of diet sodas, such as Diet Coke and Sprite Zero, as well as some sugar-free gum and yogurt. It is estimated that about 5,000 foods in the US contain it.

Dr. Weintraub believes the WHO’s ruling on artificial sweeteners could trick people into thinking that aspartame has been proven to cause cancer, which could lead to a wave of misinformation.

Dr. Melissa Weintraub, a dentist in Providence, Rhode Island, said links between aspartame and cancer are still unclear

“It gets even more difficult in light of the fact that IARC’s aspartame assessment doesn’t consider risk or the likelihood of harm — only hazard, which is only the potential for harm,” she told STAT News.

An investigation published last year in BMJ of 100,000 adults in France suggests that consuming high amounts of artificial sweeteners was associated with a slightly higher risk of cancer and heart disease.

Another 2020 study in the journal Acta Histochemica found an increased incidence of leukemia and lymphoma in mice consuming aspartame. However, the doses were nearly four times the weight of the mice, making the reference point for human risk unclear.

Commenting on the WHO announcement, Dr. Weintraub last month pointed to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) statement denouncing the health organization’s findings.

“For the (FDA) there is no discussion about aspartame, one of the most common sugar substitutes in foods such as dentist-preferred diet soda and some sugar-free gum,” she said.

The agency’s statement read: ‘The FDA disagrees with the conclusion that these studies support the classification of aspartame as a possible human carcinogen.

“FDA scientists reviewed the scientific information in the 2021 review when it was first made available and identified significant flaws in the studies on which (the conclusion) was based.

“We note that the Joint WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives has not raised concerns about the safety of aspartame under current levels of use and has not changed the acceptable daily intake.”

While aspartame has drawn the wrath of WHO, there are many other types of artificial sweeteners, including saccharin, sucralose, stevia, and monk fruit.

While there may be no consensus on the health effects of artificial sweeteners, the risks of consuming too much of any type of sugar are well established.

Sugar has been consistently linked to several chronic health problems, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, depression, and cancer.

“Dentists hold sugar in a kind of awe-inspiring horror,” Dr. Weintraub said.

‘Sugar consumption feeds mouth bacteria, which produce a form of acid as a by-product that attacks tooth enamel. If left untreated, this will lead to cavities and oral disease.’

“This even applies to healthier, more natural forms of sugar, such as the fructose in fruit.”

However, artificial sweeteners can reduce sugar cravings and prevent you from consuming higher amounts of sugary, high-calorie foods.

Dr. Weintraub specifically points out the benefits of sugar-free gum, which uses artificial sweeteners like aspartame.

“By stimulating the production of saliva through chewing, chewing gum helps us restore the chemical balance of the mouth by producing minerals such as calcium and phosphates,” she said.

“This ‘remineralization’ process reverses the damage caused by acids that cause cavities and reduces plaque build-up.”

A Study from 2019found, for example, that people who regularly chewed sugar-free gum developed 28 percent fewer cavities than those who didn’t.

“My professional concern for oral health makes the choice of non-nutritive sweeteners over sugar an obvious one.”