We came across a post circulating on X claiming that aspartame, an artificial sweetener widely used in sugar-free products such as Diet Coke has been renamed “AminoSweet” on ingredient labels. The post appears to imply that food manufacturers are attempting to mislead consumers by disguising the sweetener under a different name.

 

The concerns surrounding aspartame

Aspartame is approximately 200 times sweeter than regular table sugar, meaning only a small amount is required to provide a sweet flavour to foods and beverages. It has been approved as a food additive in over 90 countries, including the United States, Australia and Singapore, and has been used in this capacity for many years.

Concerns about the potential health risks caused by aspartame are not new. Some of these concerns trace back to studies conducted on lab rats by a group of Italian researchers in the late 2000s. Their findings suggest that aspartame could increase the risk of certain cancers, such as lymphoma. However, the study’s methodology has been questioned, including by the European Food Safety Authority, which reviewed and assessed the research.

Recently, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), together with the World Health Organisation and the Food and Agriculture Organisation Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) conducted an assessment of the health impacts of aspartame.

In a joint news release dated 14 July 2023, IARC classified aspartame as “possibly carcinogenic to humans,” based on limited evidence of cancer in humans, specifically hepatocellular carcinoma, a type of liver cancer. However, the release also highlighted the need for further research into its potential link to cancer.

Additionally, JECFA, which evaluated the real-world risk of consuming aspartame, reaffirmed that it is safe for consumption within established limits, maintaining the acceptable daily intake (ADI) at 40 mg per kg of body weight. For context, an adult weighing 70 kg would need to drink more than 9–14 cans of diet soft drinks daily—each containing approximately 200–300 mg of aspartame—to exceed the ADI, assuming no other intake from additional sources.

Has the ingredient aspartame been renamed?

In 2009, the Ajinomoto Group, well-known for producing monosodium glutamate (MSG), rebranded the aspartame it manufactures as AminoSweet. This rebranding was reportedly intended to emphasise that aspartame is composed of two amino acids – aspartic acid and phenylalanine.

However, this rebranding was limited to Ajinomoto’s aspartame brand and was not adopted as an industry-wide practice. Furthermore, regulations in many countries, including Canada and the United States, require that the sweetener be listed as “aspartame” on ingredient labels when used in consumer products.

Additionally, since aspartame contains phenylalanine—a compound that can be harmful to individuals with phenylketonuria (PKU), a rare genetic disorder that causes phenylalanine to accumulate in the body andpotentially damage the brain and nervous system – food regulations in various countries, such as the United States and Singapore require clear labelling. Products containing aspartame must prominently disclose the presence of phenylalanine on their labels.

Hence, we rate the claim that aspartame has been renamed as AminoSweet on ingredient labels as false. While the Ajinomoto Group has rebranded its aspartame product, regulations in many countries still require aspartame to be listed in the ingredient list of a product, along with the necessary warnings for individuals with PKU.