ReviewNutrients2023
Aspartame Safety as a Food Sweetener and Related Health Hazards.
Review in Nutrients, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 23 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
23 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 69 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effects of Artificial Sweeteners on the Musculoskeletal System: A Systematic Review of Current Evidence.Nutrients · 2025Pooled it
- Common xenobiotics modulate gut microbial responses to low‑calorie sweeteners in vitro.Molecular systems biology · 2026Article
- Integrative Network Toxicology, Machine Learning, Single-Cell Analysis, scTenifoldKnk-Based Virtual Knockout, and Molecular Docking Suggest a Potential Molecular Link Between Aspartame and Rheumatoid Arthritis InvolvingInternational journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Artificial Sweeteners and Gut Microbiota: Mechanistic Insights and Implications for Metabolic Health.Current nutrition reports · 2026Review
- Dual-Excitation Ratiometric Fluorescent Probe for Identification of Biogenic Amines and Its Application in Food Spoilage Detection.Journal of fluorescence · 2026Article
- Aspartame may promote erectile dysfunction via DPP4-mediated endothelial dysfunction and apoptosis: evidence from network toxicology, molecular dynamics simulation, and experimental validation.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Health Risk Assessment of Dietary Chemical Exposures: A Comprehensive Review.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Profiling Neuroactive Compounds in Organic, Conventional, and Processed Tomatoes.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Advancements in Microbial Applications for Sustainable Food Production.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Sesame oil ameliorates aspartame-induced immunotoxicity in mice: a hematological, antioxidative, and histopathological evaluation.Journal of molecular histology · 2025Article
- Association of sugar-sweetened, artificially sweetened, and unsweetened tea with all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a prospective cohort study in UK biobank.BMC public health · 2025Article
- Aspartame and Human Health: A Mini-Review of Carcinogenic and Systemic Effects.Journal of xenobiotics · 2025Review
- Aspartame and ischemic stroke: unraveling the molecular link through network toxicology and molecular docking analysis.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- The Antioxidative, Anti-inflammatory and Anti-apoptotic Effects of Tetrapleura Tetraptera (Aidan) Ethanol Leaf Extract in the Brain of Wistar Rats Exposed to Aspartame.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Article
- Artificial sweeteners differentially activate sweet and bitter gustatory neurons in Drosophila.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- A Comparative Analysis of the Use of Low-Calorie and No-Calorie Sweeteners in Food Products Without and With Added Sugar on the Polish Market.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Rediscovering Sweetness: The Evolution and Impact of Non-Nutritive and Natural Sweeteners.Current nutrition reports · 2025Review
- Sweet or sour? A review of the Aspartame market landscape, carcinogenicity, and its socioeconomic impact.Journal of food science and technology · 2025Review
- Development of Thin Film Microextraction with Natural Deep Eutectic Solvents as 'Eutectosorbents' for Preconcentration of Popular Sweeteners and Preservatives from Functional Beverages and Flavoured Waters.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Article
- Intake of Artificial Sweeteners through Soft Drinks in the Preschool- and School-Aged Population.Nutrients · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Aspartame is the methyl-ester of the aspartate-phenylalanine dipeptide. Over time, it has become a very popular artificial sweetener. However, since its approval by the main food safety agencies, several concerns have been raised related to neuropsychiatric effects and neurotoxicity due to its ability to activate glutamate receptors, as well as carcinogenic risks due to the increased production of reactive oxygen species. Within this review, we critically evaluate reports concerning the safety of aspartame. Some studies evidenced subtle mood and behavioral changes upon daily high-dose intake below the admitted limit. Epidemiology studies also evidenced associations between daily aspartame intake and a higher predisposition for malignant diseases, like non-Hodgkin lymphomas and multiple myelomas, particularly in males, but an association by chance still could not be excluded. While the debate over the carcinogenic risk of aspartame is ongoing, it is clear that its use may pose some dangers in peculiar cases, such as patients with seizures or other neurological diseases; it should be totally forbidden for patients with phenylketonuria, and reduced doses or complete avoidance are advisable during pregnancy. It would be also highly desirable for every product containing aspartame to clearly indicate on the label the exact amount of the substance and some risk warnings.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.