Do Artificial Sweeteners Cause Cancer?
No Association between Low-Calorie Sweetener (LCS) Use and Overall Cancer Risk in the Nationally Representative Database in the US: Analyses of NHANES 1988–2018 Data and 2019 Public-Use Linked Mortality Files
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Despite better diets and less smoking, LCS users had higher obesity and diabetes rates.
Most assume healthier behaviors go hand-in-hand with better weight and metabolic health — but here, the opposite is true. This supports the idea of reverse causality: people use LCS because they’re already managing weight or diabetes.
Practical Takeaways
Using low-calorie sweeteners is unlikely to increase your cancer risk, so you can keep drinking diet soda if it helps you cut sugar.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Surprising Findings
Despite better diets and less smoking, LCS users had higher obesity and diabetes rates.
Most assume healthier behaviors go hand-in-hand with better weight and metabolic health — but here, the opposite is true. This supports the idea of reverse causality: people use LCS because they’re already managing weight or diabetes.
Practical Takeaways
Using low-calorie sweeteners is unlikely to increase your cancer risk, so you can keep drinking diet soda if it helps you cut sugar.
Publication
Journal
Nutrients
Year
2022
Authors
V. Fulgoni, A. Drewnowski
Related Content
Claims (6)
Some artificial sweeteners with no calories might raise your chances of getting cancer.
Drinking diet sodas or using artificial sweeteners like aspartame or saccharin doesn’t seem to raise your chances of dying from cancer, according to a big long-term study of U.S. adults.
People in the U.S. who use low-calorie sweeteners tend to smoke less and eat a healthier diet compared to those who don’t, even when accounting for differences in income, education, and background.
People in the U.S. who use low-calorie sweeteners tend to eat about 6 fewer teaspoons of added sugar each day than people who don’t use them.
People in the U.S. who use low-calorie sweeteners tend to have more education and earn more money, according to a large government health survey that tracked adults from 1988 to 2018.