Statement on two recent scientific articles on the safety of artificial sweeteners

Two new articles have been published in the scientific literature, describing potential adverse health effects of sweeteners. The first article by Halldorsson et al. (2010) suggests an association between consumption of artificially sweetened soft drinks and increased risk of preterm delivery. The second article by Soffritti et al. (2010) reports that aspartame is a carcinogenic agent in mice. The Scientific Panel on Food Additives and Nutrient Sources added to food (ANS) of the European Food Safety Authority discussed during its 21st Panel plenary meeting held on 1-3 February 2011 the above mentioned papers and adopted a Panel Statement to advise EFSA on the need for further work