A new study has found that artificial sweetener Splenda could lead to serious health problems, including cancer, Eat Clean reports.
The study was published in the International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health, and found that mice who were fed sucralose, the active ingredient in Splenda, daily throughout their lives developed leukemia and other blood cancers.
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Until 2013, Splenda had been rated as safe by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, but this new research has prompted the organization to recommend that consumers avoid the product.
Along with its findings, the study is given extra weight by the fact that it was funded without special interests, in contrast to studies that are funded by companies to achieve certain results.
“For most food additives, the safety studies are conducted by the manufacturers who have financial incentives,” says Lisa Lefferts, MSPH, senior scientist at the CSPI.
And although subjects in the study were given extremely high amounts of sucralose, Lefferts says that the amount of Splenda consumed isn’t the biggest concern, it’s the fact that it’s being consumed at all.
“Even if you consume less, that doesn’t mean there’s no problem,” Lefferts said. “When something causes cancer at high doses, it generally causes cancer at lower doses, the risk is just smaller.”
