Aspartame

AdditivesAn artificial sweetener about 200 times sweeter than sugar. Made of aspartic acid bonded to phenylalanine.

E951 · International identifier · the Korean name is definitive · not a hazard scoreOpen Food Facts · ODbL

Depends on contextIngredient or additive — no per-product amount data

Definition

An artificial sweetener about 200 times sweeter than sugar. Made of aspartic acid bonded to phenylalanine.

In the body

Breaks down in the body into those two amino acids and a small amount of methanol. The amounts used are so small that its calories are negligible.

Watch out for

People with phenylketonuria (PKU) must avoid it because of the phenylalanine, and products carry a warning. In 2023 IARC classified it as possibly carcinogenic (2B), while JECFA kept the acceptable daily intake at 40 mg/kg.

Products showing this ingredient: 690

The word ‘Aspartame’ appears in the ingredient list · shown on 0 · not an amount

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