Saccharin

Discovered over a century ago, saccharin is a no-calorie sweetener that is 300 times sweeter than table sugar. It has been used as a no-calorie sweetener in foods and beverages for more than 100 years, and was used heavily during the sugar shortages of the two world wars, particularly in Europe.

Today saccharin is used in a wide range of low- and no-calorie and sugar-free foods and beverages, including tabletop sweeteners, baked goods, jams, chewing gum, canned fruit, candy, dessert toppings and salad dressings as well as cosmetic products, vitamins and pharmaceuticals. It is also used in tabletop sweeteners under the brand names Sweet n' Low®, Sugar Twin® and Necta Sweet®.

Safety

Saccharin Has Been Cleared of Cancer Link Raised by High-Dose Studies in Rats

Saccharin has been the subject of extensive scientific research and is one of the most studied ingredients in the food supply. Extensive research on human populations confirms saccharin is safe for use by all populations, including children, and women who are pregnant or lactating. It is permitted for use in food and beverages in more than 100 countries around the world, including the United States. Saccharin has been reviewed and is regarded as safe by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

Although health authorities around the world now agree that saccharin is safe for human consumption, saccharin safety was once questioned after studies conducted in the early 1970s found high doses (equivalent to hundreds of cans of diet soft drinks a day for a lifetime) increased the incidence of bladder cancer in male laboratory rats. Subsequent laboratory studies determined that the rat bladder cancer was related to the physiology of the rat urinary system and the factors thought to contribute to tumor induction in rats (including urinary pH, osmolarity, volume, and the presence of precipitate and damage caused by consumption of very high doses of sodium saccharin) were irrelevant to humans because they would not be expected to occur in humans. Results of several epidemiological studies also indicated no clear association between saccharin consumption and urinary bladder cancer in humans. These factors, plus research conducted over the past 25 years that overwhelmingly demonstrates that saccharin does not cause cancer in humans, resulted in saccharin being "delisted" from the U.S. National Toxicology Program's Report on Carcinogens in 2000.

Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI)

The ADI for saccharin is 5 mg/kg body weight per day for children and adults. This means that a 150 pound person can safely consume ~9 tabletop sweetener packets nearly every day over his or her lifetime without any adverse health effect.

Metabolism

Saccharin is not metabolized by humans (it passes through the body unchanged) and does not react with DNA.

For more information about saccharin, see Saccharin.org