• picture
  • picture
  • picture
  • picture
Public Radio's Environmental News Magazine (follow us on Google News)

The Living on Earth Almanac

Air Date: Week of

This week, facts about...artificial sweeteners. Thirty years ago cylclamate was banned, and the safety of other sweeteners is still debated.

Transcript

CURWOOD: They may not be as sweet as Georgia Brown. Even so, no-cal or low-cal sugar substitutes have become part of our diet-crazed culture. But the reputation of some artificial sweeteners is pretty sour. Thirty years ago, the U.S. government announced its ban on cyclamate after studies suggested the sweetener caused bladder tumors and testicular atrophy in lab animals. While other sweeteners, including aspartame in NutraSweet and saccharine in Sweet'N'Low, are still certified by the FDA, scientists continue to debate their safety. Saccharine is banned in some nations, but in the U.S. saccharine is okay, as long as there is a label warning consumers that it is a suspected carcinogen. Aspartame is also legal in the U.S., although it can be hazardous to people with certain neurological conditions. As for cyclamate, it remains banned in the U.S., and concerns about its safety have spread worldwide. Last year, a magistrate in Malaysia found a company guilty of using the illegal sweetener in its fruit preservatives. And for this week, that's the Living on Earth Almanac.

 

 

Living on Earth wants to hear from you!

Living on Earth
62 Calef Highway, Suite 212
Lee, NH 03861
Telephone: 617-287-4121
E-mail: comments@loe.org

Newsletter [Click here]

Donate to Living on Earth!
Living on Earth is an independent media program and relies entirely on contributions from listeners and institutions supporting public service. Please donate now to preserve an independent environmental voice.

Newsletter
Living on Earth offers a weekly delivery of the show's rundown to your mailbox. Sign up for our newsletter today!

Sailors For The Sea: Be the change you want to sea.

Creating positive outcomes for future generations.

Innovating to make the world a better, more sustainable place to live. Listen to the race to 9 billion

The Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment: Committed to protecting and improving the health of the global environment.

Contribute to Living on Earth and receive, as our gift to you, an archival print of one of Mark Seth Lender's extraordinary wildlife photographs. Follow the link to see Mark's current collection of photographs.

Buy a signed copy of Mark Seth Lender's book Smeagull the Seagull & support Living on Earth