Aspartame
E951
E951, aspartame, aspartyl phenylalanine methyl ester, aspartamo
What it is
Aspartame is about 200 times sweeter than sugar, so a pinch does the work of a spoonful. It is made of two amino acids — the pieces proteins are built from — joined together, and the body takes them apart again while digesting. One of those pieces is phenylalanine, which is why the label has to warn people with phenylketonuria.
Why BOTIA flags it
In 2023 IARC classified aspartame as possibly carcinogenic on limited evidence for liver cancer, and the same day JECFA reviewed that same evidence and left the daily limit unchanged. In the NutriNet-Santé cohort, which followed 102,000 adults for years, women who consumed the most aspartame had more breast cancer diagnoses than those who consumed none.
BOTIA CAN
- Identify E951 or Aspartame and flag the mandatory warning 'contains a source of phenylalanine'.
- Classify the product as ultra-processed under the NOVA system.
BOTIA CANNOT
- Measure the exact milligrams of aspartame added to the formulation.
- Verify if the aspartame has begun to degrade into diketopiperazine under high-temperature storage.