Artificial Sweetener Causes Cancer In Rats

The artificial sweetener aspartame has been found to cause cancer in rats when administered at level thought safe for humans. A full article can be found here.

Quick Summary:

• Rats were given aspartame as part of their daily diet from the age of eight weeks until their deaths.
• Unlike in previous studies, each animal was dissected when it died and studied for microscopic changes in tissue.
• The animals showed extensive evidence of malignant cancers including lymphomas and leukemias.
• Methanol in the aspartame metabolizes to form formaldehyde.

My $0.02: This situation is ridiculous. As the article stated, aspartame is found in over 6,000 products. Chances are that you'll encounter one of those products in something you eat since lots of things are "sugar free." Avoiding sugar is not worth getting cancer for.