Artificial sweeteners, also called sugar substitutes, are substances that are used instead of sucrose (table sugar) to sweeten foods and beverages. Because artificial sweeteners are many times sweeter than table sugar, smaller amounts are needed to create the same level of sweetness.

Artificial sweeteners are regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA, like the National Cancer Institute (NCI), is an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA regulates food, drugs, medical devices, cosmetics, biologics, andradiation-emitting products. The Food Additives Amendment to the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which was passed by Congress in 1958, requires the FDA to approve food additives, including artificial sweeteners, before they can be made available for sale in the United States. However, this legislation does not apply to products that are “generally recognized as safe.” Such products do not require FDA approval before being marketed.For more please read at following link

Regards

http://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/diet/artificial-sweeteners-fact-sheet

Thanks Dr. Ali for information and thank you for the link, I found in the link the following:

Studies in laboratory rats during the early 1970s linked saccharin with the development of bladder cancer. For this reason, Congress mandated that further studies of saccharin be performed and required that all food containing saccharin bear the following warning label: “Use of this product may be hazardous to your health. This product contains saccharin, which has been determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals.”

Subsequent studies in rats showed an increased incidence of urinary bladder cancer at high doses of saccharin, especially in male rats. However, mechanistic studies (studies that examine how a substance works in the body) have shown that these results apply only to rats. Human epidemiology studies (studies of patterns, causes, and control of diseases in groups of people) have shown no consistent evidence that saccharin is associated with bladder cancer incidence.

Because the bladder tumors seen in rats are due to a mechanism not relevant to humans and because there is no clear evidence that saccharin causes cancer in humans, saccharin was delisted in 2000 from the U.S. National Toxicology Program’s Report on Carcinogens, where it had been listed since 1981 as a substance reasonably anticipated to be a humancarcinogen (a substance known to cause cancer). More information about the delisting of saccharin is available at http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/ntp/roc/eleventh/append/appb.pdf on the Internet. The delisting led to legislation, which was signed into law on December 21, 2000, repealing the warning label requirement for products containing saccharin.

It has been determined that all nonnutritive sweeteners approved for use in the United States are safe.

The major concern with the consumption of artificial sweeteners is their potential and perceived link to cancer, particularly for the artificial sweeteners, aspartame, saccharin and cyclamates. In spite of public concern about the safety of artificial sweeteners, it is believed that there is no firm or concrete evidence that artificial sweeteners cause cancer, or unsafe in the doses that are typically consumed. However, evaluations of  the risks of consumption of artificial sweeteners are inconsistent.

Sweeteners and Cancer: https://www.cancerwa.asn.au/resources/2015-07-14-sweetners-and-cancer-myth-fact-sheet.pdf  - Discusses the origin of the myth concerning artificial sweeteners and cancer.

http://www.cancercouncil.com.au/86047/cancer-information/general-information-cancer-information/cancer-questions-myths/food-and-drink/artificial-sweeteners-do-not-increase-cancer-risk/

The rates of cancer incidence among individuals with diabetics, who are more likely to consume artificial sweeteners, has been examined. The risk of bladder cancer was reported to be no higher among diabetics than it was in the

general population. Report on Carcinogens Subcommittee of the NTP Board of Scientific Counselors,  NTP report on carcinogens background document for saccharin (1999).

High-intensity sweeteners. Update 2015:

http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/FoodAdditivesIngredients/ucm397725.htm

http://www.fda.gov/Food/IngredientsPackagingLabeling/FoodAdditivesIngredients/ucm397716.htm

http://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancercauses/othercarcinogens/athome/aspartame

Weihrauch, M.R. and V. Diehl, Artificial sweeteners --do they bear a carcinogenic risk? Ann Oncol, 2004. 15 (10): p. 1460 -5

Kroger, M., K. Meister, and R. Kava, Low -calorie Sweeteners and Other Sugar Substitutes: A Review of the Safety Issues.Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety, 2006. 5 (2): p. 35-47 

You may also want to refer to the following: Systematic review of the relationship between artificial sweetener consumption and cancer in humans: analysis of 599,741 participants. Mishra A, Ahmed K, Froghi S, Dasgupta P.  Int J Clin Pract. 2015 Jul 23. doi: 10.1111/ijcp.12703.  [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26202345.

Sylvetsky Meni AC, Swithers SE, Rother KI. Positive association between

artificially sweetened beverage consumption and incidence of diabetes.

Diabetologia. 2015 Oct;58(10):2455-6. doi: 10.1007/s00125-015-3694-5. Epub 2015 Jul 18. PubMed PMID: 26186883; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4575240.

Thank you, Dr Graymer.

Regards...

Points to consider:

Available data are limited and inconsistent to establish a link between the display of cancer risks and the consumption of artificial sweeteners. There is a need to have further intensive studies to evaluate potential risks.  The Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) regulates artificial sweeteners by  as food additives. In many cases, the FDA declares an ingredient "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS). Generally, an application for GRAS status by a commercial organization is reviewed by professionals. In some instances, a substance or ingredient might have a lengthy history of common use in food that it is  considered generally safe (GRAS) and does not require FDA approval before sale. For certain ingredients, not  much toxicology or safety data exist; in such cases prior use may be a consideration.

Systematic review of the relationship between artificial sweetener consumption and cancer in humans: analysis of 599,741 participants. Mishra A, Ahmed K, Froghi S, Dasgupta P. Int J Clin Pract. 2015 Jul 23. doi: 10.1111/ijcp.12703. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 26202345.

In this review, significant direct associations with artificial sweetener consumption and cancer were found in 5 publications for laryngeal, non-Hodgkin lymphoma in men, multiple myeloma in men and leukemia while inverse relationships were found in breast and ovarian cancers.

“The statistical value of this review is limited by the heterogeneity and observational designs of the included studies. Although there is limited evidence to suggest that heavy consumption may increase the risk of certain cancers, overall the data presented are inconclusive as to any relationship between artificial sweeteners and cancer.”  Mishra et al. (2015).

The point is that there is limited evidence as gleaned by Mishra et al’s review (with their statistical approach; RR, odds ratio [OR]). They did not say that there is modest or meager evidence.    

Sucralose, contrary to earlier considerations,  seems to exhibit metabolic effects; affects glycemic and hormonal responses to an oral glucose load.    

Recent findings linking the consumption of artificial sweeteners to dysbiosis and metabolic abnormalities warrant a reassessment of the risks posed by excessive utilization of artificial sweeteners . Diet can profoundly modulate gut microbes. The ratio of gut microbes to enteric cells is considered to be 10:1. Alterations of the enteric microbiota can foster critical changes in host physiology and metabolism, which would impact diseases (and metabolic disorders) such as obesity, diabetes, allergy, asthma and cancer.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved 6 types of non-caloric artificial sweeteners. However, controversies surround the potential benefits and risks of non-nutritional sweeteners. A potential risk posed by the ingestion of artificial sweeteners involves an as yet unexplored mechanism, namely the alteration of the human gut microbiome. Artificial sweeteners interfere with gut microbiota and appear to induce glucose intolerance and impact glucose and energy homeostasis.