Aspartame

GI(Glucose = 100)

0^*0^*

Energy(kcal/100g)

0 kcal^*0 kcal^*

Carbs(g/100g)

0 g^*0 g^*

Sugars(g/100g)

0 g^*0 g^*

Functional benefits

No cited minerals or other functional notes on file yet.

Cited minerals can add up to +2 on Everyday Health — see Methods.

Risks & side effects

• Phenylalanine (PKU)

  caution

  FDA labeling requirement. Avoid if you have PKU. Score penalty is 0; Everyday hard-gate handles rank.

  FDA — Aspartame and other sweeteners in food (PKU labeling) (2023)

• IARC Group 2B

  caution

  Possibly carcinogenic (limited evidence). JECFA reaffirmed ADI 0–40 mg/kg bw; dietary exposure within ADI not a health concern. Hazard ≠ risk — not a score deduction; Everyday hard-gate + label.

  WHO — IARC Group 2B + JECFA ADI reaffirmation for aspartame (joint release) (2023)

• Headache / migraine trigger (sensitive subset)

  note

  RCT in self-identified susceptible adults: more headache-days on aspartame than placebo. Not proven for everyone. FDA AERS reports are surveillance noise, not causal proof. Display-only — Everyday already hard-gates aspartame.

  Van Den Eeden et al. — Aspartame ingestion and headaches, randomized crossover (Neurology) (1994)

Not medical advice. Published recipe penalties (if any) are on Methods — not a clinical severity scale.

Notes

• No cited functional-benefit mechanism beyond intense sweetness on this row. WHO/IARC 2023 hazard classification (Group 2B, limited evidence) is already listed under Risks; JECFA kept the ADI unchanged.

  Editorial honesty note. Do not extend IARC 2B to other intense sweeteners without their own cites.

  WHO — IARC Group 2B + JECFA ADI reaffirmation for aspartame (joint release) (2023)

Notes explain what the open axis or risk labels alone can miss — not medical advice.