Warning to parents over certain drinks after 'public health risk' fears (2025)

Parents have been urged not to give pre-school children sweetened soft drinks amid health concerns

Young children should not be given drinks containing artificial sweeteners, a review by health experts advising the Government has said.

The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) has published a report looking into non-sugar sweeteners (NSS) after a 2023 report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) linked sweeteners to long term health risks.

The WHO report, which was based on population data, found that long-term consumption of sweeteners found in 'diet' soft drinks was linked to a higher risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and early death.

Experts at the SACN have now said younger children – typically those under the age of five – should not be given “drinks sweetened with sugar or NSS (non-sugar sweeteners)”.

However, for older children, sweeteners may be a better alternative to sugar, the report suggests. In the longer term, it is recommended that both sugar and sweetener intake should be reduced.

Low or no-calorie sweeteners are used instead of sugar to sweeten many foods and drinks, including soft drinks, desserts and ready meals. The SACN also recommends that younger children should be given unsweetened food, without either sugar or artificial sweeteners.

Are artificial sweeteners safe?

The Food Standards Agency (FSA) and other health agencies generally consider approved artificial sweeteners, like stevia and aspartame, safe for human consumption up to the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI), which is the maximum amount considered safe to consume each day over the course of your lifetime.

According to the NHS, findings from research into sweeteners and health are mixed. The sweetener aspartame is not suitable for people with phenylketonuria (PKU), but is considered safe for the general population. Cancer Research UK has also said sweeteners do not cause cancer.

However, some studies have linked a number of sweeteners to poor health outcomes.

"Although the use of non-nutritive sweeteners is an important tool to reduce sugar overconsumption, and the related negative health effects, we now understand that these sweet additives can pose various health risks on the public," said Dr Havovi Chichger, Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Science, Anglia Ruskin University.

"It might seem contradictory, but studies have shown that all commercially-available sweeteners are associated with the development of obesity and diabetes, potentially through a metabolic disruption pathway," Dr Chichger added.

The report has therefore called for more research into long term health impact of non-sugar sweeteners. The SACN is recommending that the Government compels food and drinks manufacturers to provide data on quantities of sweeteners in products.

Prof Robin May, Chief Scientific Adviser of the FSA, said: “We welcome SACN’s advice on the consumption of non-sugar sweeteners and their call for further research.

“All sweeteners approved for use in foods in GB have been subject to a rigorous risk assessment before being authorised and the FSA maintains strict oversight of these products. We strongly support SACN’s call for industry to make data on the quantity of these sweeteners in their ingredients publicly available to provide better information on how much people are consuming and to help inform our assessments of these ingredients.”

Can sweeteners help with weight loss?

Because sweeteners have fewer or no calories, some have argued they can help to prevent obesity. However, the WHO report recommended against using artificial sweeteners for weight control, citing potential links to increased risks of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

In fact, one recent study even found that sucralose, a popular artificial sweetener, may even be making us hungrier. But more research is needed to confirm these effects.

The SACN report concluded that while non-sugar sweeteners may help people lose a small amount of weight in the short term by helping reduce sugar intake, it recommends their consumption in the longer term is “minimised”.

Based on current evidence, experts say that low calorie soft drinks pose fewer health risks than sugar-rich drinks.

Responding to the recommendations of the report, Prof Naveed Sattar, Professor of Cardiometabolic Medicine at the University of Glasgow, said: "I fully agree and would rather people take low calorie drinks with artificial sweeteners every time than sugar rich drinks both for weight and dental benefits and potentially other gains.

"However, SACN also correctly points out that until we have more evidence in the future on benefits and safety of NSS, it would be best to limit the intake of all such sweetened (including NSS) drinks in early childhood so that children become accustomed to drinking unsweetened drinks, preferably water. A sensible and mature summary of a complex set of data."