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** Deep Dive on Artificial Sweetener Aspartame
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Ask SciCheck is a feature that we started in 2017. Patterned after Ask FactCheck, we select an interesting question from a reader about a health or science subject of consequence and do a deep dive on the topic.

This week, SciCheck Staff Writer Kate Yandell took on an issue that has been in the news: Is the artificial sweetener aspartame -- which is found in products such as diet soda and chewing gum -- harmful to your health?

In mid-July, the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives of the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization, which assesses whether food additives are safe, "concluded that there was no convincing evidence from experimental animal or human data that aspartame has adverse effects after ingestion," the WHO website says ([link removed]) .

But, at the same time, another WHO agency -- the International Agency for Research on Cancer -- declared aspartame “possibly carcinogenic to humans,” based on "limited" evidence of a link between aspartame and liver cancer. That caused a media ([link removed]) stir ([link removed]) -- and some confusion.

"My husband is driving me crazy with his claims that Diet Coke is going to kill me because it contains the sweetener aspartame," said one reader, who asked us to "please weigh in on this, so we can stop the bickering."

As Kate writes, the IARC news release says the possibly carcinogenic category is reserved for substances with “limited, but not convincing, evidence for cancer in humans or convincing evidence for cancer in experimental animals, but not both.”

For her article, Kate reviewed available studies, including three cited by IARC scientists, and talked to outside experts. She also reviewed the guidance offered by other health organizations, including the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Kate found that the research indicates possible negative effects from aspartame, but there’s no definitive evidence linking it to health problems in the general population. Aspartame is safe when consumed within certain limits, according to the FDA, and the daily limit is above the amount people typically ingest.

Read her full story, "No Proven Health Risks from Aspartame, But Also No Proven Benefits ([link removed]) ." If you would like us to answer your question, email us at [email protected].
HOW WE KNOW
As Staff Writer Saranac Hale Spencer wrote in a story this week, the U.S. had admitted a total of 51,231 refugees in the first 11 months of fiscal year 2023, as of Aug. 31. That information came from the Refugee Processing Center, an agency within the State Department. RPC provides monthly data on the number of refugee admissions, their country of origin and the state where they have resettled. Check it out ([link removed]) .
FEATURED FACT
In August, the average price paid for an electric vehicle was $53,376, according to ([link removed]) Kelley Blue Book, a company that does automotive research. That compared with an average transaction price of $48,451 for all new vehicles that month. To encourage residents to purchase EVs, the federal government provides tax credits of up to $7,500 for qualifying new models and up to $4,000 for certain used models. Read more ([link removed]) .
WORTHY OF NOTE
Kathleen Hall Jamieson, a co-founder of FactCheck.org, co-authored an article for a health news website on the importance of precise language when writing about the newly approved monoclonal antibody injection, Beyfortus, for respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, in infants.

Although injected, the monoclonal antibody is not a vaccine, but some news organizations refer to it as a "shot" -- a term used as a euphemism for vaccine -- in headlines.

"Although we recognize that getting people’s attention in headlines and conveying nuance may be conflicting goals, this conflation is worrisome because anti-vaccine sentiment, which increased across the pandemic, remains in play, and trust in public health institutions is down," the article states. "Linking this new technology to politicized vaccines, whether inadvertently or intentionally, risks invoking the same partisan sentiment. "

For more, read "How headlines about the RSV antibody injection could cloud parents’ decision-making ([link removed]) ." You can read more about RSV ([link removed]) on our website.
REPLY ALL

Reader: What is true about the effectiveness of various types of masks to avoid getting or spreading Covid?

FactCheck.org Staff Writer Kate Yandell: Masks can help block ([link removed]) infectious droplets and aerosols coming out of the wearer’s mouth. If they fit well, they can also help protect the wearer from infection. A well-fitting N95 or similar mask is going to provide the greatest protection against COVID-19, followed by a KN95 mask or surgical mask. Cloth masks are variable in quality and are the least protective.

As FactCheck.org Science Editor Jessica McDonald wrote ([link removed]) in an article last winter, we know from lab experiments that masks — generally N95s — can block viral particles. Of course, the effectiveness of masks depends in part on whether they are worn consistently or correctly. Non-randomized, observational studies have shown associations between mask-wearing and reduced infection risk or fewer COVID-19 cases. And there’s some evidence from randomized trials that promoting mask use reduces transmission.

“I think the evidence indicates that masks likely have small benefits for individuals in preventing COVID-19 (~15% reduction),” Dr. Roger Chou, a professor of medical informatics and clinical epidemiology at Oregon Health & Science University, told Jessica. However, he also said that more research was needed.

Experts caution against seeing masking as an all-or-nothing proposition. Even if masking cannot entirely prevent people from getting COVID-19, it might reduce how often people get sick, Benjamin Cowling, an epidemiologist at the University of Hong Kong, told Jessica. The CDC recommends wearing “the most protective mask you can that fits well and that you will wear consistently.”


** Wrapping Up
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Here's what else we've got for you this week:
* "Trump’s Misleading Claims About Electric Vehicles and the Auto Industry ([link removed]) ": In a speech at a Michigan auto parts plant, former President Donald Trump distorted the facts about electric vehicles and the U.S. auto industry.
* "Conservative Politicians, Commentators Recirculate Old Falsehood on Aid for Immigrants ([link removed]) ": Immigrants who come to the U.S. without authorization have very limited access to government benefits. But an old falsehood revived by conservatives conflates aid given to authorized refugees with the limited assistance available to immigrants who entered the country illegally. The claim also inflates the benefits given to refugees.
* "Post Makes Unsupported Claim Trump Purchased a Handgun ([link removed]) ": While campaigning in South Carolina, former President Donald Trump saw a handgun at a gun store with his image and name on it. “I want to buy one,” he said. An online video shows Trump in the store, but the post claims he purchased the gun. The Trump campaign said, “He simply indicated he wanted one.”
* "Online Posts Misrepresent Purpose of USDA Community Garden Database ([link removed]) ": A U.S. Department of Agriculture program that promotes the growth of community gardens in areas with little access to fresh food encourages community groups to register with the USDA. But social media posts misleadingly suggest the USDA wants anyone with a garden to register, “so everyone knows where the people who grow their own food are.”

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