red meat associated with cancer. Another item in this discussion is the carbonated beverages we enjoy, particularly Diet Coke.
Diet Coke contains two components that raise questions about its healthiness (or lack thereof). These are the synthetic sweetener aspartame and the color additive caramel, which imparts the drink’s brown hue. Both ingredients have been designated as potentially carcinogenic. However, this doesn’t necessarily imply they induce cancer. While certain studies do not directly indicate that consuming Diet Coke heightens your cancer risk (as mentioned by Healthline), the ambiguity lies in the fact that experts in the area have yet to fully converge on this issue.
The concern regarding caramel coloring is that some variants are produced using a compound known as 4-methylimidazole, or 4-Mel. Dr. Urvashi Rangan, a toxicologist and executive director of Consumer Reports’ Food Safety and Sustainability Center, remarked, “There’s no justification for consumers to face an avoidable and unnecessary risk stemming from the brown coloring of food. Manufacturers have access to alternatives that contain lower levels of 4-MeI. Ideally, there should be no 4-MeI present in food.”
