Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on health of sweeteners used in foods as an alternative to sugar.

Sweeteners are used in a variety of everyday foods in the United Kingdom, including energy reduced and sugar free foods. But before they are permitted for use, all sweeteners must first undergo a thorough safety evaluation conducted by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which includes assessing the likely impact on health.

EFSA makes its assessment on the basis that all foods permitted to contain sweeteners have them at the maximum permitted level, this enables it to assess the highest possible levels of exposure and set the amount of a substance that can be consumed daily during a lifetime without any appreciable risk to health in the general population.

Evidence considered as part of Public Health England’s report ‘Sugar reduction: The evidence for action’ found that replacing foods and drinks sweetened with sugar with those containing no or low-calorie sweeteners could be useful in helping people to manage weight as they reduce the calorie content of foods and drinks whilst maintaining a sweet taste. A copy of this report can be accessed at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/470179/Sugar_reduction_The_evidence_for_action.pdf