Why does our Government still allow artificial sweeteners?

What is wrong with artifical sweeteners?

I have them everyday!! :-S x

Because for many people it does not have "issues" or it has fewer than the alternative. Sugar, for example, in the case of diabetics. It's naive to not consider the alternative. Chlorinated water causes a slight increase in stomach cancer, but the alternative when it was adopted was cholera which killed hordes. Since this question comes from the UK, you might ask instead why your government drug its heels on adding folic acid to processed grain foods when it was known for so long to prevent neural tube defects like spina bifida in newborns.

MONEY and the lack of people campaigning

money - to pour a load of artificial sweeteners into foodstuff is cheaper than sugar, my main concern is kids medicine which has it and nasty colourings - also stuff like drinks - do you see women in supermarkets buying shed loads of "sugar free" drinks for their kids ? they think it must be good because that is the mantra these days thanks to dentists banging on about it - so get cancer from these nastys but have lovely teeth? also that cheap cider that winos drink is full of artificial sweeteners? (not the main issue but I can't help wince at it when I buy an occasional organic cider)

people don't campaign about this very important issue because as I said earlier the mantra is sugar free is somehow virtuous

who knows it may even be the reason for the high rate of stillbirths in UK

Anything that has issues must be Political.

so if the government stays out all well and good.

I want artificial sweeteners and I resent anyone telling me what I can and can't have.

So to answer your question direct

It allows Sweeteners artificial or otherwise (define) because I and many others like me want them.

It is also known outside the biased alarmist circles that you shouldn't believe everything you read about how artificial sweeteners are all evil. That's why.

Which government by the way?

Because our "Government" has not (yet) outlawed all of our personal freedoms.

I for one prefer that government not meddle in my dietary choices, whether they're healthy or not. I realize, though, that attempting to meddle in the dietary choices of others is an important component of the vegetarian "lifestyle"- as many of the previous answers confirm.

Sorry, but my father is diabetic and the only way for him to enjoy my mum's homemade and delicious sponge cakes is for her to substitute sugar with sweeteners. I think they're wonderful.

You mean the U.S. government? There are things more worrying than artificial sweeteners your government allows.

You mean like aspartame and others like it? I suppose it's for the same reason they still allow azodicarbonamide when it's been banned in other countries. Or like keeping flouride in our water. (Though I don't mind flouride in my water, lead and chlorine is another concern.)

My theory is that they keep these harmful ingredients in our prepackaged food because they know that people will eat them, possibly get sick, and then have to pay 10x the amount to get healthy again. I suspect the FDA and USDA and other organizations are fueled by the health insurance companies. It's all about money.

Sweetners get the most attention but there are loads of other food additives that get ignored by the conspiracy theorists. Why don't you find a real issue to concern yourself with?

Because there is NO evidence that (outside of a few freaks who have a sensitivity to some compounds) any of it "has issues" at all! You either just 'made that up' or you are very gullible!

Sweeteners have suffered the same fate of demonization as Seasoning salt did in 1978.....after being used for 3,500 years, the US FDA suddenly required it be labeled as "Monosodium glutamate" (even though NOTHING else had changed about it), and people began reporting 'allergic reactions' to Chinese food...

It's NONSENSE.....and you can prove this to yourself; did you ever hear of anyone being allergic to Chinese food because of MSG? (I'm going to guess your answer is "yes"?)

How about being allergic to Italian food? (I guess "no!")

Check for yourself, but the FACT is that there is FAR more MSG in Italian food than in Chinese food...it occurs in very high levels in tomatoes, tomato products and especially in Parmesan cheese...