Benzoate sufinide --- better known as saccharin --- was discovered by accident in 1878 in a lab at Johns Hopkins University by chemist Constantin Fahlberg, the result of a chemical reaction between o-sulfobenzoic acid, phosphorus chloride and ammonia. This new compound was 300 times sweeter than sugar, leading Fahlberg to explore saccharin's viability as an alternative to cane sugar.
Early Controversy
Fahlberg tested saccharin by ingesting it himself, deeming it safe after experiencing no ill effects. By the first decade of the 20th century, saccharin became a popular sugar substitute, offered in pill and powder form, and doctors even prescribed it to patients to treat such maladies as headaches and nausea. In 1906, the U.S. Congress passed the Pure Food and Drug Act, which was regulated by Harvey Washington Wiley, head chemist of the Department of Agriculture's Bureau of Chemistry. In 1908, Wiley proposed a ban on saccharin. The proposed ban was overruled by then-president Theodore Roosevelt, who reportedly replied, "Anyone who says saccharin is injurious to health is an idiot," as his doctor had prescribed it to him as a way of losing weight.
Cancer Link
The use of saccharin as a sugar substitute grew until 1970, when a group of oncologists at the medical school of the University of Wisconsin published the results of a clinical study that demonstrated a higher instance of bladder cancer in rats fed a daily dose of saccharin. Subsequent research appeared to bolster these claims, leading the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to remove saccharin from its list of food additives recognized to be safe. As Peter B. Hutt, chief legal counsel for the FDA, noted at the time, "If it causes cancer --- whether it's 875 bottles a day or 11 --- it's going off the market." Although saccharin was ultimately not taken off the market, then-president Jimmy Carter declared, in 1977, that any products containing saccharin required a warning label to read: "Use of this product may be hazardous to your health. This product contains saccharin which has been determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals."
Health Risks Revisited
Further research over the ensuing years concluded that the bladder tumors researchers saw in rats were caused by a biological mechanism that wasn't relevant to humans. Concluding there was no clear evidence demonstrating a link between saccharin and cancer, saccharin was removed in 2000 from the U.S. National Toxicology Program's Report on Carcinogens, in which it had been listed since 1981 as a carcinogenic substance. On December 21, 2000, legislation was signed into law that repealed Carter's earlier requirement that products containing saccharin require a warning label.
Finally Deemed Safe
In 2010, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency removed saccharin from its list of hazardous materials. According to the EPA's decision, saccharin was removed "from the lists of hazardous constituents and commercial chemical products which are hazardous wastes when discarded or intended to be discarded." In addition, the EPA amended its regulations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) "to remove saccharin and its salts from the list of hazardous substances."
References
- "Chemical Heritage Magazine;" The Pursuit of Sweet: A History of Saccharin; Jesse Hicks; 2010
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Removal of Saccharin from the Lists of Hazardous Constituents and Hazardous Wastes under RCRA and from the List of Hazardous Substances under CERCLA
- National Cancer Institute: Artificial Sweeteners and Cancer
- Minyanville; What a Long, Strange Trip It's Been for Saccharin; Justin Rohrlich; December 2010
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