A consumer advocacy group says chemicals that give cola its distinctive caramel color may cause cancer. CBS News Medical Correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton explained on "The Early Show" that the Center for Science in Public Interest (CSPI) is concerned about a chemical that is liberated during the production process of making colas.
"They say (the chemical) has been found in government studies to cause cancer in animals. The State of California is so concerned about this that they have listed one of these ingredients on their list of substances known to cause cancer, and they want to limit the amount to no more than 16 micrograms a day," she said. "To put that into context for you, 20 ounces of cola can contain 12 times that amount."
The artificial brown coloring, according to the CSPI, is made by reacting sugars with ammonia and sulfites under high pressure and temperatures, and those reactions "result in the formation of 2-methylimidazole and 4 methylimidazole, which in government-conducted studies caused lung, liver, or thyroid cancer or leukemia in laboratory mice or rats."
Co-anchor Chris Wragge said, "Over half of the population drinks soda. I mean this is really -- you've got to really scale this back."
Ashton said, "Absolutely. Now, there's two sides to every story here, Chris. And even this watchdog group themselves say the risk is small. The (American) Beverage Association is outraged. They say this is not based on science. This has only been found to cause possibly cancer in animals -- not in humans -- that these substances are found everywhere. And much more research needs to be done. And the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) is looking into it."
