The Center for Environmental Health said on Wednesday that a caramel coloring found in Pepsi cola contains carcinogens, according to reports.
The carcinogen is called 4-methylimidazole, or 4-Mel, and may form during the cooking process, and leave trace amounts in your food. According to the environmental group, both Coco-Cola and Pepsi products tested positive for the carcinogen.
After California passed a law mandating drinks containing a certain level of carcinogens come with a cancer warning label, the two companies said they would change their formulas to rid their product of the cancer-causing chemical, the Associated Press reports.
Coca-Cola tested negative for the carcinogen, but Pepsi tested positive in products sold outside of California. The lab that tested the products reportedly found no traces of 4-Mel in California products; both companies adhered to the new mandate.
"[The Lab] found no 4-Mel in nine out of 10 Coke products outside of the state," according to the Associated press, "But it found levels of 4-Mel that are 4 to 8 times higher than California safety levels in all 10 Pepsi products purchased outside California."
Small amounts of 4-Mel are have no reported link to cancer in humans. The American Beverage Association said that California "added the coloring to its list of carcinogens with no studies showing that it causes cancer in humans. "
The Associated Press reports California referenced a study that linked the chemical causing cancer in a rat. The Food and Drug Administration has also said that one would have to consume 1,000 cans of soda a day to" reach the doses administered that have shown links to cancer in rodents."
"Pepsi said its caramel coloring suppliers are changing their manufacturing process to cut the amount of 4-Mel in its caramel," the Associated Press reports. "That process is complete in California and will be finished in February 2014 in the rest of the country. Pepsi said it will also be taken out globally, but did not indicate a timeline."
