Aspartame :  is an artificial, non-saccharide sweetener used as a sugar substitute in some foods and beverages. In the European Union, it is codified as E951. Aspartame is a methyl ester of the aspartic acid/phenylalanine dipeptide. It was first sold under the brand name NutraSweet. It was first synthesized in 1965, and the patent expired in 1992.

Aspartame is 200 times sweeter than sugar. Aspartame is used as a tabletop sweetener, and it is added to a wide variety of foods, including breakfast cereals, soft drinks, desserts, candy, and chewing gum. Aspartame loses its sweetness when heated and it is usually not suitable for baking.

The safety of aspartame has been the subject of several political and medical controversies, United States congressional hearings and Internet hoaxes .  since its initial approval for use in food products by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1981 The European Food Safety Authority concluded in its 2013 re-evaluation that aspartame and its breakdown products are safe for human consumption at current levels of exposure, corroborating other medical reviews. However, because its breakdown products include phenylalanine, aspartame must be avoided by people with the genetic condition phenylketonuria (PKU).

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