Colouring agent in Pepsi & Coke can cause cancer

ATLANTA: High levels of a chemical that causes tumours in animals were found in Coca-Cola and PepsiCo sodas, according to a consumer advocacy group pressing US regulators to ban a colour additive. The chemical 4-methylimidazole was found in Coca-Cola, Pepsi Cola, Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi and is the caramel colouring used in the beverages , according to a study released on Tuesday by the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

The group petitioned the US Food and Drug Administration in February to ban the ammonia sulphite colouring, which is found in most colas. “Coke and Pepsi, with the acquiescence of the FDA, are needlessly exposing millions of Americans to a chemical that causes cancer,” said Michael F Jacobson, the Washington-based group's executive director, said. “The FDA needs to protect consumers from this risk.”

The FDA has no reason to believe there is any immediate risk from the substance and is reviewing the group's petition, said Douglas Karas , an agency spokesman, in an e-mail . A consumer would have to drink more than a thousand cans of soda in a day to match the doses administered in studies that showed links to cancer in rodents, the FDA said.