Intake of high-intensity sweeteners by a population of children aged 1 to 3 years in the city of Campinas-SP, Brazil

High-intensity sweeteners (HIS) are food additives that impart a sweet taste with low or no calories associated. Their intakes are considered safe below the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI); thus, assessing the population's exposure to these substances is a fundamental step in the context of risk assessment. Although there are some studies on exposure to HIS in Brazil, no information is available for children. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to evaluate the intake of HIS (acesulfame potassium, aspartame, sodium cyclamate, neotame, saccharin, sucralose, steviol glycosides, and advantame) by children aged 1 to 3 years in the city of Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil, as well as characterise potential risks to health and identify the main sources of these food additives in the diet. For that, food consumption data obtained from 24-hour recall were combined with analytical concentrations of HIS in commercial products obtained through ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. Different exposure scenarios were analysed to characterise the risk of HIS intake compared to the ADI. It was observed that the mean and high percentiles of exposure (P90 and P95) of the general population, consumers only, and brand loyalty consumers suggest HIS intake below the ADI, which should not represent a toxicological risk to health in the evaluated group. In the case of sodium cyclamate, the exposure at P95 of the population of brand loyalty consumers represented 83.5% of the ADI, which was the maximum value observed considering all exposure scenarios and HIS evaluated. The 'industrialised juices' category contributed the most to the intake of the higher number of HIS. Most participants (63.0%) had simultaneous exposure to more than one HIS.