Artificial sweeteners (AS) are favored by food manufacturing markets and consumers due to their high sweetness, low prices and low calories. At present, 9 kinds of AS are approved in more than 10 categories of food and beverages in China. However, the emerging animal experimental and epidemiological studies have shown that long-term and high consumption may lead to metabolic diseases including hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance and obesity, and cause nervous system abnormalities such as irritabi-lity, depression, memory decline and Alzheimer's disease. Moreover, some AS even are linked to genotoxicity and carcinogenicity. Given the possible health risks of AS, it is necessary to control AS consumption, or to develop new AS with a tendency. Meanwhile, the further safety studies regarding new AS should be enhanced.