FAO Nutrition Meetings
    Resort Series No. 44A
    WHO/Food Add./68.33




    TOXICOLOGICAL EVALUATION OF SOME
    FLAVOURING SUBSTANCES AND
    NON-NUTRITIVE SWEETENING AGENTS





    Geneva, 21-28 August 1967



    The Eleventh Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food
    Additives is published as FAO Nutrition Meetings Report Series,
    1967, No. 44; Wld Hlth Org. techn. Rep. Ser., 1968, 383. This
    Report contains general considerations, including the principles
    adopted for the evaluation, and a summary of the results of the
    evaluations of a number of food additives. Additional information,
    such as biological data and a toxicological evaluation, considered at
    that meeting, is to be found in this document.


    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
    World Health Organization
    1967


    CINNAMALDEHYDE

    Chemical name            Cinnamic aldehyde

    Synonym                  Cinnamal

    Empirical formula        C9H8O

    Structural formula

    

    Molecular weight         132.16

    Definition               Cinnamaldehyde contains not less than 98 per
                             cent. C9H8O.

    Description              Cinnamaldehyde is the main constituent of
                             oils of cassia, cinnamon barks and roots. It
                             is usually prepared synthetically. It is a
                             yellow, strongly refractive liquid, having an
                             odour resembling that of cinnamon oil, and a
                             burning aromatic taste. It is affected by
                             light.

    Biological Data

    Biochemical aspects

         This aldehyde is probably oxidized to cinnamic acid and then to
    benzoic acid (Friedmann &  Mai, 1931).

    Acute toxicity

                                                                       

    Animal          Route       LD50              REFERENCES
                                (mg/kg 
                                body-weight)
                                                                       

    Mouse           i.p.         200              Leone, 1916

    Rat             oral        2220              Jenner et al., 1964

    Guinea-pig      oral        1160              Jenner et al, 1967
                                                                       

    Short-term studies

         Rat. In a 12-week feeding study on a mixture of cinnamyl
    compounds there was slight retardation of growth of males and lowering
    of food utilization in both sexes at 90 mg/kg body-weight/day. In
    another study lasting for 16 weeks groups of 10 male and 10 female
    rats were fed diets containing 0, 0.1, 0.25 and 1.0 per cent. of
    aldehyde. At the highest level there was slight swelling of hepatic
    cells and some hyperkeratosis of the epithelium of the forestomach
    (Hagan et al., 1967).

    Long-term studies

         None available.

    Comments

         Despite the scanty metabolic data the evaluation is based on the
    available short-term studies. Biochemical and long term studies are
    needed.

    EVALUATION

    Level causing no toxicological effect

         Rat: 0.25 per cent. (= 2500 ppm) in the diet, equivalent to 125
    mg/kg body-weight/day.

    Estimate of acceptable daily intake for man

                                       mg/kg body-weight

        Conditional acceptance              0-1.25

    Further work required

         Biochemical and metabolic studies and long-term studies.

    REFERENCES

    Friedmann, E. & Mai, H. (1931) Biochem. Z., 242, 282

    Hagan, E. C., Hansen, W. H., Fitzhugh, O. G., Jenner, P. M., Jones, W.
    I., Taylor, J. M., Long., E. L., Nelson, A. A. & Brouwer, J. B. (1967)
    Fd Cosmet. Toxicol., 5, (2), 141

    Jenner, P. M.,  Hagen, E. C., Taylor, J. M., Cook, E. L. & Fitzhugh,
    O. G. (1964) Fd Cosmet. Toxicol., 2, 327

    Leone, G. (1916) Arch. farm. Sper., 22, 327

    Oser, B. L. (1967) Unpublished report
    

    See Also:
       Toxicological Abbreviations
       Cinnamaldehyde (WHO Food Additives Series 14)
       CINNAMALDEHYDE (JECFA Evaluation)