Sweeteners
Definition
There are two types of
sweeteners:
- Caloric (nutritive)
- Noncaloric
(non-nutritive)
The caloric sweeteners provide 4
calories per gram. The noncaloric varieties provide zero
calories
Function
Caloric sweeteners provide sweet
flavor and bulk when added to food. They also maintain freshness
and contribute to product quality. Caloric sweeteners act as a
preservative in jams and jellies, and a flavor enhancer in
processed meats. They provide fermentation for breads and pickles,
bulk to ice cream, and body to carbonated beverages. Some caloric
sweeteners are made by processing sugar compounds. Some occur
naturally.
Noncaloric sweeteners are used in
place of caloric sweeteners in some foods. They do not provide
calories, but they do provide the sweet taste. All noncaloric
sweeteners are chemically processed.
Food Sources
CALORIC SWEETENERS
Processed:
- Confectioner's sugar (also known
as powdered sugar) is finely ground sucrose.
- Corn sweeteners are sugars made from corn (for example, corn
syrup). Corn syrup is used frequently in carbonated beverages,
baked goods, and some canned products. It is a liquid combination
of maltose, glucose, and dextrose sugars
- Dextrose is glucose combined
with water.
- Invert sugar is a sugar that is
made by dividing sucrose into its two parts: glucose and fructose.
It is sweeter than sucrose and used in a liquid form, and helps
keep candies and baked items sweet.
- Sucrose includes raw sugar,
granulated sugar, brown sugar, confectioner's sugar, and turbinado
sugar. It is made up of glucose and fructose. It is made by
concentrating sugar beet juice or sugar cane.
- Turbinado sugar is unrefined
sugar made from sugar cane juice.
Non-processed:
- Raw sugar is granulated, solid,
or coarse, and is brown in color. It forms when the moisture from
the juice of the sugar cane evaporates.
- Brown sugar is made from the
sugar crystals obtained from molasses syrup.
- Fructose is the naturally
occurring sugar in all fruits. It is also called levulose or fruit
sugar.
- Glucose is found in fruits but
in limited amounts. It is also a syrup made from corn
starch.
- Honey is a combination of
fructose, glucose, and water, produced by bees.
- Lactose (milk sugar) is the
carbohydrate that is in milk. It is
made up of glucose and galactose.
- Maltose (malt sugar) is produced
during the process of fermentation. It is found in beer and in
breads.
- Mannitol is a byproduct of
alcohol production but does not contain any alcohol. It may have a
laxative effect when eaten in large quantities. It is used in
dietetic food products because it has half the calories of sugar
and is not well absorbed by the body.
- Maple sugar is obtained from the
sap of maple trees. It is made up of sucrose, fructose, and
glucose.
- Molasses is obtained from the
residue of sugar cane processing.
- Sorbitol is used in many
dietetic food products. It is produced from glucose and it is also
found naturally in certain berries and fruits. It is absorbed by
the body at a much slower rate than sugar.
NONCALORIC SWEETENERS
- Aspartame is a combination of
phenylalanine and aspartic acid, which are two amino acids. It is also known by the brand
names Equal and Nutrasweet. It is 220 times sweeter than
sugar.
- Acesulfame K is an artificial
sweetener, also known as Sunett. It is heat stable and can be used
in cooking and baking. It is also available as a tabletop
sweetener, marketed under the name Sweet One. It is FDA approved
and is used in combination with other sweeteners such as saccharin
in carbonated low-calorie beverages and other products.
- Cyclamates are 30 times sweeter
than sugar. They are banned in the United States because in 1970
they were shown to have caused bladder cancer in
animals.
- Saccharin is 200 - 700 times
sweeter than sugar. It is used in many dietetic food and beverage
products.
- Sucralose (Splenda) is an
artificial sweetener made from sugar. It is 600 times sweeter than
sugar. It is heat stable and can be used in baking. It is used in
many dietetic food and beverage products.
Side Effects
Sugar provides calories and no
other nutrients. Sugar or caloric sweeteners can lead to tooth decay.
Drinking large amounts of
sugar-containing beverages is associated with obesity in
children.
A high intake of sugar does not
cause diabetes, but if you are
diagnosed with diabetes the amount of simple sugar you eat often
needs to be reduced.
People have reported side effects
from eating aspartame, but this has not been proven through
scientific studies.
Sorbitol may have a laxative
effect when eaten in large quantities.
Recommendations
Sugar is on the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration's (FDA) list of safe foods. It contains 16
calories per teaspoon and can be used in moderation. All of the
various types of sugars described earlier can be used in
moderation.
The artificial sweeteners
aspartame, acesulfame K , and sucralose are all FDA
approved.
Aspartame is not recommended for
people with phenylketonuria (PKU),
as they are unable to metabolize
it.
The U.S. National Toxicology
Program removed saccharin from it's list of cancer-causing
substances in May 2000.
References
U.S. Food and Drug
Administration. Artificial sweeteners: No calories…sweet! FDA
Consumer Magazine, July-August 2006. Available at www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2006/406_sweeteners.html
(accessed May 3, 2009)
Review Date: 5/3/2009
Reviewed By: David C. Dugdale, III, MD, Professor of Medicine,
Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of
Washington School of Medicine. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD,
MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
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