Sweeteners

H. Darlene Martin, Extension Nutrition Specialist

The role sweeteners play in the diet is constantly debated. Sweeteners of one kind or another have been found in human diets since prehistoric times. Terms such as sugar free, sugar alcohols, sucrose, corn sweeteners, etc. can be confusing. Each of the sweeteners available to consumers has specific applications and certain limitations. A variety of sweeteners exist to help consumers satisfy their desire for sweetness.

Sweeteners are used in foods for several reasons, besides adding sweetness. Sugar is used as a preservative in jams and jellies; it provides body and texture in ice cream and baked goods; it aids in fermentation in breads and pickles.

Sweeteners that supply energy (calories) are referred to as nutritive sweeteners even though they lack other nutrients essential for growth and health maintenance. Nutritive sweeteners provide four calories per gram. For most sugars this is about 17 calories per teaspoon.

Sweeteners that do not supply calories are referred to as non-nutritive sweeteners.

Synthetic (artificial) sweeteners may be nutritive or non-nutritive. Synthetic sweeteners must pass the approval of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) before they can be marketed in the United States. The three synthetic sweeteners currently approved by the FDA are aspartame, saccharin and acesulfame K. Aspartame is a nutritive sweetener. Saccharin and acesulfame K are non-nutritive sweeteners.

Nutritive Sweeteners

Sugars. All natural sugars are composed of simple carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are classified in three categories: monosaccharides (one unit of sugar), disaccharides (two units of sugar) and polysaccharides (many units of sugars).

The simpler forms of carbohydrates are called sugars, and the more complex forms are either starches or dietary fibers. The simple carbohydrates follow.

Classification of Most Common Carbohydrates
Monosaccharides	Disaccharides	Polysaccharides
(Single Sugars)	(Double Sugars)	(Complex Sugars)
Glucose	Sucrose	Starch
Fructose	Lactose	Glycogen
Galactose	Maltose	Cellulose (fiber)

• Fructose is the sweetest tasting of all the natural sugars. It is found in fruits and honey. Fructose is known as the fruit sugar. It also has been referred to as levulose. Fructose is one and one half times as sweet as sucrose.
• Glucose is in nearly all plant foods. Glucose is known as the "blood sugar" because it is the main sugar circulating in blood and is the main form into which the body converts other sugars and carbohydrates.
• Another name for glucose is dextrose. Glucose is rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream from the intestines. Glucose is unusual in that it can be absorbed in the bloodstream to some degree through the lining of the mouth.
• Sucrose is the most abundant sugar in plants. Sucrose is a disaccharide composed of two simple sugars and when sucrose is digested it separates the two chemically attached simple sugars -- glucose and fructose -- for the body to absorb and use for energy.

Sucrose is the most common sugar for household and industrial use. It is produced by concentrating the sugar from sugarcane or sugar beet juice.

Traditionally, the word sugar has been used to imply sucrose, but this can cause confusion because there are so many other sugars currently on the market. Sucrose is purified and granulated to various stages to provide raw, white, brown and powdered sugars. During processing, a dark colored liquid, molasses, is produced.

• Lactose is the sugar found in milk. Lactose is primarily used in products to provide bulk. It is seldom used as a sweetener because it is the least sweet of the sugars.

Lactose has two monosaccharide parts, glucose and galactose, which are normally broken apart by the enzyme lactase. Some individuals may lose the ability to digest lactose and become lactose intolerant.

Cheese, although a product of milk, has little lactose because the lactose changes during the fermentation process.

• Maltose is produced during bread making and beer brewing. When you eat or drink a food source of maltose, the maltose is split into two glucose units so they can be absorbed.
• Honey is a natural syrup made from plants by honeybees. The same sugars in honey are found in table sugar, fructose and glucose. Honey is more concentrated than crystalline table sugar, so it contains more calories per equal measure than table sugar.

Honey is often proclaimed as more nutritious than sugar. It does provide trace minerals and B vitamins in very minute amounts, but it is misleading to actually say honey is more nutritious. The contribution of these nutrients to the overall diet is insignificant.

• Maple sugar is produced by boiling off the liquid from the syrup derived from the spring flow of the sap of mature sugar maples. Maple sugar is mainly sucrose.

In human nutrition the primary role of carbohydrates is to supply energy. A gram of carbohydrate contain 4 calories (energy). The body prefers this source of energy over all other available sources of energy nutrients.

Carbohydrates are known as the "energy sparing nutrient." The energy available from carbohydrates spares protein from being used for energy so that protein may build and repair body tissue. When carbohydrates are absent from the diet, protein is used for energy.

Carbohydrates are found in almost all plant foods and one animal source -- milk. There are nutrient differences among these sugar sources.

Fruit furnishes the same monosaccharides and the same calories per monosaccharide gram of weight as refined table sugar and honey. The difference is that in fruit the sugars are diluted in a large quantity of water that contains vitamins, minerals and fiber.

The significant difference between sugar sources is not between "natural" and "refined," but between concentrated sugars (honey, table sugar, concentrated fruit juices, corn sweeteners) and the diluted, naturally occurring sugars in foods such as oranges, corn, milk, and potatoes.

There is strong evidence that sugar plays a part in dental cavities. Dental cavities are caused by the acid by-product of bacterial growth in the mouth, and bacteria thrive on carbohydrates. Therefore, sugars are implicated as the cause of cavities. Any carbohydrate-containing food, including bread, bananas, milk and concentrated sugars, can support bacterial growth.

It takes about 24 hours for a large enough build-up of bacteria to accumulate on a tooth to produce cavity-causing acid. Brushing after eating carbohydrates and once-a-day flossing may effectively prevent cavity formation, regardless of the carbohydrate content of the diet. Some individuals may never get cavities because they have inherited resistance to them.

Corn Syrup. This glucose sweetener was developed in the 1920s by treating cornstarch with acid, heat and/or enzymes. Corn syrup is not as sweet as sucrose, but is often used with or in place of sucrose to provide "body" and "texture" in food.

High-Fructose Corn Syrup. Made from corn syrup by converting glucose into fructose, this unique enzymatic process, developed in 1970, provides a much sweeter product, allowing a reduction in quantity used. Currently the soft drink industry uses high-fructose corn syrup as its main nutritive sweetener. It may be listed as corn sweetener or high fructose corn syrup on a label.

Sugar Alcohols. These sweeteners are commercially produced from glucose, or derived from fruits and vegetables. The most common sugar alcohols are sorbitol, mannitol, maltitol, and xylitol. Prunes have the largest amount of naturally occurring sorbitol of any fruit normally eaten in the United States. Apples and pears also are high in sorbitol.

Sugar alcohols are found in dietetic candies, chewing gums, and as coating on tablets and gums.

Products containing sugar alcohols may carry the label "sugarless," "sugar free" or "no sugar," but they are still carbohydrates and supply calories.

Sugar alcohols do not promote tooth decay. They are absorbed more slowly than sugars, which may be the reason they can have a laxative effect.

Aspartame. This artificial sweetener was discovered in 1965. In 1981 FDA approved aspartame as a table-top sweetener and as an ingredient in dry foods, such as dry bases for beverages and cold cereals. In 1983 approval was extended to carbonated beverages.

Aspartame is marketed in the U.S. under the trade names of NutraSweet® and Equal®. Aspartame provides the same energy as any protein, four calories per gram, because aspartame is the methyl ester of two amino acids (proteins) -- aspartic acid and phenylalanine.

Aspartame is 180-200 times sweeter than sucrose; it does not contribute a significant amount of calories due to the small amount needed to sweeten products.

Due to a possible excess of phenylalanine for phenylketonuric (PKU) children, aspartame must carry a warning label stating: "Phenylketonuric: contains phenylalanine." Phenylketonuria is a genetic disease in which the body cannot produce the enzyme necessary for the body to use phenylalanine.

The Acceptable Daily Intake set by FDA is 50 milligrams of aspartame per kilogram of body weight. In terms of aspartame-sweetened soft drink usage, this equates to four to five 12 ounce cans for a 40 pound child or about 17 cans for a 150 pound adult. Adequate data is not available to establish the safety of aspartame for children under two years of age. There are few, if any reasons to use a sugar substitute for children under two years of age. Children need energy to grow.

Over 200 commercial products have aspartame as one of their ingredients. The use of aspartame is limited at high or prolonged temperatures because it breaks down and loses its sweetness. Aspartame should not be used in home baking.

The NutraSweet® company is currently test marketing a product combining 99 percent sucrose (table sugar) and 1 percent aspartame. The product, Sugar Delight®, provides eight calories per teaspoon as opposed to 16 calories for a teaspoon of sucrose.

Although there have been over 6,000 unsolicited complaints to FDA concerning aspartame, FDA supports the safety of aspartame for the general population. The Centers for Disease Control state that some individuals may have an unusual sensitivity to aspartame. Statistically, some sensitivity to aspartame could be expected with over 100 million U.S. individuals consuming products containing aspartame.

Non-Nutritive Sweeteners

Non-nutritive sweeteners do not provide any calories when consumed. There are two non-nutritive sweeteners currently approved by FDA -- Saccharin and Acesulfame K.

Saccharin was discovered in 1879 and has been marketed for over 80 years. Due to the length of its safe use, saccharin was given GRAS (generally regarded as safe) status.

In 1977 FDA proposed removing saccharin from public use because of a Canadian study of saccharin and bladder cancer in rats. Public opposition led Congress to pass a moratorium on FDA's action to take saccharin off the market. This moratorium is still in effect.

Products containing saccharin must carry a warning label that states: Use of this product may be hazardous to your health. This product contains saccharin which has been determined to cause cancer in laboratory animals.

Saccharin has not been shown to cause cancer in human beings. Saccharin is approximately 300 times as sweet as sucrose and is stable within a wide range of temperatures.

Acesulfame K was approved by FDA in July 1988 as a free flowing table-top sweetener and for use in dry base beverage mixes, puddings and desserts, chewing gums and dairy product analogues (including toppings). Acesulfame K is marketed under the names of Sunette® and Sweet One®. Acesulfame K is about 200 times sweeter than sucrose.

Acesulfame K is heat stable and can be used in baking. Petitions for its use in soft drinks and baked goods have been filed.

Cyclamates were removed from the open market in 1969 because of research that linked cyclamates as a possible cancer-causing agent in rats. Petitions have been filed to bring back cyclamates as an alternative sweetener.

Summary

Sweetener terminology can be confusing because there are so many kinds. Moderation and variety are always good advice and are applicable to the use of sweeteners. Consumers should be aware of the benefits of moderate sweetener use, as well as the hazards of excessive use. Using a variety of sweeteners will reduce your chances of ingesting significant amounts of any individual sweetener.

If you have questions in the use of artificial sweeteners, contact the manufacturing company. The name is listed on the label of the product.

The information provided in this publication is for educational purposes only. Reference to commercial products or trade names is made with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement is implied.

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Glossary of Terms

Artificial sweetener:

A manufactured sweetener that requires FDA approval to be marketed in the United States may also be referred to as alternative or synthetic sweeteners.

Brown sugar:

Sugar crystals containing molasses syrup or syrup added to refined white sugar -- mainly pure sucrose.

Cellulose:

The polysaccharide found in plant cell walls. Also known as crude fiber.

Dextrose:

Also called glucose or blood sugar. One of the simplest forms of carbohydrate.

Fructose:

Also called levulose or fruit sugar. A monosaccharide especially abundant in fruits.

Glucose:

Also called blood sugar. A monosaccharide found in nearly all plant foods.

Glycogen:

A polysaccharide formed in the body from glucose and stored in the liver and muscle tissue.

Granulated sugar:

Commonly known as table sugar or sucrose.

Lactose:

Sugar found in milk.

Molasses:

A dark colored liquid formed during the processing of sucrose. Blackstrap molasses is a by-product of the final molasses crystallization step from sugar cane. Blackstrap molasses may contain iron if processed by iron machinery.

...-ose:

When a term ends in -ose it is usually a sugar.

Phenylketonuria:

Phenylketonuria is a genetic disease in which the body cannot produce the enzyme necessary for the body to use phenylalanine. This condition in children causes mental retardation if foods containing phenylalanine are consumed.

Powdered sugar:

A sugar product produced by grinding a mixture of granulated sugar and corn starch. Also referred to as confectioners' sugar.

Sucrose:

Commonly known as table sugar, cane or beet sugar. A disaccharide composed of glucose and fructose.

Sugar alcohols:

sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, and xylitol

Turbinado:

A semi-refined sugar that has undergone about half of the refining steps and has been washed to remove dirt.

White sugar:

Also referred to as table sugar or sucrose.

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