Sugar alcohols are candy natural chemical compounds generally used as a sugar substitute. As a result of they don’t impression blood sugar in the identical method common sugar does, they are often helpful to people who want to management their blood sugar ranges or consumption.
Merchandise that embody them are sometimes marketed as “low-carb” or “sugar-free.”
Right here’s what that you must learn about sugar alcohols — and whether or not or not these sugar substitutes are best for you.
What Is Sugar Alcohol?
“Sugar alcohols are sugar substitutes used as sweeteners in a wide range of merchandise, resembling sweet and gum,” says Natalie Allen, MS, RD, an teacher of biomedical sciences at Missouri State College.
Technically, they’re a part of a gaggle of short-chain carbohydrates generally known as fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols — a.ok.a. FODMAPs. (Sugar alcohols are a part of the “P” — polyols.)
To identify them on a vitamin label, have a look at the tip of every ingredient. In case you see an “itol” on the finish of it, which means it’s a sugar alcohol — which is a little bit of a misnomer since they’re neither sugar nor alcohol. They’re, nonetheless, chemically processed synthetic sweeteners.
The low-calorie sweeteners could also be present in “sugar-free” variations of meals like sweet, chewing gum, cookies, pudding, food plan sodas, and different sweets.
Sugar alcohols may be utilized in meals merchandise for texture and moisture (and to forestall browning throughout cooking).
Sorts of Sugar Alcohols
Sugar alcohols embody:
- Erythritol (in sweeteners like Truvia)
- Isomalt
- Lactitol
- Maltitol
- Mannitol
- Sorbitol
- Xylitol
What Is the Distinction Between Sugar and Sugar Alcohols?
Sugar alcohols “present fewer energy than common sugar, and the metabolism is slightly completely different,” Allen explains. Whereas sugar usually will get fully absorbed in your small gut, sugar alcohols are incompletely absorbed there.
As a result of the physique doesn’t take up sugar alcohols in the identical method it metabolizes sugar, Allen says, they supply fewer energy than common sugar.
One sugar alcohol specifically, erythritol, incorporates no energy, as a result of it’s excreted into the urine and doesn’t impression blood glucose and insulin ranges.
For instance, a teaspoon of granulated sugar has 16 energy. The identical quantity of xylitol powder incorporates roughly half the quantity of energy, and a teaspoon of Truvia (erythritol) incorporates zero energy.
Are Sugar Alcohols Dangerous for You?
“It’s definitely okay to eat sugar alcohols, however don’t overdo it,” Allen says.
They will typically trigger bloating, gasoline, and diarrhea as a result of they’re not fully digested within the intestine and never fully absorbed by your physique. That is what makes them decrease in energy than sugar, however it might probably additionally trigger some unwanted effects.
And for folks with irritable bowel syndrome, FODMAPs generally have been related to long-term gastrointestinal signs.
Analysis means that the unwanted effects are extra probably when increased quantities are consumed.
Can You Eat Sugar Alcohols on a Sugar-Free Food regimen?
It depends upon the plan. Some sugar-free diets advocate eliminating them completely.
However people seeking to devour much less sugar and keep higher blood sugar management could profit from sugar alcohols.
The underside line that sugar alcohols aren’t sugar “freebies.” They need to nonetheless be consumed sparsely, and it’s essential to contemplate the potential GI unwanted effects.
In case you’re making an attempt to kickstart a sugar-free way of life, chances are you’ll discover it’s finest to chop out meals sweetened with sugar alcohol.
