Transcript Document

Sweeteners: Satisfying
Your Sweet Tooth
The University of Georgia
Cooperative Extension Service
Why Do We Use Sugar?
• Sweet taste
– The desire for sweet
taste increases with
age in many people
Why Do We Use Sugar?
• Preserve jams and
jellies
• Volume and texture
in baked goods and
ice-cream
• Fermentation in
breads
Types of Sweeteners
• Nutritive sweeteners
– Contain calories
• Nonnutritive sweeteners (high intensity
sweetener)
– Contain little or no calories
Nutritive Sweeteners
Sugars:
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Glucose
Sucrose
Fructose
Lactose
Maltose
• Honey
• Corn syrup
• High fructose corn
syrup
• Brown sugar
• All are equivalent in calories: about 4 calories per
gram or about 16 calories per teaspoon
Nutritive Sweeteners
Sugar alcohols or polyols
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Sorbitol
Mannitol
Maltitol
Erythritol
Xylitol
Lactitol
• Isomalt
• Hydrogenated starch
hydrolysates
(combination of
polyols)
Sugar alcohols/Polyols
• Used in many “sugar-free,” “low-carb,” and
reduced calorie products
– gum, candy, desserts, ice-cream, cough drops
and syrup
• Absorbed more slowly than “sugar”
Sugar Alcohols/Polyols
Advantages
• Do not promote tooth
decay
• May have less effect
on blood sugar in
people with diabetes
• Most have fewer
calories than sugar
(about 2 calories per
gram compared to 4)
Disadvantages
• May have laxative
effect (gas, bloating,
diarrhea)
• May be in foods that
are not that low in
calories or fat
Nonnutritive Sweeteners
(high-intensity)
Approved by Food and Drug
Administration (FDA):
• Acesulfame potassium
– Sunette, Sweet-One
• Aspartame
– Equal, NutraSweet
• Neotame
• Saccharin
– Sweet ‘n Low, etc
• Sucralose
– Splenda
High-Intensity Sweeteners
Advantages
• Little or no calories
• No effect on blood
sugar in diabetes
Disadvantages
• Some have unpleasant
aftertaste
• Cannot replace sugar
entirely in baked
products
Read the Label!
• Foods with high
intensity sweeteners
may be combined with
other ingredients
• Check the Nutrition
Facts label for
calories, carbohydrate,
and fat
When Can You Use a
High-Intensity Sweetener?
• Beverages
• Cooking and baking
when sugar is not
needed for volume,
texture, structure
– Fruit cobblers and
pies
– Sauces
– Puddings
What Foods Work Better With
Sugar?
• Cakes
• Cookies
• Yeast breads
Sugar’s Role in Baked Goods
Sugar provides to baked goods:
• browning
• tenderness
• structure
• volume
• texture
Why Reduce Sugar Intake?
• Contains calories,
but no nutritional
value
• Medical conditions:
– Overweight/obesity
– Diabetes
– High triglycerides
How Can You Cut Back on Sugar?
• Reduce added sugar by up to ½
• Replace some or all of the sugar
with a high-intensity sweetener
– Check guidelines for specific
sweeteners for use in recipes
• Use canned fruit packed in
juice
How Can You Cut Back on Sugar?
• Replace high-sugar beverages
with sugar-free beverages
Size
Super-size
Large
Medium
Calories
410
320
220
Points to Remember
• High-sugar foods and beverages are usually
high in calories and low in nutritional value
• Cut back on sugar by using less added sugar
or substituting high-intensity sweeteners
• Many “sugar-free” foods are not “caloriefree”
• Baked products often require some sugar
for acceptable quality