HealthMatters magazine
Healthy Kitchen: The Skinny on Sugar Substitutes
By Marcia Stanley
NOT ALL ALTERNATIVES TO SUGAR ARE ALIKE — SOME ACTUALLY HAVE MORE CALORIES THAN SUGAR AND CAN AFFECT YOUR BLOOD SUGAR LEVEL
Experiment with different artificial sweeteners to determine what works best in your favorite recipes.
Got a craving for something sweet? From the first ripe berries of summer to candied yams on the holiday table, people love that sweet taste. Sugar substitutes, also called artificial sweeteners, can satisfy those cravings. They are several hundred times sweeter than sugar, so it takes less to create sweetness. However, there are several kinds available, each slightly different from the other. Here is a simple guide to sugar substitutes.
Consuming Sugar Substitutes
- No-calorie and low calorie sugar substitutes include sucralose, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, neotame and saccharin. They are considered “free foods” because they do not affect blood sugar levels. These sweeteners contain very few or no calories, and do not count as a carbohydrate, fat or any other exchange. Remember that sugar substitutes are only one component of commercially available sugar-free foods, and some of the other ingredients may still affect your blood sugar level.
- Sugar alcohols, such as isomalt, maltitol, xylitol, sorbitol andmannitol, are reduced-calorie sweeteners found in sugarless gumand sugar-free candies and desserts. Even though they are called sugar alcohols, “they are not sugar or alcohol, but are carbo-hydrate based and contain about half the calories of sugar,” says Beth Anderson, RD, CDE, a diabetes educator at Liberty Medical. “They are not completely digested, so they cause a lower rise than sugar in blood glucose.” Products made with sugar alcohols may cause stomach distress, such as diarrhea, bloating and abdominal pain.
People who control their blood sugar by counting carbohydrates must account for sugar alcohols in their meal tally. To calculate the amount of carbohydrate to add to the meal total, subtract half the sugar alcohol grams from the total carbohydrate grams and count the remaining number of grams. For example, if a cookie contains 4 grams sugar alcohols and 10 grams total carbohydrate, subtract 2 (half the grams of sugar alcohols) from 10 (total grams of carbohydrate) to get 8 (the number of grams of carbohydrate to add into the meal total).
Checking the nutrition facts listed on the labels of sugar-free or no sugar-added foods occasionally reveals surprising information. Some foods made with sugar substitutes actually contain more calories than their regular equivalents. “Often when sugar is removed from products, fat may be increased, which increases the caloric value,” Anderson says. A quick glance at the calorie total on both products will tell you whether the low-sugar version really contains fewer calories — something to consider if weight loss or maintenance is a concern.
- Stevia, an ancient natural herbal supplement, adds sweetness to foods and medicines. Although it’s used in Japan, Germany, China, Brazil and Paraguay, it has not been approved as a sweetener in the United States, but it can be sold as a dietary supplement. It may be purchased as powdered leaves or as a liquid extract.
Sugar Substitutes in the Kitchen
Grocery store shelves are loaded with no-calorie or low-calorie sweeteners. Replacing sugar with these sweeteners in coffees, in teas, on cereals and on fruit reduces calories and carbohydrates in your diet. But if you like to cook, you know that sugar does more than add sweetness to foods, especially baked goods. It affects the texture of foods and the way that they cook. Simply substituting a low-calorie sweetener for sugar in your recipe may not work. Some people use a combination of sugar and low-calorie sweeteners, which provides acceptable results and reduces overall calories and carbohydrates. Experimentation is the best way to know which sweeteners will work.
How Sweet It Is
Which sweetener is best for you is a matter of choice. This chart can help you sort out which ones you might want to try.
| Sweetener/ Dietary Supplement
|
Sweetness Level (compared to sugar)
|
Heat-Stable
|
Popular Brands
|
Common Uses
|
Acesulfame
potassium
(acesulfame-K)
|
200 times
|
Yes
|
Sunett
Sweet One
|
Tabletop sweetener, beverages, baked goods, frozen desserts, candies, cough drops and breath mints
|
| Aspartame
|
200 times
|
No
|
NutraSweet
Equal
|
Tabletop sweetener, breakfast cereals, beverages and chewing gum
|
| Saccharin
|
200 to 700 times
|
Yes
|
Sweet'N Low
Sweet Twin
Necta Sweet
|
Tabletop sweetener, goods, soft drinks, jams and chewing gum
|
| Sucralose
|
600 times
|
Yes
|
Splenda
|
Tabletop sweetener, beverages, frozen desserts, fruit drinks, gelatins and chewing gum
|
| Neotame
|
8,000 to 13,000 times
|
Moderately
|
None
|
None
|
| Stevia
|
200 to 300 times as extract, 20 times as ground leaves
|
Yes
|
Nu Stevia
Stevia Clear
|
None
|