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     Title: A Buyer's Guide To Sugar Substitutes Pt 2
Categories: Info, Diabetic, Sugar
  Servings: 1 info file

           sugar info                               

Our taste test: Tasters found Splenda pleasantly sweet in hot and
cold teas, but some noted an objectionable metallic aftertaste.
Cookies made with Splenda rated well for sweetness but poorly for
texture, appearance and aftertaste. However, Splenda Sugar Blend for
Baking, which is a 50/50 blend of sugar and sucralose, rated better
on all counts.

Aspartame (NutraSweet, Equal)

Sold as a "tabletop sweetener" (packets used mostly to sweeten
beverages)

Commonly added to packaged foods and beverages

What is it? A compound made by combining two amino acids,
phenylalanine and aspartic acid, with a methyl ester that becomes
methanol, a by-product of carbohydrate fermentation. FDA-approved in
1981, aspartame is digested but because such small amounts are used
to sweeten foods, its calories are negligible.

Sweetness factor: 180 x sugar

Take note: People with a rare condition known as phenylketonuria
(PKU) cannot break down phenylalanine, so it can accumulate to toxic
levels; thus, people with PKU must avoid all foods containing
phenylalanine, including aspartame.

Our taste test: Some tasters found it to have a nice level of
sweetness in hot and cold tea; others called it too sweet and "fake"
tasting. Most detected a bitter aftertaste.

Saccharin (Sweet'N Low, Sweet Twin)

Sold as a "tabletop sweetener" (packets used mostly to sweeten
beverages)

Commonly added to packaged foods and beverages

What is it? A compound containing sulfur and nitrogen that provides
no calories because the body cannot break it down.

Sweetness factor: 300 x sugar

Take note: Saccharin, first discovered in 1879, has a long,
controversial history. The FDA re-approved saccharin for limited use
as a food additive (in beverages and some processed foods) in 2000.

Our taste test: All but one taster rated it as "unpleasantly sweet."
Most commented that, in tea—hot and cold—saccharin tasted
"artificial" and had a bitter aftertaste.

Xylitol (XyloSweet)

Sold as a "tabletop sweetener" (packets used mostly to sweeten
beverages)

Heat-stable; can be used for baking

What is it? Chemically classified as a sugar alcohol, xylitol's
chemical structure resembles both sugar and alcohol but isn't a true
form of either. Since xylitol is a naturally occurring food
compound, it is "Generally Recognized As Safe" (GRAS) by the FDA
and, therefore, exempt from the approval process mandatory for
artificial substitutes regulated as food additives.

Sweetness factor: Same as sugar

From: Mignonne
 
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Cheers

YK Jim


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