They look and tastes like sugar, but have fewer calories and less negative impact on health.
In fact, many studies show that sugar alcohols can actually lead to improvements in health care.
This article takes a detailed sugar and its effects on health alcohols look.
What are sugar alcohols?
Sugar alcohols (or "polyols") are types of sweet carbohydrates [1] .
As the name suggests, hybrid molecules such as sugars and alcohol molecules.
Despite the "spirit" of the name, do not include any ethanol [2] , the compound that makes drunk. Sugar alcohols are safe for alcoholics.
More sugar alcohols found naturally in fruits [3] and vegetables.
However, most are produced industrially, they are by other sugars, such as glucose in processed corn [4] strength.
Is that sugar alcohols as white crystals, (such as sugar):
Since sugar alcohols are similar to that of sugar, the sweet taste receptors to activate the in the mouth are capable of chemical structure.
In contrast, low-calorie sweeteners, sugar alcohols contain calories , just below the raw sugar.
[5]
Conclusion: sugar alcohols are sweet types of carbohydrates found naturally or processed by other sugars. They are widely used as a sweetener.
Common sugar alcohols in the modern diet
There are many different sugar alcohols are commonly used as sweeteners.
There are some differences between them, including taste, calories and health effects ( 1 ).
Xylitol
Xylitol [6] is an alcohol the most widespread and well documented sugar.
It has a distinct taste of mint, and is a common ingredient in sugarless gum, mints and oral care products such as toothpaste.
It's almost as sweet as table sugar, but has 40% fewer calories. In addition to some gastrointestinal symptoms when it is consumed in large quantities, xylitol is well tolerated ( 2 ).
Erythritol
Erythritol [7] It is another sugar alcohol is considered to have excellent flavor.
It is produced by the fermentation of glucose in the corn starch. It has 70% of the sweetness of sugar, but only 5% of the calories.
With the low-calorie sweetener Stevia [8] , erythritol the main component of the popular sweetener mixture is known as Truvia [9] .
Erythritol has, because it reaches several gastrointestinal side effects, like most other sugar alcohols in the colon significant amounts.
Instead, most of it is absorbed into the bloodstream and then unchanged in the urine ( 3 ).
Sorbitol
Sorbitol [10] found to have a smooth mouthfeel and sweet taste.
It is 60% as sweet as sugar, with about 60% of calories. It is a common ingredient in foods and beverages without sugar, including margins and soft jelly candies.
It has cause little effect on blood sugar and insulin, but serious digestive problems.
Maltitol
Maltitol [11] is processed from maltose sugar and has a taste and mouthfeel similar as table sugar.
It is 90% sweeter than sugar, with nearly half the calories. While products with maltitol claim as "sugar" it is well absorbed by the body and does not cause blood sugar spikes.
If you have diabetes, and be careful of " low-carb [12] "The products that are sweetened with maltitol, and be sure to carefully control your blood sugar levels.
Other sugar alcohols
Other sugar alcohols commonly found in foods include mannitol, isomalt, lactitol, and hydrogenated starch hydrolysates.
Conclusion: Many different sugar alcohols are often in the modern diet. These include xylitol, erythritol, sorbitol, maltitol, and many others.
Alcohols have increasing a low glycemic index and not the blood sugar or insulin
The glycemic index is a measure of the increasing food blood sugar levels quickly.
Eating foods that the glycemic index is high with many problems of obesity and metabolic health (associated are 4 , 5 , 6 ).
The graph below shows the glycemic index for more sugar alcohols and sugar compared to pure glucose:
As you can see, most sugar alcohols have a negligible effect on blood glucose levels. If the definition of erythritol and mannitol, the glycemic index is zero.
The only exception is maltitol, which has a glycemic index of 36. That is still very low compared to sugar and refined carbohydrates.
For patients with metabolic syndrome, diabetes or prediabetes, sugar alcohols (except perhaps maltitol), it may be considered an excellent alternative to sugar.
Conclusion: Most sugar alcohols have little impact on blood sugar and insulin, except maltitol.
The alcohols may improve dental health
Caries is well documented side effect of excessive consumption of sugar.
Sugar feeds some bacteria in the mouth that proliferate and secrete acids that erode the protective enamel of the teeth.
In contrast, sugar alcohols such as xylitol, sorbitol and erythritol effective against dental caries ( 7 ). This is one of the main reasons why they are so popular in many chewing gums and toothpastes.
Xylitol is well known for its positive effects on the health of the teeth and was very thoroughly investigated ( 8 , 9 ).
The "bad" bacteria in the mouth feed on xylitol in reality, but is unable to metabolize able it in the end to block the metabolic machinery and inhibit the growth of ( 10 ).
Erythritol has not been studied as much as xylitol, but a study of three years 485 schoolchildren found greater protection against tooth decay, such as xylitol and sorbitol ( 11 ).
Conclusion: xylitol, sorbitol, erythritol, and lead to improvements in the dental health. Xylitol is the most studied, but there is some evidence that erythritol is most effective.
Other health benefits of sugar alcohols
Sugar alcohols can a number of other beneficial effects remarkably, have
Prebiotic: sugar alcohols can the good bacteria in the gut, a prebiotic effect as feed fiber [14] ( 12 , 13 , 14 ).
Bone Health: Many studies in rats have shown that xylitol may increase bone volume and bone mineral content, to protect against osteoporosis (should shown 15 , 16 ).
skin health: Collagen is the main structural protein of the skin and connective tissue. Studies in rats have shown that xylitol can the production of collagen (increase 17 , 18 ).
Conclusion: sugar alcohols can feed the good bacteria in the gut and has been shown to be beneficial for bone and skin in animal experiments.
Sugar alcohols can cause digestive problems
The main problem is that sugar alcohols may cause digestive problems, especially when consumed in large quantities.
The body can digest most of them, so travel into the colon, where they metabolized by bacteria in the gut.
If you eat a lot of sugar alcohols within a short time, this can lead to symptoms such as gas, bloating [15] and diarrhea.
If you irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) or sensitivity to have FODMAPs [16] , then you might want to consider avoiding sugar alcohols completely.
Maltitol and sorbitol seem to be the biggest culprits, while erythritol causes fewer symptoms.
Bottom line: if consumed in large quantities, most sugar alcohols can cause considerable upset stomach. It depends on the person and the kind of the sugar alcohol.
Xylitol is toxic to dogs
Xylitol is well tolerated in humans, but is very toxic to dogs.
When dogs eat xylitol, their bodies think that sugar is and begin to produce large amounts of insulin.
When insulin increased the cells begin to dogs to obtain the blood sugar.
This can cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) (lead and be downright deadly 19 ).
If you own a dog, keep xylitol out of range or outside of your home completely.
This probably does not apply to other animals, and is probably not only xylitol, other sugar alcohols.
Which sugar alcohol is the healthiest?
All sugar alcohols, erythritol becomes the clear winner.
Almost no calories, has no effect on blood sugar and causes digestive problems and much smaller than others.
It is also good for your teeth, and do not end up hurting your dog.
It also has an amazing taste. It's basically just like sugar without the calories.
Credentials
- ^ carbohydrates (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ ethanol (en.wikipedia.org)
- ^ fruits (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ corn (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ calories (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ xylitol (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ erythritol (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ Stevia (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ Truvia (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ sorbitol (en.wikipedia.org)
- ^ maltitol (en.wikipedia.org)
- ^ carbohydrate (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ Photo source (www.starch.dk)
- ^ fiber (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ swelling (authoritynutrition.com)
- ^ FODMAPs (authoritynutrition.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment