Test Your Knowledge

Sugar substitutes are substances used to sweeten foods and drinks and serve as an alternative to sucrose (table sugar). Also known as artificial sweeteners, they are usually many times sweeter than table sugar and thus can be used in smaller amounts to sweeten foods.

For example, just 20 milligrams of the sugar substitute saccharin provides the same sweetness as 4,000 milligrams (about 1 tablespoon) of table sugar. Because sugar substitutes are effective in relatively small quantities, they provide far fewer calories in a person’s diet than table sugar.

The rising rates of obesity and associated health concerns such as heart disease, diabetes and some types of cancer have led many Americans to look for alternatives to sugar to help manage their weight and intake of calories. In response to consumer demand, many companies have developed a variety of sugar substitutes.

Sugar substitutes are often known as nonnutritive sweeteners, because they provide little if any energy in the form of calories. Nonnutritive sweeteners also do not affect blood sugar levels.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approves sugar substitutes for use once they have been demonstrated to be safe and effective. FDA-approved sugar substitutes include:

• Acesulfame-K. Also known as acesulfame potassium (the “K” represents potassium), it was approved by the FDA in 1988. It is a white, odorless, crystalline sweetener that is 200 times sweeter than table sugar, with a slight, bitter aftertaste that is countered by combining it with other sweeteners. Acesulfame-K is not digested by the body, but is instead eliminated through urine, therefore, does not provide any calories.  This sweetener has an excellent shelf life and is suitable for cooking.  This sugar substitute is used in candies, baked goods, frozen desserts, soft drinks and tabletop sweeteners. It is marketed under the name Sunette or Sweet One.
  
  
• Aspartame. Made up of a simple chemical compound (including the amino acids phenylalanine and aspartic acid, plus chemicals known as a methyl group), it has a taste that is 200 times sweeter than table sugar. Once aspartame enters the digestive tract, it is split into its component parts, with the body absorbing the amino acids as though they were protein and the methyl group eventually being broken down into carbon dioxide.
  
  Aspartame is found in soft drinks, puddings, gelatin, frozen desserts, breakfast cereals, hot cocoa mix, yogurt, teas, breath mints, chewing gum and tabletop sweeteners. It generally is not used in foods that require cooking because it is not considered heat stable, meaning that its properties change (e.g., a loss of sweetness) when heated. It is commonly marketed under the names NutraSweet, Equal, NatraTaste, and SugarTwin.
  
  
• Neotame. The FDA approved this newest sugar substitute in 2002. It is intensely sweet, about 8,000 times sweeter than table sugar. Neotame, unlike many other sugar substitutes, is heat stable and may be used in cooking and baking.  Neotame has been approved in several foods, including baked goods, non-alcoholic beverages, chewing gum, frozen desserts, gelatin, puddings, jams and jellies , processed fruits and fruit juices, and toppings and syrups..
  
  
• Saccharin. Used for more than 100 years in the United States, it is produced from a substance that naturally occurs in grapes and is between 300 and 500 times sweeter than table sugar. It has a bitter aftertaste, and therefore is often blended with other sweeteners. Saccharin is excreted in urine and does not accumulate in the body, therefore, does not provide energy (calories). Saccharin is used primarily in soft drinks and as a tabletop sweetener. It is commonly marketed under the name Sweet ’N Low or SugarTwin,
   
• Sucralose. Made from sucrose, although its chemical makeup includes chlorine atoms instead of three hydroxyl groups. This makes sucralose 600 times sweeter than table sugar. Sucralose does not provide calories because, unlike sucrose, it is not broken down and passes through the body virtually unchanged. The FDA approved sucralose for use in 1998.  Sucralose is found in products such as baked goods, nonalcoholic beverages, chewing gum, frozen dairy desserts, fruit juices, and gelatins.  Sucralose has a good shelf life, is heat stable, and may be used in cooking. It is marketed under the brand name Splenda.

Two other sugar substitutes are awaiting FDA approval. They are called alitame and cyclamate. While alitame does not appear to pose any safety risks, questions have surrounded cyclamate for more than 50 years. Studies indicate that while cyclamate does not cause cancer, it may promote cancer development after cancer has already appeared. For this reason, FDA approval is considered unlikely, although many other countries (including Canada) have approved the substance.