1. Sweeteners: Satisfying Your Sweet Tooth The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Service

2. Why Do We Use Sugar? Sweet taste –The desire for sweet taste increases with age in many people

3. Why Do We Use Sugar? Preserve jams and jellies Volume and texture in baked goods and ice-cream Fermentation in breads

4. Types of Sweeteners Nutritive sweeteners –Contain calories Nonnutritive sweeteners (high intensity sweetener) –Contain little or no calories

5. Nutritive Sweeteners Sugars: 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

6. Nutritive Sweeteners Sorbitol Mannitol Maltitol Erythritol Xylitol Lactitol Isomalt Hydrogenated starch hydrolysates (combination of polyols) Sugar alcohols or polyols

7. 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”

8. 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

9. Nonnutritive Sweeteners (high-intensity) Acesulfame potassium –Sunette, Sweet-One Aspartame –Equal, NutraSweet Neotame Saccharin –Sweet ‘n Low, etc Sucralose –Splenda Approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA):

10. 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

11. Read the Label! Foods with high intensity sweeteners may be combined with other ingredients Check the Nutrition Facts label for calories, carbohydrate, and fat

12. 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

13. What Foods Work Better With Sugar? Cakes Cookies Yeast breads

14. Sugar’s Role in Baked Goods Sugar provides to baked goods: browning tenderness structure volume texture

15. Why Reduce Sugar Intake? Contains calories, but no nutritional value Medical conditions: –Overweight/obesity –Diabetes –High triglycerides

16. 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

17. How Can You Cut Back on Sugar? Replace high-sugar beverages with sugar-free beverages Size Calories Super-size 410 Large 320 Medium 220

18. 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 “calorie- free” Baked products often require some sugar for acceptable quality