Different Types of Sweeteners - Are Some Better Than Others?

Monday, October 02, 2023

How sweet it is? the variations of sugar and other sweeteners.

There's always talk about how bad sugar is for you. But are certain sugars and sweeteners better than others? Should you use Splenda or plain ol' sugar in your morning coffee?

First, what is sugar? Sugar is just a simple carbohydrate that is naturally found in fruits, dairy, grains and some vegetables. Technically speaking table sugar, we all know, and love is actually called sucrose, a combination of two simple carbohydrates, glucose and fructose.

But what about other types of sugar, are they all the same nutritionally? Or is there one sweetener that is better than others?

Added sugars are sugars that are added into food and beverages at some point during processing and production. Some common added sugars are; agave, honey, corn syrup and rice/brown rice syrup.

A common misconception that consumers make is believing that some sugars are healthier than others. For example, agave being know to be healthier than high fructose corn syrup. Unfortunately, that's not necessarily true. Calorically all added sugars are the same, but the chemical makeup is different. Sweeteners are made up of a combination of glucose and fructose (the two monosaccharides that compose sucrose.) To put it into perspective table sugar is 50% glucose and 50% fructose, high fructose corn syrup is 45% glucose and 55% fructose; agave nectar is 90% fructose and 10% glucose². Glucose and fructose are metabolized differently as glucose is used by cells as energy and fructose is metabolized by the liver, which can promote the creation of fat³. Technically, that would make agave nectar the less healthy choice as it contains more fructose. There is still more research that needs to be conducted so it is best to follow your own personal preferences while keeping limited sugar intake in mind.

The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends limiting calories from added sugars to now more than 10% each day. That is 200 calories, about 12 teaspoons, per 2,000-calorie diet.

Okay...So, what about Splenda? That doesn't have any calories!

Correct. Splenda and other artificial sweeteners are known as non-nutritive sweeteners (NNS). The American Heart Association labels non-nutritive sweeteners as high intensity, low-calorie, artificial sweeteners that provide no nutritional benefits such as vitamins and mminerals⁵.

The FDA currently approves these 5 NNS as safe:

Aspartame (NutraSweet® and Equal®)
Acesulfame-K (Sweet One®)
Neotame
Saccharin (Sweet'N Low®)
Sucralose (Splenda®

The FDA considers stevia (Truvia® and PureVia®), monk fruit, and allulose to be Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) for use as NNSs.

As for the chemical makeup of these products, they differ from added sugars, as they are much sweeter. You need much less of this product to obtain the same level of sweetness as regular sugar. The intensity of these sweeteners compared to table sugar is as follows⁶:

Aspartame - 200x
Acesulfame - 200x
Neotame - 7,000-13,000x
Saccharin - 200-700x
Sucralose-600x

Non-Nutritive sweeteners are an option for diabetics as they are not metabolized the same as glucose, which allows those to manage their blood glucose levels better. As for the rest of the population, health benefits are rather unknown. It is not proven that NNS causes weight loss or helps individuals lower their overall calorie consumption per day.

A hot topic in the media lately has been if NNS negatively affects gut health. As NNS are consumed in smaller quantities (due to their sweetness intensity) and are absorbed in the small intestine they do not exert any direct effects on the gut microbiome, which is in greatest abundance in the colon⁷.

Overall, it is best to be aware of the total amount of sugar that you are consuming per day. Next time you look at a food label I suggest looking at the Percent Daily Value of added sugars as well as what types of sweeteners are in your foods and beverages! The Daily Value for added sugars is 50 grams per day based on a 2,000-calorie daily diet. For reference when looking at a nutrition facts label, 5% DV or less is a low source of added sugars and 20% DV or more is a high source of added sugars.

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