Artificial sweeteners
Kelly Whitfield
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
I receive a lot of questions regarding artificial sweetener use and safety.
Moderation and variety are always good advice and are applicable to the use of sweeteners.
Consumers should be aware of the benefits of moderate sweetener use, as well as the problems of excessive use. Using a variety of sweeteners will reduce your chances of ingesting significant amounts of any individual sweetener.
Five artificial sweeteners have been approved as safe by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), they are: aspartame, saccharin, acesulfame-K, neotame, and sucralose. The FDA evaluates the composition and properties, how much would be consumed, and the safety of the ingredient. The typical amount consumed is well within the “acceptable daily intake levels” that a person would safely eat each day over a lifetime. However, people with phenylketonuria should not consume aspartame because it contains phenylalanine.
The following are some of the questions I have received regarding artificial sweeteners.
Q I baked oatmeal cookies with sucralose and they didn’t spread?
A You may need to flatten the cookies made with sucralose (commonly known as Splenda) before baking to aid spreading. Cookies often rely on brown sugar for their chewy, crunchy texture. To retain the texture, replace only the white granulated sugar in your cookie recipes. If you want to try replacing sugar with sucralose or the sucralose sugar blend for baking, follow manufacturer’s instructions on package.
Q I made cookies using aspartame and they had no taste?
A Aspartame (commonly known as NutrasweetSM or Equal) is not heat stable so it is not an appropriate sweetener for baked goods; it loses its sweetness when baked at high temperatures for a long time. This sweetener can be added during last few minutes of heating or cooking. Aspartame is used successfully in many products that do not require prolonged heat.
Q I baked a loaf of bread with sucralose but it did not brown, what can I do?
A In the baking process, sugar caramelizes to produce the customary golden brown color of baked goods. Baked goods made with little or no sugar do not brown like recipes made with sugar. There are a couple of tips you can use to help achieve the desired golden color. One tip is to lightly spray the batter or dough with cooking spray just before placing in the oven. Another tip is to take out your recipe a few minutes before the end of suggested baking time, and glaze with a small amount of egg white, milk or honey.
Q The first time I used a sugar substitute in my coffee I used 3 packets (the same number packets I had always used for sugar) and it tasted awful, why is that?
A All of the five FDA approved artificial sweeteners are many times sweeter than sugar, therefore, using too much will result in an overly sweet taste or an unpleasant aftertaste. The different low-calorie sweeteners vary in sweetness and bulk, package directions must be followed for the amount to use in place of sugar.
• Aspartame is 200 times sweeter that sugar. In the grocery store, it is sold as NutraSweet and Equal.
• Saccharin is 200-700 times sweeter than sugar, it is sold as Sweet’N Low, Sweet Twin, and Necta Sweet.
• Acesulfame-K (potassium) is 200 times sweeter than sugar. In the grocery store, it is sold as Sunett and Sweet One.
• Neotame is 7,000 to 13,000 times sweeter than sugar. This sweetener is not widely available in food yet. It was approved by the FDA in 2002.
• Sucralose is 600 times sweeter than sugar. This is more commonly known as Splenda.
Q I have noticed that the “sugar-free” hard candy I buy is not calorie free. Why is that?
A Many “sugar-free” hard candies are made with sugar alcohols such as sorbitol and mannitol. Sugar alcohols, provide calories but less than the 4 calories per gram provided by sucrose. Thus, they are referred to as "reduced calorie," and the FDA permits the use of these lower calorie determinations for labeling purposes. Excess consumption may have a laxative effect.
Brand names appearing in this publication are for product identification purposes only. No endorsement is intended, nor is criticism implied of similar products not mentioned.
• Sources: You Asked It, K-State Research and Extension; Mary Alice Gettings and Cindy Javor; Penn State Cooperative Extension; Karen Penner, K-State Extension; Darlene Polman and Georgia Jones, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension. For more information on food, nutrition, health, and family issues, contact Kelly Whifield, family and consumer science agent, at the Lyon County K-State Research and Extension office at 341-3220 or email at kwhit@oznet.ksu.edu.