Sugar alcohols carry many functional and nutritional benefits — making them an artificial sweetener of choice for many formulators. But which sugar substitute is right for your application? This article analyzes the properties, functionality, and use of maltitol, erythritol, sorbitol, and xylitol in food products.
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Maltitol, erythritol, sorbitol, and xylitol are natural substances containing multiple hydroxyl groups. Though naturally occurring, polyols can be chemically synthesized, hydrogenated, or fermented. You can ferment them by using bacteria, yeast, or fungus. They can also be made synthetically by the catalytic hydrogenation of the sugars. The table below outlines the natural sources of these polyols and the sugar substrates for hydrogenation.
The following table breaks down the chemical properties of sugar alcohols:
Sugar alcohols are widely used in the food industry as functional ingredients due to their unique physical and chemical properties. These substances can act as bulking agents, emulsifiers, stabilizers, humectants, thickeners, and texturizers, providing various benefits to food products.
One of the primary applications of sugar alcohols in the food industry is as a bulking agent. They add volume to food products without significantly adding calories. Bulking agents are beneficial for creating low-calorie products, such as sugar-free candies and chewing gum, that still have a desirable texture and mouthfeel.
Sugar alcohols can also act as emulsifiers, which help to stabilize mixtures of two immiscible liquids, such as oil and water. Emulsifiers help to prevent separation and provide a smooth and creamy texture to foods like mayonnaise, salad dressings, and ice cream.
As stabilizers, sugar alcohols can help to prevent unwanted changes in the texture or consistency of food products over time. They are commonly used in baked goods, dairy products, and confections to avoid crystallization and maintain a smooth and consistent texture.
Humectants help retain moisture in food products, preventing them from becoming dry and stale over time.
In addition to their other functions, sugar alcohols can also act as thickeners and texturizers in food products. They can help create a smooth and creamy texture in products like yogurt and ice cream — and give products such as jams a firmer texture.
See our table below for a breakdown of which sugar alcohols best suit these functions.
Sugar alcohols are versatile alternatives to table sugar due to their sweetening, bulking, and bodying properties. The table below lists the relative sweetness of sugar alcohols compared to table sugar (sucrose), their calorific value, and their glycemic index.
The human body does not assimilate sugar alcohols in the same way as table sugar, like sucrose or glucose. They are partially absorbed in the intestine, and the rest is excreted unchanged in different ways. The unabsorbed sugar alcohol ferments through the colonic microflora in the intestines. About 50% of the energy of fermented polyols is available to the human body.
The table below breaks down how the body metabolizes each of these sugar alcohols.
Sugar alcohols can provide the functionality and flexibility to develop excellent sugar-free products. Consider the following when using sugar alcohols in food product formulas.
Polyols have a high heat of solution. When the crystalline forms dissolve in the mouth, it creates a pleasant cooling sensation. The cooling effect of polyols varies. Erythritol has the most substantial cooling effect and isomalt the mildest. While this effect may be desirable for peppermint and menthol products, it is unsuitable for others like baked goods or chocolates.
In polyols, a typical relationship between the molecular weight and the functional properties of polyols exists. As the molecular weight of a polyol decreases, osmolality increases, freezing point decreases viscosity decreases, and boiling point increases.
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Replacing table sugar with sugar alcohol decreases the glass transition temperature and systematically alters caramel samples’ hardness and resilience.
In frozen products such as frozen desserts, polyols provide body and texture, reducing the freezing point. Sorbitol and erythritol have a higher effect on freezing point than maltitol. Add these sugar alcohols to soften sugar-reduced ice cream and increase its scoopability.
Sugar alcohols can act as emulsifiers, as they can help to stabilize emulsions. Additionally, they can help to improve the texture and mouthfeel of food and beverages due to their bodying properties.
The viscosity of sugar alcohols increases with heat. The viscosity of erythritol and xylitol is low, yielding a poor bodying effect compared to maltitol.
Sugar alcohols like maltitol mask the bitter notes from other ingredients in the food product.
Sugar alcohols have a low degradation rate of anthocyanins in fruit jam preparations, helping to stabilize them.
While sugar alcohols can be helpful for people looking to reduce their sugar intake or manage their blood sugar levels, they can cause digestive issues such as bloating, gas, and diarrhea when consumed in large amounts.
Sugar alcohols, on the other hand, render some health benefits.
Health authorities worldwide allow the usage of maltitol, erythritol, xylitol, and sorbitol, including the World Health Organization, the European Union, and countries such as Australia and Canada. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has classified sugar alcohols as generally considered safe (GRAS) for use in food. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved their use in various food products, including baked goods, confectionery, dairy products, preserves, and processed fruits and vegetables.
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The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has established an acceptable daily intake (ADI) for maltitol, erythritol, xylitol, and maltitol of up to 20 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day (mg/kg bw/day).
While all four sugar alcohols (xylitol, sorbitol, erythritol, and maltitol) are low-calorie sweeteners and can be used as sugar substitutes, they differ in their sweetness levels, glycemic index, and potential side effects. They all represent versatile and valuable sweeteners, providing functional benefits to “low-sugar” food products. Whether as bulking agents, emulsifiers, stabilizers, humectants, thickeners, or texturizers, all these polyols are great options for creating high-quality, stable, and appealing food products that meet the diverse needs and preferences of consumers.
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