Bulk sweeteners available

A variety of bulk sweeteners is now available (Table 10.2). They belong to the class of sugar alcohols. Some monosaccharide alcohols have been used for decades, and disaccharide alcohols have broadened the range of available functional characteristics. 

Metabolism via normal metabolic pathways or fast excretion without metabolism are desirable characteristics. Some intense sweeteners are excreted unchanged while others are metabolised. Bulk sweetener absorption is lower and slower than for carbohydrates and results in reduced caloric availability which is partly due to metabolites formed by intestinal bacteria. Such metabolites and osmotic effects of not fully absorbed bulk sweeteners can cause laxative effects. Generally, the calorific value of bulk sweeteners is lower than for carbohydrates. Intense and bulk sweeteners are, as far as they are metabolised, not dependent on insulin. They are therefore acceptable for diabetics as part of a suitable diet. 

As bulk sweeteners have not specified ADI values, a similar range of intake studies is not available, and laxative properties more or less exclude excessive intake. 

In the USA the available bulk sweeteners are listed under different provisions, like food additive, interim status, GRAS (Generally Recognised As Safe) or GRAS by self-determination or self-affirmation of the manufacturers. Intense sweeteners require food additive approval which includes a listing of the approved fields of use or may be a listing as a general purpose sweetener.32... 

Intense and bulk sweeteners are endorsed by international agencies and approved in a large number of countries. Acesulfame K, aspartame and saccharin are available as sweeteners in the EU and Europe while sucralose is approved in the USA and due for approval in Europe and cyclamate, neohesperidin dihydrochalcone and thaumatin are available in Europe. As bulk sweeteners isomalt, lactitol, maltitol, mannitol, sorbitol and xylitol are commonly available. 

Enzymatic methods Enzymatic methods are available for the analysis of bulk sweeteners in food and beverages enzyme electrodes and detection kits are available for several sweeteners (e.g., sucrose, glucose, etc.). The usage of enzyme methods is determined by conditions under which the enzyme is viable, i.e., heat, substrate concentration, water availability, and interferences. This methodology is a popular alternative to chromatographic methods due to its speed, portability, and wide range of application. 

The disaccharide sucrose (1) is readily available in bulk quantities from sugar cane or beet. Its major use is in the food industry as a sweetening agent. Despite numerous publications, and a significant amount of research, sucrose has not found a place as a chiral chemical raw material. Sucrose has, however, been derivatized to provide useful food products that have become large-volume products (vide infra). 

Spandex stretch fiber, based on polyurethanes, was developed by DuPont and appeared in 1962. From this time, polyurethanes would account for the greater part of demand for anilines. Aniline production alone had more than doubled, to over 100 million lbs. per year, between 1939 and 1957, in part to satisfy demand in products other than dyes. Half the US output was consumed in the production of rubber additives, mainly diphenylamine and cyclohexylamine, the latter used as a chain stopper in manufacture of polyurethanes (also as a boiler water additive and, in the US until banned in 1970, in the manufacture of cyclamate sweeteners). Other polymers, such as epoxy resins, relied on the bulk availability of various aromatic amines (Chapter 14). 

Hydrolyzed starch products, such as maltodextrins, are produced by the partial hydrolysis of cereal (e.g., com) or root (such as potato) base starches and are commercially available in spray dried, particulate form. As manufactured it has a relatively low sweetness level and, if used alone as a sweetener, the food product can not be characterized as 100% artificially sweetened, a characterization that is often desired from a marketing standpoint. However, maltodextrins can be used as a bulking agent or carrier for synthetic sweeteners, such as aspartame, and then, the resulting product can be characterized as 100% artificially sweetened. 

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