With an increasing focus on the rising rate of obesity in the United States and the associated health concerns, many consumers are seeking ways to manage their consumption of calories. Yet few find it easy to abandon their desire for even the occasional sweet food or beverage. For many, low-calorie or reduced-calorie sweeteners offer a means to manage caloric intake, allowing the substitution of lower-calorie foods and beverages for their higher-calorie counterparts. These foods can provide them with the sweet foods and beverages that they desire while allowing them to manage their caloric intake as well.

Low-calorie or high-intensity sweeteners are many times sweeter than sucrose (sugar) but add a taste to foods that is similar to that provided by regular sweeteners like sugar or corn syrup. The use of low-calorie sweeteners can substantially reduce the amount of calories in products such as soft drinks, candies, chewing gum, and desserts like pudding, gelatin, and ice cream. In addition, several low-calorie sweeteners are available for use as "tabletop sweeteners," which consumers add directly to foods like coffee, tea, fruits, or breakfast cereal.

The five intense, low-calorie sweeteners approved for use in the United States include acesulfame potassium, aspartame, neotame, saccharin, and sucralose. These sweeteners do not affect insulin or glucose levels and have long played a role in the food choices of people with diabetes and others who must manage their intake of carbohydrates.

Low-Calorie Sweeteners Currently Used in The United States

Acesulfame potassium

Acesulfame potassium—or acesulfame K as it is abbreviated on food labels—is calorie-free and is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. Acesulfame K is highly stable and has been approved for use in a wide variety of foods, beverages, and baked products. Acesulfame potassium is not broken down by the body and is eliminated without providing any calories.

Aspartame

Aspartame is a very low-calorie sweetener and is about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It is made by joining two amino acids; aspartic acid and the methyl ester of phenylalanine. The components of aspartame are also found naturally in common foods, including meat, dairy products, fruits, and vegetables. After ingestion, aspartame is broken down to its components and is utilized by the body in the same way that it is utilized when it is derived in much larger amounts from common foods. Persons with a rare hereditary disease known as phenylketonuria (PKU) must control their intake of phenylalanine from all sources, including aspartame. Although aspartame contains only a small amount of phenylalanine, the labels of foods and beverages containing aspartame must include a statement advising individuals with PKU of the presence of phenylalanine.

Neotame

Neotame received FDA approval for use in foods and beverages in the United States in July 2002. Neotame is a derivative of the dipeptide composed of the amino acids aspartic acid and phenylalanine. It is 7,000 to 13,000 times as sweet as sugar depending on its food application. It can be used alone or blended with other high-intensity or carbohydrate sweeteners. In addition, because the product is not metabolized to phenylalanine, no special labeling for individuals with phenylketonuria is required. Extensive research has been conducted on neotame to establish its safety as a sweetening ingredient. The FDA reviewed the findings from more than 100 scientific studies before approving neotame.

Saccharin

Saccharin is calorie-free and is about 300 times sweeter than sugar. Because saccharin is stable when heated, it is suitable for use in foods and beverages, and cooking and baking. It is not broken down by the body and is eliminated without providing any calories. Decades ago there were questions about whether saccharin could cause bladder cancer, based on animal studies. Numerous follow-up studies with animals and humans have shown no overall association between saccharin consumption and cancer incidence. Recently, after extensive review of the scientific data on the topic, the federal government removed saccharin from a list of potential cancer-causing agents.

Sucralose

Sucralose is calorie-free and is approximately 600 times sweeter than sugar. It is made from sugar through a patented, multistep process. Sucralose is highly stable and can be used in foods and beverages, and cooking and baking. The body does not recognize sucralose as a sugar or a carbohydrate. It is not broken down by the body and is eliminated without providing any calories.

The variety of sweeteners available to food manufacturers and consumers provides more options to sweeten
different foods in different ways. Each sweetener has a slightly different intensity or character to its sweet taste. Some sweeteners may work well in applications like sugar-free soft drinks, and others may work best in baked goods or hard candy. Combinations of some sweeteners have been found to have a synergistic effect—that is, the taste of one sweetener is enhanced when it is combined with another one. The end result is that less sweetener blend is required to provide the same amount of sweetness.

A recent national consumer survey shows that more than 163 million Americans consume reduced-calorie or sugar-free foods and beverages.¹ Consumers are fortunate to have so many choices today, for without low-calorie or reduced-calorie sweeteners, life for these consumers would simply not be as sweet.

How Sweeteners Are Approved

All low-calorie sweeteners have undergone extensive safety testing and have been carefully reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Before a low-calorie sweetener is approved for commercial use, it must undergo extensive testing and significant regulatory scrutiny. U.S. food safety laws prohibit FDA from approving a low-calorie sweetener (or any food ingredient) that has not been shown to have "a reasonable certainty in the minds of competent scientists that the substance is not harmful under the intended conditions of use." Manufacturers requesting approval are required to provide FDA with extensive data, including the name, chemical identity, and composition of the sweetener; the physical or other technical effects that the sweetener is intended to produce; and comprehensive reports of research concerning safety. FDA also considers projected consumption levels, as well as specific use levels. Information on projected consumption and specific levels is requested in the petition that the manufacturer submits to FDA for approval of a new product. All FDA-approved low-calorie sweeteners meet the same standard of safety and are safe for consumption by pregnant women and children.

Reduced-Calorie Sweeteners

Food manufacturers may use another group of ingredients to reduce the number of calories in food products. These reduced-calorie sweeteners are metabolized more slowly or incompletely by the body and thus provide fewer calories. They vary in sweetness, being from about half as sweet as the same amount of sugar to being equally as sweet as sugar.

These sweeteners are frequently combined with intense, low-calorie sweeteners, such as acesulfame potassium, aspartame, saccharin, and sucralose. These combinations are used in sugar-free chewing gums, candies, frozen desserts, and baked goods. Reduced-calorie sweeteners give these foods mild sweetness as well as the bulk and texture of sugar; the intense, low-calorie sweeteners bring the sweetness up to the level consumers expect.

Polyols—Polyols (or sugar alcohols) are a group of reduced-calorie sweeteners that contain some calories. Polyols are found naturally in berries, apples, plums, and other foods, and are manufactured from carbohydrates for use in sugar-free candies, cookies, chewing gums, and other reduced-calorie foods. Familiar names of polyols include sorbitol, mannitol, and isomalt.

Tagatose—Tagatose is a naturally occurring reduced-calorie bulk sweetener that can be found in some dairy products. Tagatose has a physical bulk similar to that of sucrose or table sugar and is almost as sweet. Tagatose has 1.5 calories per gram whereas sucrose has 4 calories per gram. Tagatose can therefore provide the bulk of sugar with significantly fewer calories.

¹ Calorie Control Council, 2002