Xylitol

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Xylitol, also called wood sugar or birch sugar, is a five-carbon sugar alcohol that is used as a sugar substitute. Xylitol is a naturally occurring sweetener found in the fibers of many fruits and vegetables including, various berries, corn husks, oats and mushrooms.<ref>Gare, Fran (Feb 1, 2003). The Sweet Miracle of Xylitol. Basic Health Publications, Inc.. ISBN 1-59120-038-5.</ref> It can be extracted from birch, raspberries, plums, and corn and is primarily produced in China.

Xylitol, gram for gram, is roughly as sweet as sucrose, but contains 40% less food energy. Its formula is C₅ H₁₂ O₅, with relative mass 152.15 amu. The molecule's systematic name is (2,3,4,5)tetrahydroxy-pentanol, and in IUPAC name pentane-1,2,3,4,5-pentaol. CAS number for Xylitol is 87-99-0.

1 Dietary use worldwide
2 Medical applications
3 Health concerns
4 Trivia
5 References
6 See also

[edit] Dietary use worldwide

It is very popular in Finland, which is considered its "home country". Many Finnish confectioneries employ xylitol, or have a xylitol version available. Virtually all chewing gum sold in Finland and Europe is sweetened with xylitol.

The Spanish company Chupa Chups makes a xylitol-based breath mint, Smint, that it markets worldwide.

In China, Japan and South Korea, xylitol is found in wide assortment of chewing gums.

In 2004, popular North American Trident gum was reformulated to include xylitol, but not as the main sweetener (which are still sorbitol and maltitol). Also sold in North America is Carefree Koolerz, which is a sugarless gum sweetened exclusively with xylitol. It is also found in Smokey Mountain Snuff.<ref>Smokey Mountain Snuff FAQ</ref>

[edit] Medical applications

[edit] Dental care

Xylitol is a "Toothfriendly" sugar substitute. In addition to not encouraging tooth decay (by replacing dietary sugars), xylitol may actively aid in repairing minor cavities caused by dental caries. Recent research<ref>Tanzer, JM (1995). Xylitol chewing gum and dental caries. International dental journal 45(1 Suppl 1):65-76. (online abstract)</ref> confirms a plaque-reducing effect and suggests that the compound, having some chemical properties similar to sucrose, attracts and then "starves" harmful micro-organisms, allowing the mouth to remineralize damaged teeth with less interruption. (However, this same effect also interferes with yeast micro-organisms and others, so xylitol is inappropriate for making bread, for instance.) Dental pioneers such as Dr. Ellie Phillips have championed the use of xylitol as a preventive dental treatment, although most traditional dentists in the United States are still hesitant to recommend it to their patients, or are ignorant of the proven benefits.

[edit] Diabetes

Possessing approximately 40% less food energy,<ref>www.diabetes.org.nz/food/artificialsweeteners.html</ref> xylitol is a low-calorie alternative to table sugar. Absorbed more slowly than sugar, it doesn't contribute to high blood sugar levels or the resulting hyperglycemia caused by insufficient insulin response.

[edit] Osteoporosis

Xylitol also appears to have potential as a treatment for osteoporosis. A group of Finnish researchers have found that dietary xylitol prevents weakening of bones in laboratory rats, and actually improves bone density.<ref>Mattila PT, Svanberg MJ, Jämsä T, Knuuttila ML (2002). Improved bone biomechanical properties in xylitol-fed aged rats. Metabolism 51(1):92-6. (online abstract)</ref><ref>Mattila, PT (1999). Dietary xylitol in the prevention of experimental osteoporosis: Beneficial effects on bone resorption, structure and biomechanics. Dissertation, Institute of Dentistry, University of Oulu. (online)</ref>

[edit] Ear and upper respiratory infections

Studies<ref>Uhari M, et al. (1998). A novel use of xylitol sugar in preventing acute otitis media. Pediatrics, 102(4): 879–974.</ref> <ref>Drgreene.com</ref> have shown that xylitol chewing gum can help prevent ear infections (acute otitis media); the act of chewing and swallowing assists with the disposal of earwax and clearing the middle ear, whilst the presence of xylitol prevents the growth of bacteria in the eustachian tubes which connect the nose and ear. This action that xylitol has on bacteria in the back of the nose is best explained on the site dealing with the nasal application of xylitol. <ref>Nasal-xylitol.com</ref> When bacteria enter the body they hold on to our tissues by hanging on to a variety of sugar complexes. The open nature of xylitol and its ability to form many different sugar-like structures appears to interfere with the ability of many bacteria to adhere.<ref>Besttreaments.co.uk</ref> Xylitol can be applied nasally through a saline solution containing xylitol, such as Xlear Nasal Wash.

[edit] Candida yeast

A recent report suggests that consumption of xylitol may help control oral infections of Candida yeast; in contrast, galactose, glucose and sucrose may increase proliferation.<ref> Abu-Elteen, Khaled H. The influence of dietary carbohydrates on in vitro adherence of four Candida species to human buccal epithelial cells. Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease (2005), 17(3), 156-162</ref>

[edit] Health concerns

Xylitol, like most sugar alcohols, can have a mild laxative effect at high doses. It has no known toxicity, though; people have consumed as much as 400 grams daily for long periods with no apparent ill effects.^{[citation needed]}

For canines, however, xylitol can cause serious – possibly life-threatening – problems. Dogs ingesting large amounts of products sweetened with xylitol may have a sudden drop in blood sugar, resulting in loss of coordination, depression and seizures within 30 minutes of consumption. <ref>ASPCA article</ref>

In rare cases, xylitol ingestion has been associated with acute hepatic (liver) failure and coagulopathy (failure of blood clotting) in dogs. <ref>Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 2006;229:1113-1117</ref>

[edit] Trivia

When Extra introduced xylitol-containing products to Hong Kong and Guangdong, it translated the word "xylitol" phoenetically into Cantonese as saai³lok⁶to⁴ (晒駱駝), which literally meant "suntan camel", and used the camel as a figurative icon in its advertisements. <ref>Xylitol advertisement in Guangdong</ref>

[edit] References

[edit] See also

Other sugar alcohols: mannitol, sorbitol, erythritol, maltitol, lactitol
Herbal sweetener: stevia
Artificial sweeteners: aspartame, sucralose
Another birch-extracted treat: birch syrup

v • d • e</div> E numbers
Colours (E100-199) • Preservatives (E200-299) • Antioxidants & Acidity regulators (E300-399) • Thickeners, stabilisers & emulsifiers (E400-499) • pH regulators & anti-caking agents (E500-599) • Flavour enhancers (E600-699) • Miscellaneous (E900-999) • Additional chemicals (E1100-1599)

Waxes (E900-909) • Synthetic glazes (E910-919) • Improving agents (E920-929) • Packaging gases (E930-949) • Sweeteners (E950-969) • Foaming agents (E990-999)

Aspartame (E951) • Cyclamate (E952) • Isomalt (E953) • Saccharin (E954) • Sucralose (E955) • Thaumatin (E957) • Neohesperidin dihydrochalcone (E959) • Maltitol (E965) • Lactitol (E966) • Xylitol (E967)