{"id":307726,"date":"2019-05-17T10:03:51","date_gmt":"2019-05-17T10:03:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nahrungsmittel-intoleranz.com\/sweetening-fructose-intolerance\/"},"modified":"2023-12-18T10:12:13","modified_gmt":"2023-12-18T10:12:13","slug":"sweetening-fructose-intolerance","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.nahrungsmittel-intoleranz.com\/en\/sweetening-fructose-intolerance\/","title":{"rendered":"Sweetening & fructose intolerance"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Those who suffer from intestinal fructose intolerance <\/a>are often faced with the dilemma: How do I sweeten my food? What other sweet sins are possible? In the following, we would like to explain a few terms and shed some light on this darkness. We want to look at sugar, sugar substitutes and artificial sweeteners in terms of their relevance for fructose intolerance. The list does not claim to be exhaustive! At the end you will find a list of tolerated sweeteners for fructose intolerance as well as FAQs on which sugars are tolerated by people with fructose malabsorption.<\/p>\n\n

Sugar – what is it anyway?<\/h2>\n\n

A distinction is made between monosaccharides<\/strong>, disaccharides<\/strong> and polysaccharides<\/strong>. Only simple sugars can be absorbed in the intestine. A disaccharide consists of two monosaccharides bound together, a polysaccharide consists of more than two such monosaccharides. These sugars are broken down into their individual sugars by enzymes during the digestive process. This is because only these individual sugars can pass through the intestinal wall. Some of the long-chain sugars cannot be broken down at all and are then either metabolized by bacteria in the large intestine or excreted unchanged.<\/p>\n\n

Fructose (fruit sugar)<\/h3>\n\n

Fruit sugar<\/strong> or fructose <\/strong>is a simple sugar that is mainly found in honey or fruit. It is the main problem in intestinal fructose intolerance <\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

In nature, fructose is mainly found in the fruits of plants. It is mainly absorbed in the intestine via the GLUT-5 transporter<\/a> and broken down in the liver.<\/p>\n\n

Glucose (dextrose)<\/h3>\n\n

Glucose,<\/strong> also known as dextrose,<\/strong> is another simple sugar. It is very well tolerated by people with fructose intolerance and even helps to absorb the fructose. However, you should not consume too much, as firstly it can have a fattening effect from 100g per hour and secondly it promotes insulin resistance in the long term. <\/p>\n\n

Glucose syrup \/ glucose-fructose syrup (isoglucose)<\/h4>\n\n

Glucose syrup\/fructose syrup is best known for the“High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS)<\/strong>” commonly used in the USA. At 55% fructose, this high-fructose syrup is used as a sugar substitute in almost all foods in the USA. As a result, glucose syrup also gained a reputation in Europe for containing fructose. However, this is not always the case, as glucose syrup can contain fructose, but it can also be completely fructose-free. You can estimate this from the name:<\/p>\n\n

less than 5% fructose in dry matter:<\/strong> “glucose syrup” – tolerated by fructose intolerance.<\/p>\n\n

more than 5% fructose in dry matter:<\/strong> 1) \n“Glucose-fructose syrup” or “dried glucose-fructose syrup” if\n more glucose than fructose is present; can cause fructose intolerance \nas it contains a maximum of the same amount of fructose as normal \nHousehold sugar.2) “Fructose-glucose syrup”, or “dried fructose syrup”. \nFructose-glucose syrup if more fructose than glucose is present; for\n Fructose intolerance not tolerated.<\/p>\n\n

Galactose (mucilage sugar)<\/h3>\n\n

Galactose is called mucilage sugar<\/strong> in German. It is often a component of polysaccharides, but also occurs naturally as a single sugar. Galactose is tolerated by people with fructose intolerance, but in reality is not used as a sweetener or additive. Together with glucose, galactose forms the components of lactose (milk sugar)<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

Sucrose (household sugar)<\/h3>\n\n

When we say sugar, we probably always mean household sugar, \nalthough sugar is only an umbrella term for all sweet-tasting saccharides \nis. The “normal” sugar (household sugar \/ sucrose<\/strong>\n \/ sucrose) is made from beet or sugar cane (in which case it is called \ncane sugar). “Sugar” is a disaccharide and consists of 50 %\n from fruit sugar (fructose) and 50 % from grape sugar (glucose).<\/p>\n\n

Other names: Raw sugar, cane sugar, whole cane sugar, whole sugar, brown sugar, sucrose, sucrose, candy sugar, coconut blossom sugar …<\/p>\n\n

Maltose (malt sugar)<\/h3>\n\n

Malt sugar<\/strong> consists of two molecules of glucose, which is why it is unproblematic for fructose intolerance and in the elimination diet.<\/p>\n\n

Lactose (milk sugar)<\/h3>\n\n

Lactose<\/strong> is also a disaccharide. It consists of one molecule of galactose and one molecule of glucose. It is safe for fructose intolerance, but should be avoided for lactose intolerance <\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

Lactulose<\/h3>\n\n

Lactulose is also a disaccharide and should not be confused with lactose <\/strong>. Lactulose consists of galactose and fructose, but cannot be broken down in the intestine. It is metabolized by bacteria in the large intestine. It is therefore basically harmless for both lactose intolerance and fructose intolerance – apart from the possible bloating effect.<\/p>\n\n

Oligosaccharides<\/h3>\n\n

So-called polysaccharides<\/strong> are chains of sugar molecules. In most cases, fewer than 10 sugars are linked, but there can also be hundreds.Examples are raffinose<\/strong>, stachyose<\/strong> or verbascose<\/strong>. Incidentally, these are the flatulent carbohydrates in pulses. They are only partially tolerated by people with fructose intolerance because, on the one hand, fructose is often involved – i.e. the sugars are broken down into their individual sugars by enzymes (amylases), which means that we then have fructose in the small intestine – and, on the other hand, many of these sugars are not broken down by us and thus reach the bacteria in the large intestine, which metabolize them and thus lead to flatulence (“every little bean, a little sound”). Therefore, legumes and leek vegetables should be avoided during the elimination phase and must be tested individually in the permanent diet. However, they should definitely be included in the diet again.<\/p>\n\n

Polysaccharides<\/h3>\n\n

These are chains of more than 10 sugar molecules. If they consist of fructose molecules, they are called oligofructose<\/strong>, fructans<\/strong> or fructooligosaccharides<\/strong>. One example of this is inulin<\/strong>, which consists of around 100 fructose molecules. They are not broken down by us, but they are broken down by the bacteria in the large intestine. Therefore, they have a flatulent effect and are not tolerated in large quantities, but are tolerated in small quantities after the elimination phase. Above all, because they cannot be broken down by the body and can therefore be described as dietary fiber – an important point, because many people are afraid when they read oligofructose or inulin in the list of ingredients. This concern is unfounded because our body cannot break down long fructose chains. Nevertheless, it is best to try it after the elimination diet. Since bacteria can break down such chains, tolerance also depends on the intestinal flora.Starch<\/strong> is an important polysaccharide. Starch consists of long glucose chains that are broken down into their individual sugars and digested. It is safe for people with fructose and lactose intolerance.<\/p>\n\n

Sweetener<\/h1>\n\n

Sugar substitutes <\/strong>and artificial sweeteners <\/strong>are grouped together under the term “sweeteners<\/strong>” under food law.<\/p>\n\n

Sugar substitutes<\/h2>\n\n

Sugar substitutes<\/strong> are sweet-tasting carbohydrates that are absorbed by the body more slowly or not at all than sugar. These are mostly sugar alcohols<\/strong> (polyols). Some sugar alcohols taste sweet; the industry can use them to reduce the real sugar content of the product on offer and sell it as a diet product in our modern age. However, the impression must not be given that these substances do not also occur in nature! Many fruits contain sorbitol<\/strong> or xylitol<\/strong>, for example. Sugar alcohols are therefore also found in nature. The suffix -ol always indicates the chemical class of an alcohol. Sugar substitutes should be avoided during the elimination diet; after the elimination diet, certain sugar substitutes that are tolerated by many patients (e.g. xylitol or erythritol) can be reintroduced into the diet.<\/p>\n\n

Why are sugar substitutes used in the food industry?<\/h3>\n\n

Sugar alcohols are used to sweeten foods and to \nretain moisture in food. As these substances in the body \ndo not raise the blood sugar level, they are often used in light drinks.\n and diabetic products. Enjoyed in large quantities, they \nthey also cause diarrhea in “normal” people, which is why \nproducts, the warning “May be harmful to health if ingested. \nexcessive consumption has a laxative effect”.<\/p>\n\n

Why avoid sugar alcohols with fructose intolerance?<\/h3>\n\n

We don’t know that exactly. It is assumed that they have a negative effect on the transport mechanisms and “block” the transporters <\/a>, so to speak,\n which transports the fructose through the intestinal wall. As people with \nfructose malabsorption this transport mechanism is disturbed or only \nis working poorly, any further interference should be avoided. Takes\n So a person with fructose malabsorption only eats sorbitol, but \nat the same time (up to 48h!) no fructose, so there is theoretically no\n Problems. These only arise with the simultaneous intake of \nFructose. However, as this cannot be avoided in practice, the\n These substances should be avoided as far as possible. But here too \nEveryone has to find out for themselves how much they can tolerate and \nhow much not.<\/p>\n\n

Sweeteners<\/h2>\n\n

Sweeteners<\/strong> are chemical substances that imitate the sweet taste and have little to no calories. These are, for example, saccharin<\/strong>, aspartame<\/strong>, cyclamate<\/strong>, sucralose<\/strong>, stevia<\/strong> or acesulfame K<\/strong>. These substances are well tolerated by people with fructose intolerance, do not have a flatulent effect and are not metabolized by bacteria. However, most experts generally advise against excessive consumption. Apart from stevia, it seems sensible to avoid these sweeteners during the elimination diet. After that, everyone has to decide for themselves whether they want to eat them or not. As mentioned, stevia is also a sweetener, or rather steviol glycosides.<\/p>\n\n

12 sweeteners<\/strong> are approved in the EU:<\/p>\n\n