A quick guide to understanding the different types of sugar

Refined sugar is a relatively new food in the human diet, becoming widely available only since the 1500s. It didn't take long for this sweetener to become a major commodity. Here's a quick guide to help you understand the different types of sugar.

Nutrition experts distinguish between two main types of sugar: intrinsic sugar, which gives an appealing taste to such foods as fruits and sweet vegetables, and extrinsic sugar, which is added to food during preparation or processing or at the time of consumption.

• The intrinsic sugars in fruits, vegetables, and starches are bound up with essential vitamins, minerals, fibre, and oils.
• Extrinsic sugar, however, contains calories that supply energy but provide no valuable nutrients, although it satisfies our taste for sweetness and can enhance the flavour of many foods.
• And while many of the evils blamed on sugar — hyperactivity, acne, high blood pressure, obesity — have been found to be unrelated or only indirectly linked through overconsumption, it is true that sugar is a major cause of tooth decay and that people who turn to sugary fast foods for a quick energy boost may neglect less convenient but much more nutritious foods.

• All forms of sugar provide about the same energy value: four calories per gram. In everyday terms, 250 milligrams (one cup) of white sugar contains 770 calories, compared to 820 in 250 milligrams (one cup) of densely packed brown sugar. Fifteen grams (one tablespoon) of white sugar has 50 calories, and an individual serving packet, 25.
• Although sugar itself is not especially high in calories, many sweet foods, such as chocolates and pastries, are also high in fat, which contains nine calories per gram.
• Confectioners' sugar has about 385 calories in 250 milligrams (one cup). Although the sugar is pure sucrose, the product is packaged with cornstarch to prevent clumping. Because of this, people with allergies to corn may suffer adverse reactions from the powdered sugar in frostings and desserts.
• Raw sugar — the first crystals obtained during the refining process — is not sold in North America because it is contaminated with soil, plant refuse, and insect droppings and parts.
• Turbinado sugar, available in health-food stores, is raw sugar that has been purified.
• Contrary to the claims of natural food enthusiasts, neither brown sugar nor honey is more nutritious than white sugar, but consumers who find the taste more appealing can substitute brown for white sugar in any recipe.
• Brown sugar is made by coating white sugar crystals with molasses. While molasses contains iron and other minerals, the amount in brown sugar is too small to be of nutritional value.

Sugar alcohols, such as sorbitol, xylitol, maltitol, and lactitol, are used as sweeteners in chewing gums, candies, ice cream, and many baked goods.

• They provide fewer calories per gram than sucrose, do not promote tooth decay, and do not cause sudden jumps in blood glucose.
• In some people excessive consumption can cause bloating or diarrhea. If such problems do arise, start by adding a small amount of sugar alcohol in the diet and slowly increase it, allowing the body to grow accustomed to the substance. This usually overcomes the problem.
• Since sugar alcohols do not cause a sharp rise in insulin levels, they can be used by diabetics more readily than table sugar. Less than 10 grams will cause no significant rise in blood glucose.

Understanding the different kinds of sugar has never been easier! Keep this guide in mind and consider using an alternative sweetener today.