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Sugar Free Gum Can Be A Problem In The End

January 12th, 2008
By JOE GANDELMAN, Editor-In-Chief

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WARNING: If you chew too much sugar free gum it may not be healthy in the end.

The sugar free gum craze (which has recently spread to a sea of cough drops that used to have sugar now being “sugar free”) may have a bad bottom line: the sorbitol used in the gum and other sweets could cause severe bowel problems:

Consuming too much sorbitol, a sweetener widely used in “sugar-free” chewing gum and sweets, can cause serious bowel problems, German doctors said on Friday.

The warning follows the cases of two patients who suffered chronic diarrhea, abdominal pain and severe weight loss after ingesting large amounts of sorbitol.

Writing in the British Medical Journal, the doctors from Berlin said the patients — a man and a woman — had consumed some 15 to 20 sticks of chewing gum a day. When they kicked the habit, both regained normal bowel function.

The manufacturers of these products might try to turn the other cheek on this medical criticism, but it is quite precise. On the other hand, there could be a spin: it helps you lose weight. (ADVISORY: the following may conjure up unpleasant images):

Sugar-free gum, if chewed often enough, can lead to not only chronic diarrhea and functional bowel problems but also substantial unintended weight loss, researchers here warned.

Patients who popped 16 to 20 sticks of sorbitol-sweetened gum daily lost about 20% of their usual body weight, reported Juergen Bauditz, M.D., of the University of Berlin here, and colleagues in a case report in the Jan. 12 issue of BMJ.

Sorbitol, one of the most commonly used artificial sweeteners in chewing gum and candy as well as liquid medications, is poorly absorbed in the intestines, giving it the qualities of an osmotic laxative at higher doses….

Note that this isn’t the first time a “sugar substitute” has come under fire. But a company that develops a sugar substitute develops a gold mine. Many people insist the “sugar free” taste is just like sugar. Others (like this writer) think sugar substitutes taste nothing like sugar. There is a trade off since these substitutes are sometimes absorbed by the body differently than sugar.

Sorbitol is a laxative which is poorly absorbed by the small intestine.

….The authors say consumers are generally unaware of the possible side-effects of sorbitol, even though details are included in the small print of foods containing it. When consumers have gastronomical problems they are unaware that they may be caused by the laxative effects of sorbitol.

The authors conclude that sorbitol consumption may not only cause chronic diarrhea and functional bowel complaints, but also significant unplanned weight loss of about 20% of body weight. Any investigation of unexplained weight loss should include a detailed dietary history with regard to sorbitol-containing foods.

Also known as glucitol, sorbitol is a sugar alcohol. The body metabolizes it slowly. It is obtained by reduction of glucose changing the ether group to an addition hydroxyl group - hence the name sugar alcohol.

Sorbitol can be found in cough syrups, sugar free mints, chewing gum, diet foods, diet drinks and ice creams. Sorbitol occurs naturally in some stone fruits and berries from trees of the Sorbus genus.

Sorbitol provides dietary energy of 2.6 kilocalories (11 kilojoules) per gram, compared to sugar which provides about 4 kilocalories (17 kilojoules). Sorbitol retains 60% of the sweetness.

As a food additive Sorbitol has an E-number E420 and is categorized as a sweetener, emulsifier and humectant.

Sorbitol is also used as a non-stimulant laxative. It is either an oral suspension or a suppository. It draws water into the large intestine, stimulating bowel movements.

Good, old sugar looks (and tastes) better and better…



This entry was posted on Saturday, January 12th, 2008 at 7:59 pm and is filed under Medicine, Health. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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