What is this most talked about food ingredient in children’s milk, sucrose?

A type of carbohydrate (composed of simple carbohydrates fructose and glucose), sucrose is a crystalline disaccharide which occurs naturally in every fruit and vegetable. It is the major product of photosynthesis, the process by which plants transform the sun’s energy into food. Sugar occurs in greatest quantities in sugar cane and sugar beets from which it is separated for commercial use.

Sucrose is widely used as a preservative or sweetener in food manufacturing. When eaten, sucrose is broken down to its component carbohydrates (fructose and glucose) in the intestines and these two types of carbohydrates are readily absorbed into the bloodstream. Most of the fructose is converted into glucose in the liver. Like all carbohydrate, sucrose is ultimately used by the body as glucose for energy.

The term sucrose includes a number of different types of white, raw and brown sugar; all are excellent sources of carbohydrates for energy. Sucrose can be in many forms like: granulated, the standard white sugar for home use consumption with medium sized crystals; manufacturer’s sugar which is used by food and beverage industry; caster sugar, produced by screening fine white crystals from granulated sugar. Because cane sugar is finer and dissolves faster than ordinary white sugar, it is particularly useful in special applications, such as cake mixtures, puddings and powdered drink bases; cube sugar, damp white sugar is pressed into mould and the moulds dried, making the crystals stick together. This is mainly used for table use; and  brown sugar, its brown color comes from sugar cane molasses which also imparts a very special flavor. The color ranges from light golden brown (with low molasses content) to rich dark brown (with high molasses content). Just like the white colored sugar, it is useful in many cakes and puddings.

Other than being a preservative and sweetener, sucrose enhances flavor in foods such as preserved meats and tomato sauce. It also provides bulk and texture in ice cream, custard, baked goods and confectionery. Sucrose also contributes to crust, color and flavor and delays staleness in cakes and biscuits.

Based on the Diet Manual published by the Nutritionist-Dietitians Association of the Philippines even children aged one to six years old can have a 6 tsp sugar allowance per day. For adults, and diabetics, they can have as much as five to 10 tsp per day (under a 2000 kcal diet). That adult allowance comes from the recommendation that adults may have five to 10 percent of their total daily caloric intake from sucrose.

From the American Diabetes Association’s recommendations for the management of diabetes (secondary prevention), substantial evidence from clinical studies demonstrates that dietary sucrose does not increase glycemia more than isocaloric amounts of starch, Thus according to the group’s recommendation, intake of sucrose-containing foods by people with diabetes does not need to be restricted because of concern about aggravating hyperglycemia. Sucrose-containing foods can be substituted for other carbohydrates in the meal plan or, if added to the meal plan, covered with insulin or other glucose lowering medications.

From the Filipino Foods Guide Pyramid, sugar is placed on the top most portion of the pyramid, to indicate that it should take the least part in our diet.

(Write the author at wellbeing@mb.com.ph.)