The problem with carbonated drinks is that they contain a lot of sugar, are high in calories, are bad for the kidneys and teeth, and can easily lead to obesity. This is a long-term problem, and the short-term short-term disadvantages are also obvious-carbonated drinks contain a lot of sucrose, which raises blood sugar quickly. You will feel sleepy soon after drinking, which greatly affects the continuity of mental work. Sweetness is something that makes people happy and relaxed, and it is inevitable to taste it in life. The emergence of sugar substitutes has solved the problem of sugar drinks very well.

Nowadays, the most widely accepted sugar substitute drinks, such as sugar-free sparkling water, generally use erythritol. Erythritol is a natural sweetener that belongs to the sugar alcohols. It is derived from natural dietary fiber in fruits and vegetables. It has a similar structure to sugar and is a derivative of monosaccharides. Human taste is strange, and it seems to have a special preference for natural sweeteners (such as sucrose, xylitol, maltitol), and erythritol is one of them. It has a cool taste and an inexplicable refreshing feeling, which is acceptable to most people. Erythritol is widely found in nature, such as fungi and fruits (grapes and papayas are the most typical). Erythritol can also be obtained from glucose through fermentation, and even glucose metabolism in the human body will produce endogenous erythritol. The sweetness of erythritol is 0.65-0.7 that of sucrose. It was discovered more than a hundred years ago and the large-scale production method (i.e. glucose fermentation method) was widely used in the 1990s.

Properties of erythritol.

As times change, some properties of erythritol have become advantages that other sugar substitutes do not have. Erythritol has very low calories, 6% of sucrose, which is the lowest calorie of all sugar alcohols. Erythritol is also known as "0-calorie food". Erythritol has relatively high molecular stability and tolerance, is not easily decomposed into acidic substances by streptococci in the oral cavity, and basically does not cause dental caries - this is similar to xylitol. The biggest advantage of erythritol is its taste. Apply it to sugar substitute drinks. The taste is different from sucrose, but it is better than most sugar substitutes, and most people can accept it. The drink tastes better when you drink it chilled - a secret many consumers have discovered. If sugar substitutes meet the demand of "zero sugar and zero calories but still taste sweet", erythritol solves the problem of "zero sugar and zero calories but still tastes good". Compared with other sugar alcohols such as xylitol and maltitol, erythritol has a lower glycemic index, is less irritating to the gastrointestinal tract, and is less prone to symptoms such as diarrhea.

Is erythritol really unsafe?

Metabolomic studies have shown that there is a positive correlation between plasma levels of erythritol and the increase in central adiposity in young people; and patients with this type of metabolic disease are often high-risk groups for MACE. In short, patients with metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes are at high risk of MACE, and a large part of them are using non-nutritive sweeteners such as erythritol as sweeteners. Flavoring agents may serve as high-risk factors for MACE and accelerate the onset and disease progression of these patients.

But this research also has many limitations. First, the study subjects mainly come from the middle-aged and elderly people who are at higher risk of MACE. This means that this is a targeted study and does not have universal applicability to the whole society.

Secondly, the amount of erythritol used in the experiment far exceeded the daily intake of erythritol for ordinary people. Volunteers were asked to consume a drink containing 30g of erythritol within 2 minutes.

In commercially available "zero sugar" drinks, the amount of erythritol added is about 1.5g-2g/100ml. A 300ml can of sugar-free drink only contains 4.5g-6g of erythritol. This study does not prove a causal link between erythritol intake and cardiovascular disease.

But what really needs to attract public attention is the review and use of sugar substitutes. This study questioned the food additive approval process, arguing that it did not fully consider the adverse consequences and long-term effects of the use of sugar substitutes on the health of high-risk groups.

Compared with the blood sugar shock caused by added sugar, the advantages of low-calorie and low-glycemic foods are still obvious. As long as the intake is controlled, they can not only satisfy appetite but also help control weight and maintain blood sugar to a certain extent. However, for people at high risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, it is still not recommended to use sugar substitutes as an excuse to indulge. They can be replaced appropriately but do not "open your stomach". The best way is to improve your living habits.

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