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-   -   Allulose: The New Sugar Hiding in Your Food (http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=482547)

Demi Thu, May-23-19 01:42

Allulose: The New Sugar Hiding in Your Food
 
Allulose: The New Sugar Hiding in Your Food

https://www.rd.com/health/healthy-eating/allulose/


Quote:
“Science has recently discovered ways to produce allulose on a larger scale through a process using corn,” says Marjoram. “This discovery is what has made it available as a food ingredient. In addition to tasting like sugar, allulose functions very similarly to sugar—making it a very versatile ingredient. It can be used in baked, frozen, or liquid items for sweetness.”

cotonpal Thu, May-23-19 03:35

I eat only single ingredient foods, avoids the problem of additives and the bother of reading labels.

Dodger Thu, May-23-19 07:47

I'm leery of using any GRAS item that historically has been consumed in small amounts and now is being added to food in larger amounts. There may be side effects that haven't been found yet.

bevangel Thu, May-23-19 08:31

My brother (who has a T1 diabetic child) brought me a 3 lb container of "Keystone Pantry" brand allulose as a gift about 18 months ago. He knew we were eating low carb and thought that since hubby is a T2 diabetic, we might want to try it rather than using completely artificial sweeteners. Especially as it does not spike blood sugar levels the way sucrose does.

Allulose is a naturally occurring sugar, which should appeal to those of the mind that "natural" is automatically better than "artificial." It also has the advantage that it performs very much like sugar. Baked good brown properly. You can make caramel sauce with it. etc.

However, I question the "70% as sweet as sugar" claim... or at least whether that is a universal effect. Both hubby and I had a hard time discerning any sweetness when using it in coffee, until we added amounts equal to maybe 2 to 3 times the supposed sweetness factor of the splenda we normally add to our coffee. I wonder whether or not this is one of those compounds that some people can taste easily and others can't. Maybe there is a genetic component to one's ability to taste it. In any case, at about $10/lb, it seems a bit expensive for everyday use.

However, I have used allulose successfully two or three times to make special treats but also added a few drops of liquid splenda to boost the sweetness factor. For example, it made a fabulous pecan pie for Christmas with a custard that was practically indistinguishable from one made the traditional way with Karo syrup. And since made with an almond flour crust, hubby was able to enjoy one of his favorite desserts again for the first time in years without any bump in blood sugar. (We still cut the pieces small!)

I also used allulose to make caramel for a low-carb turtle cheesecake that turned out quite nicely.

But, day-to-day, we find it better to just not use sweeteners or to use them only in very very limited amounts. After 18 months, my original 3 lb container of allulose is still half full! And, a 100 pack of Splenda typically lasts the two of us about a month.

Some people are able to give up sweets entirely and I applaud them. For the rest of us, it's good to have multiple options. We just need to be careful not to overdo on ANY of them.

Nancy LC Thu, May-23-19 12:13

Bev, thanks for the review! I'm curious about it now too. Usually you have to mix these things with other sweeteners. Maybe it'd blend well with erythritol.

Merpig Thu, May-23-19 13:41

Somewhere on the internet or Facebook or somewhere just in the last day or two I saw an ad for a product called, IIRC, Keto Sweet. It was primarily allulose with a little added erythritol and stevia. I’d never heard of allulose until I saw that ad so I just skipped past it, but may go look at it again if I can find it!

Bob-a-rama Thu, May-23-19 17:38

Anything ending in "ose" is something I avoid (sucrose, fructose, dextrose, and so on).

It might be OK for some, but the only sweetener I need is Stevia for my coffee and tea.

From wiki:

The suffix -ose (/oʊz/ or /oʊs/) is used in biochemistry to form the names of sugars. This Latin suffix means "full of", "abounding in", "given to", or "like". ... Lactose, a disaccharide found in milk, gets its name from the Latin word for milk combined with the sugar suffix; its name means "milk sugar".

Bob

GRB5111 Fri, May-24-19 08:32

Quote:
Originally Posted by bevangel

But, day-to-day, we find it better to just not use sweeteners or to use them only in very very limited amounts. After 18 months, my original 3 lb container of allulose is still half full! And, a 100 pack of Splenda typically lasts the two of us about a month.

Some people are able to give up sweets entirely and I applaud them. For the rest of us, it's good to have multiple options. We just need to be careful not to overdo on ANY of them.

Good observation, and I'm one who can live without sweets. I'd have to test my BG an hour, 2 hours, and 3 hours after consuming to know whether Allulose causes me any issues; however, I have enough stevia on hand to last me a lifetime, as I might use it once or twice a year. For now, I'll learn about Allulose vicariously through the good folks on this forum.

Merpig Sun, May-26-19 16:40

Interesting article about allulose at: https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/allulose#section3

Some quotes:
And here’s some good news for people who have diabetes or are watching their blood sugar — it does not raise blood sugar or insulin levels.

Allulose also provides only 0.2–0.4 calories per gram, or about 1/10 the calories of table sugar.

In addition, early research suggests that allulose has anti-inflammatory properties, and may help prevent obesity and reduce the risk of chronic disease (3Trusted Source).

Allulose may turn out to be a powerful tool for managing diabetes.

Indeed, a number of animal studies have found that it lowers blood sugar, increases insulin sensitivity and decreases the risk of type 2 diabetes by protecting the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas (5Trusted Source, 6Trusted Source, 7Trusted Source, 8Trusted Source).

...... a lot more there, and mostly rat and mouse studies, but they all seemed pretty promising.

CityGirl8 Mon, May-27-19 12:04

In addition to the points that Merpig makes, I've also heard good things about using allulose as good sugar substitute in baking. This is always a tricky one, so it's a good to have other options for people who want those occasional treats. I haven't tried it yet. But I haven't tried Swerve yet, either, because of the cost.

Bob-a-rama Mon, May-27-19 14:04

This is getting interesting

DaisyDawn Tue, May-28-19 08:05

This is one of the sweeteners Keto Connect tested and if I'm remembering correctly it did not adversely affect their glucose/keto readings.

HappyLC Tue, May-28-19 11:20

Quote:
Originally Posted by DaisyDawn
This is one of the sweeteners Keto Connect tested and if I'm remembering correctly it did not adversely affect their glucose/keto readings.


They gave it a green light, but also said it gave them the worst gastro-intestinal distress of any of the products they tested. Link below...Allulose comes at about 4:20.

https://youtu.be/CYfqvTZWilw

Merpig Wed, Jun-05-19 09:20

I purchased some as my grandkids always want to bake when then come over. I tried it in a Keto lemon ricotta cake recipe I had which called for Swerve, but I used the allulose instead. It came out great, no odd aftertaste at all as every other sweetener (except liquid cyclamate) gives me. Some of the reviews say it’s less sweet than sugar so you need more in a recipe but I prefer things less sweet so no issue for me. Fine with BG, didn’t cause any gastric issues. The kids had fun baking 😀

bluesinger Wed, Jun-05-19 09:30

My research said that allulose is a "rare" sugar, that is in it's natural form. Seems to me the pricepoint will lower if they make it artificially using corn, but all corn in the USA (that I know of) is GMO. I don't do GMO if I know about it. I feed DH corn, but I don't consume it myself.

Still, I was looking at all the different forms for sale on Amazon. Just sayin'.


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