Sucralose is an artificial sweetener. The majority of ingested sucralose is not broken
down by the body, so it is noncaloric. In the European Union, it is also known under
the E number E955. Sucralose is approximately 320 to 1,000 times as sweet as sucrose, twice
as sweet as saccharin, and three times as sweet as aspartame. It is stable under heat
and over a broad range of pH conditions. Therefore, it can be used in baking or in products that
require a longer shelf life. The commercial success of sucralose-based products stems
from its favorable comparison to other low-calorie sweeteners in terms of taste, stability, and
safety. Common brand names of sucralose-based sweeteners are Splenda, Sukrana, SucraPlus,
Candys, Cukren and Nevella.
History Sucralose was discovered in 1976 by scientists
from Tate & Lyle, working with researchers Leslie Hough and Shashikant Phadnis at Queen
Elizabeth College. While researching ways to use sucrose and its synthetic derivatives
as an insecticide, Phadnis was told to test a chlorinated sugar compound. Phadnis thought
Hough asked him to "taste" it, so he did. He found the compound to be exceptionally
sweet. Tate & Lyle patented the substance in 1976;
as of 2008, the only remaining patents concern specific manufacturing processes.
Sucralose was first approved for use in Canada in 1991. Subsequent approvals came in Australia
in 1993, in New Zealand in 1996, in the United States in 1998, and in the European Union
in 2004. By 2008, it had been approved in over 80 countries, including Mexico, Brazil,
China, India and Japan. In 2006, the Food and Drug Administration amended the regulations
for foods to include sucralose as a non-nutritive sweetener in food. In May 2008, Fusion Nutraceuticals
launched a generic product to the market, using Tate & Lyle patents.
Production Tate & Lyle currently manufactures sucralose
both at a plant in Jurong, Singapore and at a recently reopened plant in McIntosh, Alabama.
It is manufactured by the selective chlorination of sucrose, which substitutes three of the
hydroxyl groups with chlorine. This chlorination is achieved by selective protection of the
primary alcohol groups followed by acetylation and then deprotection of the primary alcohol
groups. Following an induced acetyl migration on one of the hydroxyl groups, the partially
acetylated sugar is then chlorinated with a chlorinating agent such as phosphorus oxychloride,
followed by removal of the acetyl groups to give sucralose.
Product uses Sucralose is found in many food and beverage
products, used because it is a no-calorie sweetener, does not promote dental cavities,
is as safe for consumption by diabetics as non-diabetics, and does not affect insulin
levels. Sucralose is used as a replacement for, or in combination with, other artificial
or natural sweeteners such as aspartame, acesulfame potassium or high-fructose corn syrup. Sucralose
is used in products such as candy, breakfast bars and soft drinks. It is also used in canned
fruits wherein water and sucralose take the place of much higher calorie corn syrup-based
additives. Sucralose mixed with maltodextrin or dextrose as bulking agents is sold internationally
by McNeil Nutritionals under the Splenda brand name. In the United States and Canada, this
blend is increasingly found in restaurants, including McDonald's, Tim Hortons and Starbucks,
in yellow packets, in contrast to the blue packets commonly used by aspartame and the
pink packets used by those containing saccharin sweeteners; in Canada, though, yellow packets
are also associated with the SugarTwin brand of cyclamate sweetener.
Cooking Sucralose is a highly heat-stable artificial
sweetener, allowing it to be used in many recipes with little or no sugar. It is available
in a granulated form that allows for same-volume substitution with sugar. This mix of granulated
sucralose includes fillers, all of which rapidly dissolve in liquids. While the granulated
sucralose provides apparent volume-for-volume sweetness, the texture in baked products may
be noticeably different. Sucralose is not hygroscopic, meaning it does not attract moisture,
which can lead to baked goods that are noticeably drier and manifesting a less dense texture
than those made with sucrose. Unlike sucrose, which melts when baked at high temperatures,
sucralose maintains its granular structure when subjected to dry, high heat. Furthermore,
in its pure state, sucralose begins to decompose into polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and
other highly toxic substances at temperatures above 119 °C or 246 °F. Thus, in some
baking recipes, such as crème brûlée, which require sugar sprinkled on top to partially
or fully melt and crystallize, substituting sucralose will not result in the same surface
texture, crispness, or crystalline structure. Packaging and storage
Pure sucralose is sold in bulk, but not in quantities suitable for individual use, although
some highly concentrated sucralose-water blends are available online, using 1/4 teaspoon per
one cup of sweetness or roughly one part sucralose to two parts water. Pure, dry sucralose undergoes
some decomposition at elevated temperatures. In solution or blended with maltodextrin,
it is slightly more stable. Most products containing sucralose add fillers and additional
sweetener to bring the product to the approximate volume and texture of an equivalent amount
of sugar. Effect on caloric content
Though sucralose itself contains no calories, products that contain fillers, such as maltodextrin
and/or dextrose, add about 2-4 calories per teaspoon or individual packet, depending on
the product, the fillers used, brand, and the intended use of the product. The US Food
and Drug Administration allows for any product containing fewer than five calories per serving
to be labeled as "zero calories". Health, safety, and regulation
Sucralose has been accepted by several national and international food safety regulatory bodies,
including the FDA, Joint Food and Agriculture Organization / World Health Organization
Expert Committee on Food Additives, the European Union's Scientific Committee on Food, Health
Protection Branch of Health and Welfare Canada, and Food Standards Australia New Zealand.
According to the Canadian Diabetes Association, the amount of sucralose that can be consumed
over a person's lifetime without any adverse effects is 9 milligrams per day per kilogram
of body weight.
"In determining the safety of sucralose, the FDA reviewed data from more than 110 studies
in humans and animals. Many of the studies were designed to identify possible toxic effects,
including carcinogenic, reproductive, and neurological effects. No such effects were
found, and FDA's approval is based on the finding that sucralose is safe for human consumption."
For example, McNeil Nutritional LLC studies submitted as part of its U.S. FDA Food Additive
Petition 7A3987 indicated that "in the 2-year rodent bioassays ... there was no evidence
of carcinogenic activity for either sucralose or its hydrolysis products ..."
The consumer advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest, downgraded sucralose
from "Safe" to "Caution" in June 2013, citing a new study linking sucralose consumption
with leukemia risk in rats. However, they also write that "It [sucralose] appears to
be the safest artificial sweetener, though no independent tests have been conducted".
The original Italian study has been criticized of being poorly executed and reported.
Safety studies Results from over 100 animal and clinical
studies in the FDA approval process unanimously indicated a lack of risk associated with sucralose
intake. However, some adverse effects were seen at doses that significantly exceeded
the estimated daily intake, which is 1.1 mgday. When the EDI is compared to the intake at
which adverse effects are seen—known as the highest no adverse effects limit—at
1500 mgday, there is a large margin of safety. The bulk of sucralose ingested is not absorbed
by the gastrointestinal tract and is directly excreted in the feces, while 11–27% of it
is absorbed. The amount absorbed from the GI tract is largely removed from the blood
stream by the kidneys and eliminated in the urine, with 20–30% of the absorbed sucralose
being metabolized. Environmental effects
According to one study, sucralose is digestible by a number of microorganisms and is broken
down once released into the environment. However, measurements by the Swedish Environmental
Research Institute have shown wastewater treatment has little effect on sucralose, which is present
in wastewater effluents at levels of several μg/l. There are no known ecotoxicological
effects at such levels, but the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency warns there may be a continuous
increase in levels if the compound is only slowly degraded in nature.
Other potential effects A Duke University study funded by the Sugar
Association found evidence that doses of Splenda of between 100 and 1000 mg/kg, containing
sucralose at 1.1 to 11 mg/kg, reduced the amount of fecal microflora in rats by up to
50%, increased the pH level in the intestines, contributed to increases in body weight, and
increased levels of P-glycoprotein. These effects have not been reported in humans.
An expert panel, including scientists from Rutgers University, New York Medical College,
Harvard School of Public Health, Columbia University, and Duke University reported in
Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology that the Duke study was "not scientifically rigorous
and is deficient in several critical areas that preclude reliable interpretation of the
study results". Another study linked large doses of sucralose, equivalent to 11,450 packets
per day in a person, to DNA damage in mice. In a small scale study of 17 obese test subjects,
sucralose was found to affect glycemic and insulin responses, leading to an increase
in peak plasma glucose concentration and insulin secretion rate.
See also Erythritol
Neotame PureVia
Stevia Sugar substitute
Tagatose Truvia
Xylitol References
External links U.S. FDA Code of Federal Regulations Database,
Sucralose Section, As Amended Aug. 12, 1999 Material Safety Data Sheet for Sucralose
Ferrer, Imma; Thurman, E. M.. "Analysis of sucralose and other sweeteners in water and
beverage samples by liquid chromatography/time-of-flight mass spectrometry". J Chromatog. A 1217: 4127–4134.
doi:10.1016/j.chroma.2010.02.020.