Question:
What about Honey or foods sweetened with fructose?

After Lap RNY can honey be eaten to sweeten foods? Will it make you dump? What about all the foods at the grocery in the sugar free/diabetic section that are sweetened with fructose. Are these a problem?    — cheryl G. (posted on August 28, 2000)

August 28, 2000
Not sure about dumping- but I found this info on the web: Definition: There are two types of sweeteners: caloric (nutritive) and noncaloric (non nutritive). The caloric sweeteners provide 4 Calories per gram; and the noncaloric varieties provide zero. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Food sources: CALORIC SWEETENERS Brown sugar is made from the sugar crystals obtained from molasses syrup. Confectioner's sugar (also known as powdered sugar) is finely ground sucrose. Corn sweeteners are sugars obtained from corn (for example, corn syrup). Corn syrup is used frequently in carbonated beverages, baked goods, and some canned products. It is a liquid that is a combination of maltose, glucose, and dextrose. Dextrose is glucose combined with water. Fructose is the naturally occurring sugar in all fruits. It is also called levulose or fruit sugar. Glucose is found in fruits but in limited amounts; it is also a syrup made from corn starch. Honey is a combination of fructose, glucose, and water, produced by bees. Invert sugar is a sugar that is made by dividing sucrose into its two parts: glucose and fructose. Sweeter than sucrose and used in a liquid form, invert sugar helps in maintaining the sweetness of confections and baked items. Lactose (milk sugar) is the carbohydrate that is in milk. It is made up of glucose and galactose. Maltose (malt sugar) is produced during the process of fermentation. It is found in beer and in breads. Mannitol is a by-product of alcohol production but does not contain any alcohol. It does have a laxative effect when consumed in large quantities. It is used in dietetic food products. Maple sugar is obtained from the sap of maple trees. It is made up of sucrose, fructose, and glucose. Molasses is obtained from the residue of sugar cane processing. Raw sugar is granulated, solid, or coarse, and is brown in color. It is obtained by the evaporation of the moisture from the juice of the sugar cane. Sorbitol is used in many dietetic food products. It is produced from glucose and it is also found naturally in certain berries and fruits. It is absorbed by the body at a much slower rate than sugar. Sucrose includes raw sugar, granulated sugar, brown sugar, confectioner's sugar, and turbinado sugar. It is made up of glucose and fructose. It is made by concentrating sugar beet juice and or sugar cane. Turbinado sugar is made by refining sugar and making it more pure. NONCALORIC SWEETENERS Aspartame is a combination of phenylalanine and aspartic acid, which are two amino acids. It is also known by its commercial names of Equal, which is available as a packaged sweetener, and as NutraSweet when it is used in food or beverage products. It is 180 to 220 times sweeter than sugar. Ace-sulfame K is an artificial sweetener, also known as Sunette. It is heat stable and can be used in cooking and baking. It is also available as a tabletop sweetener, marketed under the name Sweet One. It is FDA-approved and is used in combination with other sweeteners such as saccharin in carbonated low-calorie beverages and other products. Saccharin is 300 times sweeter than sugar. It is the first artificial sweetener. It is used in several dietetic food and beverage products. Cyclamates are 30 times sweeter than sugar. They are banned in the United States because in 1970 they were shown to have caused bladder cancer in animals. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Functions: Caloric sweeteners provide the sweet flavor and bulk to the food to which they have been added. They also provide freshness and contribute to the product quality. Caloric sweeteners act as a preservative in jams and jellies, and a flavor enhancer for processed meats. They provide fermentation for breads and pickles, bulk to ice creams, and body to carbonated beverages. Noncaloric sweeteners are used in place of caloric sweeteners in some cases. They do not provide calories, but they do provide the sweet taste. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recommendations: Sugar is on the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) list of safe foods. It contains 16 Calories per teaspoon and can be used in moderation. All of the various types of sugars described earlier can be used in moderation. Aspartame has been FDA approved. The moderate safe levels recommended include, for example, 18 packets of Equal, or three 12 ounce of diet soda per day for a 130-pound person. For people with the genetic disorder phenylketonuria (PKU), aspartame is not recommended as they are unable to metabolize it. Saccharin is not considered safe, and currently products containing saccharin must carry a warning on the label that it is hazardous to one's health. Ace-sulfame K is also FDA approved. The FDA provides the ADI (accepted daily intake guide), which is the amount of sweetener that can be used by a human over a lifetime and still be considered safe by a factor of at least a hundred fold. This is about 1/100 of an amount shown to have no toxic effects in animals. The ADI is reported as an amount per kilogram of body weight, which provides a large quantity of the sweetener. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Side effects: Sugar provides calories and no other nutrients. There is a concern that sugar or caloric sweeteners can cause tooth decay. A high intake of sugar does not cause diabetes, but if a person is diagnosed with diabetes the amount of simple sugar eaten daily often needs to be reduced. People have reported side effects from ingesting of Aspartame, but the effect have not been proven with scientific studies. Note: When speaking of nutrition, 1 Calorie = 1,000 calories or 1 kcal. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [Alternative names] [Definition] [Food sources] [Functions] [Recommendations] [Side effects] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright Notice: The information provided herein should not be used for diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. (see disclaimer). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   — Karen R.

August 28, 2000
I use honey to sweeten my hot tea in the evenings and I have no problems with it. Where regular sugar used in teas etc makes me dump and feel awful. I hope this helps you some.
   — jodysgirl

August 28, 2000
I haven't had any problem with fructose but haven't tried honey. The only thing I've had trouble with (besides regular sugar) is sugar alcohol. Sugar alcohol is used quite often in sugar-free foods because it doesn't raise the blood sugar like sugar does (so diabetics can use it) and it doesn't leave an aftertaste. I went to a candy store and bought some sugar-free chocolates a few weeks ago. Well, they had alot of sugar alcohol in them and I just couldn't even eat one piece without problems. I've tried products from the grocery store with sugar alcohol and haven't had a problem though, as long as I stick to one or two pieces only. Maybe there was something else in the candy store candy, I'm not sure.
   — Kellie L.