Products
Sucrose (sugar) is available as a pure substance in supermarkets. Countless foods contain added sucrose or related sugars. While this is obvious in some, for example, sweets such as gummy bears, chocolate cake, or jam, “hidden sugar” is present in numerous processed foods. For many consumers, it is not easy to understand why meat, bread, sauces, soups or a salty spread, for example, have to contain sugar. So-called soft drinks (sodas), energy drinks and “healthy” fruit juices are particularly heavily sweetened. The best-known example is still the sweet drink Coca-Cola:
- 1 liter of Coca-Cola contains 106 g of sugar (manufacturer’s data).
- In many countries, 1 sugar cube weighs about 4 g, in Germany 3 g.
- So 1 liter of Coca-Cola contains about 26 sugar cubes (Switzerland) or 35 sugar cubes (Germany).
A standard can of Red Bull is equivalent to about 6 sugar cubes. The per capita consumption of sugar in many countries today is about 40 kg per year. For comparison, in 1850, each Swiss consumed just 3 kg. Global sugar production is around 160 million tons per year. Incidentally, the statement “of which sugar” in the nutrition declaration refers to all natural and added mono- and disaccharides, i.e. not exclusively to sucrose.
Structure and properties
Sucrose (C12H22O11, Mr = 342.3 g/mol) is a disaccharide and a carbohydrate consisting of one molecule of D-fructose (50%) and one molecule of D-glucose (dextrose, 50%) covalently and glycosidically bonded to each other. The molecule is already split into its components in the intestine. Sucrose exists as a white, crystalline powder or as shiny, colorless to white crystals and is very soluble in water. It is a natural substance obtained mainly from sugar cane and sugar beets. These plants use it to store energy. Sucrose is a chemically clearly defined substance. It is different with “sugar”, which stands for a group of carbohydrates such as glucose (grape sugar), fructose (fruit sugar) and lactose (milk sugar), as well as for mixtures such as glucose syrup.
Effects
Sucrose is a carbohydrate with a sweet taste and a high energy content. 100 g of sugar is equivalent to 387 calories.
Indications for use
- As a sweetener and food additive for food.
- In pharmacy: as an excipient, flavor corrigendum.
- In medicine: as a painkiller for newborns.
- As a preservative
Adverse effects
Excessive consumption of sugary foods is associated with numerous diseases that can lead to serious and sometimes life-threatening complications, including heart attack, stroke, pulmonary embolism and cancer. So the sweet temptation is anything but harmless. Sugar, for example, has been linked to tooth decay, addiction, overweight, obesity and metabolic diseases such as diabetes mellitus and metabolic syndrome. In addition to glucose, the fructose component of sucrose has been held responsible for the harmful effects of sugar in recent years. Also read our article on sugar addiction.
