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A draft proposal for sweetener legislation covering the polyols and intense sweeteners has recently been submitted by the EC Commission. In this, a broad range of polyols are proposed for use according to good manufacturing practice provisions. Six intense sweeteners are to be included on the list, but the foodstuffs in which these sweeteners will be permitted and the maximum use levels will both be controlled. The implications of these provisions are discussed.

Summarizes the recent changes that have taken place in both the individual intense and bulk sweeteners markets and considers their likely influence on the pattern of intake observed in the 1987/88 diary record surveys carried out by MAFF. The intense sweetener market continues to develop steadily, largely driven by the diet, low‐calorie and reduced calorie soft drinks market. The bulk sweeteners market has not been subject to the same rapid development experienced for intense sweeteners, but the signs are there that the market for this class of sweetener is starting to develop and a variety of new applications are beginning to emerge. Provides a brief overview for each of the currently approved individual intense and bulk sweeteners and describes their contribution to the UK sweeteners market. Discusses the implications of the EC Sweeteners Directive, which has recently been adopted by member states and will be implemented in the UK within the next year or so, in relation to acceptable levels of sweetener intake.

The purpose of this study is to collect and assess the evidence available on the effect of non nutritive sweeteners on appetite, weight and glycemic regulation. As a replacement for sugars, non-nutritive sweeteners (NNSs) are widely being used in different food products with the assumption that these would lower calorie intake and help to manage weight and blood sugar levels better. However, studies using animal models have reported that chronic exposure to NNSs leads to increased food consumption, weight gain and insulin resistance.

Evidence was acquired from systematic reviews or meta-analyses (2016–2021) of relevant clinical studies, especially randomized control trials using Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines.

The review showed NNSs exposure did not conclusively induce increased food intake or change in subjective appetite ratings. Appetite biomarkers like ghrelin, gastric inhibitory peptide, C-peptide levels and Peptide YY remained mostly unaffected by NNSs. Meta-analyses of human randomized control studies showed a reduced energy intake and body weight. No significant change was seen in blood glucose levels, post-prandial glycemic or insulin response after consumption of NNSs. Adequate evidence is not available to conclusively say that NNSs influence gut health at doses relevant to human use.

Most studies which are prospective cohort, observational and cross-sectional studies suggest that use of NNSs may promote obesity and metabolic syndrome in adults. Such studies are plagued by confounding variables and reverse causation. Mechanistic evidence is mostly based on in-vitro and in-vivo studies. The same causal pathways may not be operative or relevant in humans.

This review of available literature concludes that to achieve specific public health and clinical goals, the safe use of NNSs for the reduction of intakes of free sugars and energy should be explored. This would be possible by educating the consumer about energy compensation and understanding the nutritional content of artificially sweetened products in terms of calories coming from fat and complex carbohydrates used in the product.

This study was, thus, designed with the objective of examining the usefulness of NNSs in human population, especially with respect to insulin regulation, glycemic control and weight management. Well-designed randomized control trials which control for confounding variables are needed to generate high quality evidence.

This paper aims to study how diabetics/pre-diabetics (D) and non-diabetic (regular consumers of sweeteners (C) or not (NC)) perceive and consume sweetened processed food in Brazil.

A cross-sectional study (n = 2,204) was carried out to gather information about: consumption of 14 sweetened food/beverage categories, perception of sugar/sweeteners (check-all-that-apply (CATA) test), understanding of sugar claims and socioeconomic/demographic/consume profile. Chi-square test/Fisher exact tests were used to analyze the contingency tables. CATA test results were evaluated using Cochran Q test, RV coefficient and Kruskal-Wallis test.

Results revealed that although diabetics/pre-diabetics consumed less sugary products than non-diabetics (p < 0.001), >50.0% of them preferred sugary candies, bakeries, ready-to-drink fruit juice, ice cream, chocolate and ready-to-eat desserts. D, NC and C similarly perceived (RV = 0.99) sugar (sensory desirable, but penalized due to its health impact), naturally extracted sweeteners (opposite description of sugar) and chemically synthesized sweeteners (penalized by sensory and health impacts). Regarding the claims, those that mean the absence of sugar were correctly understood for = 90.0% participants, while incorrect interpretations were observed for “containing sugars from own ingredients” (42.7%) and “light on sugar” (21.0%), without differences between consumer groups (p = 0.93).

This study was carried out with a convenience sample.

Results can be applied to support food policies and educational campaigns (improving consumer information on processed sweetened foods) and to guide product development in the food industry.

This is the first study to evaluate the Brazilians’ behavior regarding the perception of sugar and sweeteners, the choice of different sweetened processed food, and understanding of sugar claims.

One of the major technological changes in food products over the last decade has been the development of “lite” food and drinks. These products have become regular items of purchase and acceptance in UK diet. The principal areas of growth in the “lite” market have been in sugar‐free drinks and low fat foods. Whilst market growth has been stimulated by increased consumer awareness of diet and nutrition, consumers are being influenced by the image message associated with such products rather than a strict health message. Harmonisation of European food law after 1992, especially in respect of sweeteners, offers potential opportunities for further growth in “lite” markets. Fat replacers are likely to provide an area of future interest as long as concerns about the mass marketing of synthetic foods do not dampen the market.

Intense sweeteners are food additives which are used in many foods and drinks to replace some or all conventional carbohydrate sweeteners such as sucrose and glucose. Because they are hundreds or even thousands of times more sweet than these sugars, only very small amounts are needed to achieve the same level of sweetness. Although some intense sweeteners are metabolised and provide calories to the consumer, the fact that they are used in such small amounts means that they make a negligible contribution to the total energy value of the food itself. They can therefore provide substantial calorie savings compared with conventional foods sweetened with sugars. This property has resulted in the development of important markets for ‘diet’ (‘low calorie’) and ‘reduced calorie’ foods and drinks.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the sugar contents of ready-to-eat foods distributed at amusement parks and suggested an appropriate food safety management strategy for children.

Ready-to-eat food samples (n = 322) in 17 categories were collected from the major amusement parks in Korea, and their free sugar contents were determined. Substitution of sugars in high-sugar foods with appropriate artificial sweeteners is suggested to reduce sugar intake after comparing the estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of the sweeteners with the corresponding acceptable daily intakes (ADIs).

Samples in three categories (tteokbokki, muffins and waffles) were classified as high-sugar foods. The substitution of all sugar in the high-sugar foods with aspartame or sucralose, among the predominant artificial sweeteners in Korea, would not increase their EDIs to higher values than the corresponding ADIs for both children and adolescents. Consequently, substitutions of sugars in high-sugar foods with aspartame or sucralose are suggested. Partial substitutions (45 and 40 per cent, respectively) of sugar are recommended for muffin and waffle, considering their baking properties and current sugar contents.

This paper reveals the necessity of an appropriate safety management system for ready-to-eat foods distributed at amusement parks.

The potential risks caused by sugar in ready-to-eat foods distributed at amusement parks and the substitution of sugar with artificial sweeteners has rarely been assessed. The approaches proposed in this paper minimise the risks posed by both sugar and artificial sweeteners simultaneously, and may be useful in the development of a food safety management system.

Carob has been proposed as a healthy, stimulant-free alternative to chocolate in frozen desserts. In order to make carob a viable and attractive alternative, food producers need to know how it interacts with sweeteners and frozen dessert dispersion matrices. The purpose of this paper is to find the optimal sweetener concentration in three plant-based frozen desserts and carob-flavoured milk dispersion matrix ice cream.

The ideal sucrose concentrations (per cent) were determined through an affective test using the “just-about-right” scale for carob-flavoured frozen desserts made with cashew nut, coconut and soy beverage, as well as milk dispersion matrix. The sweetness equivalence of artificial sweeteners relative to sucrose was determined by the magnitude estimation test.

The authors identified the concentrations of sucrose, stevia and sucralose that produced ideal sweetness in carob-flavoured frozen desserts. Concentrations for soy-based frozen desserts differed from the other dispersion mediums tested. Plant-based frozen desserts exhibited a higher ratio of sweetening power of stevia and sucralose to sucrose compared to milk-based ice cream by a factor of 1.18 and 1.14, respectively.

This study undertook a comprehensive survey of a dairy-free and chocolate-free alternative to chocolate ice cream and found new sweetener interactions with dispersion matrices in carob-flavoured frozen desserts. The findings in this study can be applied in the development of carob-flavoured soybean-, coconut-, cashew nut- and milk-based frozen desserts.

Recent evidence suggests that especially processed foods may lead to undesirable metabolic effects in gut microbiota. The emulsifiers and artificial sweeteners that are added to processed foods may play a role in the progression of the diseases through the modulation of microbiota in mice. In this context, the purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effects of emulsifiers and artificial sweeteners.

This paper presents a narrative review of the effects of emulsifiers and artificial sweeteners which are mainly in consumed in the Western diet, to the gut microbiota by mainly focusing on the experimental studies.

Although in vivo studies and animal model studies showed various adverse effects of sweeteners and emulsifiers to microbiota, studies should be conducted in humans to investigate the effects of these food additives to human microbiota by making dietary interventions in the context of ethical rules.

In future, studies will allow us to draw more definitive conclusion whether human population consuming sweeteners and emulsifiers are at risk.

The development of new, safe alternative sweeteners to sugar is a complex, time‐consuming process. The experts know so little about the mechanisms of taste and the chemical structures of known sweetening agents are so diverse that it is impossible to predict that a chemical structure will produce sweetness. Further, the technical and safety testing of a new low‐calorie alternative, sweetener is very expensive and the resulting data must be subjected to years of regulatory scrutiny before it is ready for commercial production. The International Sweeteners Association reviews the potential use of non‐caloric or very low calorie sweeteners other than the well known saccharin and cyclamate.