If you have diabetes or are watching your sugar intake, foods labeled as "sugar-free" can seem like an attractive option. These foods are made with sugar substitutes that can mimic the taste of your favorite cookies or cakes with less sugar. While these foods can be an attractive option, it is still possible they contain additives that impact your blood sugar.
Sugar Alcohols
Foods labeled as "sugar-free" or "no sugar added" can contain blood sugar-impacting sugar alcohols. These sugar alcohols have a structure in between that of an alcohol or sugar molecule and tend to have fewer calories than carbohydrates. Because they are not technically sugar, companies can label their products as sugar-free, but they can affect your blood sugar levels. However, sugar alcohols are not a gram-for-gram equivalent for carbohydrates in your diet, meaning they do not impact your blood sugar levels in quite the same way.
Read the Labels
To ensure a food will not raise your blood sugar levels, read your food label ingredients listing. Words that end in "-ol" can signal a food contains sugar alcohols. This includes additives like sorbitol, maltitol or xylitol. If these ingredients are added to your food, you can still eat it, but you must account for how it could raise your blood sugar. Look for the portion on your food label that says "sugar alcohol." Take this number and divide it by two. Treat the resulting amount of grams like you would carbohydrates as about half the sugar alcohols in your body are digested as carbohydrates.
Artificial Sweeteners
While sugar alcohols can raise your blood sugar levels, artificial sweeteners are not carbohydrates and therefore will not impact blood sugar levels. These sweeteners are added to many foods labeled as "sugar-free." Look for ingredients like acesulfame potassium, aspartame, neotame, saccharin and sucralose, which are all FDA-approved artificial sweeteners. These substances have been "generally recognized as safe" and should not impact your blood sugar levels.
Considerations
While artificial sweeteners may not impact your blood sugar levels like sugar alcohols, don't forget the foods can have as much or more calories than their sugar-containing counterparts. To adjust for changes in taste, manufacturers often add saturated or trans fats into sugar-free products. Also, some people may not digest products that contain artificial sweeteners as well. These sweeteners can have laxative effects or cause stomach upset in some people. Talk to your physician about potential side effects of artificial sweeteners before incorporating them into your diet.
