# What Is Sucralose? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 1, 2004, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121 "2004-06-01T19:34:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jim\_B](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jim_b/32/4338_2.png) [@Jim\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_B)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2004, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/1 "2004-06-01T19:34:16Z")
All I know is on the TV comercial, they claimed it’s made from real sugar, so it must taste good (oh, sure). So what exactly is Sucralose? How is made? Is it really low-calorie? And the big question: is it safe? Anyone whose tried it, please chime in as well. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dragonblink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Dragonblink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragonblink)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2004, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/2 "2004-06-01T19:40:46Z")
If I’m remembering my artificial sweeteners correctly (there’s a lot of them), Sucralose is the one commonly known as Splenda. It’s not bad, really. I mean, it still tastes like an artificial sweetener, but not as bad as some (and doesn’t have the lingering aftertaste of, say, acesulfame potassium). I’ll have to point my diabetic mother toward this thread; in the years since her diagnosis she’s become an expert on the various artifical sweeteners. ---
**Author:** ![Q.E.D](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/51bf81/32.png) [@Q.E.D](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.E.D)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2004, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/3 "2004-06-01T19:43:24Z")
[Splenda™ Brand sucralose](http://www.splenda.com/index.jhtml): > [@](#): > > SPLENDA® is the brand name for the ingredient sucralose. It is made through a patented, multi-step process that starts with sugar and converts it to a no calorie, non-carbohydrate sweetener. The process selectively replaces three hydrogen-oxygen groups on the sugar molecule with three chlorine atoms. Chlorine is present naturally in many of the foods and beverages that we eat and drink every day ranging from lettuce, mushrooms and table salt. In the case of sucralose, its addition converts sucrose to sucralose, which is essentially inert. The result is an exceptionally stable sweetener that tastes like sugar, but without sugar’s calories. After consumption, sucralose passes through the body without being broken down for energy, so it has no calories, and the body does not recognize it as a carbohydrate. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2004, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/4 "2004-06-01T19:48:34Z")
> [@Jim B.](#): > > All I know is on the TV comercial, they claimed it’s made from real sugar, so it must taste good (oh, sure). So what exactly is Sucralose? How is made? Is it really low-calorie? And the big question: is it safe? Anyone whose tried it, please chime in as well. > > 🙂 The molecule is sucrose with three of the hydroxyl (OH) groups replaced by chlorine atoms - the body is unable to metabolize it. Its sweetness is about 600 times that of actual sugar, so, like most artificial sweeteners, it is usually cut with a filler like maltodextrose to obtain something that can be used as a volume-for-volume sugar substitute. The physical properties may not be right for baking and other applications because of this. ---
**Author:** ![sunfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/96bed5/32.png) [@sunfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunfish)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2004, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/5 "2004-06-01T19:52:14Z")
To me, Splenda doesn’t have the same terrible aftertaste that aspartame or saccharin have, although I can indeed tell it apart from the real thing. I use it mostly to sweeten my coffee, and have gotten used to the taste. IIRC Ocean-Spray makes a Light Ruby Red Grapefruit juice that uses Splenda, and it doesn’t taste bad at all. The one thing I’ve tried that wasn’t appealing was a ginger ale I picked up at Trader Joe’s - the combination of extra-gingery flavoring and Splenda was a little but much for my taste buds. Splenda apparently can be usedfor baking, but because Splenda doesn’t have the same bulk that sugar does, the difference needs to be compensated for. The Splenda website has suggestions for that, but I haven’t tried them out yet. Anyone? ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2004, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/6 "2004-06-02T04:47:10Z")
It doesn’t work well for things that are very sensitive, like merengues. I think my roommtae used it to make a chocolate cake once and it came out OK. ---
**Author:** ![1010011010](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/ea666f/32.png) [@1010011010](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/1010011010)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2004, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/7 "2004-06-02T05:17:56Z")
It has a molasses-like after taste, IMO. It certainly tastes more like real sugar than other artificial sweeteners (except maybe stevia), but it’s still not quite there. Anyone ever used tagatose? ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2004, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/8 "2004-06-02T06:33:56Z")
> [@Jim B.](#): > > All I know is on the TV comercial, they claimed it’s made from real sugar, so it must taste good (oh, sure). So what exactly is Sucralose? How is made? Is it really low-calorie? And the big question: is it safe? Anyone whose tried it, please chime in as well. Splenda has a weird texture - but it’s ok in coffee. At Trader Joe’s, they used to have grape juice sweetened with Splenda - it was slightly more Koolaidish than regular Grape Juice, but it tasted good. I don’t like it in hot chocolate (why does it work some things and not others? don’t know). It’s much better than Equal or Sweet & Low - no question. ---
**Author:** ![ColonelDax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@ColonelDax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ColonelDax)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/9 "2004-06-03T07:51:18Z")
Sucralose seems to be going down well in the market. Tate & Lyle Plc, the British sugar and starches company that first patented Sucralose for use as a sweetener, said today it will spend £16 million ($30 million) to expand the plant in McIntosh, Alabama, at which it makes the stuff “to reflect growing demand.” Disclosure: I own Tate & Lyle shares. ---
**Author:** ![Loopydude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e56c9b/32.png) [@Loopydude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loopydude)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/10 "2004-06-03T14:02:40Z")
I think, compared to the other artificial sweeteners out there, sucralose is damn good. One thing I’ve liked a lot have been the low-carb ice-creams sweetened with Splenda. Breyers makes some flavors that aren’t half bad. In fact, they’re downright tasty. Of course, a fair amount of the sweetening in these products comes from sugar alcohols (not only for flavor, but also for texture and humectant properties…I think the same goes for some baked good that use Splenda), but as sugar alcohols don’t cause tooth decay and have minimal impact on insulin levels, that’s fine w/me. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/11 "2004-06-03T14:05:44Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > The molecule is sucrose with three of the hydroxyl (OH) groups replaced by chlorine atoms - the body is unable to metabolize it. Its sweetness is about 600 times that of actual sugar, so, like most artificial sweeteners, it is usually cut with a filler like maltodextrose to obtain something that can be used as a volume-for-volume sugar substitute. The physical properties may not be right for baking and other applications because of this. Does anyone have a picture of exactly which hydroxyls are being replaced? ChemFinder only gives me 1,6-Dichloro-1,6-dideoxy-beta-D-fructofuranosyl-4-chloro-4-deoxy-alpha-D-galactopyranoside and sugar naming is one of those parts of chemistry I’ve never been good at (or all that interested in) but it doesn’t have a structure available. For that matter, they don’t have any physical data on it at all. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/12 "2004-06-03T14:09:23Z")
Silly me. I forgot to search SciFinder Scholar and follow the ChemFinder links. If anyone is curious, [here’s](http://www.trc-canada.com/product.lasso?product=S692500) a picture from a Canadian chemical company. The cost for research-grade sucralose is USD600 a gram. ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/13 "2004-06-03T14:15:14Z")
We’re a Splenda household. I use it in my coffee, iced tea (I’d use it in my hot tea, but I don’t drink hot tea 😉 ), and in cooking. I’ve had some success making whole grain peanut butter cookies with it, less success with chocolate chip. But I make some mean gingered carrots like this: drain one can of some premium brand of baby cut carrots (we use LeSeur), and empty them into a microwave safe bowl. Add one tablespoon each of butter and sugar-free pancake syrup; add one packet of Splenda, and 1/4 tsb. ground ginger. Microwave for about 4 minutes on 50%. Good eatin’. Oh, and Deviled Chicken: 6 skinless, boneless chicken thighs 6 TBSP each: butter (cut up) and brown mustard 18 pkts. Splenda 1/4 tsp. each crushed red pepper flakes and nutmeg. Put everything in the crock pot on high for 4 hours. If you want, in the last 90 minutes, add a cup of brown rice and a can of chicken broth. Yummy. ---
**Author:** ![olefin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d78d45/32.png) [@olefin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/olefin)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/14 "2004-06-03T14:16:53Z")
Guess I’ve used Aspartame too long. I tried Splenda, I couldn’t tell a difference except when I bought it. (higher price) After taste in Aspartame? To me there is none, thats why I’ve used about a ton of it… including all the diet cokes and ice tea. I could never could stand saccharin… talk about after taste! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![norinew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/eb9ed0/32.png) [@norinew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/norinew)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/15 "2004-06-03T15:03:54Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by olefin_ > Guess I’ve used Aspartame too long. I tried Splenda, I couldn’t tell a difference except when I bought it. (higher price) I happily used aspartame in coffee and iced tea for years, and probably still would, except that Mr. norinew much prefers the Splenda. Also, I don’t think I could make my deviled chicken with aspartame, as that kind of cooking time would greatly reduce the sweetness; also, I’ve found at the volumes that many recipes call for, aspartame does, indeed, have an off-taste (to me, anyway; YMMV). As for the price, Splenda is more expensive (especially with generic aspartame being available); but we buy ours at Sam’s Club, and pay somewhere on the order of $14.00 for 700 pakcets. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/16 "2004-06-03T15:44:38Z")
> [@1010011010](#): > > It has a molasses-like after taste, IMO. > > It certainly tastes more like real sugar than other artificial sweeteners (except maybe stevia), but it’s still not quite there. > > Anyone ever used tagatose? We’ve discussed tag a couple times here. Right now, I think it is only being sold as an ingredient, not a standalone sweetener. More products seem to be coming out which contain it. It OUGHT to be an ideal solution (search for our previous discussions on it). I’m guessing that it is still too expensive. Most of the products using it seem to be using it in conjunction with other artificial sweeteners - they use SOME tag for the right physical properties, such as getting the right consistency in the 7-11 Pepsi slurpees, but don’t use it exclusively. ---
**Author:** ![olefin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/d78d45/32.png) [@olefin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/olefin)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/17 "2004-06-03T15:48:04Z")
> [@norinew](#): > > As for the price, Splenda is more expensive (especially with generic aspartame being available); but we buy ours at Sam’s Club, and pay somewhere on the order of $14.00 for 700 pakcets. Well, that is the same price as Aspartame … maybe I need to try it again. 😉 I wonder why Splenda is not used in Diet Coke? ---
**Author:** ![GilaB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/8e7dd6/32.png) [@GilaB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GilaB)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/18 "2004-06-03T19:41:29Z")
> [@yabob](#): > > Right now, I think it is only being sold as an ingredient, not a standalone sweetener. My diet-conscious roommate has a 9.7 ounce bag of the stuff, plus a 3.9 ounce box with a pour-spout like my box of confectioner’s sugar. The bag has 11.5 cups of sugar-equivalent, and is intended for baking. Somehow it just feels wrong when I pick it up, though, because it’s much, much lighter than an equivalent volume of sugar. ---
**Author:** ![Padmaraga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@Padmaraga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padmaraga)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/19 "2004-06-03T21:41:22Z")
> [@olefin](#): > > Well, that is the same price as Aspartame … maybe I need to try it again. 😉 > > I wonder why Splenda is not used in Diet Coke? So far, the only sodas/colas I’ve seen that use Splenda are Diet Rite (Royal Crown) and Costco’s Simply Soda. I’ve tried both, and I like them better than Diet Coke. But you can’t get either at most (or almost any!) restaurants/fast food chains. So I’ll be happy when either Coke or Pepsi come out with a Splenda version, since I’m not comfortable with aspartame. Costco sells Splenda for the same price as Equal - give or take 10¢. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2004, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121/20 "2004-06-03T22:15:21Z")
> [@GilaB](#): > > My diet-conscious roommate has a 9.7 ounce bag of the stuff, plus a 3.9 ounce box with a pour-spout like my box of confectioner’s sugar. The bag has 11.5 cups of sugar-equivalent, and is intended for baking. Somehow it just feels wrong when I pick it up, though, because it’s much, much lighter than an equivalent volume of sugar. Tagatose? Really? That’s what I was referring to, not sucralose, responding to 1010011010’s question. Arla has the exclusive license to the commercial process for food uses, and is marketing it under the name “Gaio”. I hadn’t seen anything about them selling it other than as an ingredient. I’s be interested to know that tag was appearing on retail shelves. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-sucralose/248121.md?page=2)