When it comes to replacing sugar, plenty have tried. The history of sugar substitutes is a catalog of strange scientific accidents stretching back more than a century.

Saccharin

Containing only 1/8 calorie per teaspoon, this ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER is said to be 300 times sweeter than sugar.
In 1879 Dr. Remsen and Constantin Fahlberg, a visiting research fellow, accidentally discovered an artificial sweetener while working with a derivative of coal tar. The pair published their findings in the February 1880 issue of the American Chemical Journal, with Dr. Remsen as lead author.
Four years later, when they were no longer working together, Dr. Fahlberg patented the discovery, which he called saccharin, for the Latin word saccharum, or sugar. Dr. Remsen was not mentioned on the patent. Dr. Fahlberg got rich, and Dr. Remsen, one of the first of five faculty members named university professors at Hopkins in 1875, got angry.

Though it's widely used to sweeten a multitude of commercial foods and beverages as well as in the home some find that it has a decidedly bitter aftertaste. This unpleasant effect is particularly noticeable when a food sweetened with saccharin is heated. Saccharin is available in both powdered and liquid forms in supermarkets. It has been the center of controversy during the last few decades because of its reported possible carcinogenic effects. Because the issue is still being researched, the FDA requires that saccharin products carry a warning label to that effect.

Aspartame

In 1937, a University of Illinois grad student discovered another sweetener when he set his cigarette on a lab bench during an experiment - testing a would-be antifever drug - and then took a drag off the cyclamate- coated end.

In 1965, a chemist named Jim Schlatter was working on a compound to treat gastric ulcers. He licked his finger to grab a sheet of paper and tasted aspartame for the first time. Then there was the 1976 discovery of sucralose by a King's College student working with chemically altered sugars. The student - not a native English speaker - mistook his professor's instruction to "test" the material and tasted a mouthful.

Aspartame is the technical name for the brand names, NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, and Equal-Measure. Aspartame was discovered by accident in 1965, when James Schlatter, a chemist of G.D. Searle Company was testing an anti-ulcer drug. Aspartame was approved for dry goods in 1981 and for carbonated beverages in 1983. It was originally approved for dry goods on July 26, 1974, but objections filed by neuroscience researcher Dr John W. Olney and Consumer attorney James Turner in August 1974 as well as investigations of G.D. Searle's research practices caused the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to put approval of aspartame on hold (December 5, 1974). In 1985, Monsanto purchased G.D. Searle and made Searle Pharmaceuticals and The NutraSweet Company separate subsidiaries.

Alitame

Although not sanctioned for use in the United States at this writing, Alitame is expected to soon become FDA approved. This supernova of ARTIFICIAL SWEETENERS is 2,000 times as sweet as sugar. It's a compound of two amino acids - alanine and aspartic acid.

Sucralose

An ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER that's about 600 times sweeter than sugar. Although not approved by the Federal Drug Administration at this writing, Sucralose is already being used in Australia and Canada under the brand name Splendar. This crystalline, free-flowing sweetener is both water soluble and stable, making it appropriate for a broad range of foods and beverages.

Acesulfame-K

Formulated by the Germans in the late 1960s, this noncaloric ARTIFICIAL SWEETENER (also called Ace-K 160;) was approved in the United States by the Federal Drug Administration in 1988. It's 200 times sweeter than sugar and, unlike ASPARTAME, retains its sweetness when heated, making it suitable for cooking and baking. When used in large amounts, however, Ace-K has a bitter aftertaste, much like that of SACCHARIN. This sweetener is composed of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, sulphur and potassium atoms. It's widely used in a broad range of commercial products including baked goods, candies and imitation dairy products.

Sugar Alcohols

Sugar alcohols are chemically alcohols, but are derived from sugar molecules. They include sorbitol, mannitol, xylitol, lactitol, maltitol, and others. They vary in their sweetness, ranging from about half as sweet as sugar to about as sweet.

Sugar alcohols, or polyols, may be used in place of sugar by most people on a low-carbohydrate diet or who have diabetes. Polyols are slowly and incompletely absorbed from the small intestine into the blood. Absorbed polyols are converted to energy by processes that require little or no insulin. Some of the polyol that is not absorbed into the blood is broken down into fatty acids in the large intestine.

Since they are incompletely absorbed by the intestine, over-consumption may produce a laxative effect in some people. They are often used in "sugar free" candies and syrups. They have about half to three-fourths as many calories as sugar. They also do not promote tooth decay.

Although they are much preferable to sugar, low-carb dieters may still wish to avoid them because some people report that sugar alcohols act as "trigger foods," causing carb cravings or binges.

Erythritol Erythritol is a white crystalline powder that is odorless, with a clean sweet taste that is similar to sucrose. It is approximately 70% as sweet as sucrose and flows easily due to its non-hygroscopic character. Like other polyols, erythritol does not promote tooth decay and is safe for people with diabetes. However, erythritol’s caloric value of 0.2 calories per gram and high digestive tolerance distinguishes it from some other polyols. It has approximately 7 to 13% the calories of other polyols and 5% the calories of sucrose. Because erythritol is rapidly absorbed in the small intestine and rapidly eliminated by the body within 24 hours, laxative side effects sometimes associated with excessive polyol consumption are unlikely when consuming erythritol containing foods.

Hydrogenated Starch - Hydrolysates A mixture of sorbitol, maltitol and hydrogenated oligosaccharides. Depending on the type of HSH desired the maltitol and sorbitol content can be varied, the sweetness of HSH therefore varies from 25 to 50 percent that of sucrose. Suitable for a wide variety of confectionery. Also known as maltitol syrup and hydrogenated glucose syrup. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 3.0 calories per gram.

Isomalt - (sugar alcohol) A disaccharide polyol, approximately 45-65 percent as sweet as sucrose. Can be used in candies, gums, ice cream, jams and jellies, fillings and frostings, beverages and baked products. As a sweetener/bulking agent, it has no off-flavors and works well in combination with other sweeteners. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 2.0 calories per gram.

Lactitol - (sugar alcohol) Sweet-tasting disaccharide polyol derived from lactose. Provides bulk and texture of sucrose with half the calories. Thirty to 40 percent as sweet as sucrose. Potential applications include: baked goods, chewing gum, confections and frostings, frozen dairy desserts and mixes, candy, jams and jellies. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 2.0 calories per gram.

Maltitol - (sugar alcohol) A disaccharide polyol produced by the hydrogenation of maltose. It occurs widely in nature (e.g., in chicory and roasted malt). About 0.9 times as sweet as sucrose with similar sweetness and body. Suitable for many kinds of confectionery, particularly good for candy coating. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 2.1 calories per gram.

Mannitol - (sugar alcohol) A monosaccharide polyol, approximately 0.7 times as sweet as sucrose. Used as a bulking agent in powdered foods and as a dusting agent for chewing gum. Excessive consumption (more than 20 g/day) may have a laxative effect. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 1.6 calories per gram.

Sorbitol - (sugar alcohol) A monosaccharide polyol approximately 0.5-0.7 times as sweet as sucrose. Used in special dietary foods including candies and gums. Excessive consumption (more than 50-80 g/day) may have a laxative effect. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 2.6 calories per gram.

Xylitol - (sugar alcohol) A monosaccharide polyol derived from fruits and vegetables (e.g., lettuce, carrots, strawberries) and from plants and fibrous vegetation. Same sweetness, bulk and caloric value as sucrose. Used in chewing gums, foods such as gum drops and hard candy, and in pharmaceuticals and oral health products. FDA allows the use of a caloric value of 2.4 calories per gram.

Sugar alcohols make it possible for many people to stay on a low-carb diet without cheating. Other dieters believe that they stimulate cravings. It's an individual choice. But keep in mind, most sugar alcohols will give most people gastric distress if consumed in excess.

Sucralose - Splenda

The artificial sweetener sucralose, which is sold under the name Splenda is one of the up-and-coming next generation of high-intensity sugar substitutes. It is non-caloric and about 600 times sweeter than sucrose (white table sugar), although it can vary from 320 tp 1,000 times sweeter, depending on the food application. The white crystalline powder tastes like a lot like sugar, but is more intense in its sweetness.

Sucralose is produced by chlorinating sugar (sucrose). This involves chemically changing the structure of the sugar molecules by substituting three chlorine atoms for three hydroxyl groups.

Sucralose was discovered in 1976 by researchers working under the auspices of Tate & Lyle Ltd., a large British sugar refiner. In 1980, Tate & Lyle arranged with Johnson & Johnson, the world's largest health care company, to develop sucralose. Johnson & Johnson formed McNeil Speciality Products Company in 1980 to commercialize sucralose.

In 1991, Canada became the first nation to approve the use of sucralose. In April, 1998 the US Food and Drug Administration granted approval for sucralose to be used in a variety of food products Diet RC cola was the first US product with sucralose, introduced in May 1998.

Few human studies of safety have been published on sucralose. One small study of diabetic patients using the sweetener showed a statistically significant increase in glycosylated hemoglobin (Hba1C), which is a marker of long-term blood glucose levels and is used to assess glycemic control in diabetic patients. According to the FDA, increases in glycosolation in hemoglobin imply lessening of control of diabetes.

Unfortunately, these products of serendipity haven't lived up to their promise. Consider the health scares - cyclamates are banned in the US; saccharin can't shake its link to cancer. And there's the fact that most sweeteners have just plain left a bad taste in our mouths. Remember Tab? Diet sodas may be better today, but they're still not quite right. Artificially sweetened foods remain a pale reflection of the real thing.

References
Evan Ratliff
Barron's Educational Services, Inc. 1995
THE FOOD LOVER'S COMPANION, 2nd edition, by Sharon Tyler Herbst.
Calorie Control Council.
Dr. Joseph Mercola
Toxicologist Judith Bellin