How does fructose intolerance develop?
Fruit sugar is a simple sugar called fructose. Fruit sugar is found in fruit and fruit juices, but also in various vegetables, honey or table sugar. Normally, fruit sugar is absorbed completely from the bowel into the blood. In case of fructose malabsorption, the transport of fructose from the bowel into the bloodstream is disturbed resulting in a limited absorption of fruit sugar in the small bowel. On account of its incomplete absorption, sugar reaches the deeper sections of the bowel where it is decomposed into hydrogen (H2), carbon dioxide (CO2) and short-chain fatty acids. The consequences include complaints such as winds and diarrhoea. Whether the symptoms are strong or weak depends on how much fruit sugar was taken in and on the extent of the malabsorption. Fructose malabsorption should not be mistaken for the very rare hereditary fructose intolerance. This is a hereditary disorder of the fructose metabolism that results in the fact that fructose cannot be decomposed at all or n
