What is maltitol, the sweetener used in most sugar free chocolates?
Maltitol is a polyol. Polyols are carbohydrates but they are not sugars. Unlike artificial sweeteners like aspartame which is used in very small amounts, polyols are used in the same quantity as sugar. Chemically, polyols are considered sugar alcohols because part of their structure resembles sugar and part is similar to alcohols. However, these sugar-free sweeteners are neither sugars nor alcohols, as these words are commonly used. Examples of sugar alcohols include maltitol, sorbitol, mannitol, lactitol, and xylitol. A majority of it is excreted out of the body during the digestion process. What this means is that excess consumption of polyols can cause a laxative effect so please monitor your consumption.
