Sugar Alcohols and Non-Nutritive Sweeteners

Sugar-free and "zero sugar" products replace sugar with two very different groups of ingredients: sugar alcohols, which add bulk and some calories, and high-intensity sweeteners, which are used in tiny amounts. This guide explains how each group is regulated in the US, how to spot them on the label, and what the current evidence does and doesn't show.

Two kinds of sugar substitutes

Sugar alcohols (polyols)

Sugar alcohols are carbohydrates whose chemical structure resembles both sugar and alcohol, though they contain no ethanol. Common examples include erythritol, xylitol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, isomalt, and lactitol. Some occur naturally in small amounts in fruits and vegetables; the ones in packaged foods are usually manufactured.

Sugar alcohols are less sweet than sugar or about as sweet, so they are used in similar quantities. They provide fewer calories than sugar's 4 calories per gram because the body absorbs them only partly. Values range from close to zero for erythritol to roughly 2 to 3 calories per gram for sorbitol and maltitol. They also tend to raise blood sugar less than sugar does, which is one reason they appear in products marketed to people watching their carbohydrates.

High-intensity sweeteners

High-intensity sweeteners are hundreds or even thousands of times sweeter than sugar, so only a pinch is needed and they add little or no calories. The FDA lists six that are approved as food additives: saccharin, aspartame, acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), sucralose, neotame, and advantame. Two plant-based options reach the market a different way: certain high-purity steviol glycosides from the stevia plant and extracts of monk fruit (luo han guo) are used under "generally recognized as safe" (GRAS) notices that the FDA reviewed without objection. Whole stevia leaves and crude stevia extracts are not approved for use in foods.

How they are regulated

For each approved high-intensity sweetener, the FDA sets an acceptable daily intake (ADI), the amount considered safe to consume every day over a lifetime, with a large safety margin built in. The FDA has said that typical intakes in the US are well below these limits. For aspartame, for example, the FDA's ADI is 50 mg per kilogram of body weight per day, far more than most people consume.

Aspartame carries one required warning. It contains phenylalanine, which people with the rare inherited disorder phenylketonuria (PKU) must strictly limit, so products with aspartame must state "Phenylketonurics: Contains Phenylalanine."

In 2023, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the WHO, classified aspartame as "possibly carcinogenic to humans," its category for limited evidence. At the same time, the WHO and FAO expert committee on food additives (JECFA) reviewed the data and kept its acceptable daily intake unchanged. The FDA said it disagreed with IARC's conclusion and continues to consider aspartame safe under its approved conditions of use.

Some sugar alcohols have their own labeling rule: the FDA requires foods likely to lead to high daily intakes of sorbitol or mannitol to carry a statement that excess consumption may have a laxative effect.

How they appear on the label

• Ingredients list: every sweetener must be listed by its common name, such as "erythritol," "sucralose," or "stevia leaf extract."
• Sugar alcohols line: under FDA rules, listing sugar alcohols in grams on the Nutrition Facts label is voluntary, unless the package makes a claim about sugar or sugar alcohols (such as "sugar free"), in which case the grams must be shown. That means you may find sugar alcohols in the ingredients but not on the panel.
• Added sugars: neither sugar alcohols nor high-intensity sweeteners count as sugars or added sugars, so a sugar-free product can truthfully show 0 g added sugars.
• Total carbohydrate: sugar alcohols are included in total carbohydrate, even though they aren't fully digested. Front-of-package "net carbs" figures are calculated by manufacturers; the FDA has not defined the term.

What the evidence says

Weight control

Replacing sugar-sweetened drinks with diet versions cuts calories, and short-term trials show modest weight loss when people make that swap. Longer-term evidence is less clear. In 2023 the WHO issued a guideline recommending that non-sugar sweeteners not be used as a means of weight control. The WHO labeled this a "conditional" recommendation, meaning the evidence was of low certainty, and it did not apply to people with existing diabetes. The WHO also said the guideline was not a judgment on the safety of any specific sweetener.

In the US, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025–2030 take a similar line: they state that no amount of added sugars or non-nutritive sweeteners is recommended as part of a healthy diet. That is dietary advice, not a safety ruling; the FDA's approvals of these sweeteners are unchanged.

Blood sugar

High-intensity sweeteners and most sugar alcohols have little direct effect on blood sugar, which is why they're common in foods for people with diabetes. The American Diabetes Association considers them an acceptable way to reduce sugar, while encouraging water as the first choice for drinks.

Digestive tolerance

Because sugar alcohols are only partly absorbed, the rest reaches the large intestine, where it can cause gas, bloating, or diarrhea in larger amounts. Tolerance varies from person to person. Erythritol is generally better tolerated than sorbitol or maltitol because most of it is absorbed and excreted unchanged.

Open questions

Researchers continue to study how sweeteners may affect the gut microbiome, appetite, and cardiovascular health. For example, a 2023 observational study reported an association between higher blood levels of erythritol and cardiovascular events. Observational findings like this can't show cause and effect, and regulators have not changed their positions, but the question is being studied further. Separately, xylitol is highly toxic to dogs, according to the FDA, so keep xylitol-sweetened gum and snacks away from pets.

How to use this on myfoodfact.com

• See which products use common sweeteners on our ingredient pages for erythritol, sucralose, aspartame, and stevia.
• Browse products with 10 g of sugar or less per 100 g, then check the ingredients to see whether the sweetness comes from a substitute.
• Learn how sugar substitutes fit into the sugar lines in our guide to added sugars vs total sugars.

The bottom line

Sugar alcohols and high-intensity sweeteners can help reduce added sugar, and the FDA considers the approved ones safe at typical intakes. They aren't a shortcut to weight loss, according to the WHO's conditional guidance, and sugar alcohols can upset digestion in larger amounts. If you use them, treat them as a way to step down from sugar-sweetened products, and read the ingredients list, since the Nutrition Facts panel may not show sugar alcohols at all.

This guide is for general information and is not medical advice. If you have diabetes, PKU, or digestive conditions, follow the guidance of your health care team.