Glucose?

[veg_blondie]

Ok, so Im on a near-vegan diet, without refined sugar, and without simple carbs (white bread, white rice, white pasta, etc)

But reading ingredients lists I constantly see "glucose", now I know this is some form of sugar, but is it refined? Or is it one of the good ones like "fructose"?

Also, is "cane sugar" just the same as "sugar" on ingredients lists?

Any other tips on how to avoid simple carbs and refined sugar in ingredients lists would be great :)

[Mrrple]

I don't know if it's refined, but glucose is the sugar the makes up all sugar. All sugars are made up of the basic sugar called glucose or dextrose. Your body uses it as easily accessed energy. It doesn't need to break it down with an enzyme like lactase, so generally it's easier for your body to process.

Don't know if you knew that, but that's what I know.

[LucidAnne]

mrrples right.
glucose is the most simplest form of sugar. fructose (fruit sugar) really isnt much better than sugar, dextrose, sucrose (anything w/ -ose is sugar)...its just that it is in fruit and taken from fruit.

[Mrrple]

The main reason why fructose is considered a good sugar is because it comes in fruits and vegetables. Fructose is usually the sugar naturally found in foods except for milk. Fruits and vegetables come with water and essential vitamins and minerals. It's much better for your body to be eating unprocessed fructose with lots of water and vitamins, not to mention antioxidants than say, cake and cookies.

[veg_blondie]

If I could avoid all sugar except those in fruit and vegetables easily, trust me I would.
But sugar seems to be in EVERYTHING, and given that time isn't always on my side, I can't make everything from scratch.
For example, today I was making a veggie burrito, and I noticed that whilst I bought "wholemeal" tortillas they still contained sugar! Then my soy milk contains sugar, my cream cheese contains sugar, it almost feels like its impossible to avoid :(
So I just wanted to ask for those reasons, not because Im gorging on cakes and cookies!

[catswym]

i am shocked that you see "glucose" in ingredient lists.

common table sugar/ cane sugar is NOT glucose--it is sucrose. sucrose is made of glucose and fructose.

perhaps your cookbook authors are misinformed.

[veg_blondie]

No not ingredient lists in cookbooks. On food!

[Mrrple]

I know you're not gorging on cakes, I was just trying to explain why fructose is considered a 'good' sugar even if it's not much healthier than table sugar. I wasn't trying to attack you.

I think the only way to find out if a sugar is refined is to ask the company. Why are you avoiding refined sugars anyway? Unrefined sugars have no difference in nutritional value.

[Tweety]

Sugars can be disguised in many products under the same "glucose", "syrups", "cane sugar", "natural juice sweetners", etc. it's all clever marketing because they know people are starting to read the labels and don't want to read "sugar". They should be avoided. Unfortunately these sugars are in just about everything from soy milk to spaghetti sauce. Natural is the way to go or so it seems.

[nidobunny]

i am shocked that you see "glucose" in ingredient lists.


I see glucose all the time on product lists. :-/

[Tweety]

As was mentioned all carbs are broken down into glucose in the end. The good thing about complex carbs such as those found in fruits and whole grains is that it take a while to do this so blood glucose levels remain steady.

Refined carbs like white bread are broken down more quickly causing a higher than desirable spike in blood glucose levels.

Presumably if something has pure glucose as an ingredient, there's no breakdown necessary and it's rapidly absorbed, which again is not a good thing.

As nidobunny notes, it's in a lot of foods, even processed foods touted as "natural' and with a reputation for being a health food.

[veg_blondie]

As was mentioned all carbs are broken down into glucose in the end. The good thing about complex carbs such as those found in fruits and whole grains is that it take a while to do this so blood glucose levels remain steady.

Refined carbs like white bread are broken down more quickly causing a higher than desirable spike in blood glucose levels.

Presumably if something has pure glucose as an ingredient, there's no breakdown necessary and it's rapidly absorbed, which again is not a good thing.

As nidobunny notes, it's in a lot of foods, even processed foods touted as "natural' and with a reputation for being a health food.

Thanks :D
So, are there any types of sugars that are complex carbs as seen in ingredients lists? Or not?

[catswym]

No not ingredient lists in cookbooks. On food!

can you give me examples of foods that you see this on? i'm genuinely curious as i'm an avid label reader and NEVER see glucose listed on products i by (or virtually never).

also, where do you live?

[nidobunny]

I'm in Canada....

A lot of cookies and sugary foods say "glucose fructose" on the label. High fructose corn syrup isn't mentioned on Canadian food products, they say something along the lines of glucose fructose, with or with a comma or hyphen.

[Mrrple]

can you give me examples of foods that you see this on? i'm genuinely curious as i'm an avid label reader and NEVER see glucose listed on products i by (or virtually never).

also, where do you live?

Many times it's called 'dextrose', which is the same thing.

[catswym]

Many times it's called 'dextrose', which is the same thing.

i know. can you give me an example with dextrose listed? cuz i don't see much of that either.

[Mrrple]

let me go look in my pantry, I'll find something. XD

[Mrrple]

Okay I found 'dextrose' in Rainbow Sprinkles and a huge box of muffin mix. Almost everything else said high fructose corn syrup or maltodextrin.

Wikipedia says this about maltodextrin:
"maltodextrin is a moderately-sweet polysaccharide used as a food additive. It is produced from starch and is usually found as a creamy white hygroscopic powder. Maltodextrin is easily digestible, being absorbed as rapidly as glucose."

[LucidAnne]

Thanks :D
So, are there any types of sugars that are complex carbs as seen in ingredients lists? Or not?

"sugars" are simple carbs. these include glucose, dextrose, sucrose, corn syrup, brown sugar, cane sugar, beet sugar, high fructose corn syrup, maltose, confectioners glaze, etc.
these will spike your blood sugar, as they are the most refined. honey and maple syrup are also simple carbs, but you will get a small amount of minerals and nutrients w/ them.
fructose, when found in its natural form IN the actual fruit, is healthy, b/c you are getting the vits, minerals, fiber from the fruit itself. but when listed on a package of something, it acts the same as other simple sugars.

complex carbs are starches, like grains, beans, flour (wheat, white), rice, etc.
these break down in your body into the most simple form, glucose. your body is only able to utilize glucose, so in order for your muscles to get energy, it must use glucose, the simplest form of energy. extra blood glucose gets stored in your liver as glucagon, saved for later.
those these foods turn into sugar, you are deriving energy, minerals, vitamins from them...they are not considered "empty calories" as sugars are often referred to.

when you look at a label, sometimes there will be a list of "carbohydrates" and a # of grams, underneath that, there may be a line of "sugars" and "fiber". if you look at teh sugar, you will see how much simple sugar is in the product, the rest is complex and fiber.

if a product doesnt have sugar w/in the first few ingredients, i wouldnt worry so much. it would be a lovely world if sugar and its aliases werent in everything out there, but you have to do the best you can.

[Tweety]

Thanks :D
So, are there any types of sugars that are complex carbs as seen in ingredients lists? Or not?

Not really, they are usually listed as the food itself such as "100% whole what" or "black beans". What's aggavating is that some foods you might think complex carbs like "wheat bread" also contain simple sugars like sugar and whtie flour.