Xylitol

Xylitol – white crystal matter, on caloric content close to sugar, and on sweet to sucrose, but not having biological value.

Xylitol in the natural form contains in fibers of many fruit and vegetables and can be extracted from various berries, oats and mushrooms, and also from a peel of corn, a sugarcane and bark of a birch.

Industrial production of xylitol happens by processing of deciduous breeds of trees or corncobs which are hydrolyzed in xylose and are catalystically hydrogenated in xylitol. The biggest producer of xylitol in the world is China.

Xylitol was found almost at the same time German and French by chemists at the end of the 19th century and became popular in Europe as safe sweetener for people with a diabetes mellitus.

Xylitol is natural carbohydrate which looks and has taste of usual sugar. It is natural sweetener which can be extracted from any fibrous plant material.

Xylitol also contains in a human body – the average adult produces up to 15 grams of xylitol a day at a normal metabolism.

Xylitol use

In the food industry use of xylitol as dietary and diabetic sweetener is eurysynusic. Also xylitol is known as E967 nutritional supplement which is a moisture-holding agent, sweetener, the stabilizer and emulsifier. It is added in production of confectionery for patients with diabetes and obesity.

In chemical industry xylitol is used in production of synthetic pitches, surfactants and ethers.

Unlike other natural or synthetic sweeteners, xylitol is useful to health of teeth. It has the following properties: reduces the level of caries and remineralizes teeth.

The early researches conducted in Finland in the 1970th years found out that in comparison with sucrose use of xylitol does not lead to problems of an oral cavity or dedentition. The bacteria causing caries prefer six-carbon sugar or disaccharides while xylitol does not give in to fermentation and cannot be used as an energy source, interfering with growth of bacteria and their reproduction. Harmful microorganisms starve in the presence of xylitol that promotes remineralization of the injured teeth. The same property does xylitol unsuitable for production of bread as disturbs ability of yeast to digest sugar.

Having approximately for 33% smaller caloric content, than glucose, xylitol is more dietary substitute of food sugar. Being absorbed more slowly, than sugar, it does not increase its level in blood and does not lead to a hyperglycemia. This characteristic also was useful to the people suffering from a metabolic syndrome – a widespread disease which includes insulin resistance, arterial hypertension, a hypercholesterolemia and the increased risk of formation of blood clots.

Xylitol is used as sweetener in drugs, chewing gums and pastils. Also xylitol possesses cholagogue and aperient action at the use about 50 g a day.

Use of xylitol is effective at treatment of acute infections of a middle ear. Researches show that chewing gums which part xylitol is can prevent acute average otitis. When bacteria get to an organism, they stick to fabrics, using various compounds of sucrose. Chewing of an elastic band and swallowing of saliva lead to clarification of a middle ear while presence of xylitol prevents growth of bacteria in ear trumpets which connect a nose and ears.

Also saline solutions of xylitol considerably reduce number of nasal koagulazonegativny staphylococcal bacteria, and nasal administration of xylitol is effective at asthma.

Properties of xylitol

Molecular formula of xylitol – C5H12O5, molar weight – 152.15 grams/mol, density – 1,52 g/cm ³, melting temperature – 92–96 °C, boiling temperature – 216 °C, solubility in water – ~ 1,5 g/ml.

Harm of xylitol

Xylitol does not cause in a human body of serious side effects. As well as the majority of sugar alcohols, it has laxative effect as sugar alcohols not completely break up in the course of digestion. In overdose cases harm of xylitol consists in abdominal distention, a meteorism and diarrhea.

Also harm of xylitol is shown at its use by dogs. Xylitol is the toxin dangerous to their life. It leads to decrease in level of sugar in blood of dogs and can lead to loss of coordination, a depression, a collapse and spasms. Reception of a dose of xylitol bigger, than leads 500-1000 mg/kg of weight to a liver failure at dogs which can be fatal.