Low carb people. Xylitol?

[Juniper]

What can you tell me about this? Do you use it? Like it?

 

I see that it has 4grams of carbs per teaspoon, alcohol sugars, what does that mean exactly?

 

Thanks!

[Momof3littles]

You are right, it is a sugar alcohol. Most diabetics don't find it raises their blood sugar (whereas I think some have issues with malitol and sorbitol. I won't touch either of those because the GI upset is crazy bad). We use it mostly for toothcare, although I used to bake with it more often a few years back. I now prefer erythritol, which is a little less sweet, but nice when combined with stevia. In the ideal world, I wouldn't use any sweetener, but for the things I bake here and there, I like erythritol and stevia. eta: if you are new to LC, I'd cut all sweeteners out initially for a few weeks. We've been doing this for several years, so it is helpful for us to have alternatives for birthday cakes, holidays, etc. and that's why I feel okay baking with almond or coconut flour and erythritol on occasion.

 

Many people don't count the carbs in it. Some people count them because they are sensitive to it and don't lose well with it. The body basically can't process it and it passes through your system mostly unused in any way.

 

If you overdo it, it is possible to have (tmi) loose BMs and tummy rumbles because it is an osmotic laxative. Work your way up gradually. Malitol and sorbitol are worse for most people, then xylitol is probably in the middle. Erythritol tends to bother people the least, but YMMV.

 

It is toxic to dogs. It drops their blood sugar rapidly, so keep away from them.

 

It is excellent for dental health. It kills the bacteria that cause tooth decay, as they try to process it like sugar but can't metabolize it.

 

Xylitol and erythritol both have a bit of a "cooling" sensation (a very slight touch of almost a menthol-y quality) which isn't bothersome in most things IME, but you can detect it in other things. Not a big deal to me overall. Xylitol is pretty much as sweet as sugar, whereas erythritol is less sweet. It helps to combine erythritol with a little bit of stevia for that reason.