Frogwise

Food & Drink · Research series

Sweetness

Every source of sweetness, examined from the chemistry up. What each sugar and sweetener is made of, what happens to it in your body, what the research says — and how to choose, whether you are filling a shopping basket or making a product.

  1. Parte 1Every type of sugar, and what it does in your bodyGlucose, fructose, sucrose, lactose, honey, agave, coconut sugar and more — the chemistry, the health problems, and the few real benefits.
  2. Parte 2Every sweetener, ratedStevia, monk fruit, erythritol, xylitol, allulose, aspartame, sucralose and the rest, with a traffic light and a Frogwise score for each.
  3. Parte 3Inulin, chicory, FOS and yaconThe faintly sweet fibres that feed your gut bacteria: what is proven, what is not, and who should be careful.
  4. Parte 4Sweet without sugar: dates, fruit, roots and spicesThe positive sources of sweetness, and why the same sugar behaves differently inside a whole food.
  5. Parte 5Choosing sweetness: a buyer's and maker's guideWhat to use for drinks, baking, ice cream and ferments, sugar's 50 label names, and EU labelling rules.

How we rate

Every sugar and sweetener gets a traffic light, and sweeteners also get a score out of 10 for health, environment and transparency, following The Frogwise Standard.

  • GreenA good choice in normal amounts.
  • AmberFine occasionally; watch the dose or the open questions.
  • RedWe would avoid it where we can.