Sweeteners

Foods that contain sucrose can increase your blood glucose level significantly, but calorie for calorie no more so than other starches. Your dietitian and you may choose to substitute sucrose for other carbohydrates in your meal plan. However, it is important that you adjust your insulin dosages or other medications that control your glucose in accordance with any calorie differences that result from the substitution. Again, your dietitian can help you with this adjustment.

It has been suggested that fructose be used in place of sucrose in the diet. However, studies have shown that when fructose is substituted for sucrose, it may increase cholesterol levels. Therefore, it is not recommended that fructose be specifically substituted for sucrose. However, you shouldn't avoid consuming naturally occurring fructose in foods such as fruits and vegetables.

What about artificial sweeteners and non-nutritious sweeteners such as saccharin and aspartame? These are free of calories, and you must take this into account when incorporating these sweeteners into your diet. And the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the use of these sweeteners for the general population as well as for those with diabetes.