Scientists discover new sugar: Low-calorie, with health benefits

We can all probably agree that sugars are not healthy. For example, some of my friends sweeten their coffee with artificial sweeteners, which I personally don’t understand because I find the taste unpleasant. You can flavour your tea with honey, but in some cases you just can’t do without sugar. Recently, however, there has been talk of tagatose, a monosaccharide that could replace sugar in many ways.

Tagatose is even sweeter than conventional sugar. But it contains only a third of the calories and does not cause a spike in insulin levels. It sounds a little too miraculous, so of course it has its drawbacks too. What exactly is tagatose? When and where can it be used, how accessible is it today, and what does the future hold?

Sweeteners are dead

I’ve been avoiding sugary sodas for a long time. I only have chocolate or cake on rare occasions. But in some dishes, sugar is simply not to be missed. When baking, I replace it with honey, but I can’t stand bitter coffee and sweeten it only with classic sugar. My grandparents were sweeteners. And I try in vain to explain to them that they don’t really live that much healthier than I do because of it.

I understand that my “sweeteners are disgusting” argument is not convincing. But besides tasting artificial, they are scientifically proven to have negative health effects. “Low-calorie and non-caloric sweeteners are often considered a healthy alternative to sugar. However, our findings suggest that some sweeteners may have negative effects on brain health over time,” says researcher Claudia Kimie Suemoto, for example.

Sweeteners don’t lead to weight loss as many people think. On the contrary, they can promote sweet cravings and their increased use leads to a risk of diabetes or cardiovascular disease. So the question is whether replacing sugar with this alternative actually helps or harms. However, many people my age have lately been leaning towards the idea that it is better to consume regular sugars, just in very limited quantities.

A miracle called tagatosis

Tagatose is a naturally occurring simple sugar that is chemically very similar to fructose. While this low-calorie sweetener tastes almost like sugar, the body processes it differently. Tagatose has a very low glycemic index and, in addition to promoting weight loss compared to regular sugar, it does not damage teeth (it does not cause tooth decay).

The market development of tagatose has so far been slowed down mainly by the fact that its production costs are high. However, scientists have recently made a relatively groundbreaking step in which they have discovered how to produce this product efficiently and sustainably. “Procedures for producing tagatose already exist, but they are inefficient and expensive,” explains biologist Nik Nair. But that problem is a thing of the past, he adds.

In its natural form, tagatose is found in some dairy products and fruits. It is metabolised in the digestive tract in a similar way to fructose. Both the US Food and Drug Administration and the World Health Organisation consider the substance to be completely safe. Its potential for the future is therefore high, but for the time being its availability is limited.