Physiological Properties of Isomalt as A Sugar Substitute

lsomalt is a hydrogenated carbohydrate and more specifically, it is a disaccharide alcohol. As such, it must be hydrolysed into its monomers (glucose, sorbitol and mannitol) to be absorbed. Isomalt hydrolysis is much slower than maltose or sucrose. Blood glucose response after the intake of isomalt is very low. In fact, the low glycaemic properties of isomalt and its ability to reduce the post-prandial glycemic response of food when replacing sugars were confirmed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) during the claims evaluation process. Also, Owing to its limited digestion and metabolism, isomalt provides less energy or calories to the body than highly digestible carbohydrates such as sugar, glucose or starches. On the basis of studies in humans, it can be concluded that a maximum of 10% of isomalt intake is absorbed and about 90% is fermented in the large intestine. In the large intestine isomalt is completely fermented by the bacterial flora and an increase in total biomass has been reported. Another important property of isomalt is related to oral health and the prevention of dental caries. This is due to the fact, that almost no micro-organisms of the oral flora are capable of fermenting isomalt.