Why This “Zero Calorie Sweetener” Isn’t Zero Calories

Splenda is a "zero-calorie sweetener", at least in the US. Or at least, that's what it says on the packet. With the help of some Benedict's Solution, and his chemistry teacher, Alex is going to do some food science.
entr0pysays...

Wow, I thought it was going to be less than 1, and rounded down, that's just inexcusable that they're allowed to round 4 down to 0.

Though, in practice a drink sweetened with splenda will have fewer calories than one sweetened with sugar, because you need less of it to achieve the same perceived sweetness. A single sugar packet is around 20 calories.

worthwordssays...

good video. note :if splenda has dextrose in it already then you don't need to use the invertase.
Splenda is sucralose which isn't well digested 10-30% in the gut depending on what microbes you have but it has a horrible aftertaste and so I imagine they used dextrose right up to the 5% FDA limit to help mask it.

Phreezdrydsays...

How are these rules created, and why are people always surprised by them? I imagine there's an argument made around margin of error, and then where the line should be is lobbied for. Is the "under five equals zero" rule reasonable or shady?

I feel like I'm arguing for the five second rule.

Spacedog79says...

Its called lobbying or legalised corruption. It's a very cost effective business strategy.

Phreezdrydsaid:

How are these rules created, and why are people always surprised by them? I imagine there's an argument made around margin of error, and then where the line should be is lobbied for. Is the "under five equals zero" rule reasonable or shady?

I feel like I'm arguing for the five second rule.

ChaosEnginesays...

To play devils advocate... the average calorie intake for an adult is between 2000-3500 depending on age, gender and activity level. Let's take the low bound of 2000.

So 4 calories is 0.2% of your recommended daily calorie intake. In other words, you'd need to eat 500 packets of splenda a day to maintain your body weight (sidenote: REALLY don't do this).

Basically, when a meal is 6-800 calories, the difference between 4 and 0 is almost meaningless.

That said, saying it has ZERO calories implies that you can have as many servings as you like, which is obviously not a good idea.

In conclusion, drink your fucking coffee black. Anything else is just being a pansy.

Phreezdrydsaid:

How are these rules created, and why are people always surprised by them? I imagine there's an argument made around margin of error, and then where the line should be is lobbied for. Is the "under five equals zero" rule reasonable or shady?

I feel like I'm arguing for the five second rule.

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