Lactitol
What it does
Bulk sweetener.
How it's made
Made from lactose (milk sugar).
Lactitol is a sugar alcohol (polyol) used as a low-calorie sweetener and bulking agent; it is only mildly sweet (around 30–40% as sweet as sugar), so it is often combined with intense sweeteners, and it adds bulk and a sugar-like texture to reduced-sugar sweets, baked goods and chocolates.
It is made from lactose, the natural sugar in milk. Lactose (typically a by-product of the dairy industry) is hydrogenated — hydrogen is added under pressure with a catalyst — which converts it into lactitol. This is the same reduction that turns other sugars into their sugar alcohols.
The lactitol is purified and crystallised into a white powder. Because it is only partly absorbed it provides fewer calories and does not spike blood sugar, and it is tooth-friendly; although it is derived from lactose, the finished polyol contains essentially no lactose, and, like other polyols, large amounts can be laxative.
Possible reactions
Laxative effect in larger amounts; contains a milk derivative.