Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness

Hi,

Im interested in using a protein bar that has zylitol in it,but im really chemically sensitive,and wanted to know if zylitol is a frankenstein food or is it healthy?

thanks,

T

I believe it is plant derived, and a sugar alcohol.....and that there ends my familiarity with it (if that much is even correct)

_________________
Standing on a hill in my mountain of dreams,
telling myself it's not as hard, hard, hard as it seems.

Trident gum is supposed to have info on it on their website....at least thats what I read on a pack of gum last nite.

_________________
If I can't dance, I don't want any part of your revolution - Emma Goldman

http://www.bikeandbuild.org/donate
donate to bike and build in my name ashley berkman!!!!!

Listen to my music...
http://www.myspace.com/selfdestructionishabitforming

Xylitol is one of the great hidden secrets in our society and shows considerable promise where obesity, oral health and diabetes is concerned! How I wish I had known about it when it was first introduced into the U.S. some 30 years ago. It's is my favorite sweetener for a variety of reasons:

1. Actually promotes anabolism and is anti-catabolic. Great news for body builders. Contains anti-oxidants as well.

2. It is vegan. Xylitol is predominantly derived from birch wood and is found in lettuce, strawberries and some grains. It is so natural that the human body produces approximately 5 mcg of it daily.

3. Xylitol paradoxically actually diminishes sugar cravings and has 40 percent of the calories, ounce per ounce in comparison with sucrose.

4. It is non-cariogenic. Many studies within the field of dentistry suggest that it actually retards the growth of strep mutans in the mouth by promoting an alkalizing environment and gives harmful bacteria 'acid indegestion' due to xylitol's pentol structure--s. mutans is unable to properly metabolize it.

5. It tastes sensational--better than sugar in that it is cool tasting, dissolves well and relieves dry mouth.

I could go on lauding the wonderful benefits of adding xylitol to your diet. Instead, I'll let the experts further enlighten you:

http://www.xlear.com/xylitol/

http://www.laleva.cc/food/xylitol.html

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/xylitol.htm

Why does it have such a scary name? Wouldn't it be better to call it Nummy, or Numshious, or Nom-nom?

_________________

True, its rather clinical sounding name makes it seem as though xylitol were concocted in a laboratory. Nutrasweet sounds so much better and yet, this is a frankenfood if ever there was one. But what of the amino acids? Phenylalanine, isoleucine and asparagine don't sound very comforting either. Admittedly, vitamin C sounds a good deal better than ascorbic acid...

Xylitol is a natural sugar alcohol like sorbitol, mannitol, erythritol and lactitol. Xylitol and erythritol are the true standouts and since our bodies manufacture the enzymes to metabolize them well when they are ingested in large quantities. You may recall that sorbitol promotes a laxative effect. It also lacks xylitol's nutritive benefit and its anti-cariogenic properties as well.

They should all have better names too

Phenylalanine: Uncle Phil Flavour
Isoleucine: Peachy Pie
Asparagine: Wholesome Fizzy Juice

_________________

Sugar alcohols are nasty in terms of digestion. I can't handle them at ALL.
They have an er, LAXATIVE EFFECT....noted on many packages...

As I stated above, that's certainly the case with the majority of the sugar alcohols. But do know this to be true in your case with xylitol? Introduced in small quantities initially and gradually increasing the dosage shows virtually no laxative effect in the majority of people using it. That's because the human body makes up for the increase by creating more of the enzyme to metabolize it. Xylitol is handled by the body far differently than sorbitol and others are.

it is carcenogenic though. and will have a laxative effect in larger doses.

Let me reiterate this once more: the human body, undergoing normal metabolic activity, generates xylitol in small amounts daily. It is not foreign to the body and is very definitely NOT carcinogenic. It is a completely natural carbohydrate found in several plant foods and was not "developed" in a laboratory like sucralose, saccharin and aspartame.

Xylitol also rarely causes a laxative effect. It has erroneously been associated with sorbitol, another natural polyol which does promote loose stools. This is one of the many explanations about xylitol's metabolism which I got doing a Google search:

"Although xylitol is tolerated well even in large servings, very sensitive individuals may need to adapt to higher intakes. An adaptive increase in the activity levels of an enzyme (a polyol dehydrogenase) greatly increases the rate of xylitol absorption in a few days. This is not the case with sorbitol. Xylitol is slowly absorbed and metabolized, resulting in negligent changes in insulin. It also has 40% fewer calories than ordinary sugar. Xylitol dissolves quickly and produces a cooling sensation in the mouth. It is a true sugar replacement, having the physiologic advantage of a pleasant taste and sweetness equal to sugar with no aftertaste. It can easily be used to replace sucrose (table sugar) in the diet."