Sucralose vs Aspartame

Description

Sucralose and aspartame are both artificial, high-intensity sweeteners. Many use them instead of caloric sweeteners like table sugar, honey, maple syrup, and brown sugar. Aspartame is about 200 times sweeter than sugar, while sucralose is about 600 times sweeter than sugar. While each of these sugar substitutes is used to sweeten foods and drinks without adding a lot of calories or carbohydrates, their properties differ in addition to their structure. 

Aspartame

Aspartame comprises two amino acids — aspartic acid and phenylalanine. While these are both naturally occurring substances, aspartame is a synthetic dipeptide. It has about 4 calories per gram. However, it is 200 times sweeter than sugar. So in food, it's much less needed to achieve the same sweetness as sugar. Therefore, foods with added sugar have fewer calories than those with added sugar. For example, one single-serve (1-gram) packet of Equal has only 3.65 calories[1]. 

Sucralose

Sucralose is a synthetic sweetener derived from common table sugar (sucrose) composed of glucose and fructose. The best-known brand of sucralose is Splenda, which contains maltodextrin and dextrose that act as fillers, sweeteners, and preservatives. Unlike Aspartame（it is completely broken down by the body）, sucralose contributes few to no calories because the body cannot break its chemical structure. It appears to destabilize protein native structures. This is in direct contrast to the bio-preservative nature of its natural counterpart, sucrose, which enhances the stability of biomolecules against environmental stress. Because it’s the only sugar substitute made from sugar, sucralose has a very sugar-like taste without the bitter aftertaste sometimes present in sugar substitutes such as stevia[2]. 

Aspartame or Sucralose

So, should we use aspartame instead of sucralose? Aspartame is a nutritive sweetener， while Sucralose is a non-nutritive sweetener. Because the sweetener has to contain less than two percent of the calories in an equivalent amount of sugar. I think mainly according to their own needs. Studies show that aspartame has little direct effect on blood glucose. It also has the ability to intensify and extend fruit flavors, like cherry and orange, in foods and drinks. But, aspartame is not heat stable and loses its flavor when exposed to high temperatures. Sucralose remains stable even at high temperatures, making it a better substitute for baking. In addition, Sucralose is soluble (dissolves) in water, while aspartame is only slightly soluble in water but becomes more soluble as the liquid is heated. The user's own physical condition is also a factor to consider.

References

[1] Choudhary A, et al. Revisiting the safety of aspartame. Nutrition Reviews, 2017; 75: 718–730. 

[2] Bacharach S, et al. Stability of individual differences in sucralose taste preference. PLOS ONE, 2019; 9.    

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