Many products labeled with no added sugar contain artificial sweeteners. Manufacturers may use the term sugar-free if the product has less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving. But just because a product says it contains sugar doesn't mean it's good for you. For example, a sugary breakfast cereal may claim to have “less sugar” (reduced from what?) or that is “lightly sweetened” (a meaningless and unregulated term).
This can make health-conscious shoppers think it's a better option. Those containing less than 0.5 g of sugar per 100 ml or 100 g are considered sugar-free. On the other hand, “no added sugar” means that no sugar has been added to the product as an ingredient. Therefore, it only contains sugar of natural origin.
FDA guidelines require that a food must contain less than 0.5 grams of sugar per serving to label it as sugar-free. After learning about the harmful effects of sugar on the human body, if you want to avoid sugar, you should know the best alternatives to sugar. According to the FDA, the no-added sugar statement can only be used if no sugar or ingredients containing sugar are used during processing. But, before you know the best alternatives to sugar, you must first look at the differences in sugar that can confuse you.
In the market, you can find a product such as Amul sugar-free dark chocolate and, if you don't have a clear idea, it's hard to understand what it means. Therefore, if a manufacturer uses them as ingredients in a packaged food, then that item may contain sugar without adding sugar. Sugar content statements on a label can help you control your sugar intake, but these statements don't tell the whole story. Because the sugar molecules remain in an undigested form, it has approximately one-third of the calories of table sugar.
According to the FDA, products labeled sugar-free may contain sugar and naturally occurring sugar alcohols, but not artificial sweeteners.
