What is "isomaltulose"

n. (context organic compound English) A sweet-tasting disaccharide found in honey and sugar cane.

Isomaltulose is a disaccharide carbohydrate composed of glucose and fructose linked by an alpha-1,6-glycosidic bond (chemical name: 6-0-α-D-glucopyranosyl-D-fructose). It is naturally present in honey and sugar cane extracts. It tastes similar to sucrose with half the sweetness. Isomaltulose is also known by the trade name Palatinose™, which is manufactured by enzymatic rearrangement (isomerization) from sucrose. The enzyme and its source were discovered in Germany in 1950. After evaluation of its basic physiology—reviewed—it has been used as a sugar alternative in foods in Japan since 1985, in the EU since 2005, in the US since 2006, and in Australia and New Zealand since 2007, besides numerous other countries worldwide where isomaltulose can be found today. Characterization, purity and analytical methods for commercial isomaltulose are laid down for example, in the Food Chemicals Codex. Physical and physiological properties of isomaltulose (Palatinose) have been summarised; its physical properties closely resemble those of sucrose making it easy to use in existing recipes and processes.

• Isomaltulose is not to be confused with isomalt, which is a disaccharide polyol from sugar origin, used as sugar replacer in sugar-free candies and confectionery, and which nutritionally (unlike isomaltulose) is a low-digestible carbohydrate with fiber-like physiology.

The last decade has seen considerable interest in isomaltulose. Like sucrose (table sugar) it can be digested to glucose and fructose. However, it differs from sucrose in one highly important respect. While in sucrose the glucose and fructose are bonded together with a linkage called α1-2, in isomaltulose the linkage is α1-6. This difference results in profoundly different effects on human (and animal) physiology with multiple potential health benefits when isomaltulose is consumed in place of sucrose and certain other carbohydrates. The benefits arise because, in comparison with sucrose and most other carbohydrates, isomaltulose is digested slowly and steadily by humans and animals, and is essentially no substrate for oral bacteria (i.e. isomaltulose is kind to teeth by not promoting tooth decay).