Preliminary Study Finds Sucromalt May Help To Maintain Mental And Physical Energy Better Than Glucose

Emerging Cargill research, published online on Oct. 22, 2012, in Nutritional Neuroscience, found that participants who drank a beverage containing sucromalt, a novel slowly digestible carbohydrate, better maintained feelings of mental and physical energy over time compared to when they consumed a beverage made with glucose.

4 Dec 2012 --- Consumers who reach for sugary snacks and beverages to combat their mid-afternoon energy slumps may soon be asking for more products made with Xtend sucromalt. Emerging Cargill research, published online on Oct. 22, 2012, in Nutritional Neuroscience, found that participants who drank a beverage containing sucromalt, a novel slowly digestible carbohydrate, better maintained feelings of mental and physical energy over time compared to when they consumed a beverage made with glucose.

In this cross-over study, 44 healthy adult participants consumed a beverage formulated with either 75 grams of sucromalt (test product) or glucose (control product) in the morning. Then they completed a questionnaire rating their levels of mental and physical energy and fatigue over the next five hours. Results showed that participants reported significantly greater mental and physical energy, delayed physical fatigue, and a trend toward less mental fatigue with sucromalt compared to glucose, particularly four to five hours after consumption. Further research is needed to confirm these findings and to better understand why sucromalt may be advantageous from a metabolic perspective, beyond its effect on postprandial glycemic response.

Xtend sucromalt is a fully caloric carbohydrate syrup that is ideal for use in foods in which steadier energy delivery or an attenuated blood glucose response is desired because it is slowly digestible and has a low glycemic index. “Cargill is leveraging these exciting preliminary findings with our customers to help them explore new product opportunities in the energy category, which is red hot right now. Despite the growth of super-caffeinated products, it is clear that a growing sector of the population wants more options,” said Deborah Schulz, Xtend sucromalt product line manager, Cargill.

Xtend sucromalt is a fully caloric carbohydrate syrup that is ideal for use in foods in which steadier energy delivery or an attenuated blood glucose response is desired because it is slowly digestible and has a low glycemic index. It is 70 percent as sweet as sugar and versatile enough to use in numerous product categories, including nutrition bars, beverages, ice cream and other dairy products, jams and jellies, puddings, gelatins and yogurts.