What is Xylitol?
Xylitol is a sweetener that occurs naturally. It can be found, for instance, in berries, fruit, vegetables and mushrooms. Xylitol also occurs in human tissues.

Where does it come from?
Corncobs and birch trees are the main sources for commercially produced xylitol. However, there are no residual corn products in the xylitol. Xlear Australia's xylitol comes from corn from China. We source our xylitol from the world's largest supplier of the product so customers can be assured of its quality and taste, compared to other inferior brands.

How does Xylitol differ from other sweeteners?
Strictly speaking, xylitol is not actually a sugar, but a sugar alcohol. It differs from other sweeteners such as sorbitol, fructose and glucose because the xylitol molecule has five, instead of six, carbon atoms. Most bacterias are unable to make use of such sugars. This is one reason why xylitol is so effective in preventing caries.

What is the calorie content compared to sugar?
Xylitol has 40% fewer calories than "normal" table sugar.

What is the carbohydrate content compared to sugar?
Xylitol contains 75% less carbohydrates compared to "normal" table sugar.

What is the Xylitol to sugar exchange ratio?
The xylitol to sugar ratio is 1-1.

Is it GMO free?
Yes, our Naturally Sweet products are of the highest possible quality and are all GMO free. This may not be the case with other inferior brands.

What does it taste and look like?
Xylitol tastes and looks just like sugar. If you were to put a small amount on your tongue by itself, you would notice a very pleasant cooling minty aftertaste as being the only difference from sugar. This pleasant aftertaste is one of the many reasons why food manufacturers overseas love to use xylitol in their products.

Can you use it to cook?
Yes, xylitol is interchangeable with sugar for most cooking applications. Since yeast cannot metabolize it, Xylitol will not work when baking breads or anything that contains yeast. Furthermore, xylitol does not crystallize as much as table sugar; therefore it does not do well when making peanut brittle or other hard candy.