Sugar Substitutes
Looking for dentist recommended candy and gum? There is a sweetener known as Xylitol that actually fights cavities. Studies have shown that chewing gum with enough Xylitol can reduce your risk of cavities significantly. The same holds true for mints or other candies with xylitol. Xylitol sweetened candy and gum is also diabetic friendly. Xylitol has a glycemic index of 7 versus 100 for pure glucose.
For more information on Xylitol you can visit http://www.xylitol.org
I have tried many of the gums and candies listed below and was happily surprised to find that it tastes almost exactly like sugar sweetened gums and candies. I chew the gum every day at work because it tastes good and it is an easy way to help prevent cavities. Here are links to the Amazon stores of the four major companies who produce Xylitol products.
Types of Xylitol Products
Gum – Xlear, Epic Dental, and Xyloburst all sell xylitol gum with a sufficient amount of xylitol to help fight cavities. Other companies may claim their gum has xylitol but unless it has 0.5-1 gram per piece, it won’t help fight cavities very well. 6 grams a day is recommended. The fresh fruit gum seems to lose its flavor rather quickly but the cinnamon lasts for a long time. I like the flavor on both though.
Mints – I really like the mints. These are also produced by Xlear, Xyloburst, and Epic Dental
Candy – They have lots of different types of candy ranging from hard fruity candies to melt in your mouth chocolate. Again, all these taste surprisingly good for something made with a sugar substitute.
Bags of Xylitol – You can use xylitol in a 1:1 ratio in place of sugar. It is great for putting in coffee or over cereal. It is not quite as good for baking projects. Don’t eat too much at first as your body takes some time to get used to the xylitol and it can cause a laxative effect initially with high amounts.
