Definition

Occurs in honey and a large number of fruits, particularly apples and tomatoes. Fluid and nutrient replenisher, nutritive sweetener. Inulin from dandelion roots has also been used as a source. Present in polymeric form in the inulins, the energy reserve polysaccharides of many plants, e.g. dahlia and Jerusalem artichoke tubers

Description

Fructose, or fruit sugar, is a simple monosaccharide found in many plants, where it is often covalently linked to glucose to form the disaccharide sucrose. Fructose is one of three common dietary monosaccharides, along with glucose and galactose, that are absorbed directly into the bloodstream during digestion. Fructose is found naturally in many fruits and vegetables and honey. It is frequently derived from sugar cane, sugar beets, and corn. High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which is widely used as a sweetener in beverages and foods, is a mixture of glucose and fructose. The primary reason that fructose is used commercially in foods and beverages is because of its low cost and is its high relative sweetness. It is the sweetest of all naturally occurring carbohydrates being 1.73 times as sweet as sucrose. Fructose consumption in the U.S. has more than doubled in the past 30 years. Americans' fructose intake climbed from 15 grams per day in the early 1900s to 55 grams per day in 1994. This increase is largely due to an increase in soft drink consumption.

General Information

Toxicity

Mechanism of Action