Title: Alternative Sweeteners

70 Bopp and Price
and thickeners (13, 22). Low-calorie salad dressings require the substitution of
two basic ingredients: cyclamate (or a mixture of cyclamate and another sweetener)
for the sugar and a hydrocolloid or thickener for the oil (13, 22).
Baked goods are probably the most difficult foods to reformulate with noncaloric
sweeteners (13, 22, 24). In addition to sweetness, sugar provides bulk
and texture, has a tenderizing effect on gluten, and is important in the browning
reaction. Cyclamate cannot furnish these properties, and hence the formulations
must be modified to include bulking agents (e.g., modified starch or dextrins,
carboxymethylcellulose) and a tenderizing agent (e.g., lecithin). Although proper
browning is difficult to achieve, some success can be obtained by application of
a caramel solution onto the surface. In yeast doughs, sugar also acts as an energy
source for the fermentation reaction. However, satisfactory products containing
cyclamate and only a small amount of sugar (1%) can be prepared if the salt
content and the fermentation time are reduced (24). As the amount of sugar in
chemically aerated products is decreased, more liquid must be added to retain
the proper consistency of the batter and the eggs must be used to their best advantage
for structure and aeration. Good results were obtained with a slurry technique,
in which the flour and other dry ingredients were mixed with water before
being added to the whipped eggs (24). However, preparation of high-quality,
low-calorie baked goods still represents a major technical challenge.
In contrast to baked goods, the lack of a browning reaction with cyclamate
can be an advantage in cured meats (17, 22, 25). When sugar-cured bacon or
ham is fried, the sugar tends to caramelize, losing its sweet taste and giving the
meats a darkened appearance. Because cyclamate has a higher melting point than
sucrose, cyclamate-cured meats taste better, have an improved color, and do not
scorch or stick in the frying pan.
Cyclamate has also found applications in pharmaceutical and oral hygiene
products. It is particularly good at masking the bitterness and unpalatable taste
of many drugs and hence is especially useful in syrups, other liquid formulations,
and chewable tablets (16). Cyclamate imparts a high level of sweetness with a
low solid content, thus providing suspensions that are more fluid and have fewer
problems with caking (16) or tablets that disintegrate rapidly and have less bulk
(26). Cyclamate is also useful as a sweetener in both film coating and compression
coating of tablets, and the acid form can be used as an effervescent agent (26).
Because cyclamate is noncariogenic, it is suitable for use in toothpastes and
mouthwashes.
VIII. AVAILABILITY
Cyclamate is still available in the United States, as well as from foreign suppliers.
The use of cyclamate as a food additive is currently prohibited in the United