A healthy, natural sweetener with surprising benefits.
What is Xylitol?
Pure xylitol is a white crystalline substance that looks and tastes like sugar. It’s not an artificial sweetener, but an all-natural sugar alcohol found in many fruits and vegetables and produced in small amounts by the human body. Xylitol has been researched for over 40 years, resulting in thousands of studies confirming its effectiveness and safety. Xylitol is absorbed slowly and only partially utilized by the body, which means fewer calories: 2.4 calories per gram (40% less than other carbohydrates). It also has a low glycemic index (7, compared to sugar’s 83) and has little effect on blood sugar levels. Since the body does not require insulin to metabolize xylitol, it has become a widely used sweetener for diabetic diets in some countries. In the U.S., xylitol is approved as a food additive in unlimited quantity for foods with special dietary purposes.
Improving Oral Health
Xylitol is one of the newest, easiest and tastiest ways that people can improve oral health. Research done in widely different conditions confirms that xylitol use may reduce tooth decay rates both in high-risk groups (those naturally prone to dental carries, as well as those with poor nutrition and poor oral hygiene) and in low-risk groups (those less prone to dental carries, who apply all current prevention recommendations). Sugar-free chewing gums and candies manufactured with xylitol as the primary sweetener have already received official endorsements from six national dental associations.
Improving Sinus & Nasal Care
The addition of xylitol to saline nasal sprays, neti pots, and positive pressure bottles has been shown to make them more effective at improving and maintaining upper respiratory health. Xylitol helps prevent the causes of sinus issues and upper respiratory discomfort by stimulating the body’s natural cleansing process to clear away contaminants and irritants in the nasal passages. If they can’t stick to the tissue, they can’t cause problems. Unlike many saline solutions, our unique, non-medicating xylitol nasal spray can prevent the dried-out feeling that comes from overuse of sinus medications or basic saline solutions.
Xylitol Sources
Xylitol is found widely in nature; most of the fruits and vegetables that we eat on a daily basis have small amounts of xylitol. For commercial purposes xylitol comes from two sources: corn fibers or trees. Even though the end product is the same, the process to extract it from these two sources is not.
Corn fibers are our preferred source for xylitol, because it is much more sustainable and environmentally friendly. Xylitol is extracted from the stalks or other byproducts of the plants, and comes from corn grown naturally by non-industrial, family farmers. These products, which are non-GMO, are a renewable resource, which would be otherwise wasted at the end of a harvest season. Are extraction process uses no corn grains, and ensures that no allergens from corn occur in the final products. Using corn fibers that take 5 months to grow is a much more sustainable and replenishable source for xylitol than using trees that require 20 years or more to grow.
Recommended By
Xylitol is recommended by dentists, medical doctors, periodontists, pediatricians, and many health organizations and health professionals worldwide as a sweetener for anyone concerned with dental health, upper respiratory health, and sugar consumption in general.
How To Use Xylitol
The key to getting the greatest benefit from xylitol is to use it consistently and often, so it stays in contact with your teeth, mouth, and nasal passages. Look for products that use xylitol as the principal or only sweetener, and products that encourage chewing or sucking to keep it in contact with your teeth. Xlear and Spry products are sweetened with 100% xylitol.
How much xylitol should I use?
Studies show that 4 to 5 daily applications of xylitol per day are very effective. Many of the studies have shown that it is important that it be the major or only sweetener in the products, because the addition of other sweeteners often reduces the effectiveness of xylitol. All of the products in the Spry Dental Defense System®, line are only sweetened with, and are particularly rich in, xylitol. It is easy to get up to the recommended effective exposures on a daily basis with the full spectrum of products in the Spry Dental Defense System®, and other Xlear products.
How often should I use xylitol?
If used only occasionally or as little as just once a day, the results may NOT be as effective, regardless of the amount. Therefore it is best to use at least three, and preferably five times every day.
When should I use xylitol?
Use immediately after eating or snacking. If xylitol is the only sugar remaining in the mouth, most bacteria cannot metabolize it and will not be able to make the acids or biofilm that can attack teeth. Between meals, replace ordinary chewing gum or breath mints with comparable Spry products, which are 100% xylitol sweetened. If you have more questions about how to use any of our products, please contact Xlear.
