Swerve Sweetener

What is Swerve

Swerve is made from ingredients found in select fruits and starchy root vegetables, and contains no artificial ingredients, preservatives or flavors. It’s zero-calorie, non-glycemic and safe for those living with diabetes, since it has no effect on blood glucose or insulin levels.

Swerve is a true sugar replacement because it's sweet and delicious! Unlike other natural sweeteners like stevia, it has no bitter aftertaste and measures just like sugar. It's also the only sugar replacement of its kind that browns and caramelizes just like sugar, so all of your favorite recipes will be a breeze.

Swerve & Diabetes

Swerve is a sweet—and smart—choice for people with diabetes. Getting used to a diabetes lifestyle can be a real challenge, but incorporating Swerve is a cinch. Making your favorite recipes safe for you to enjoy is as easy as a cup-for-cup Swerve-for-sugar swap. The Glycemic Index Laboratories in Toronto, Canada, performed a study with 15 healthy participants between the ages of 18 and 75, testing the body’s after-consumption blood glucose and insulin responses to four different sweeteners. Their results show that Swerve is non-glycemic and doesn’t raise blood glucose (blood sugar) levels. Swerve was also tested for its effect on insulin levels after consumption and was found to have an extremely minimal impact.

How Swerve is Made

The secret to Swerve’s zero-calorie sweetness is a combination of erythritol and oligosaccharides.

If you’ve ever visited a brewery, you’ve gotten a peek into how fermentation works. Erythritol is made by fermenting glucose with Moniliella pollinis, a natural microorganism. It also naturally occurs in many fruits and vegetables like melons, grapes and asparagus. Erythritol is classified by the FDA as a zero-calorie, 4-carbon sugar alcohol that does not affect blood glucose.

Oligosaccharides are sweet, non-digestible carbohydrates sourced from select fruits and starchy root vegetables. Oligosaccharides are prebiotic fibers, so they’re not only tasty, but they can help stimulate beneficial bacteria in your gut.

Erythritol vs. Xylitol

Sugar alcohols (also called polyols) are common ingredients in sugar substitutes; the erythritol in Swerve is one such sugar alcohol. Another common sugar alcohol is xylitol, which is quite different from erythritol and is not an ingredient in Swerve. Here are a few ways the two differ.

Calorie Counts:

Erythritol: 0 calories per gram
Xylitol: 2.4 calories per gram

Tummy Tolerance:

Erythritol: Little-to-no digestive disruption
Xylitol: Twice as likely as Erythritol to cause digestive disruption

Unlike other polyols, erythritol combines the unique properties of being both zero-calorie and maintaining a high digestive tolerance. The unsavory details: Because erythritol is rapidly absorbed in the small intestine and rapidly eliminated by the body within 24 hours, the laxative side effects sometimes associated with polyol consumption are unlikely when eating foods sweetened with erythritol.

Pet Safety:

Erythritol: Safe for dogs
Xylitol: Toxic to dogs

Results from a 53-week study showed that erythritol is well-tolerated by dogs and is safe for them to consume. Xylitol, however, has been shown to be fatal to dogs, due to it causing severe hypoglycemia and related liver failure. Keep your pups safe!