[Julia37]

Hey all,I recently figured out I'm intolerant to maltodextrin. It causes spasms and bloating all the way through my tract.

At least it passed through fairly fast...I had eaten Splenda sweetener, sucralose mixed with maltodextrin. I know I'm tolerant to sucralose because I often eat candy that contains it with no ill effects. About a year ago I tried Stevia, and that also caused spasms, and now I see that was mixed with maltodextrin also.Does anyone know where or how I can get sucralose that's not mixed with maltodextrin or other bad things? It tastes like real sugar and the chocolate muffins I made with it were delicious - almost worth the symptoms! Also, is maltodextrin a starch or a sugar? I've never been able to find out.Thanks!

 

[flux]

quote: recently figured out I'm intolerant to maltodextrin. It causes spasms and bloating all the way through my tract

From what you describe, it doesn't sound that way at all. You would need to blinded testing on several occasions with cross-overs and then compare the results. I expect you'd find it makes no difference.How do you even know that you had spasms?

quote:s maltodextrin a starch or a sugar?

It is really a simple polymer of glucose, in other words a simple starch.

 

[flux]

quote: recently figured out I'm intolerant to maltodextrin. It causes spasms and bloating all the way through my tract

From what you describe, it doesn't sound that way at all. You would need to blinded testing on several occasions with cross-overs and then compare the results. I expect you'd find it makes no difference.How do you even know that you had spasms?

quote:s maltodextrin a starch or a sugar?

It is really a simple polymer of glucose, in other words a simple starch.

 

[AD]

I mix pure maltodextrin into drinks and liquid-type foods to increase calories. It is not very sweet, but if you mix in enough in a small amount of liquid, it can get sweet.Maltodextrin is more quickly absorbed and digested than ANY other calorie-containing starch or sugar. In fact, it is only a simple sugar, glucose. It has no fiber, fructose or residue to leave in the colon.It should only be a problem for someone with SEVERE allergies or intolerance to minute, trace amounts of corn products.

 

[AD]

I mix pure maltodextrin into drinks and liquid-type foods to increase calories. It is not very sweet, but if you mix in enough in a small amount of liquid, it can get sweet.Maltodextrin is more quickly absorbed and digested than ANY other calorie-containing starch or sugar. In fact, it is only a simple sugar, glucose. It has no fiber, fructose or residue to leave in the colon.It should only be a problem for someone with SEVERE allergies or intolerance to minute, trace amounts of corn products.

 

[Julia37]

Flux, stay out of this! It has already been established that you have to question everything anyone ever says! If you can't be supportive, be quiet!!!!!!!!!!!

AD, are you sure it's glucose? I don't have a problem with corn, but I do with sugars. All the natural sugars I've tried cause symptoms. I haven't been able to find pure glucose to try that.

 

[Julia37]

Flux, stay out of this! It has already been established that you have to question everything anyone ever says! If you can't be supportive, be quiet!!!!!!!!!!!

AD, are you sure it's glucose? I don't have a problem with corn, but I do with sugars. All the natural sugars I've tried cause symptoms. I haven't been able to find pure glucose to try that.

 

[flux]

quote:are you sure it's glucose?

I already answered that.

quote:All the natural sugars I've tried cause symptoms.

What sugar is not natural? How do you know it's the sugar?

quote: haven't been able to find pure glucose to try that.

Any drugstore can sell this to you. They are like oversized Pez candies. Diabetics use them.

 

[flux]

quote:are you sure it's glucose?

I already answered that.

quote:All the natural sugars I've tried cause symptoms.

What sugar is not natural? How do you know it's the sugar?

quote: haven't been able to find pure glucose to try that.

Any drugstore can sell this to you. They are like oversized Pez candies. Diabetics use them.

 

[Mike NoLomotil]

AH! NOW I see your question...thought when you asked it was on that thread. Sorry.Maltodextrin is a combination of maltol, a white chrystalline powder with a butterscotch odor found in the bark of young larch trees, pine seeds, chicory, wood tars, and in roasted malt, and Dextrin, sometimes called British Gum or Starch Gum. Dextrin is a white powder also produced from starch (maltose and dextrose are saccharides, maltose is a simple sugar, or disaccharide, and dextrin is a polysachharide). Dextrins are really a group of of polymers which have various uses in the confection industry and industrial uses as well.Maltodextrin is used as a texturizer and flavor enhancer in confections, esp. chocolates. Sorry I missed the question.MNL

 

[Mike NoLomotil]

AH! NOW I see your question...thought when you asked it was on that thread. Sorry.Maltodextrin is a combination of maltol, a white chrystalline powder with a butterscotch odor found in the bark of young larch trees, pine seeds, chicory, wood tars, and in roasted malt, and Dextrin, sometimes called British Gum or Starch Gum. Dextrin is a white powder also produced from starch (maltose and dextrose are saccharides, maltose is a simple sugar, or disaccharide, and dextrin is a polysachharide). Dextrins are really a group of of polymers which have various uses in the confection industry and industrial uses as well.Maltodextrin is used as a texturizer and flavor enhancer in confections, esp. chocolates. Sorry I missed the question.MNL

 

[flux]

quote:Maltodextrin is a combination of maltol,and Dextrin,

Did you make that up or was that 50 years ago?

On Earth in 2002, it is made from corn starch... http://www.grainprocessing.com:80/food/malinfo.html http://www.sachemicals.com/sac/malto.html

 

[flux]

quote:Maltodextrin is a combination of maltol,and Dextrin,

Did you make that up or was that 50 years ago?

On Earth in 2002, it is made from corn starch... http://www.grainprocessing.com:80/food/malinfo.html http://www.sachemicals.com/sac/malto.html

 

[SteveE]

Julia,Flux is right to be careful to not draw conclusions too quickly about what ingredient(s) in your diet may cause flare-ups. That being said, however, I'm certain after 9 years of IBS that my avoidance of maltodextrin, dextrose, and ESPECIALLY high fructose corn syrup have made that last 2-3 years of those nine MUCH more tolerable. Therefore, if you suspect you have a problem with one corn-derived sweetener, I'd encourage you to give my diet avoiding them all a 3-6 week trial and see what you think. I eventually took corn out of my diet in almost every form and found even more improvement.It's NOT easy because high frutose corn syrup shows up in bread, soft drinks, chocolate (sometimes), juices, etc. etc. I now make my own bread using honey as a sweetener, my beverages consist of only water and herbal tea, and desserts are homemade with only regular sugar and no corn-based baking powder.I don't know why avoiding corn (and most importantly the sweeteners) helps, and I don't care. Flux might have a theory, and I'm sure Mike would think it is something else, but I'm just glad to have some improvement. I'd love to know for certain one day, I guess since I'm not cured, but I'm MUCH more functional. At a point of desperation a few years ago, I pleaded with my maker for that much and I got, so no complaints here.Good luck to all!Steve

 

[SteveE]

Julia,Flux is right to be careful to not draw conclusions too quickly about what ingredient(s) in your diet may cause flare-ups. That being said, however, I'm certain after 9 years of IBS that my avoidance of maltodextrin, dextrose, and ESPECIALLY high fructose corn syrup have made that last 2-3 years of those nine MUCH more tolerable. Therefore, if you suspect you have a problem with one corn-derived sweetener, I'd encourage you to give my diet avoiding them all a 3-6 week trial and see what you think. I eventually took corn out of my diet in almost every form and found even more improvement.It's NOT easy because high frutose corn syrup shows up in bread, soft drinks, chocolate (sometimes), juices, etc. etc. I now make my own bread using honey as a sweetener, my beverages consist of only water and herbal tea, and desserts are homemade with only regular sugar and no corn-based baking powder.I don't know why avoiding corn (and most importantly the sweeteners) helps, and I don't care. Flux might have a theory, and I'm sure Mike would think it is something else, but I'm just glad to have some improvement. I'd love to know for certain one day, I guess since I'm not cured, but I'm MUCH more functional. At a point of desperation a few years ago, I pleaded with my maker for that much and I got, so no complaints here.Good luck to all!Steve

 

[Julia37]

Thanks Mike and Steve. And Flux, shame on you for not respecting me!!!!!!!

So if I understand correctly maltodextrin is more like a sugar than not? That would explain my reaction to it. As Mike knows, I'm fructose intolerant and with "empirical testing" as my doctor calls it, found that all natural sugars cause me symptoms, as well as sugar alcohols.I also make my own bread, I was using rice syrup in it, but the last half of the jar crystallized, so now I'm using regular sugar. (the yeast has to have sugar to activate it, or nothing happens.) I wish I knew how and where to get plain sucralose or possibly glucose? in a form I can use for baking. I also have a hard time with the dreaded HFCS, but for me the hardest things to avoid are soy (allergy) and onions. Also as Mike knows I have a technical background and know how to control for variables, it's not that hard. That's why I wasn't sure about the stevia when I tried it last year, because I had never had stevia without maltodextrin. But I have had sucralose without it, and the splenda has only the 2 ingredients, so it's quite obvious. One thing I'm going to do is cut the amount of sugar in the bread by 1/2 and see what happens. Luckily I don't have a problem with corn so far as long as it's not sweetened. You have to watch out at Whole Foods, though, their canned veggies have sugar added! What's this world coming to.......

I've *got* to find a better health food store!

 

[Julia37]

Thanks Mike and Steve. And Flux, shame on you for not respecting me!!!!!!!

So if I understand correctly maltodextrin is more like a sugar than not? That would explain my reaction to it. As Mike knows, I'm fructose intolerant and with "empirical testing" as my doctor calls it, found that all natural sugars cause me symptoms, as well as sugar alcohols.I also make my own bread, I was using rice syrup in it, but the last half of the jar crystallized, so now I'm using regular sugar. (the yeast has to have sugar to activate it, or nothing happens.) I wish I knew how and where to get plain sucralose or possibly glucose? in a form I can use for baking. I also have a hard time with the dreaded HFCS, but for me the hardest things to avoid are soy (allergy) and onions. Also as Mike knows I have a technical background and know how to control for variables, it's not that hard. That's why I wasn't sure about the stevia when I tried it last year, because I had never had stevia without maltodextrin. But I have had sucralose without it, and the splenda has only the 2 ingredients, so it's quite obvious. One thing I'm going to do is cut the amount of sugar in the bread by 1/2 and see what happens. Luckily I don't have a problem with corn so far as long as it's not sweetened. You have to watch out at Whole Foods, though, their canned veggies have sugar added! What's this world coming to.......

I've *got* to find a better health food store!

 

[flux]

quote:That would explain my reaction to it.

That's circular reasoning because you haven't proved the relationship yet. Physiologically, it doesn't make sense that you could have a reaction to all "natural" sugars (meaning glucose) because every carbohydrate you eat but fructose and galactose is broken down into glucose. Rice should make you terribly sick for example.

quote:honey as a sweetener

Honey contains fructose and fructose polymers. So it sounds like it something related to the corn. I wonder if corn itself gives you a problem. That would make things easier to explain.

 

[flux]

quote:That would explain my reaction to it.

That's circular reasoning because you haven't proved the relationship yet. Physiologically, it doesn't make sense that you could have a reaction to all "natural" sugars (meaning glucose) because every carbohydrate you eat but fructose and galactose is broken down into glucose. Rice should make you terribly sick for example.

quote:honey as a sweetener

Honey contains fructose and fructose polymers. So it sounds like it something related to the corn. I wonder if corn itself gives you a problem. That would make things easier to explain.

 

[SiusannaJ]

Maltodextrin is known to cause GI problems, especially in IBS sufferers. Corn allergy is a consideration as is gluten intolerance and other things. As this was written in 2002, I am sure this woman knows by now if the maltodextrin is causing the problem, or something else. Maltodextrin is manufactured by altering corn or potatoes with formaldehyde and bleach.

See: http://giving.clevelandclinic.org/articles/researcher-links-digestive-problems-food-additive?utm_campaign=catalyst+enews&utm_medium=email&utm_source=catalyst1409&utm_content=researcher+links+digestive+problems+food+additive

or research maltodextrin online. Wikipedia is a good start. Our intolerance is more recognized than it was previously.