Texas Natural Supply

Xylitol is a natural sweetener.

Xylitol is found in many plants and fruits. It is as sweet as regular sugar, but 40% lower in calories! Xylitol is produced in nature in small amounts, but can be manufactured in large amounts from xylose. Xylitol was approved for use as a food additive by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1963.

Xylitol is good for you. In addition to its advantages of being a natural sweetener and lower in calories regular sugar, Xylitol provides significant health benefits. Clinical studies have shown Xylitol use prevents cavities (also known as dental caries) and even stops or reverses tooth decay. There is also evidence that Xylitol is effective in preventing or reducing ear and sinus infections-(great news for parents with children prone to ear infectons!). Because Xylitol is very slowly metabolized and does not raise insulin levels, and its use reduces many health problems associated with high-sugar intake. Diabetics can safely use Xylitol as a sweetener, and there are plenty of Xylitol recipes, available.

How Xylitol works:
Most bacteria, including Streptococcus Mutans germs that live in the mouth and cause cavities, thrive on sugars with six carbon atoms (such as glucose and fructose) for their energy and growth. Xylose, is a five-carbon sugar that is not easily digested by bacteria, and actually inhibits their growth and proliferation. Consistent use of Xylitol actually stops the growth of bacteria that causes tooth decay and gum disease.

Clinical studies conducted over the last 30 years have proven that Xylitol prevents tooth decay and plaque formation. In studies of 500 and 1,000 children who chewed gum containing Xylitol compared to those who did not, existing cavities were healed, and cavities not only did not increase, but decay was actually reduced over the time of the study.

Xylitol was developed commercially in Finland in response to sugar shortages during World War II. Finland was also among the first countries to study the health benefits of Xylitol and make it available in chewing gum. Currently, more than 35 countries have approved the use of Xylitol in foods, pharmaceutical and oral hygiene products. While Xylitol has been up to 20 times more expensive than sugar and other sweeteners, increased demand because of its health benefits is bringing down the price and making it more readily available.

Our Xylitol is produced in a state-of-the-art facility in the USA and is, therefore, subject to stringent air and water quality standards. When it leaves the plant, the effluent stream is so clean that it is injected directly into the groundwater aquifer.

It does cost more to produce xylitol from hardwood than from corn cobs not because xylitol of the source but because it is made in America with American labor, not in China with cheap Chinese labor. It is a well known fact that the majority of China’s nearly 800 million farmers subsist on wages that are near or below poverty level even by Chinese standards. The farms that grow the corn cobs used for xylitol production are located in some of the poorest provinces in China.

It is impossible to compete with the Chinese on price when their labor costs are only a tiny fraction of ours in America.

Another significant factor contributing to the higher cost of birch xylitol is the fact that American manufacturers are subjected to a more stringent, much costlier burden of regulatory compliance in the areas of air and water quality, occupational safety, and state and federal food safety standards.

Chinese standards and enforcement lag far behind the US in all these areas. Recent headlines underscore the reality that Chinese food safety standards and/or enforcement thereof is not on par with those of the USA.

Our xylitol is a derivative from Organic hardwood. It contains no nut products, dairy products, cereals, corn or other grains, or any of their derivatives.

Almost all the source material for xylitol is American grown birch wood. Rarely, if and when demand exceeds the available supply, the raw material is supplemented by hardwood trees grown in renewable managed forests in Austria, comprised of birch and occassionally some beech trees.

* Made in America with American labor, produced to American standards of quality and safety.
* It’s made from organic hardwood, so you can be 100% certain that it’s GMO free.
* Tastes better. You can always count on a cool, clean sweetness with no funny aftertaste.