Saccharin facts for kids

Sodium salt of saccharin, a white powder

Saccharin is an artificial sweetener. This means it makes food and drinks taste sweet, but it's not sugar. It has almost no calories. Saccharin is much sweeter than regular sugar, about 300 to 400 times sweeter! However, some people notice a slightly bitter or metallic taste, especially if there's a lot of it. You can find saccharin in many products like sodas, candies, cookies, and even some medicines.

Saccharin: A Sweetener Without Sugar

Saccharin is a special kind of ingredient that makes things taste sweet. It's called an "artificial sweetener" because it's made in a lab, not from plants like sugar. Its scientific name is benzoic sulfimide. Even though it's super sweet, it doesn't give you any energy or calories. This makes it a popular choice for people who want to reduce their sugar intake or manage their weight.

How Was Saccharin Discovered?

The story of saccharin began by accident in 1879. A chemist named Constantin Fahlberg was working in a lab at Johns Hopkins University in the United States. He was researching coal tar derivatives. One evening, after a long day of work, he forgot to wash his hands before eating dinner. He noticed that his bread tasted unusually sweet.

Fahlberg quickly realized the sweetness came from something on his hands. He went back to the lab to figure out which chemical it was. He discovered it was a new compound he had been working with. He named it saccharin, which comes from the Latin word "saccharum," meaning sugar. He later patented his discovery.

Why Do We Use Saccharin?

Saccharin became popular because it offered sweetness without the calories of sugar. This was a big deal for many reasons:

• For people with diabetes: People who need to control their blood sugar levels can use saccharin. It doesn't affect blood sugar like regular sugar does.
• For weight management: Since it has almost no calories, saccharin helps people enjoy sweet foods and drinks without adding extra calories. This can be useful for those trying to lose or maintain weight.
• In various products: Saccharin is used in many different items. You can find it in diet sodas, sugar-free chewing gum, candies, baked goods, and even some toothpastes and medicines. It helps make these products taste good without using sugar.

Is Saccharin Safe to Use?

When saccharin was first discovered, there were some questions about its safety. Over the years, many scientific studies have been done to understand its effects on the human body. Today, major health organizations around the world consider saccharin safe for people to use.

Organizations like the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have approved saccharin. They have set limits on how much can be consumed daily. This means that as long as people use it in normal amounts, it is not considered harmful. It has been used safely in food and drinks for over a century.

Images for kids

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  Saccharin, historical wrapping, Sugar Museum (Berlin)

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  1893 ad

See also

In Spanish: Sacarina para niños