NOW Foods Xylitol - 1 lb.

NOW Foods Xylitol is an outstanding alternative to conventional table sugar that's much lower in carbohydrates. NOW Foods Xylitol is sugar alcohol that is derived from corn, and is approximately 50% less sweet than sugar, and has a much lower glycemic rating. As a result, NOW Foods Xylitol metabolizes slower in the body and helps support healthy blood/glucose levels already within the normal range. Extensive clinical studies continue to demonstrate that Xylitol is safe for both adults and children. Try some NOW Foods Xylitol today and see for yourself!

What is Xylitol?
Xylitol is a naturally occurring low-calorie sweetener found in fruits, vegetables and certain hardwoods. Our bodies can produce up to 15 grams of Xylitol from other foods we ingest daily. This sweetener is not a newcomer in the marketplace. Initially discovered by a German scientist in 1891, sugar shortages caused by World War II stimulated a group of innovative folks from Finland to rediscover this wonderful sugar substitute. They called it “koivusokeri” or “birch sugar” because they derived it from a fiber found in birch tree bark. By the 1960s, Xylitol was being used in Europe, the Soviet Union and Japan. Today it’s used in the USA as a sweetener that’s approved by the FDA and the ADA. Though Xylitol is commercially manufactured from the cellulose of wood, cane pulp, seed hulls or cornhusk; NOW Foods Xylitol is made from cornhusk.

What’s the difference between Xylitol and regular table sugar?
Xylitol is technically not a sugar but rather a sugar alcohol (polyol). Unlike other well-known sugars like sucrose, fructose, sorbitol and dextrose that have 6 carbon atoms, Xylitol contains only 5 carbon atoms. Unlike sugar Xylitol is slowly absorbed, does not cause a rapid blood sugar increase and does not require an immediate insulin response from the body to be metabolized. Its unique characteristic accounts for the fact that this reduced calorie sweetener boasts 40% less caloric impact at 2.4 calories per gram versus 4 calories for sugar. Xylitol provides approximately the same sweetness as sugar with a slight cool sensation.

Are there any other health benefits that can attributed to Xylitol?
Many Clinical and field tests have proven that the consumption of Xylitol combined with proper oral hygiene significantly reduces new dental caries (cavities). It accomplishes this anti-cavity function via a couple of mechanisms. Food containing refined sugar is an energy source for bacteria like Streptococcus mutans that quickly multiply and produce harmful acids. When the pH of the bacterial laden saliva drops too far below a safe neutral level of 7, the calcium and phosphate elements of your tooth enamel start to dissolve and form small pores. This is the beginning of cavity formation. Because it doesn’t ferment, Xylitol is not a food source for these acid-producing bacteria. The bacteria count is reduced, the healthy neutral pH of the saliva is preserved and cavity formation is stopped in its tracks. Xylitol increases the flow of our naturally alkaline saliva that’s used to rinse the teeth of acids as well as helping to remineralize the enamel.

NOW's Mission
The NOW mission is - To provide value in products and services that empower people to lead healthier lives. NOW Foods is an award-winning and highly respected manufacturer of vitamins, minerals, dietary supplements and natural foods.

In 1948, with the natural food and supplement industry in its infancy, entrepreneur Paul Richard paid $900 for the purchase of Fearn Soya Foods—a Chicago based manufacturer of grain and legume-based products. Th:" ":as founded under the belief that good health was not a luxury available only to the wealthy. For the past forty years, NOW has made it their life's work to offer health food and nutritional supplements of the highest quality, at prices that are fair and affordable to all those who seek them. Today, NOW Foods is one of the top-selling brands in health foods stores, an award-winning manufacturer, a respected advocate of the natural product industry, and a leader in the fields of nutritional science and methods development. And while NOW has grown considerably over the past four decades, one thing has never changed – NOW's commitment to providing products and services that empower people to lead healthier lives.

NOW Commitments

• Customer Focused and Information Driven - NOW believes that their products, services, and the decisions they make should be primarily influenced by the desires and needs of NOW customers. The decisions that NOW makes should be based on accurate information and therefore NOW places a high value on knowledge and learning within their organization.
• Quality and Value Oriented - Acting in the best interest of NOW customers, NOW endeavors to produce the highest quality products at competitive prices. NOW's first priority is to maintain quality where it counts the most – in the products. NOW's exceptional cost-conscious team of employees then focuses their energies on driving costs down. Nurturing this competency of value drives NOW's ability to provide high quality products at the very best prices.
• Natural is Better - NOW is convinced that natural products are better than their synthetic counterparts and produce better results in human health. Therefore, wherever possible, NOW strives to provide products that contain natural ingredients because they are better for their customers.

NOW Science
NOW's experienced professional and technical staff formulates their products to be of the highest quality. NOW has a group of biochemists, chemists, nutritionists, and food technologists who review current science and nutritional parameters, and formulate our products to be effective for the intended use. NOW's structure/function claims are based on science for active ingredients, and on nutritional science for nutritional content. Serving sizes are based on doses from clinical studies and other published data. NOW's contemporary formulas are designed to meet the health and wellness needs of today’s consumers. NOW uses ingredients that have been tested for effectiveness in clinical trials and laboratory studies. The heart of NOW science is third party independent research. NOW investigates and review clinical studies and other lab studies conducted on their ingredients and their formulas. Best science is used to support best formulations which lead to best quality. NOW products are constantly being tested in clinical trials conducted at top universities and research centers around the country and in various parts of the world. NOW products are being tested to determine such things as effectiveness for joint support, quality of life for cancer patients, cardiovascular support, and athletic endurance. Effective products mean health and wellness benefits, which mean quality.

GMP Quality Assured
NOW’s GMP certification covers standard operating procedures, employee training, product specifications, expiration dating, vendor certifications and much more. Standard operating procedures include sampling and testing incoming materials according to NOW Foods specifications, inspecting manufacturing processes, and testing finished products to specifications. Tests include organoleptic evaluation (human senses such as sight, taste, smell), physical testing of tablets a:" ":tate-of-the-art analytical testing lab, as well as microbiological testing by NOW Foods’ in-house rapid analysis microbiological lab.