Test drinks for sugar? - misc.health.diabetes

Message from discussion Test drinks for sugar?

Old Al

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More options Apr 23 2001, 3:19 pm

Newsgroups: misc.health.diabetes

From: "Old Al" <OldAl4...@my-deja.com>

Date: 23 Apr 2001 14:13:20 -0500

Local: Mon, Apr 23 2001 3:13 pm

Subject: Re: Test drinks for sugar?

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Esther Paris <EstherPa...@District31TM.Org> wrote:
>bj wrote:

>> I use Diastix (urine glucose test strips) to test diet
>> coke/pepsi. I just put a drop of the cola from the straw
>> onto the stick and wait 30 seconds. If it turns dark, it's
>> "hi-test". They're cheap (<$10 for a bottle of 50) and easy
>> to use. They may not work on every kind of drink. Test
>> somebody's non-diet vs a diet version (from a labeled bottle
>> or can -- there's a limit to what I worry about!) to see.
>> bj

>I read somewhere, but haven't seen for myself, that this
>test won't work in Europe. Something about the sweetener
>used in Europe. Original Poster, are you in Europe?
>Additional input, any one?

>Esther

Most if not all sugared-soft drinks in the US are sweetened by
HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup). HFCS is cheaper in the U.S.
than price-supported cane or beet sugar. HFCS is a mixture
of about 65% Fructose and 35% Glucose. The glucose in the
mix will activate the glucose test strips.

In Europe, beet/cane sugar is not price supported. Therefore,
most if not all sugared-soft drinks are sweetened by either
cane or beet sugar (sucrose). Sucrose does not activate the
glucose test strips.

I tested this by dissolving table sugar in water and contacting
the solution with a glucose test strip. The strip did not
change color.

Note that sucrose in European soft drinks might, after a long
time, partially hydrolyze into a mix of fructose and
glucose (I don't really know if this is possible in common
soft drinks over reasonable periods). Be nice if somebody
in Europe gave it a try for us.

BTW: The HFCS industry in the US exists because Beet/Cane
sugar in the US has an artificially high price
because of import quotas put in place to protect inefficient
domestic sources so that the supplies will not be cut off
if German submarines blockade our shipments from Cuba.

The US hasn't imported cane sugar from Cuba in nearly 40
years and Germany isn't particularly angry with us anyway.
I have mentioned this to many of my beet sugar-growing farmer
friends.

Old Al (T1 since 94, 35 units H + U via 4 injections daily)
A retired engineer who shares his experiences.

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