01/04/2022
When sugar comes to mind, you probably think of table sugar, or sucrose. But this simple carbohydrate is made up of even smaller sugar molecules called glucose and fructose in an exact 50/50 split. Like all sugars, both glucose and fructose are carbohydrates. But not all carbs are created equal! When we eat sucrose, the glucose and fructose molecules become split inside the body. The main difference between glucose and fructose – for our purposes, anyways – is how they are processed within your body.
When we talk about blood sugar, we’re actually referring to blood glucose. This is the amount of glucose in your bloodstream. The glucose travels through the bloodstream, providing energy to all the tissues in your body that need it.
Fructose changes blood sugar levels much more gradually than glucose and doesn’t seem to impact insulin levels. Unlike glucose, which is processed throughout the whole body, fructose is almost entirely metabolized by the liver.
