Zero sugar gummies: what replaces the sugar, and what to check

“Zero sugar” is the fastest-growing claim on gummy supplements. It solves the most common complaint about gummies, which is that several a day adds up to a real amount of sugar. It also means something else has taken the sugar’s place. This guide explains what, and what it means for you.

What “zero sugar” means on a label

Under US labeling rules, a product can be called sugar free or zero sugar when it contains less than 0.5 g of sugars per serving. It does not mean no carbohydrate and it does not mean no calories.

The Supplement Facts panel will show Total Sugars as 0 g. Look just below or beside it for a line reading “Sugar Alcohol”, and look at Total Carbohydrate. The difference between the two tells you a lot.

Why sugar is hard to remove from a gummy

In a gummy, sugar is not only a sweetener. It is the bulk of the product. Sugar and syrup hold water, give the chew and, in pectin gummies, are required for the gel to form at all.

So a manufacturer cannot just leave the sugar out and add a pinch of stevia. Something has to replace the bulk. Zero sugar gummies therefore usually use two kinds of ingredient together: a bulking agent to replace sugar’s mass, and often a high-intensity sweetener to top up the sweetness.

The bulking agents

Sugar alcohols

Sugar alcohols, also called polyols, are carbohydrates that taste sweet but are only partly absorbed. Despite the name, they contain no alcohol of the drinking kind. The common ones:

Sugar alcohol	Calories per gram	Notes
Maltitol	2.1	Closest to sugar in taste and texture. Most likely to cause digestive upset.
Sorbitol	2.6	Common and inexpensive. Laxative in larger amounts.
Xylitol	2.4	As sweet as sugar. Highly toxic to dogs.
Isomalt	2.0	Used in hard candies and some gummies.
Erythritol	About 0	Mostly absorbed and excreted unchanged. Best tolerated by the gut.

For comparison, sugar has 4 calories per gram. Sugar alcohols do not cause tooth decay, which is a real advantage in a sticky product.

Soluble fibers

Many zero sugar gummies list a fiber as a main ingredient: soluble tapioca fiber, soluble corn fiber, chicory root fiber, inulin, polydextrose or isomalto-oligosaccharides. These provide bulk and a little sweetness and are counted as dietary fiber on the label, not as sugar.

One caution about isomalto-oligosaccharides, often shortened to IMO. They were long labeled as fiber, but a 2022 laboratory study concluded that they behave as slowly digestible carbohydrates and not as dietary fiber. People managing blood sugar should treat IMO as a carbohydrate and ask their care team how to count it.

Allulose

Allulose is a rare sugar found in small amounts in figs and raisins. It tastes and behaves much like table sugar but provides about 0.4 calories per gram and has little effect on blood sugar. In 2019 the FDA said allulose does not have to be counted in Total Sugars or Added Sugars on labels, though it still counts toward Total Carbohydrate. In large amounts it can cause digestive upset, like other poorly absorbed carbohydrates.

The high-intensity sweeteners

These are hundreds of times sweeter than sugar, so only tiny amounts are used.

• Stevia (steviol glycosides, Reb A, Reb M), from the leaves of the stevia plant. Some people notice a bitter or licorice-like aftertaste.
• Monk fruit extract (luo han guo, mogrosides).
• Sucralose, a synthetic sweetener made from sugar.

The FDA has reviewed these and permits their use in food. They add sweetness without calories and do not provide bulk.

Digestive effects: the main thing to know

Sugar alcohols and some fibers are not fully absorbed in the small intestine. What is left passes into the large intestine, where it draws in water and is fermented by bacteria. The result, in some people, is gas, bloating, cramps and loose stools.

How much it takes varies widely between people and between sweeteners. A 2016 scientific review of sugar alcohols and the gut found that tolerance depends on the type, the amount, body weight and whether it is taken with food, and that people adapt somewhat with regular use. Erythritol is the best tolerated. Maltitol and sorbitol are the most likely to cause trouble.

For gummies, three points are relevant:

• The amount per gummy is small, usually 1 g to 3 g. One serving is unlikely to bother most people.
• It adds up across products. Six zero sugar gummies a day, plus sugar-free gum, protein bars and diet drinks, can reach an amount that does.
• People with irritable bowel syndrome are more sensitive. Polyols are one of the FODMAP groups that commonly trigger symptoms.

If a zero sugar gummy gives you gas or loose stools, check the label for maltitol, sorbitol or a large fiber content, and try a different product or fewer gummies.

Zero sugar and blood sugar

Zero sugar does not always mean zero effect on blood sugar. Maltitol is partly absorbed as glucose and raises blood sugar, though less than sugar does. IMO does as well. Erythritol, allulose, stevia and monk fruit have little or no effect.

If you have diabetes, look at Total Carbohydrate and the type of sweetener, not only at the sugar line, and ask your care team how to count sugar alcohols.

What research says about safety

The FDA considers the approved sweeteners safe at normal intakes. Research continues, and two recent findings are worth knowing without overstating them.

A 2023 study in Nature Medicine found that people with higher blood levels of erythritol had more heart attacks and strokes over the following years, and reported laboratory evidence that erythritol can make blood platelets clot more readily. The human part of the study was observational, and the body makes erythritol itself, so it does not prove that eating erythritol causes harm. It has prompted further research.

In 2023 the World Health Organization advised against relying on non-sugar sweeteners for weight control, based on a review that found no long-term benefit for body fat. That advice concerns diet strategy. It is not a safety warning about the small amounts in a supplement.

For the gram or two in a daily gummy serving, neither finding is a reason for alarm. They are a reason to count sweeteners across your whole diet.

A warning for dog owners

Xylitol is extremely toxic to dogs. Even small amounts can cause a rapid drop in blood sugar, seizures, liver failure and death. The FDA has issued repeated warnings. On labels it may also appear as birch sugar or wood sugar.

If you have a dog, check every zero sugar gummy, gum and candy for xylitol and store those products where a dog cannot reach them. If your dog eats any, contact a veterinarian or an animal poison control line immediately.

A zero sugar gummy is often a different formula

Removing sugar changes the recipe, and brands often use the opportunity to change the active ingredients as well. A zero sugar version may have a different amount of the main ingredient, added extras, or a different serving size. Do not assume it is the original minus the sugar. Read its Supplement Facts panel as you would for a new product.

How to read a zero sugar gummy label

1. Confirm Total Sugars is 0 g, then read Total Carbohydrate.
2. Find the Sugar Alcohol line and note the grams per serving.
3. Identify the sweeteners in the ingredient list. The first few ingredients are the bulk.
4. Multiply by the gummies you take a day.
5. Compare the active ingredients with the regular version.
6. Check for xylitol if you have a dog.

Regular or zero sugar?

• Choose zero sugar if you take several gummies a day, are limiting added sugar, or are concerned about your teeth.
• Choose regular if sugar alcohols upset your stomach, if you have IBS, or if you take only one or two gummies a day and the sugar is small.
• Either way, the active ingredient and its dose matter more than the sweetener.

For the other side of this choice, see our guide to added sugar in gummies and our pectin vs gelatin guide.

Common questions

Are zero sugar gummies calorie free?

No. Sugar alcohols and fibers provide some calories, typically 5 to 10 per gummy.

Do zero sugar gummies cause diarrhea?

They can in sensitive people or at high intakes, because sugar alcohols and some fibers are not fully absorbed. Maltitol and sorbitol are the most likely to.

Which sugar alcohol is easiest on the stomach?

Erythritol, because most of it is absorbed and excreted unchanged instead of reaching the large intestine.

Are zero sugar gummies safe for people with diabetes?

Many are suitable, but check Total Carbohydrate and the sweetener. Maltitol and isomalto-oligosaccharides raise blood sugar. Ask your care team.

Is xylitol dangerous?

It is safe for people in normal amounts and extremely toxic to dogs. Keep any product containing it away from pets.

Is a zero sugar gummy the same product without sugar?

Often not. The active ingredients and amounts can differ, so read the label as a new product.

Sources

1. US Food and Drug Administration. Aspartame and other sweeteners in food.
2. Mäkinen KK. Gastrointestinal disturbances associated with the consumption of sugar alcohols with special consideration of xylitol. Int J Dent. 2016.
3. Witkowski M, et al. The artificial sweetener erythritol and cardiovascular event risk. Nat Med. 2023.
4. US Food and Drug Administration. Paws off xylitol; it’s dangerous for dogs.
5. Song YB, et al. New insights suggest isomaltooligosaccharides are slowly digestible carbohydrates, rather than dietary fibers. Food Chem. 2022.
6. World Health Organization. WHO advises not to use non-sugar sweeteners for weight control in newly released guideline. 2023.

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. Products discussed here are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. This page is not medical advice.