Differentiate types of sugar and sugar substitutes affect different flavors when cooking, baking or merely using as a condiment flavor. When it comes to most people, the first issue with common sugars and their use is mostly in flavoring. Too much and it becomes overpowering. Too little and other flavors may come to the forefront that are undesired. Likewise, the second issue is that sugars tend to be high in calories. Consuming too many sweets, despite how satisfying that may be, packs on pounds and mostly, fat. That, even if the recipe was devoid of any other fat, is due to the buildup of calories in the fatty tissue to store for energy later as needed. As such, people nowadays tend to look for diet and other low or no sugar food and beverage choices, not knowing of some of the other effects. Sugar alcohols, which tend to be stronger than sugar in sweetness ounce for ounce, are either devoid of calories and carbohydrates, or having very little of them. Sugar alcohols, unfortunately, tend to slow digestion and may cause intestinal distress in various forms others may find embarrassing later, not knowing the root cause. Additionally, due to their density, sugar alcohols do not expand as easily for purposes such as baking. This can lead the imaginative home bakers anguish at seeing their meringue fall flat, and the taste may vary greatly as they use too much or too little substitute compared to the type of sugar they are substituting for. For those that are interested, here are two sites of interest detailing the different types of sugars, sugar substitutes, and alternative options for inclusion of flavors:
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/07/130717-sugar-substitutes-nutrasweet-splenda-stevia-baking/
http://greatist.com/health/30-sugar-substitutes-any-and-every-possible-situation
