Ingredient Information

Function

Dextrose is another name for glucose. Glucose is a simple sugar, which occurs naturally in fruits, like grapes, honey, and maple syrup. All carbohydrates are broken down into glucose in the body. Glucose is the fuel for making energy in all living organisms. Commercially produced dextrose (glucose) is used to add sweetness to processed food. It may be thought of simply as sugar. Athletes take dextrose to give themselves a burst of energy immediately before performing.

Other Use and Industries

Dextrose is used medically in intravenous fluids. It is also used in the chemical manufacture of some organic acids.

Health Effects

Dextrose can be thought of as sugar. Consuming simple sugar, instantly causes the blood to become acidic. Acidic blood, over time, leads to many common, serious health problems. Acidic blood is the root cause of arthrosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, which leads to more types of heart disease. Cholesterol does form the plaque in the arteries, but the plaque forms as a protection against irritation, such as that caused by acidic blood.

Acidic blood creates the optimum conditions for cancer growth, because cancer cells thrive in an acidic environment. When the pH of the blood is correct (7.4) it carries sufficient oxygen to discourage the growth of cancer cells. This is because cancer cells are anaerobic (without oxygen), as are several other types of disease-causing agents, and they cannot flourish in an oxygen-rich environment. Acidic blood depletes cells of oxygen so it is perfect for anaerobic cells. For optimum health the correct pH of the blood must be maintained, and consuming simple sugar works against this aim.

Cancer cells survive by fermentation, which requires dextrose, and they have been observed to require a lot of it. Reducing the amount of dextrose available does not help because the cancer cells can actually use alternatives. But consuming dextrose does prompt the production of insulin, which in turn initiates cell growth and replication. This would stimulate the growth of cancer cells as well.

It may be noted that enzymes used in the production of dextrose may have come from animal sources.

Origins

Dextrose (glucose) is a simple sugar, which occurs naturally in fruits, honey, and maple syrup. It is also produced biochemically in every cell of animals, plants, and fungi, where it is the source of energy for these living things. All starches are broken down into dextrose in the cells.

Commercially, dextrose is produced by employing enzymes to break down corn starch. Starches, or carbohydrates, are long chains of dextrose molecules. Enzymes break the bonds, which are the links in the chain, producing pure dextrose. Any starch source may be used. In processed foods, dextrose may be present due to the addition of invert sugar, which is sucrose that has been broken down into dextrose and fructose.