Sorbitol - Its uses and other effects

Sorbitol is an artificial sweetener that has 1/3 fewer calories than sugar.
Used for sweetening food and drink.
It has several cosmetic and medical applications and is added to oral health products.
Naturally it is found in pears, peaches, apples, prunes, seaweed, and some berries.

This sweetener is actually a sugar alcohol that is also known as glucitol. It is a white powder or liquid that is sweet in taste and odorless.
It is very slow to metabolize in the body, which lessens the chance of increased levels of insulin. This makes sorbitol a good sweetener for diabetics.

Sorbitol is one of the most familiar sugar substitutes and is a frequent addition to diet foods. Low calorie candies, ice cream, baked goods, and chewing gum are commonly made with this sweetener. Foods made with this ingredient stay fresh and moist longer than those made with most other nutritive sweeteners.
A small amount added to peanut butter improves spreadability and keeps it from becoming dry and crumbly. It is also added to shredded coconut to keep the flakes moist.

Cosmetic products are often thickened with sorbitol. It may be added to chewing tobacco to improve the flavor and to cigarettes to keep the tobacco inside from breaking down and crumbling.
Mouthwashes and toothpastes are made more transparent and pleasant tasting with the addition of this sugar alcohol, as are cough drops and syrups.
Hair gels and shampoos also frequently contain sorbitol.

Laxatives are sometimes made with sorbitol
It is also used as an irrigation solution during urinary and prostrate surgeries to prevent infection and is administered by injection.
Sorbitol can be combined with Kayexalate to eliminate excess potassium from the body when medically necessary.

Though safe in small to moderate amounts, the substance does have some harmful side effects when too much is consumed. They include dry mouth, excessive thirst, dehydration, and edema. When larger amounts are ingested, it can cause abdominal cramps, diarrhea, and bloating. Less commonly, it may cause dizziness and irritability. Those with gastrointestinal problems such as irritable bowel syndrome should not use any product containing sorbitol.

Uses of Algae

ALGAE

Sl No	Genus Name	Species Name	Applications
1	Nostoc	Nostoc punctiforme	Fixes carbon dioxide and nitrogen; produces hydrogen; survives acidic, anaerobic, and low-temperature conditions.
2	Lyngbya	Lyngbya sp.	Assay of Antibacterial activity
3	Anabaena	Anabaena variabilis	Filamentous heterocyst-forming; fixes nitrogen and carbon dioxide; produces hydrogen.
4	Porphyra	Porphyra vietnamensis	Used as food  or food supplements, protein source, minerals and trace elements
5	Dunaliella	Dunaliella salina	Used in mass culture as a commercial source for glycerol and the orange pigment beta-carotene.
6	Spirulina	Spirulina plantesis	Used as protein source, rich source of beta-carotene, thiamine, riboflavin, Used in pharmaceuticals
		Spirulina subsalsa	Used as food supplement, rich source of beta-carotene, thiamine, riboflovin
7	Macrocystis	Macrocystis sp.	Produce polysaccharides
8	Gracilaria	Gracilaria verrucosa	Produce polysaccharides, nutrient rich
9	Palmaria	Palmaria palmate	Used as protein source
		Palmaria stenogona	Used as protein source
10	Phormidium	Phormidium valderianum	Complete aquaculture feed source, Source of phycocyanin, Degradation of phenol, Production of extracellular B lactamase
		Phormidium lucidum	Production of phytobilin pigments
		Phormidium fragile
		Phormidium tenue	Used as pharmaceuticals, Production of hydrogen
11	Sargassum	Sargassum pallidum	Unique source of PUFA
		Sargassum natans	Unique source of PUFA
12	Ulva	Ulva lactuca	Source of protein, minerals and trace elements
13	Flabellia	Flabellia petiolata	Source of high carbohydrate
14	Halimeda	Halimeda tuna	Source of high carbohydrate
15	Gelidium	Gelidium sesquipedale	Human food, Medicines, Industrial applications, Food ingredients etc.
		Gelidium abbottiorum	Human food, Medicines, Industrial applications, Food ingredients, Personal care and Food Process aids etc.
		Gelidium anansii	Human food, Medicines, Industrial applications, Food ingredients, Used for making agar agar
		Gelidium capense	Medicines, Industrial applications, Food ingredients, Personal care and Food Process
16	Undaria	Undaria pinnatifida	Used in sea food products, Human food
		Undaria peterseniana	Used as Human food
17	Porphyridium	Porphyridium cruentum	Production of polysaccharides, lipids, PUFAs
18	Monodus	Monodus subterraneus	Produces eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) an omega-3 unsaturated fatty acid.
19	Crypthecodinium	Crypthecodinium cohnii	Production of PUFA, Polysaccharide, Supplement for infant dietary intake, produces docosahexaenoic acids
20	Artemia	Artemia salina	Used as live larval food in aquaculture
21	Tetraselmis	Tetraselmis suecica	Used as mass-oil producing crop
22	Oscillatoria	Oscillatoria limnetica	Used in Pharmaceuticals,
		Oscillatoria salina	Used as biofertilizers
		Oscillatoria laete-virens	Used as biofertilizers
		Oscillatoria boryana	Degradation and metabolisation of melaoidin pigment of distillery effluents
23	Microcystis	Microcystis auruginosa	Encouraged to grow in eel ponds. Besides giving out oxygen for eels, the plant has a very high nitrate demand and so absorbs pollution products from the pond.
24	Chaetomorpha	Chaetomorpha antennia	Cultivated for Chanos culture in brackishwater ponds. Consumed as food. Used for manufacture of a sweet meat.
		Chaetomorpha crassa	Cultivated for Chanos culture in brackishwater ponds. Consumed as food. Used for manufacture of a sweet meat.
25	Aponothece	Aponothece halophytica	Produce glutamic acid, methionin, phenylalanine
26	Chlorella	Chlorella vulgaris	Food source, Production of other carotenoids such as lutein and canthaxanthin
		Chlorella ellipsoidea	Used as food by human beings and for fish cultivation.
		Chlorella pyrenoidosa	Used as food by human beings and for fish cultivation.
27	Cladophora	Cladophora glomerata	Oxidative stress tolerance, Limited cultivation in brackishwater fish ponds in Philippines by application of commercial fertilizers.
28	Enteromorpha	Enteromorpha ahlneriana	Oxidative stress tolerance, antioxidant
		Enteromorpha compressa	Cultivated for Chanos culture in brackishwater ponds.