Sucrose

Glucose: C6H12O6

Aldohexose

Sucrose is a dimer

Isomers are molecules that share the same atomic ratio but are arranged in different configurations. Fructose and Glucose both have the same molecular formula: C6H12O6

Both Fructose and Glucose are formed during intermediate steps of photosynthesis. Plants will attach Fructose and Glucose together to produce the final product of Sucrose.

Fructose: C6H12O6

Ketohexose

In chemistry, saccharide is another word for "sugar." Sucrose is a disaccharide.

Here are some of the mono-saccharides (think mono = one!) Glucose is the primary monosaccharide our body metabolizes, but the chemical structures of other saccharides only differ in a few atoms and can be rapidly converted to Glucose in the body.

Fructose is a monosaccharide produced in fruit, and it gets metabolized a little differently than Glucose, usually in the liver. Sucrose gets broken down into these units.

Mono = 1; Di = 2; Tri = 3; Poly = 4+

Lactose is a disaccharide.

People with Lactose intolerance don't have enough enzymes to break this down into the monosaccharide pieces of Galactose and Glucose. Instead, tiny microbes get to eat on Lactose, which in turn produce methane gas responsible for other digestional issues.

Sucrose is a disaccharide.

Sucrose is the molecule that makes up granulated table sugar. Sucrose is a natural 50/50 combo of Fructose and Glucose. Hi-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is 55% Fructose/45% Glucose. Both HFCS and Sucrose are added in a lot of foods we eat. The huge amount of Fructose we consume in the Standard American Diet (SAD) has been shown to be responsible for a number of our national dietary issues.

Cellulose is a polysaccharide

Cellulose is polymer of Glucose that plants produce to make their cell well more sturdy and rigid. On the macro scale, this ultimately becomes the hard shelled bark that protects a tree. Humans do not produce the enzyme needed to break down Cellulose into Glucose, so it passes through our digestive system as fiber.

Saccharides have a lot of polar chemical bonds that attract water. Because these carbon-compounds are often found in a hydrated environment, saccharidges are also known as "Carbohydrates".

Glucose is overwhelmed by his Water stans. What a chad.

Foods rich in carbohydrates. Yes, even the paper bag is a carb (Cellulose)

Glycolysis and the Citric Acid Cycle are the pathways that generate ATP for our cells. Fructose is an intermediate in these pathways.

Glucose metabolism is regulated at the cellular level. Each step of Glycolysis is highly regulated by a number of enzymes and cellular processes. We are unable to generate unlimited ATP by consuming unlimited food because of these restrictions (which is good for us!). While Glucose is isomerized to Fructose in the pathway (Fructose-6-phosphate and Fructose-1,6-bisphosphate), direct Fructose metabolism circumvents many of the aforementioned regulations of Glucose metabolism. Because of this, overconsumption of Fructose can be damaging to our entire body, especially the Hepatic cells.

Glycolysis

In Glycolysis (pictured above), Glucose is converted into Pyruvate. This process creates 2 ATP for the cell and often occurs in the cytosol.

Citric Acid Cycle

In the Citric Acid Cycle (aka Kreb's Cycle/TCA), pyruvate is further metabolized to harness more chemical energy. This cycle produces more ATP and high energy molecules (NADH and FADH2) that get processed in the Mitochondria. This is also where protein and fat are metabolized.

The levels of Sucrose consumed in the Standard American Diet are elevated because of industrialization. The human body hasn't caught up.

The human body has an evolutionary background in hunting and gathering. We have an have an intensely positive relationship with high caloric foods, like sweet fruit and berries, since finding them in nature would have been very beneficial to our lineage. Those ancestors that developed the ability to hunt out and derive pleasure from sweet fruit were rewarded with far more nutrients and offspring.

Our society has evolved more rapidly than our bodies, however. The overproduction and overconsumption of Fructose has led to many metabolic diseases across the world. Where once we ate Fructose in moderation, rewarded by the rare sight of a ripe fruit in the right season, humans now consume hundreds of pounds of this substance due to modern food production.

The main organ responsible for processing Fructose is the liver. Sucrose breaks down into 50% Fructose. While humans have designed machines and techniques to maximize our ingestion of Fructose, this important organ can only tolerate so much of the compound.

Chemical Pathway of Glucose v Fructose

Hepatocytes are the cells in the liver that are responsible for filtering the blood of many metabolites, including alcohol and Fructose. The liver does not have mechanisms for regulating blood-Fructose levels, so ALL Fructose gets processed. If there are no immediate energy needs, the liver stores this extra carbon in the form of adipose (fat) tissue.

When exposed to high levels of certain chemicals, the liver suffers damage in the following stages:

Stage 1: Inflammation
Stage 2: Fibrosis
Stage 3: Cirrhosis
Stage 4: Liver Failure

High fructose exposure has similar impacts on the liver as Hepatitis or alcoholism. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) progresses to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) when scar tissue prevents normal liver function.

Cirrhosis is scarring of liver tissue that has irreversible consequences. Patients with high levels of cirrhosis must undergo a transplant. In 2018, the waitlist for a liver organ donor was 11,844.

While Hepatitis C cases dropped significantly for the last 20 years, reducing cirrhosis from that source, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease rates have continued to rise.

In addition to liver damage, Fructose consumption increases visceral fat, the adipose tissue that surrounds the organs. Visceral fat has large implications for other metabolic disorders, including diabetes.

How and why do we make so much Sucrose?

Sucrose is "healthy"

1953

President Eisenhower's heart attack made heart disease a public health issue. Alternate theories about the cause of heart disease arose; was fat to blame or was sugar the cause?

1961

Ancel Keys was the scientist who blamed fat, not sugar, for the epidemic of heart disease. His anti-fat propaganda gathered steam, while "healthy" low-fat sugar alternatives became popular.

1984

The markets respond to the anti-fat rhetoric of Keys. Fat-free foods become vogue, and food producers and stores begin to carry massive amounts of low-fat foods. In order to keep these foods enjoyable, the sugar content is increased across the board.

Sucrose is "cheap"

Because of our national dependence on sugar and fuel, corn subsidies have long been a staple of American commerce. Over time, the corn subsidies have taken on the lion's share of agriculture programs in the US.

Because of this farming security, corn production has consistently increased over the last century. Because of this increased production, corn prices have remained low despite inflation. Food producers eager to add cheap calories to their products can opt for inexpensive corn based ingredients.

All of these factors have led to a massive spike in corn-based high-fructose corn-syrup (HFCS) in the US. HFCS sweeteners now outweigh sucrose calories in the standard American diet.

Sucrose is "sweet"

Taste "buds" are made of multiple cell types

Our sense of taste is defined by chemical interactions between receptors and the molecules that stimulate those sensors. While it was once believed that certain spots of the tongue were responsible for different sensations of flavor (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami), each area of the tongue expresses taste buds capable of registering all flavors. Certain molecules like fructose stimulate far more receptors and thus taste sweeter.

The best treatment for Sucrose addiction is information

Just as Ancel Keys changed public opinion and forced food producers to make "low-fat" foods, documentaries that showcase public-health issues of certain foods can lead to massive social changes.

"Super Size Me", a documentary where one man ate McDonalds exclusively for a month, caused such public outlash against McDonalds that they removed their super-sized drink and fry options. Less soda = less fructose.

But just as Ancel Keys demonstrated last century, no public health information is definitive and unchanging. As humans learn more about our physiology, there will always be new health trends. Be cautious about the information fed to you, and always ask "who profits from this?"

Sucrose OC (10 points + 15 EC)

Every year, our school must recruit new students to fill our seats. This often requires doing promotional work outside of campus, such as the Discovery Cube STEAMFEST. You are required to generate a "sweet" promo for our class or school. Please include at least 5 pictures (2) with accompanying paragraphs of text (2) to explain a lab experience (2). Include including the NGSS standards discussed (2) and any goals achieved (2).

Example below (for the Discovery Cube STEAMFEST Spring 2025)

10 Points Extra Credit: Host the STEAMFEST 2025 Sylmar CHS Cookie Lab

The bus leaves SCHS at 8:30 on 4/5/25. We will set-up our Dalgona Cookie lab and you will be required to help make cookies for little kids during the event. Lunch will be provided and you can use these volunteer hours in the future.

Please fill out the permission slip and submit it to Smith by Friday, 4/4/25, if you are legitimately interested. Those that submit the form will be evaluated on their cookie making skills in a bonus Extra credit lab worth 5 EC on the site (please post evidence of completed form + picture evidence of you participating)

The name "Sylmar" is a fusion of the Latin words "silva" (meaning "forest") and "mar" (meaning "sea"), referencing the area's large number of olive trees, which were once abundant in the area.

Sylmar Charter High School is true to its roots and is proud to host one of the most impressive agricultural programs in LAUSD. Likewise, the culinary program is a major asset to our creative students. Many of our science lessons reflect this culinary collaboration, including the production of Dalgona Cookies.

Thai Tea Spectroscopy Lab

Flask Egg Pressure Lab

Hydrophobic Meringues Lab

Red 40 Polarity Lab

Seong Gi-hun and other characters in Squid Game are required to break Dalgona honeycomb cookies. Watch our Sylmar Spartans make this simple recipe for you. If you are able to break out your cookie, you'll win a prize!

SEP1 requires students to ask questions. Some good questions for this lab:

1) What chemicals make up the cookie?

2) What does the baking soda do in the recipe? What happens if I have too much?

3) What chemicals make up the cookie cutter? Are they safe to eat?

The Dalgona cookie is made with only two basic ingredients: sucrose (table sugar) and sodium bicarbonate (baking soda).

The sucrose is heated until it "melts". It doesn't actually become a liquid, but rather denatures and breaks down into smaller saccharides, a process we know as "carmelization." When enough of the sugar is a slurry, we add baking soda to the mixture to release CO2 into the cookie

Sodium Bicarbonate has 1 Na for every CO3

The engineering process is tied to the NGSS standards. When planning our investigations and ways to improve a culinary recipe. students are asked to evaluate every variable in the cooking process. What pot type is ideal? What temperature on the hotplate is ideal for carmelization? What cookie cutters are best for impressing on the cookie? The engineering process requires testing each possibility.

Non-stick Teflon

Stainless Steel

Cast Iron

Both temperature and pan type have an impact on the Dalgona making process. We are aiming for medium carmelization and settled on a Teflon non-stick pan for making the cookies. Teflon scratches when used with metal utensils, so we'll be using wooden chopsticks to make a break our cookies.

3D printed filaments can be used for a wide variety of applications. Spartans are expected to make 3D model edits in CAD software to make custom cookie cutters for the lab. The Spartan helmet that you are using today was printed using Polylactic Acid (PLA). The other toys and widgets were printed with the same material by Spartans.

Wait, is it safe to use "plastic" cutters that could melt into the cookie?

Lactic acid is the compound that your muscles synthesize during exercise. It is organic and breaks down in the body quickly. Polylactic acid is the polymer of this chemical. It might not be tasty, but it isn't toxic.

Spartan athletes make Lactic Acid

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