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You’ve got your pick of alternatives if you’re trying to cut back on sugar but still want to indulge your sweet tooth. There’s a buzzy option that keeps popping up on ingredient labels that’s gained attention on social media over the past few years. It’s sweet and has the exact texture of regular table sugar, but here’s the best part: allulose is technically not an artificial sweetener.
Allulose is a sugar that shows up naturally in sweet foods like figs, raisins, maple syrup, and more, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). But it’s also commercially processed—it’s found in a ton of low-sugar and low-calorie foods, such as protein bars, low-sugar cereals, and low-sugar yogurts, and you can also buy it in bags and pouches.
Meet the experts: Scott Keatley, RD, is the co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy. Yasi Ansari, RDN, is a senior dietitian at UCLA Health Santa Monica. Antonette Hardie, RDN, is a registered dietitian at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Julie Upton, RD, is a San Francisco Bay Area-based registered dietitian.
It’s often hailed as a healthy alternative to table sugar (sucrose) because it “tastes like sugar, looks like sugar, but provides almost no calories,” says Scott Keatley, RD, co-owner of Keatley Medical Nutrition Therapy. “It provides bulk and browning in recipes, which lets it replace sugar without losing texture or flavor,” Keatley adds. And it may not spike your blood sugar as much as table sugar.
Wondering if you should make the switch from table sugar to allulose? Ahead, find out the benefits and side effects of the alternative, and who should try it, per dietitians.
Benefits Of Allulose
There’s some preliminary studies on allulose, but many of them have been conducted on animals, so it’s hard to say for sure whether the benefits apply to people.
It may regulate blood sugar.
Allulose may help with blood sugar regulation in people with type 2 diabetes, says Yasi Ansari, RDN, senior dietitian at UCLA Health Santa Monica. Why? Allulose has a “near-zero” glycemic index, which means it’s unlikely to spike your blood sugar, Keatley explains.
A 2024 Metabolism Open meta-analysis of clinical trials of the effect of allulose on blood glucose in people with type 2 diabetes found that those who consumed allulose had a “significant reduction” in blood sugar levels after eating and drinking. Allulose may be worth swapping for table sugar in people with type 2 diabetes, but more research is needed to track allulose’s long-term impact on blood sugar, according to the meta-analysis.
It may support weight management.
Depending how much table sugar you typically consume, swapping in allulose for your go-to sweetener could help you cut back on calories—as long as you’re still in a calorie deficit overall, says Antonette Hardie, RDN, a registered dietitian at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Just a quick comparison: There are 48 calories in one tablespoon of table sugar, and 0 calories in one tablespoon of allulose.
There is some research to suggest that allulose may help to increase fat loss, although it’s not robust. A 2024 study in Nutrients involved feeding obese rats that had type 2 diabetes lab food with either stevia or allulose for 12 weeks to learn about the effects of allulose on the body. The rats who consumed allulose ate less food and gained less weight than those that ate stevia. As a result, the researchers concluded that allulose may be a good substitute for sugar—at least in rats managing obesity and type 2 diabetes.
But research in humans is still in early stages, Keatley says. One 2018 study in Nutrients had 121 overweight or obese people consume a drink with either sucralose or allulose twice a day over 12 weeks. The researchers found that people in the allulose group lost more fat mass during the study period compared to those in the sucralose group.
It may help protect against non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is a buildup of fat in the liver (not caused by alcohol use). If untreated, it can progress to inflammation and liver damage, Keatley explains.
In animal studies, allulose has been shown to help reduce fat accumulation in the liver that can contribute to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Additionally, a small 2020 J-Stage study looked at 90 people who were given daily drinks with 15 grams, five grams, or zero grams (the placebo) of allulose over 48 weeks. It found that there were “significant improvements” in markers linked with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in the allulose groups.
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But the potential perks of allulose, especially in humans, are still being explored. “While early findings are promising, we need more long-term human studies with larger and more diverse participant groups to make definitive recommendations, as current research remains limited,” says Ansari.
Side Effects Of Allulose
Allulose has been labeled by the FDA as Generally Recognized As Safe (or GRAS) which means it’s considered safe to use like table sugar. However, just like with normal sugar, you may experience side effects like bloating or gas from consuming any amount of allulose, says Julie Upton, RD, a San Francisco Bay Area-based registered dietitian. “Generally, if you enjoy a moderate amount of allulose, you will have minimal side effects,” she says.
But if you consume a substantial amount in one sitting—like above 25 to 30 grams, or more than a tablespoon—Keatley says you may experience gastrointestinal side effects such as:
Bloating
Gas
Loose stools
Mild abdominal pain
“These symptoms occur because allulose isn’t fully absorbed and ferments in the colon,” says Keatley. However, people usually build up a tolerance to allulose over time, so while you may experience gas the first time you eat it, that doesn’t mean it’ll be an issue down the road.
Who Should (And Shouldn’t) Eat Allulose
Keatley says there are a lot of people who may benefit from eating allulose compared to normal sugar, such as those:
With type 2 diabetes or prediabetes that want to manage their blood sugar
Trying to lose weight who are struggling with sugar cravings
Who are looking for a low-calorie sugar substitute
But because allulose can cause GI issues, it’s probably best to avoid for people with a sensitive digestive system or a history of GI concerns like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Ansari says.
If the idea of using a low-calorie sweetener that tastes and feels like table sugar sounds like a dream, dietitians say you should go for it. Just start slow and see how you feel. “Monitor how much you consume, what you consume allulose with, and how your body responds,” Ansari says.
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