Some say that sugar was a sweet gesture from India to the world, but even before that it is believed that the ubiquitous sweetener was actually found in Polynesia around 8000 BC. In fact, the word 'sugar' is considered to be derived from the Sanskrit word 'Sharkara' meaning 'material in granule form'.
As time went on, numerous changes and modifications have made to sugar and India being the second largest sugar producing nation in the world (after Brazil) has been domesticating plants to create sugar for thousands of years.
Following are some interesting facts that might totally appease your 'sweet-tooth':
- Sucrose, fructose and lactose are some of the different forms of sugar. The most common form is called Sucrose which is also your table sugar. It has a chemical formula of C6H22O11.
- As we talk of its colour, sugar is naturally white as the sucrose (table sugar) is obtained by removal of molasses (and other plant materials) from sugar beet or sugar cane through centrifuging.
- Sugar is an excellent preservative as due to osmosis, bacteria lose water. This is because sugar has a high concentration which enables the process. Bacteria are likely to die without the presence of water.
- The tallest sugar cube ever recorded as per Guinness World Records was built by a French person called Camille Courgeon. It stood a staggering 2.08 m or 6 ft. 10 in.
- A teaspoon of sugar has 16 calories.
- Unlike cats, dogs have a sweet tooth. This is due to the chemical furaneol to which dogs respond emphatically, although cats are not affected by it. As per studies, cats don't have sweetness receptors.
- Scientists have managed to turn sugar into fuel as powerful as petrol. Rocket Candy (also called R-Candy) is a model rocket fuel containing an oxidizer. Earlier the rocket propellant used the most common form sucrose but for the ease of production, use sorbitol primarily.