Carbohydrates

Other names: sugars, polysaccharides, monosaccharides, disaccharides

Harm score: 2 (Derivatives of natural substances)

Carbohydrates, commonly known as sugars, are one of the basic building blocks that make up organisms. They are biopolymers, i.e. macromolecules made up of smaller molecular units that are linked together by chemical bonds. Carbohydrates are further divided into monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides.

Monosaccharides are the simplest in structure and include glucose, which is the main energy source in our bodies. Disaccharides are made up of just two monosaccharide molecules, such as sucrose, a common table sugar, which is made up of glucose and fructose molecules. Polysaccharides, on the other hand, are more complex and are made up of several monosaccharide molecules. These include, for example, starch, which is the main source of energy in plants, or cellulose, which is the most important building block of the plant wall.

Carbohydrates play a key role in food. Starch is widely used as a thickening agent in the kitchen and is found, for example, in potatoes, rice, cereals and pasta. Sugar is then commonly used to sweeten various beverages, desserts or baked goods. Cellulose is found in all plant foods such as fruits, vegetables and cereals and is important for the proper functioning of our digestion.