NASN Note:

The following article was forwarded to the Association concerning Low  carbohydrate bars.  Clarification must be made before reading this article.  

Glycerol, glycerin, glyceren, and glycerine are all equivalent. They refer to a sweet, oily colorless alcohol, C3H8O3, formed by decomposition of natural fats with alkalis or superheated steam.  It burns at an approximate rate of four calories per gram.  

Glycerol can occur in the body from the breakdown of free fatty acids or through the ingestion of foods that contain it.  The significant research regarding glycerol is that once it is released into the body, it cannot be reincorporated into fat because the activity of glycerol kinase is extremely low.  It should be counted in the calorie count of foods, most appropriately in the carbohydrate section of the FDA recommended food label.

Note by Jeff Kotterman, NASN Board Member 

Reference: Brooks, B.; Arch, J.R.S.; Newsholme, E.A. Effects of hormones on the rate of the triacylglycerol/fatty acid substrate cycle in adipocytes and epididymal fat pads. FEBS lett. 146:327-330; 1982

Low-Carb Bars Aren't What You Think They Are

We are trying to raise public awareness about False Labeling by many of the Low-Carb Bar Manufacturers. These manufacturers are deceiving Consumers by NOT counting Glycerine as a carbohydrate within the Nutritional Facts on the back of the packaging. Glycerine is a carbohydrate and is contained in all of the mislabeled bars listed below. These companies are making up their own rules, and the FDA is NOT enforcing these infractions, which places the onus on the Consumer to make correct buying decisions by NOT purchasing deceptively marketed Low-Carb Bars. We ask, "What is next? Not counting sugars?"

MISLABELED PRODUCTS
(Listed according to the above referenced FDA, Consumer Labs and the National Consumers League Reports)

ATKINS NUTRITIONAL BARS Consumer Labs Research | National Consumer League
RICHARDSON LABS CARB SOLUTIONS - FDA Warning Letter | National Consumer League
RICHARDSON LABS - MET-RX BARS - National Consumer League | Consumer Labs Research
EAS CARB CONTROL BARS - FDA Warning Letter
OPTIMUM PROTEIN DIET BARS - FDA Warning Letter
PREMIER & PREMIER 8 BARS - FDA Warning Letter
TWIN LABS PROTEIN FUEL BARS - FDA Warning Letter
WORLDWIDE SPORTS NUTRITION BARS - FDA Warning Letter
UNIVERSAL - DOCTOR'S DIET LOW CARB BAR - FDA Warning Letter