Table sugar

Sugar is a sweet ingredient added to foods such as cookies, cakes, and pastries.

Sugar is sweet because it contains sucrose (C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁), which is a solid white disaccharide that alters the flavor of foods.

Sugar comes from beets or sugarcane and is generally grown in tropical environments.

Sucrose is a carbohydrate. Sucrose is broken down in the body into glucose and fructose. When digested, sugar provides approximately 4 calories per gram.

Many processed food products such as Twinkies, children's breakfast cereals, and candy bars contain large amounts of sugar. When consumed in large quantities, sugar is unhealthy, may lead to tooth decay, obesity, or diabetes.

Sugar plays an important role in the commerce of many countries, including Jamaica, Guatemala, and Bolivia.