E-numbers / Other additives / E1200
also: Polydextrose-A · Polydextrose-N
A man-made fibre made from glucose. It bulks out low-sugar and low-calorie foods with about a quarter of sugar's calories.
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Flour (Wheat Flour, Calcium, Iron, Niacin, Thiamin), Sunflower Oil, Sugar, Polydextrose, Glucose-Fructose Syrup, Barley Malt Extract, Raising Agents (Ammonium Bicarbonate, Sodium Bicarbonate, Potassium Bicarbonate), Salt
Polydextrose is made in a factory by joining glucose molecules together at random, with small amounts of sorbitol and citric acid.
131
of the 43,325 UK supermarket foods we checked declare E1200 in their ingredients
That is 0.3%, counted by its code or its name.
Counted by NutraSafe from UK supermarket ingredient lists, September 2026. How we counted
Polydextrose is made in a factory by joining glucose molecules together at random, with small amounts of sorbitol and citric acid. It gives about 1kcal per gram, against 4kcal for sugar, and acts as a soluble fibre in the gut, fermenting slowly in the large bowel.
It adds bulk and body to food without adding many calories or raising blood sugar much. It is not digested in the small intestine and passes to the large bowel, where gut bacteria ferment some of it, so it counts towards fibre. It also keeps baked goods moist and stops sugar crystallising.
Low-calorie and reduced-sugar products: diet soft drinks, sugar-free sweets and chewing gum, low-fat muffins and biscuits, protein bars and meal-replacement shakes, table-top sweeteners and reduced-alcohol beers. UK labels call it polydextrose or E1200.
Because it is not digested in the small intestine, large amounts reaching the bowel can cause bloating, wind and loose stools. European reviewers put the average laxative threshold at around 90g a day, or 50g in one go. Normal use in food rarely comes near that, but people who eat several products containing it in a day may notice discomfort.
Reviewers put the average laxative threshold for polydextrose at 90g a day or 50g in one dose, and said people should add up intake from all sources, including other polyols such as sorbitol.
Polydextrose ferments slowly in the large bowel and has been studied as a prebiotic, meaning it may feed helpful gut bacteria such as Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus. Some trials in people found small improvements in how often and how easily people went to the toilet. The effect depends on the dose and varies from person to person.
In trials in people, 8 to 12g of polydextrose a day increased Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in the bowel and made bowel movements more frequent.
Polydextrose has a very low effect on blood sugar and gives about 1kcal per gram, against 4kcal for sugars and starches. The body does not use it like glucose, so blood sugar and insulin rise much less. UK and EU rules let it count as fibre on nutrition labels.
Polydextrose barely raises blood sugar and counts as dietary fibre on EU labels.
In animal feeding studies it caused no harm even at very high doses. European reviewers looked at long-term studies, including mice fed up to 15,000mg per kg of body weight a day, and found no cancer, harm to reproduction or organ damage from it.
Long-term and cancer studies in rats and mice at up to 15,000mg per kg of body weight a day showed no harm, and no DNA damage or reproductive effects were found.
Daily limit. None set (European reviewers, 2021).
People with irritable bowel syndrome, or who are sensitive to fermentable fibres (the FODMAP group), may notice bloating or loose stools, especially if they eat several products with polydextrose or other polyols in a day. Check ingredients for polydextrose or E1200 and add up what you eat across products.
Polydextrose is one of the more studied bulking agents. The 2021 European review drew on decades of animal and human data and found nothing calling for a numerical limit. The main practical issue is gut discomfort at high doses, which any fermentable fibre causes. Research into its prebiotic effects is ongoing, with some trials in people showing small changes in gut bacteria at normal doses, though that is still being studied rather than settled.
No. Polydextrose is approved in the UK and is on the Food Standards Agency's list.
At high intakes it can. European reviewers put the average laxative threshold at around 90g a day, or 50g in one go. A single product has far less, but eating several in a day may cause bloating, wind or loose stools, especially alongside other polyols such as sorbitol or maltitol.
Mostly diet soft drinks, sugar-free sweets and chewing gum, low-fat baked goods, protein bars, meal replacements and reduced-alcohol beers, plus table-top sweetener powders and tablets. Look for polydextrose or E1200.
Yes. It is made from glucose (from corn starch), sorbitol and citric acid, with nothing from animals.
Last reviewed: 20 June 2026
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