Use of C3 carbon dioxide (CO2) fixation cycle by the sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.), a dicotyledenous plant, and C4 carbon fixation cycle by 2 monocotyledenous plants, corn and cane, results in a physiological discrimination between 13C and 12C isotopes. Therefore, determination of 13C/12C ratio of maple syrup by mass spectrometry can be used to detect adulteration with cane and corn sugars. Four samples of pure maple syrup and 3 adulterated maple syrup samples were analyzed in a collaborative study. Results indicate that stable carbon isotope analysis can determine authenticity of maple products. Samples with δ13C values less negative than – 23.49%c (parts per thousand) can, with a high degree of confidence (95%), be classified as adulterated. The method has been adopted official first action.

We examined the effects of sugar on the behavior of 45 preschool and elementary school children. Using a double-blind within-subject challenge design, we provided all children with a basic breakfast that included a challenge drink containing either 50 gof sucrose, a placebo (aspartame) of comparable sweetness, or only a very small amount of sucrose. The results indicated that high amounts of sugar caused a small increase in the children's activity level (as rated by their teachers) and a small decrement in the performance of the female subjects on a simple learning task and that sugar affected the cognitive performance of the preschoolers differently than that of elementary school children.All of these effects, however, were quite small in magnitude and were not considered clinically significant. The results did not support the view that sugar causes major changes in children's behavior.Parents and teachers often report that foods containing large amounts of refined sugar (sucrose) produce detrimental effects on children's behavior. Anecdotal reports of increased activity levels, irritability, and impairment in the ability to sustain attention and inhibit impulses are common. In addition, several articles and books written for the general public have popularized the view that sugar exerts negative effects (e.g., Duffy. 1975;Tauraso, 1983). Many of these have stated that sugar is a primary cause of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder as it is defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-III-R; American Psychiatric Association, 1987) in children. In fact, according to a study by Bennett and Sherman (1983), 45% of pediatricians and family practitioners have recommended a low-sugar diet for at least some of the hyperactive children they treat. Scholarly writings have also made unfounded pronouncements regarding sugar's effects. For instance, in a comment in the American Psychologist, Buchanan (1984) labeled sugar "the most ubiquitous toxin." Only recently, however, have investigators begun to seriously examine this important issue.Unfortunately, the few controlled experiments that have been conducted have reported conflicting results. Some have shown detrimental effects of sugar on behavior (e.g., Conners &

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