What Is Galactose & What Foods Can I Find It In?

Galactose is a monosaccharide. It is a sugar that is about as sweet as glucose.

That is about 30% of the sweetness from sucrose.

Because of this, galactose is not generally used as a sweetener.

Galactose is a component of lactose, which makes it a vital nutrient for newborn infants and young children.

Galactose Provides Energy

Galactose is a monosaccharide sugar and has the same chemical formula as glucose.

But galactose has different properties compared to glucose.

Galactose is an energy-providing nutrient. (source ◳)

You can read about benefits of galactose in Galactose: 4 Research-Backed Benefits .

Galactose For Infants

Galactose is crucial for human metabolism. (source ◳)

Galactose in the form of lactose is a vital nutrient for newborn infants and young children.

In human breast milk, the lactose content is about 7 g/dL, and in cow’s milk, the concentration is approximately 5 g/dL. (source ◳)

Galactose In The Body

Digestion of galactose is transported through the hepatic portal vein directly to the liver.(source ◳)

Galactose is found in most living cells, including yeasts and bacteria. (source ◳)

Galactose Is Not That Sweet

The major dietary source of galactose is lactose. Lactose is found naturally in milk and dairy products and in small amounts in some fruits and vegetables. (source ◳)

Even though galactose is a sugar, it is not generally used as a sweetener because it’s only about 30% as sweet as sucrose. (source ◳)

Foods You Can Find Galactose In

You find Galactose mostly in snacks, sweets, dairy and egg, and vegetable products.

Examples of food sources include

• Slim-Fast Optima Meal Bar
• Honey
• Dulce De Leche
• Kefir
• Mozzarella
• Celery
• Beets

Foods That Contain Galactose In Our Nutrition Tool

You can find regularly updated top ranked lists of foods for over 200+ nutrients in our nutrition tool.

If you are interested in what foods contain the most Galactose we recommend you visit our tool.

Here's our top ranked list of foods that contain Galactose.