Is sugar a carbohydrate? Why?

1 Answer
Dave
Mar 8, 2018

A sugar like glucose has the general formula #CxxH_2O#

Explanation:

This doesn't mean you have a pile of carbon and you pour water on it, and boom, you have hydrated carbon...or a carbohydrate.

A carbohydrate is a polyalcohol that usually either has an aldehyde or ketone functional group. Glucose is a polyalcohol with an aldehyde group (C6H12O6), but its formula is #6(CxxH_2O)#, so we call them carbohydrates.

Also, if you cook bread too hot (but not hot enough it catches on fire), you'll burn the bread....basically by driving off the water leaving behind carbon.

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