Meringue
Food · Other · Food, Typed Supps
Almost pure sugar, whipped with egg white and dried out.
Stage by stage
- Intake (Dissolves immediately): The dry foam has huge surface area and no fat, so it dissolves on contact with saliva.
- Digestion (Sucrose split): Brush-border sucrase splits sucrose into glucose and fructose; there is almost nothing else to digest.
- Bloodstream (Fast glucose rise): With no fat, fibre or meaningful protein to slow emptying, the glycaemic rise is steep.
- Whole diet (Added sugar counts): Nearly all 89g per 100g is added sugar, with no fruit or dairy contribution to offset it.
Time to effect
- 20-40 minutes: Blood glucose peaks quickly, faster than most desserts, because there is no fat to slow gastric emptying.
Allergens
Contains: Eggs. May contain: Soya, Tree nuts. Derived from what this food is, not from a product label.
Eating patterns
Fits: Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Halal, Kosher, Gluten-free. Depends on the product: Low-FODMAP.
Satiety
95 on the satiety index, where white bread is 100 — low. Modelled from the Holt et al. (1995) measurements.
Cost band
Mid — roughly £4 per kg, as a band midpoint rather than a price.
Key nutrients
- Sugar
- A small amount of egg protein
Nutrition per 100g
- Calories: 368
- Protein: 2.6g
- Carbohydrate: 90.1g
- of which sugars: 89.4g
- Fat: 1.4g
- of which saturated: 0.1g
- Fibre: 0g
- Sodium: 40mg
Food vs. supplement
Not a supplement category. Among desserts, its distinction is the near-total absence of fat and cholesterol — 0.13g saturated fat per 100g — which is real, and separate from the fact that nearly everything else in it is sugar.
Kitchen tip
Grease-free bowl, sugar added slowly after soft peak, and a pinch of cream of tartar for stability. A low oven dries the shell rather than baking it, which is why meringues are cooked at around 100-120C for hours.
Common myth
“Meringue is fat-free, so it is the light dessert option.” In reality: Fat-free and low-energy are different claims. At 368 calories and 89g of sugar per 100g it is more sugar-dense than chocolate. The near-absence of fat is genuine — 1.4g per 100g — and it is the only thing in its favour.
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