Total sweet total sweet xylitol sweetener 225gxylitol also called wood or birch sugar has been known about and used as a sugar alternative for many years the word comes from the greek word xyl meaning wood as in xylophone as it was first extracted from the bark of birch trees after the second world war when sugar was in short supply xylitol is a naturally occurring sweet tasting substance that looks and tastes just like sugar but has various healthy benefits xylitol is found in a whole