He Forgot to Wash His Hands — And Accidentally Discovered Saccharin, 300–500x Sweeter Than Sugar
☕ TL;DR (AI Summary): In 1879, Russian-born chemist Constantin Fahlberg was working in Ira Remsen's laboratory at Johns Hopkins University when he skipped washing his hands before dinner — and accidentally discovered saccharin, the world's first artificial sweetener. It is 300–500 times sweeter than sugar with virtually zero calories. Behind the sweet discovery, however, lies a bitter story of betrayal between two scientists.
📌 This article is a history and science information post based on publicly accessible academic sources and encyclopedias. Fact-checked as of March 2026.
Overview — A Sweet Discovery Born from Dirty Hands
Welcome to entry #8 of the Things Dictionary — "The Brilliant Accident of a Chemist with Questionable Hygiene." Today's subject is saccharin, sugar's most powerful rival and the great-grandparent of zero-calorie sweeteners.
This sweet story started in a rather messy situation. And hidden inside it is the tale of a co-discoverer whom history almost forgot entirely.
One unwashed bite of bread — and the world's sweetest accident began (Image: Flow / AI generated)
1. "Why Does This Bread Taste So Sweet?"
Baltimore, 1879. Johns Hopkins University. Constantin Fahlberg (1850–1910), a Russian-born chemist, had spent the day working with coal tar derivatives in the laboratory of Professor Ira Remsen.
💡 What was Fahlberg doing there in the first place?
His actual day job was as an analytical chemist for a Baltimore sugar import company called H.W. Perot — testing the purity of imported sugar. Through this work he gained access to Professor Remsen's lab, and with Remsen's permission, began participating in research on coal tar compounds as well.
So absorbed was he in his work that the evening hours slipped by unnoticed. Hunger finally won out and he rushed to the dining room — but in his haste, he never bothered to wash his hands. He simply grabbed a piece of bread and took a bite.
And then he stopped.
- "Why on earth does this bread taste like a spoonful of sugar?"
- He licked his fingers — and the sweetness hit him even harder. Something on his hands was extraordinarily, intensely sweet.
2. The Chemist Who Ran Back to His Lab
The realization was immediate: one of the compounds he had handled that day was responsible. Fahlberg rushed back to the laboratory and began tasting the contents of every beaker and reagent bottle he had touched. By today's standards, this would be an extremely dangerous practice — but in the 1870s, tasting was a common method of chemical identification.
He eventually traced the sweetness to a compound called anhydroorthosulphaminebenzoic acid — hundreds of times sweeter than sugar. He named it saccharin, from the Latin and Greek word saccharon, meaning sugar or candy.
3. The Co-Discoverer Who Was Erased — Professor Remsen
Here is a chapter of this story that is far too often left out.
⚠️ Fahlberg and Remsen co-authored papers on saccharin in 1879 and 1880. But in 1884, Fahlberg quietly filed patents for saccharin in Germany and the United States — without saying a word to Remsen — and publicly claimed to be the sole discoverer. He became wealthy. Remsen was furious. In a letter to Scottish chemist William Ramsay, Remsen wrote: "Fahlberg is a scoundrel. It nauseates me to hear my name mentioned in the same breath with his."
A sweet discovery with a deeply bitter aftertaste. It remains one of the most dramatic co-discovery disputes in the history of science.
4. Wartime Hero and a Lifeline for Diabetics
Saccharin attracted little attention at first. But two World Wars changed everything.
- During WWI and WWII: As sugar became scarce and rationed, saccharin — which could sweeten enormous quantities of food in tiny amounts — became invaluable. During WWI it was even marketed as a symbol of patriotic thrift.
- In modern times: With zero calories, saccharin became a godsend for people managing their weight and for diabetics who needed to limit sugar intake. It remains a staple in diet sodas and low-calorie food products to this day.
There was a period of controversy when animal studies suggested a possible link to bladder cancer. However, in 2000, the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP) officially removed saccharin from its list of possible carcinogens, concluding that the risk to humans is negligible. It is now approved as a safe food additive in the vast majority of countries worldwide — a quiet, sweet presence in your diet soda and your morning coffee mix.
💡 Three Key Takeaways
1. Messiness made history: If Fahlberg had been a more fastidious hand-washer, saccharin's discovery might have been delayed by years — or attributed to someone else entirely.
2. Sweetness from coal tar: The fact that one of the sweetest substances ever discovered came from black, sticky coal tar is one of science history's great ironies.
3. Greed was sweeter than the discovery: Fahlberg co-published his findings with Remsen, then quietly cut him out of the patent. The sweetest discovery of the 19th century left a very bitter taste.
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Who discovered saccharin and when?
Saccharin was accidentally discovered in 1879 by Russian-born chemist Constantin Fahlberg while working in Professor Ira Remsen's laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Fahlberg and Remsen co-authored papers on the discovery, but Fahlberg later filed patents independently and without informing Remsen.
Q. How much sweeter is saccharin than sugar?
Saccharin is approximately 300–500 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar) and contains virtually zero calories. At high concentrations it can produce a bitter or metallic aftertaste, which is why it is commonly blended with other sweeteners in commercial products.
Q. Is saccharin safe? Wasn't it linked to cancer?
Earlier animal studies suggested a possible link to bladder cancer, which caused a period of regulatory concern. However, in 2000 the U.S. National Toxicology Program (NTP) officially removed saccharin from its list of possible carcinogens after concluding that the risk to humans is negligible. It is currently approved as a safe food additive in the vast majority of countries worldwide.
Q. Where does the name "saccharin" come from?
The name derives from the Latin and Greek word saccharon, meaning sugar or candy. Fahlberg essentially named his discovery "the sugar-like substance" — a fitting name for something sweeter than sugar itself.
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the-story-why.blogspot.com📎 References
All sources used in this article are publicly accessible. Each link opens in a new tab.
This article is based on publicly accessible academic and encyclopedia sources. Fact-checked as of March 2026.
Historical accounts may vary slightly across sources; key disputed facts are noted in the text above.
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