Question

Are disaccharides a type of carbohydrate?

Answer 1

Yes, disaccharides are a type of carbohydrate.

Explanation:

A carbohydrate or saccharide is a biological polyhydroxyaldehyde or ketone that usually has an empirical formula `"C"_m("H"_2"O")_n`.

The saccharides are divided into four chemical groups: monosaccharides, disaccharides, oligosaccharides, and polysaccharides.

The most well-known monosaccharide is glucose (`"C"_6"H"_12"O"_6`);

A disaccharide is the carbohydrate that is formed when two monosaccharides react and eliminate a molecule of water.

An example is the formation of sucrose, `"C"_12"H"_22"O"_11`, from glucose and fructose.

Two other common disaccharides are lactose and maltose.