Novel saccharide, process for preparation of the same and use thereof

There is provided a novel carbohydrate: having neither a carbon-carbon double bond nor a carbonyl group and represented by a molecular formula C 6 H 10 O 5 ; showing a retention time of 11.0±0.2 minutes when maltose and fructose as reference materials show retention times of 8.8 minutes and 12.5 minutes, respectively, the retention times being measured by high performance liquid chromatography using a column having, as a filler, a strongly acidic ion exchange resin which is a styrene-divinylbenzene copolymer with a degree of crosslinkage of 8% and has a sulfonic group bonded to sodium as an ion exchange group, at a column temperature of 40° C. and a flow rate of water as an eluent of 1 ml/min, and; showing intramolecular carbon chemical shift values obtained by carbon nuclear magnetic resonance of 70.54±1 ppm, 95.37±1 ppm, 75.09±1 ppm, 68.86±1 ppm, 77.99±1 ppm and 64.15±1 ppm. This novel carbohydrate is useful as an antioxidant.