Glycerol - Super Confusing

I've been experimenting a lot with glycerol lately after some people claimed that consuming it didn't kick them out of ketosis. It made sense to me and seemed exciting. Glycerol (or glycerin or glycerine) is the backbone of a triglyceride. It is a 3 carbon sugar. Technically, it's a sugar alcohol.

It CAN be converted to glucose by liver.

BUT wouldn't that mean that, when on a no carb diet, the body could just deanimate triglycerides and convert the glycerol to glucose? We know this doesn't happen though as ketosis has been reported on many, many occasions.

One thing that I think contributes to the body's lack of doing this is the fact that is a metabolically expensive pathway. It may just be easier for the body to convert fatty acids to ketones.

Another factor could be the abundance of fatty acids relative to glycerol. For every one glycerol molecule in a triglyceride, there are 3 fatty acids.

Finally, being in a caloric deficit could help give the body impetus to use ketones instead of glycerol.

But what about those who are in a caloric surplus on a no carb diet? Or what about those who diet on a no carb diet but carb up every so often? Could glycerol be detrimental to their progress?

This is something that has me very intrigued and I think it needs more research.

We do know that glycerol:

1. Doesn't effect blood glucose to any significant degree
2. Has a hydrating/dehydrating effect
3. Has 4.32 calories per gram
4. Is 60% as sweet as sucrose

The last two points have made it a popular addition to various protein bars and for good reason. Usually people only consume a protein bar when they eat it without any other food in that meal. Since glycerol doesn't effect blood sugar, it seems like the perfect "carb" for that time. The sweetness is another bonus.

As far as the hydrating/dehydrating effect, I'm personally having a hard time seeing results. So far I've tried it without water and with water. Even with it I seem to feel more dehyrated when taking it than anything. I have noticed an increase in sweating though.

Perhaps I'm not taking enough water.

At any rate, I think I'm just (and research is just) scratching the surface in terms of potential uses for this...substance?