Glucose, sucrose (table sugar), vodka, and any other forms of sugar or alcohol are sources of carbon for the reef tank.
The question is, does adding sugar help lower nitrates. The topic has been argued to death on Reef Central.
The basic idea is that bacterial growth is limited by different nutrients including nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon and others. If there is not enough carbon available to bacteria, they will not be able to grow and assimilate nitrate, phosphate etc. By dosing carbon in the form of sugar or alcohol, enough carbon is supplied to the bacteria to allow them to multiply. When they multiply, they assimilate phosphate and nitrate. The bacteria, along with their phosphate and nitrate, are then skimmed out in the skimmer.
From reading all the arguments on Reef Central there is a consensus that overdosing sugar or alcohol can be dangerous, including causing coral bleaching and coral death. Whether a small amount of carbon dosing is helpful is up for debate.
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