4 Healthier Alternatives to Refined White Sugar
Wednesday, February 21, 2018
Imagine
a world without sugar – there would be no chocolates, ice creams, cakes and
other sweet treats. Life is so boring without those sweet desserts most
especially to people who have “sweet tooth” like me. This is the reason why
refined white sugar is an indispensable condiment that is added to almost all
food and drinks. The common white sugar is a crystallized sucrose that is
extracted either from sugarcane or sugar beet. It has undergone refining and
bleaching process in order to remove impurities and to produce a bright white
color sugar that is more visually appealing to the consumers. However, when a
sugar is refined, its beneficial nutrients are also stripped away leaving us
with a sweetener that doesn’t add any nutritional value to the food or drink it
has been added to.
Consuming
too much refined white sugar can have a negative impact to our health like
diabetes and obesity. Having too much sugar in the body can cause blood sugar
spike and if we don’t have enough insulin to metabolize the sugar, the sugar
will be stored as fat in our body which can lead to gain weight. That is why it
is very important to choose natural form of sweeteners that will help you
satisfy your sweet cravings in a healthier way.
1. Coconut Sugar
I’m
a big fan of anything coconut so it’s no wonder that when I learned about
coconut sugar, I didn’t think twice to try it. Coconut sugar comes from the
liquid sap that is collected from the flower buds of the coconut palm trees. The
liquid sap is boiled until all the water has evaporated and what is left is the
dehydrated coconut sugar.
Coconut
sugar is naturally brown in color and has a similar taste and smell to brown
sugar. Since it is less processed than regular white sugar, it retains most of
its nutrients like iron, magnesium, potassium and zinc. It also has a low
glycemic index (GI) so it will not elevate the blood sugar level as much as
white sugar. You can easily substitute white or brown sugar in recipes with
coconut sugar in 1:1 ratio (e.g. 1 tsp white sugar = 1 tsp coconut sugar).
Where to buy coconut sugar in the Philippines
KM’s Organics Organic Coconut Sugar is available in small packets and in 250g packs
2. Pure Raw Honey
Honey
is one of my most favorite natural sweeteners. I usually use it to sweeten my
tea without the grittiness of the white sugar. Honey is a sweet substance that
is produced by bees by collecting nectars from flowers. Raw honey contains
vitamins, minerals, amino acids and antioxidants.
Do
you know that pure honey doesn’t spoil? It’s because of its antimicrobial and
low pH (acidic) properties which make it very challenging for bacteria to
survive. So if you are into preserving fruits (a.k.a. fruit canning), you can simply
replace sugar with honey. Since honey is a lot sweeter than white sugar, you
just need to use less honey in place of sugar.
It’s
very important that what you buy is organic, pure, raw honey and not honey that
is mixed with corn syrup. Check the product label and make sure that you will
only see one ingredient listed – 100% pure raw honey. Also, among all the
natural sweeteners in this list, honey is the only one that is not considered
as vegan because it is produced by animals (bees).
Where to buy pure raw honey in the Philippines
Milea Bee Farms Pure Raw Honey is available in various sizes at their official
Shopee shop
3. Stevia
Do
you ever wonder if there is a way to add sweetness to your food and drink
without the extra calories? The answer to that question is yes and it is made
possible through stevia. Stevia is an all-natural sweetener that is derived
from a South American plant that is known locally as “sweet herb”. It has zero
calorie and zero glycemic index (GI) so it is suitable for people with blood
sugar issues. Don’t confuse it with other zero calorie artificial
sweeteners like sucralose (e.g. Splenda), aspartame (often added to zero
calorie softdrinks) and saccharin.
Stevia
is 200 to 400 times sweeter than white sugar so only a small amount is needed
to achieve the same level of sweetness as sugar. In fact, the US Food &
Drug Administration (FDA) mentions that the recommended daily intake of stevia
should be no more than 9 packets a day. The only downside to using a zero
calorie sweetener is that it has no nutritional value.
Stevia
is also heat-stable so you can easily use it in any kind of recipes, even in
baking that requires high temperature. Another plus factor is using stevia in
your sweet treats will not cause tooth decay.
It’s
important to note that there are several varieties of stevia-based natural
sweeteners and not all of them are approved by FDA. So far, the two brands that
are approved by FDA are Truvia and PureVia.
Where to buy stevia in the Philippines
KM’s Organics Truvia Stevia is available in small packets and in 50g & 150g packs
4. Maple Syrup
We
are all familiar with the sweet maple syrup that we often put on top of
pancakes. However, maple-flavored pancake syrups that we bought from the
supermarket are really not derived from maple, rather they are just corn syrup with
artificial maple flavoring, so make sure to check the product label.
Authentic
and 100% pure maple syrup contains vitamins and minerals. In fact, 100 grams of
maple syrup contain 28% zinc and 165% manganese of the recommended dietary
allowance (RDA). Maple syrup comes from the sap collected from maple trees that
are native in Canada. There are two major grades of maple syrup. Each grade has
different color and intensity of flavor. Grade-A maple syrup is both light in
color and flavor, it also resembles the flavor of artificial maple syrup. On
the other hand, Grade-B maple syrup has darker color, thicker consistency and stronger
flavor. Take note that whichever grade of maple syrup you buy, it is twice
sweeter than white sugar so you should use less during substitution.
Where to buy pure maple syrup in the Philippines
Uncle Luke’s 100% Pure Grade-A Maple Syrup is available at S&R Membership Shopping
I
just want to emphasize that even if you use these natural sweeteners in your
daily diet, please use them moderately. Always remember, eating too much of
anything is not good for your health J
To
wrap up this post, here is a table of comparison showing the glycemic index
(GI) of white sugar and natural sweeteners. The lower the glycemic index, the slower
the rise in blood sugar level.
|
Sweetener
|
Glycemic
Index (GI)
|
|
White sugar
|
65
|
|
Maple syrup
|
54
|
|
Honey
|
50
|
|
Coconut sugar
|
35
|
|
Stevia
|
0
|
References:
Glycemic Index for Sweeteners. Retrieved from http://www.sugar-and-sweetener-guide.com/glycemic-index-for-sweeteners.html
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