Quit sugar but still chowing down on Medjool dates? You’re probably not as sugar-free as you think.
While many health food stores and bloggers use dates, honey and agave to liberally to sweeten everything from bliss balls to smoothies, these “natural sweeteners” are anything but sugar-free.
“‘No refined sugar’ and ‘free from added sugar’ are actually misleading terms that manufacturers are using to confuse us,” says Sarah.
Feel like you’ve been on a blind date and caught in the “no added sugar” trap? We debunk the myths once and for all and explain what sugar-free really means.
What we mean when we say “no sugar”.
When we say “no sugar” what we mean is no “fructose”. Despite the name, our I Quit Sugar: 8-Week Program focuses on giving up a specific type of sugar – fructose. That’s because while other sugars (like glucose, dextrose, maltose and lactose) are safe to eat in moderation, fructose is not.
Fructose is addictive. It makes us fat and even sick.
So where is fructose found? One of the worst offenders is sucrose (or ordinary table sugar), which is made up of 50 per cent glucose and 50 per cent fructose.
But because fructose also features in so many sugar substitutes, we also avoid them and opt for fructose-free alternatives like rice malt syrup and stevia (in moderation!) instead.
What food labels mean when they say “no added sugar”.
Many foods labelled “no added sugar” are still packed with fructose. Which in case you missed it above, is a problem!
One of the worst offenders is a bottle of no-added-sugar apple juice, which contains more sugar than a can of Coke! This sugar is also fructose (again, see above!). Fructose from fruit may be “natural” but a glass of juice contains more apples than you’d ever eat whole in one go. And although we encourage the consumption of a few pieces of whole fruit a day, as juice it lacks the fibre required to slow the absorption of this fructose, so it hits your liver all at once.
Other misleading “no-added-sugar” labels include dried fruit, muesli studded with sultanas, jams and flavoured yoghurts. All have technically no sugar added on top of the fruit. All are fructose bombs.
What health stores (and some wellness bloggers) mean when they say “no refined sugar”.
Raw. Vegan. Refined sugar-free. Your “healthy” carrot cake may be delicious, but it’s certainly not really sugar-free. While your local health food café (or wellness blogger) will woo you with delectable desserts claiming to be made without refined sugar, the reality is that most are sweetened with dates, honey and maple syrup.
And these fructose-filled sweeteners will have exact same damaging effects on the body as traditional refined sugar does.
Besides, says Sarah “Seriously, agave and most honey is also ‘refined’. If the nutrients in honey are what you love, eat some whole fruit or a good meal instead!”
Looking for some something sweet without the added dates? Try our Fruit-Free Bliss Balls. Our I Quit Sugar: 8- Week Program is also packed with recipes, and we promise they’ll all be genuinely sugar-free!
We originally published this article in February 2016. We updated it in July 2016.
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