Sorry to break it to you, most sugar alternatives are just as bad as the white table stuff. And some are even worse!
That’s because a lot of them (we’re looking at you dates, honey and agave) still contain high amounts of fructose, which the sugar we’re really trying to cut right back on.
Stumped about how to still enjoy some sweetness in your new low-sugar life! Never fear, you just need to know what to opt for. Here’s our top five sugar alternatives. Enjoy (sparingly)!
1. Our favourite sugar alternative? Fresh fruit and veg!
The best way to flavour your food is to use the natural sweetness of fresh fruit and sweet veggies, like sweet potato, pumpkin and beetroot (we love stuffing these into desserts like our Sweet Potato Brownies).
Whole fruits contain plenty of water, fibre and other good stuff to slow the sugar dumpage on the liver. Although we always try and opt for lower fructose versions, like berries and kiwifruit.
Fun fact: On the I Quit Sugar: 8 Week Program, we cut out all sweeteners, including fruit, for four weeks. This allows your tastebuds to reset. At the start of Week 6, you’ll probably find you don’t even need much sweetness anymore!
2. Second in line: Rice Malt Syrup.
Rice malt syrup is made from cooked and fermented rice. It’s a blend of complex carbohydrates, glucose and maltose, meaning it’s 100 per cent fructose-free!
We use rice malt syrup a lot in our sweeter recipes. And while it doesn’t have the same effect on our liver as fructose does, too much glucose can still have an effect on our blood sugar levels. So we recommend enjoying RMS-sweetened treats on special occasions and sticking to a smaller portion size.
3. The deal with stevia.
Stevia is a leaf-based sweetener that’s 100 per cent fructose-free, too. It’s also 300 times sweeter than sugar, so you only need to add a tiny bit. After a bit of hype a while back, scientists have now given stevia the okay.
(Try stick to liquid stevia though – the granulated form is mixed with erythritol. The liquid form is actually much sweeter too, so you’ll need to use even less.)
4. The sugar alcohols: Xylitol…
Extracted from birch cellulose, xylitol and is a rare sugar alcohol that won’t send blood sugar levels into a spin. This sugar alternative also has anti-bacterial properties, which is why it’s used in chewing gum.
Our livers do eventually convert xylitol to glucose though, so it’s best used sparingly.
5. … and erythritol.
Erythritol (a sugar alcohol commonly found in pears, watermelons, grapes and fermented products) is considerably less problematic than other sugar alcohols like maltitol, isomalt and mannitol.
However, don’t eat too much of this sugar alternative if you have a sensitive stomach, as over-consumption might cause a tummy ache!
0 comments :
Post a Comment