Sugar Substitutes

I've previously written a bit about sugar and it's effects on our bodies (see Sugar, Sweet Poison and Sugar, Sweet Poison II) and now I'd like to muse on the subject of sugar substitutes.

The options vary and include 'natural' sweeteners brown rice syrup, agave nectar, coconut nectar, honey, maple syrup, Medjool dates and sugar lookalikes Xylitol, Monkfruit and Stevia. Then there are the artificial sweetening products such as saccharine, sucralose (Splenda) and aspartame (Nutrisweet, Equal).

Of the 'natural' sweeteners, the only totally natural ones are dates, maple syrup and honey. Stevia and Monkfruit are both natural products, however, all the monkfruit products that I've seen contain bulking agents in the form of either maltose or dextrose. Some stevia products will also contain these ingredients to make the product appear more like sugar.

 In this post, I'll be looking at what are generally considered the more natural substitutes and will do a separate post on the sugar lookalikes and artificial sweeteners.


iquitsugar.com.au
Brown Rice Syrup
This is a highly processed product made by exposing cooked brown rice to enzymes that break down the starch to simple sugars. Then it's filtered to remove any impurities. What is left is a thick syrup which is basically glucose. It's made up of Maltotriose (52%) Maltose (45%) and Glucose (3%).
Both Maltotriose and Maltose are simply glucose, three molecules of glucose for Maltotriose and two for Maltose. So, by the time it reaches your intestine, it's 100% glucose and is rapidly taken up by the bloodstream, raising blood sugar levels. The production process means there are virtually no nutrients from the brown rice actually left in the syrup, so it has no nutritional value, despite what the Health Food industry says.

wikipedia.com

Agave "Nectar"
Somewhat a misleading name for this popular sweetener, as it isn't made from the agave leaf juice, but from the starchy root bulb of the agave plant. It is made the same way as High Fructose Corn Syrup, a highly chemical process involving the use of caustic acids, enzymes, clarifiers and filtration chemicals. The end product is about 70% fructose, higher than HF corn syrup, which comes in at 55%. As explained in my previous article on sugar, fructose is low GI, processes by the liver. Due to the fact that there is no fibre or anything of nutritious value in the agave, it's immediately stored as triglycerides. Remember, that the liver can only store so much triglyceride and the rest is converted into fat deposits through out the body. Fructose also inhibits leptin levels. Leptin is the hormone that tells your body you have had enough to eat. So, bottom line, stay away from this stuff.


lovingearth.com.au

Coconut Nectar
Basically, coconut nectar is the same as coconut sugar.  (See Sugar, Sweet Poison II) It's the syrup that hasn't been boiled down to make the crystals. Low GI, yes, but high fructose, so okay, but not fantastic in large quantities.




healthyfoodhouse.com

Honey
Honey is often used as a natural alternative to sugar in food preparation and cooking where a liquid can be used. It contains equal amounts of glucose and fructose. In various studies, honey did not raise blood sugar as much as regular sugar and it also lowered triglycerides, LDL, the 'bad' cholesterol and raised HDL, the 'good' cholesterol.
Honey is also an antioxidant and is often used as a topical antiseptic. The darker the honey, the more beneficial it is as an antioxidant. One of the best is Jarrah honey. Jarrah honey is unique to Western Australia and is seen as one of the best honeys for beating bacteria, so much so that trials are underway to use it to beat the hospital superbug, MRSA
Honey is still sugar, though a more nutritious version and can be used as a sweetener for occasional treats as part of a healthy diet.




manassen.com.au

Maple Syrup
A natural product made by boiling the sap of a certain type of maple tree, maple syrup contains a host of naturally occurring minerals including high levels of manganese as well as zinc ( 28% of RDA in 100grams), thiamine, potassium and calcium.  A study published in the Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2007, showed that the polyphenols in maple syrup stimulated insulin release through pancreatic cells, indicating benefits for diabetes sufferers. Studies also found compounds in maple syrup that had anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Maple syrup contains less fructose than honey, so is a better option.
B Grade maple syrup is considered to be the best, funnily enough. It's taken from the tree later in the year and contains more nutrients. Again, like honey, the darker, the better.
As with Medjool dates, maple syrup is a great alternative to sugar in a liquid form, but cost may be a prohibitive factor in it's widespread use in the home kitchen.



nuts.com

Medjool Dates
These deliciously sweet and caramel flavoured fruits come from a date palm originating in Morocco, but grown in many desert regions now. They pack a fairly hefty calorific punch, - 3 dates is around 200 calories. But they also contain fibre, that helps to slow down the absorption of the sugars in the dates. Dates also contain a wide variety of minerals, including copper, magnesium, manganese and potassium. Vitamins include all the B vitamins and carotenes.
So, they would seem a good option to replace sugar in the diet. However, their use is limited due to the colour and texture of the dates. They're great blended with nuts and other ingredients to make protein balls or pie bases and can be added to cakes and biscuits for added sweetness, but I don't imagine anyone will be popping half a date into their cup of tea in the morning. They could be used in chutneys and relishes to reduce the sugar content and, of course, are a defining ingredient in Moroccan tagines. The price of Medjool dates is also a limiting factor in their use as a sugar substitute.

The bottom line?

Honey, Medjool dates and maple syrup are my choices as sugar substitutes. When using honey or maple syrup in your recipes, reduce the amount of liquid to compensate. Cakes will be also be darker when using honey as a sweetener.
Dates can be substituted to an extent in cooking, but only in certain recipes. Experiment and google for ideas. I'll include some recipes on the blog soon.

Thanks for reading.

Megan

Sugar - Sweet Poison? Part II

webmd.com

I've previously written a bit about the chemistry of the simple carbohydrate, sugar in my blog post Sugar - Sweet Poison?  The discussion ranged around white sugar and it's empty nutrition and how other foods can provide sweetness while still being 'good for you'.  Now, in Part II, I'd like to expand on that topic in this post about the various types of sugar and how they are made.

In Australia the main sweetener in our processed foods on in our pantries is processed white sugar (in the US, it's high fructose corn syrup, but that's another story...).

White Sugar

ecvv.com

White Sugar, as mentioned in my post on sugar, is a disaccharide, meaning it contains two monosaccharides, glucose and fructose. In Australia, white sugar comes from sugar cane. Many other countries use sugar beets to make white sugar. Caster sugar and icing sugar are simply white sugar that has been ground to make it finer.

Cane sugar is highly processed, first by crushing the sugar cane to extract the juice. The juice is then mixed with lime and phosphoric acid to adjust its pH to around 7.  The clarified juice is then heated under vacuum to make a syrup. Further heating is done under vacuum to concentrate and super saturate the syrup. It is then pressure filtered through cloth and deodorised using activated charcoal. (1)

The cleaned syrup is then seeded with sugar crystals and cooled. Upon cooling, the sugar syrup crystallises and is then put through a centrifuge to separate the sugar from it's remaining liquid, known as molasses. The remaining molasses can be further processed to extract more crystals, leaving blackstrap molasses. (2)

Raw Sugar

abc.net.au

At this stage, the product is Raw Sugar (a terrible misnomer) which is a light golden colour. So raw sugar is still a highly processed product. The raw sugar is then bleached, sometimes by bubbling sulphur dioxide through the crystals. (1) I'm unable to find out exactly how Australian sugar is bleached. None of the companies explain this process, other than saying that the raw sugar is then 'further refined'. I'm awaiting a reply from CSR. The fact that it must be 'bleached' sounds ominous, though.
Raw caster and golden icing sugar are made from raw sugar. White processed sugar is pretty much 99% sucrose and has a GI of around 65. (3) GI isn't a perfect method for judging a product's health benefits, though. Adding fructose to a product will reduce it's GI, but read more about the problem with fructose below.

Brown Sugar

themanecaptain.blogspot.com

Brown Sugar is simply white refined sugar with the molasses added back in. Now, there's no information to say whether this is the first extraction of molasses with all its health giving goodness, or the less nutritious blackstrap molasses. My guess is that it is the cheaper one. So, the sugar is refined, bleached and deodorised and then the stuff they took out is put back in! If you want to make it yourself, simply add molasses to white sugar until it's fully saturated.

LoGiCane Sugar

csr.com.au

LoGiCane is a brand name from the CSR company promoted as low GI. The CSR company explains on their website that LoGiCane sugar is refined white sugar sprayed with molasses. The molasses slows down the digestion of the sucrose, making it less likely to spike blood sugar. If this is the case, then brown sugar and 'raw' sugar will do the same. 

In fact, if you delve further into it, the molasses is actually treated to remove the nutrients such as minerals, polyphenols and other phytochemicals. (4) So, once again a highly processed product that is more expensive than simply buying 'raw' sugar. This appears to be a marketing ploy, in my opinion.

Demerara and Turbinado are still processed raw sugars, albeit with more molasses left in the final product.

Rapadura Sugar

quirkycooking.blogspot.com

Rapadura and Panela are two different names for the same product, pure unrefined cane juice. The sugar cane is simply crushed and the juice is dehydrated. The nutrient rich molasses with all its minerals and phytochemicals is retained in the final product, making it a far healthier alternative to white, processed sugar or even 'raw' sugar. Rapadura is quite expensive, but can now be found in supermarkets. I purchase it in bulk from www.2brothersfoods.com

Here's a chart showing the comparison of nutrients for each of the sugars. The 'evaporated cane juice' in the chart is that which is processed using heat. 

wholefoodsimply.com

Coconut Sugar

www.cocofat.com

Coconut Sugar, also known as coconut palm sugaris made from the blossom of the coconut tree, that ubiquitous plant that provides so much for so little. It has a low GI, only 35. It also contains a great many nutrients, mainly potassium, iron, zinc, calcium plus polyphenols, inositol (part of a vitamin B complex) and other phytonutrients. (5) (6)  It's a natural product, with very little processing other than collection and dehydration. It's fairly expensive.

Many people are becoming wary of Fructose and with good reason. Fructose is natural fruit sugar, but is also found in sugar.  Sugar, or sucrose, is 50% Glucose and 50% Fructose. Fructose is the monosaccharide which is only broken down in the liver.  The liver will transform fructose into glucose derivatives, storing it as glycogen. The liver can only store so much glycogen. If it's not being used through providing energy, it will be stored as triglycerides (i.e. fat) which is then deposited around the organs in the body. (7)

This concept is being espoused by Sarah Wilson of the "I Quit Sugar' movement. Sarah has an enormous group of followers on her Facebook page and blog. She has published two books on the subject, containing excellent information and recipes. Her concept is a little extreme, though and I don't believe we should deny ourselves certain treats. Life can be hard enough as it is without being unable to eat dessert at a restaurant.

There are many references showing that fructose is indeed a baddy in our diets. Mainly because sugar is consumed in large amounts in processed foods such as mayonnaise, sauces, soft drinks, biscuits and cakes. A study in 2010 showed that fructose consumed as soft drinks and sweetened fruit juices, taken in large quantities did cause weight gain. (8)


My take on the consumption of sugar in the diet is this.

1. Consume whole foods as much as possible. Eat whole fruits, peel as well if possible (obviously not banana peel). If you're making a cake with oranges, use the whole orange - flesh, juice and zest. 
2. Include good fats (coconut, palm, lard, tallow, poultry fat, butter) in your diet to allow for satiety, so you're not hanging out for a chocolate after tea.
3. Limit sugar in all your cooking and use unprocessed sugar wherever possible. Some other options for sweetening include rice malt syrup, maple syrup and honey. Fresh dates can be used instead of sugar in some recipes - e.g. protein balls.
4. Don't consider that every meal must be followed by dessert. Make desserts a special treat. 
5. Make your own fruit roll ups with whole fruit, raw chocolate with cacao and so on. 
6. Finally, don't stress about it too much! Do your best and allow yourself some treats without feeling guilty. 

There's a wealth of great wholefood recipes out there and some great books and blogs, too. Here's a list of recommended reading:

Books:

Wholefood Cooking - Jude Blereau

Nourishing Traditions - Sally Fallon

I Quit Sugar and I Quit Sugar for Life - Sarah Wilson 

Blogs: 

Nourished Kitchen

Teresa Cutter - The Healthy Chef

Whole Food Simply
I Quit Sugar

REFERENCES:
(1) SKIL - How sugar is made: http://www.sucrose.com/lcane.html
(2) https://au.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070515070200AAENMgq
(3) Sugar and sweetener guide: http://www.sugar-and-sweetener-guide.com/glycemic-index-for-sweeteners.html
(4) Product review: low GI cane cugar - Catherine Saxelby's Food Watch: http://foodwatch.com.au/reviews/item/product-review-lowgicane-sugar.html
(5) http://coconutpalmsugar.com/Home_Page.html
(6) Coconut sap sugar: http://www.cocofat.com/about-coconut-products/coconut-sap-sugar/
(7) Precision Nutrition. All about fructose: http://www.precisionnutrition.com/all-about-fructose
(7) Metabolic effects of fructose and the worldwide increase in obesity: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20086073

That's all for now, bravo if you've actually read the whole post!!

Megan

Does fat make you fat?

My answer would be yes and no.

My recent research into fats in our diet has shown up a number of misconceptions, many of which are perpetuated by organisations such as The Heart Foundation and Nutrition Australia. These 'facts' are then transposed down the line by nutritionists, then journalists and they turn up in our magazines, online articles and newspapers. Basically, these organisations are saying that eating fat contributes to heart disease and obesity.

Advice such as 'cut the fat off your meat', buy low fat yoghurt', 'use low fat milk' etc leads people to believe that all fat is bad for you.
Has this fat phobia made a difference to the general population's health? Not as far as I can see. People are still overweight and sick. Diseases such as diet related diabetes are rampant.
In an article from Raisin-Hell (Is the Heart Foundation's Advice Killing us?), the following information should make us think:

The AusDiab (Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle) study has been monitoring the health of a random selection of 11,000 Australian adults since 2000. The results of the 12 year follow-up were published this week. (mid-August 2013)
The update shows that the number of us with Type II Diabetes has increased by 41%; that obesity has increased by 22%; that almost half of us now have chronically high blood pressure (this is despite a 30% increase in the use of medication to control it); and that the average 25 year old gained 7 kg on the scales and 7 cm round the waist; all in just over a decade.

So what is the solution? All my research tells me that we must consume fat in our diet. Fats provide energy and are vital as building blocks for cell membranes and for hormones and hormone like substances. Simplified, cholesterol comes from (mostly animal) fat. Cholesterol is a type of sterol, sterols are hormones.
Fat soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K are only made available to the body by a process that uses dietary fats.

Sally Fallon, in her book, "Nourishing Traditions. The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats" (I know, it's a great title!) discusses a theory that began to be espoused around the 1950's known as the 'lipid (lipid = fancy name for fat/oil) hyphothesis'. The theory, developed by researcher Ancel Keys, stated that there was a direct link between the amount of saturated fat and cholesterol in the diet and the incidence of coronary heart disease.
Fallon comments that since this research was first published, there have been numerous subsequent researchers that pointed out the flaws in his data and conclusions. But it was all too late. The vegetable oil and food processing industries promoted this original theory since they would be beneficiaries of the move away from competing traditional foods.

Fallon also discusses Nathan Pritikin's low fat diet craze. Those who managed to stick to it for any length of time suffered from a variety of health problems with many suffering depression and experiencing vitamin and mineral deficiencies. The other complication, believe it or not, was weight gain!!
Pritikin himself commited suicide when he realised his low fat diet could not cure him of leukaemia.

The Heart Foundation in Australia endorses a low fat diet, encouraging the use of margarine instead of butter, polyunsaturated vegetable oil instead of saturated animal fats and low fat everything. Yet, the Heart Foundation tick applies to many highly processed sugary empty calorie foods (eg. Milo Cereal with 27% refined sugar) seen in the supermarkets today.
In fact, during my research, I've come across a petition from wellness practitioners asking the Heart Foundation to stop promoting these sugar laden high calorie cereals. Find the article here. An excerpt from the webpage petition says the following:

 "Honestly it just seems absolutely ridiculous that a health authority like the Heart Foundation whom many of the public trust and listen to, advise to eat a diet made up of mostly processed carbohydrates in the form of cereal, bread and pasta, consume margarine and toxic oils, processed sugar filled foods filled with additives, preservatives, colours and flavours and which are devoid of essential nutrients and products that contain aspartame. How can they honestly say that this will protect people against cardiovascular disease?"

The article goes on to state that researchers, nutritionists and authors have all come to the conclusion that eating fats from natural healthy sources such as grass feed animals, free range eggs etc will actually contribute to protecting against heart disease.
Sally Fallon, Dr Sandra Cabot, Mary Enig and Cyndi O'Meara are amongst these authors and researchers. These are my go to authors when I want to find out the facts about nutrition.

Here's a link to an excellent article written by Mary Enig and Sally Fallon on the Weston A Price (a dentist and nutrition researcher) Foundation website: The Skinny on Fats

The 'yes' part of my answer to the question on whether eating fat makes you fat, comes about from eating the wrong sort of fats coupled with the way in which the fats are presented. For example, if you eat deep fried sugary doughnuts regularly, then yes, you will gain weight, from the trans fats in the hydrogenated vegetable oil used for frying and the sugar contained in the doughnuts!
If you eat a lot of highly processed foods with added fat, then yes, you will get fat.

But, if your diet consists of wholefoods, including whole eggs, full fat dairy products, free range red meat with a little fat, free range pork with some of the fat, free range chicken with the skin and you use monounsaturated oils such as olive, avocado or macadamia in your dressing, butter on your vegetables and coconut oil, duck fat, lard, butter and tallow for cooking, then, no, you shouldn't get fat. You will find that you won't consume such large portions as you will feel fuller and more satisfied with a diet rich in good fats in combination with whole fruits, vegetables and whole grains and legumes (prepared correctly).
In contrast to a low fat (usually highly processed and high sugar) diet, you will be much healthier and have great skin and hair.

If you're still with me after all that reading, congratulations! Will you be changing the way you look at fats?
Please leave a comment below, I'm interested to hear your views.