sugar substitute

Question
QUESTION: Hello
Is there a satisfactory alternative to sugar?
Best regards
Adam

ANSWER:
Hello Adam!

 Thank you for your nutrition question. I would recommend honey as a alternative to sugar. Honey is processed nectar - a sugary liquid produces by many plants). It is processed in bees before being stored in honeycombs. It is rich in energy, sweet to taste and has a high calorific value as well as containing some minerals. Bees survive the cold parts of the year entirely on honey and it is completely natural.

Honey can be used in drinks, on cereals and in tea and coffee. It does take some getting used to because honey has its own distinctive flavour which will pervade the food you add it to but it is far morenatural than processed sugar and easy to digest.

You can also buy glucose which is a sugar itself but only one kind of sugar is present and this is easy for our bodies to use and digest - so easy in fact it is often added to meals for invalids to build them up after illness and athletes use it for energy. it is very strong in taste so needs to be used with care. You need only about half the amount of glucose than you would use sugar so it is used sparingly.

Really there is no satisfactory alternative to sugar but you can reduce the amountof refined sugar you tak ein. Unrefined sugars like demerera, brown or very dark sugars contain sugar in a far more natural form than the white granulated processed sugars. As well as the sugar they will also contain impurities in the form of other natural products but these are harmless. Brown sugars taste different from refined white sugars and are easily digested.

It is not so much sugar that is harmful but the amounts we use and take in. Although there are no real alternatives to sugar, we can try using some honey, brown sugars and keep white refined sugar to a minimum but we do not need to ban it altogether.

Hope this helps!  For more answers to your nutrition questions check out www.planetyorgos.com or www.eatrightbygeorge.com

-George Rapitis, MS
www.juiceblend.com



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Is the honey safe for diabetic?
Best regards
Adam

ANSWER: Dear Adam,


In many countries, diabetes patients use honey in place of sugar because you can use less in order to sweeten and it contains vitamins. First of all


First of all, honey is 3 times as sweet as sugar, then if one needs 30 g of sugar, he may replace them with 10 g of honey. The needed amount of sugar (30g) produces 120 Kcal, while the equivalent honey amount(10 g) produces 32 Kcalories.


Secondly, some vitamins are highly needed by diabetes patients and are recommended by physicians to all diabetes patients, they are vitamin B1,B6, B12 ,C ,E and Biotin. Honey - specially the unfiltered summer homey when the bee only uses nectar to make honey - is a good source of most of these vitamins, at least to supply a part of the RDA in natural form. There was vitaminized honey in the former USSR, where the bee was fed fruits and vegetables juice to produce this sort of honey, otherwise synthetic vitamins were added to honey to be used by diabetic patients.


-George





---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: George,

Thank you so much for so quick and detail answers to my question, but I have one more.

I am a diabetic for 14 years type 2. Since I was diagnose I just gain weight. Fourteen years ago I weight half of that what I weight now. And I still gain weight. I cut my intake food to minimum meaning I eat maybe 10% what I use to eat before, and still gain weight.  I exercise on daily basis. Not to much not to little.  I am big guy very muscular I was always that way. I use to lift weights. I work physically so it compensate my fitness accordingly. I try any kind diet programs for last 5 years. Did not work out. Before I was diagnose for diabetes type 2. I was thin. 6??176 lbs. I could eat whatever I want and how much I want. Was no effect on me.
One day in work friend of mine told me I shouldn抰 drink diet soft drinks because they抮e killing me. I ask him why? And then he explained to me. The substance in diet coke name is aspartame sweet poisonous?some people call. I did check a out and he is right on the money about it. I use to live on diet coke. I drink this stuff because my doctor told me to do that. Because I am diabetic I cannot drink regular coke because is going to kill me.
Now is my question;
What will kill me more the diet coke with aspartame? Or normal coke with normal sugar in same dosage as I use substitute sugar for my diabetic symptom. That was a reason I ask you how safe is honey for diabetic. But I can抰 find coke with honey instead sugar yet.
And beside the point why the health organization in USA even aloud to sell this stuff. I am from Europe, and in most of European union countries is against the law to sell this stuff. When you are in UK you can even access on the WEB site like Splenda or Sweet and Low or any other substitute sugars.  

Best regards,
Adam


Answer
Dear Adam,

      Drinking diet soft drinks or regular soft drinks daily maybe harmful in excess. I would suggest switching to green tea with honey which contains healthy antioxidants. You can find unsweetened green tea in most health food stores and add your own honey.

-George  

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