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The Top 5 All Natural Sugar Substitutes for Better Health!
Photo credit: bigstock
Everyone knows refined white sugar is not good for your body. It greatly increases your risk for many health problems including diabetes and heart disease, not to mention weight gain. You’ve surely seen the supermarket shelves that are filled with “substitutes”, chemical substitutes most of them. These artificial sweeteners, such as sucralose, saccharin, and aspartame, have all been linked to various health problems and even an increased risk of developing certain types of cancers.
These “fake” sugar substitutes should be avoided at all costs for the sake of your health. Find out other cancer causing foods.
So what can you do or add to your favorite foods when you have a sweet tooth or want to cook something that requires the use of sugar? There are plenty of all natural sweeteners you can use. These are minimally processed, and most contain at least some nutritional value and/or antioxidants. Here is a list of the top 5 all natural sweeteners you can use for better health.
1. Maple Syrup
Not the same as the “pancake syrup” you are used to using. Pancake syrup is nothing more than fructose or corn syrup with maple coloring and artificially flavored. Be sure the label says real maple syrup.
This natural sweetener, from maple trees, contains small amounts of zinc and calcium, and a large amount of riboflavin, which is an essential element for helping your body pull energy from the foods you eat. It also has antioxidant properties.
Photo credit: bigstock
2. Date Sugar
Although it has the word sugar in its name there is no sugar in this and it is in no way a form of sugar. This is an extract taken from dried dates.
This is used all over the world in the place of refined white sugar because it is an all-natural alternative.
Dates provide many important minerals such as zinc, magnesium, iron, calcium, and phosphorus.
These minerals are important to improving the immune systems as well as relieving migraine headaches, and helping you to maintain good blood pressure.
3. Stevia
This is a very popular, low calorie sweetener taken from the leaves of a plant grown in South America called Stevia Rebaudiana.
It’s been used for centuries for both its sweet qualities and for medicinal properties.
The leaves of this plant are more than 100 hundred times sweeter than refined sugar, ounce for ounce.
Although it is super sweet, it has almost no calories. Stevia has also been shown to lower high blood pressure and the blood sugar levels in diabetics.
Photo credit: bigstock
4. Molasses
When manufacturers process sugar cane into white sugar, molasses is what is left behind.
This is perhaps the sugar substitute that has the most nutrients.
Molasses is loaded with calcium, vitamin B6, potassium, iron, and magnesium.
Photo credit: bigstock
5. Honey
This is probably the most popular of all natural sugar substitutes and it has been used for centuries.
Many people are aware that it has antibacterial properties but did you know it also has antioxidants?
This comes from the pollen collected by the bees. The darker the honey, the higher it’s antioxidant properties are. If possible, use raw or unprocessed honey for higher nutritional content.
You can use honey in place of refined sugar in almost everything you eat.
Read also about benefits of honey.
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