Sugar, sweets, and sugar substitutes - ig2go

Sugar, sweets, and sugar substitutes

by Linda Baldwin
.
July 27, 2022

Just a spoonful of sugar helps the…muscles and body experience a boost of energy, and then likely crash shortly afterward. You know it, we know it, we’ve all experienced a sugar crash once in our lives. Today we’re diving into the sweet stuff to figure out if we really need to be so concerned with sugar, how much we should be including in our diets, and some great sources of natural sugar and natural sugar substitutes.

First off, what is sugar?

When you hear the word “sugar” you probably envision the refined white sugar crystals we all know and love. That would be correct, but more specifically that sugar is called sucrose, and it is also a type of carbohydrate. There are many different types of carbohydrates/sugars, Including Sucrose (refined table sugar), Lactose (found in milk and dairy), Fructose (found in fruit), and Glucose the simplest form of sugar. When you consume ANY carbohydrate, your body breaks it down into glucose, which then enters the bloodstream and provides energy to every cell in your body. Without glucose, your body’s primary functions can’t do their job, and this can quickly lead to life-threatening complications.

So needless to say, sugar is an important part of a functioning diet. That being said, not all forms of sugar are created equal.

As we mentioned, glucose is the simplest form of sugar your body can process. Your body doesn’t have to expend any extra energy to get it into the bloodstream. But the more complex the sugars and carbohydrates get, the more energy it takes to break them down into the basic building block of glucose. This is why you hear so many nutritionists vouch for “Complex Carbs”. These carbs are long complicated chains of molecules that take energy and time to break down. Complex carbs are found naturally in most whole plant foods we consume, such as beans, grains, vegetables, and fruits. So although we don’t usually think of grains, or vegetables as being “sugary” or “sweet”, they actually contain sugars, and you can meet your daily glucose requirements by eating these whole foods. the length of time it takes to break the foods down into glucose also helps mitigate the sugar crash. Rather than your body accessing a bunch of glucose (energy) all at once, that same amount of glucose is slowly released into the bloodstream over a longer stretch of time, providing a stable and consistent flow of energy to the body.

Why is sugar sweet?

So we’ve determined what sugar is, and how important sugar is to a healthy and happy body. And we can see that we don’t need refined simple sugar to meet our body’s needs. But our attachment to sugar goes beyond just our desire to fuel our bodies. There’s something about simple sugars specifically that our taste buds tend to get really attached to. So what makes refined sugar “sweet”?

The sweetness of refined sugar is the result of a chemical interaction between the sugar molecules and the taste receptor cells in our mouths. That specific chemical reaction creates a signal in our nervous system that tells our brain we are experiencing something “sweet”. Studies have shown that our brains are wired to release certain chemicals, such as Serotonin when we consume something sweet. Some theorize this is because it was a high-value food that was beneficial to seek out as humans were evolving before it became such a huge and easily accessible commodity. Either way, there are a number of reasons your body can crave sweet things, including:

  • Mineral deficiencies
  • Blood sugar imbalance
  • Nostalgia and triggered memories
  • Cultural norms and routines

Although we are huge supporters of listening to your body, giving into these cravings too often can be detrimental to your health. Sugar is necessary, but too much of anything is rarely a good idea. If you feel that you are craving sugar more often than normal, it would probably help to talk to a doctor or nutritionist about it, and dig a little deeper in case there is an underlying reason for it.

Sugar Substitutes

The good news is that there are some great sugar substitutes available that we can use in place of table sugar when we’re craving something sweet. Some of our favorites that we use in our recipes are:

  • Xylitol – A natural sugar alcohol found in many fruits and vegetables and contains about 1/2 or 1/4 fewer calories than table sugar. Although this is still technically refined sugar, it doesn’t raise blood sugar levels so it doesn’t count towards ‘Net Carbs’ from a nutrition standpoint. Xylitol also reduces levels of decay-causing bacteria in [saliva](http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/what-is-saliva), so it doesn’t cause the same tooth decay that table sugar does.
  • Monk fruit – Another natural sugar extracted from a small round fruit native to Southern China. The extract can be 150-200 times sweeter than table sugar, so less is needed when you are using this as a replacement in a recipe. Monk fruit sweeteners are made of compounds called mogrosides, which aren’t digested in the upper gastrointestinal tract, so it has no caloric value.
  • Agave – Agave is often sold as a thick syrup or nectar, and comes from the Agave plant native to Latin America. Agave is primarily fructose, and although it provides a wonderful sweet flavor, fructose doesn’t raise blood sugar levels. It is important to note that your liver can get overloaded if you consume too much fructose, so as with everything it’s still important to moderate how much agave you consume.
  • Honey – Likely the most well-known sweetener on this list, honey is produced naturally by bees and has many health benefits that make it a good substitute for table sugar. Although honey is primarily Sucrose, it also contains trace amounts of other minerals and antioxidants Honey also has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties, while at the same promoting the health of good bacteria in the digestive tract.

The Bottom Line

Ultimately, you need some form of sugar to function, but it’s best to limit refined table sugar, and hidden simple sugars in heavily processed foods. We love each of our listed sugar substitutes for different reasons, and they all have a specific purpose in our recipes. It is important to pay attention to what you eat, but it’s also important to enjoy it. Life should be sweet! and we hope this deep dive into sugar has inspired to you appreciate what sugar and carbs provide for our bodies, and we hope we’ve inspired you to explore some sugar substitutes for your own sweet recipes.

Share this Article

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Category
Tags
acai bowls acne diet adrenal fatigue adrenal glands aging alkaline diets all natural anti-inflammatory antioxidants aphrodesiac foods aphrodisiacs apple recipes apples arthritis artificial sweeteners aspartame Atkins Autism auto immune Balanced Diet be grateful beauty best foods for skin big food corporations BMI bone broth bpa in plastic brain chemistry brain foods brain foods bread breville juicer Broccoli broth brushing skin brussels sprouts brussels sprouts recipes burdock root cacao health benefits Calcium Camel Milk cancer cure Cancer Fighters cauliflower Cauliflower Colcannon causing cancer chemicals in our food Chia Recipes choclate cake Christmas chronic fatigue Clean Eating coconut oil coconut water Cold Remedies cold season cold-fighting superfoods collagen, conscious eating cookie monster Cruciferous Vegetables dairy-free dandelion greens december Delicious Delivery Dessert Detoxing dewey complextion dewier complexions, Diabetes Diet and Exercise diet myths Diets draining lymph Drinks easy fall salads easy healthy food easy juice cleanse eat clean eating local Ethnic Foods Excercise exfoliating fall recipes fall salad recipes Fall superfoods families Fast Food fat free fat sick and nearly dead Fathers Day Menu Fatigue feel good foods fig recipes Fighting colds Fish fitness myths Flexitarianism Florida Florida Superfoods flu flu fighting foods food Food Energetics Food Gift Ideas food matters food myths food pyramid food sources of iron food storage food to reduce stress foods for adrenal fatigue Foods for Anxiety foods for colds Foods for Depression foods for flu foods that help your brain foods to boost sex drive fourth of july recipes Fresh Herbs Fruit Popsicles Fruit Smoothies fruits and vegetables Fun Glucosemine Gluten Free gluten free brownie gluten-free recipes glycemic index GMO goji berries good fats good for you good mood foods gourmet Great Food that's Great for you green bean casserole recipe Green Juice Green Tea growing heirloom tomatoes from seed growing quinoa halloween party treats healing Healing with Food healing yourself with juice Health health benefits of blueberries health benefits of broccoli health benefits of coconut water health benefits of eggs health benefits of figs health benefits of mushrooms health benefits of pumpkin health benefits of pumpkin pie health benefits of summer squash health benefits of sweet potatoes health food health food myths Health Food Studies health stories in the news healthy healthy appetizer recipes healthy appetizers healthy cookies healthy desserts healthy drinks recipes healthy during the holidays healthy eating healthy fall recipes healthy food healthy fourth of july recipes healthy green bean casserole healthy halloween treats healthy holiday baking healthy holiday cookies Healthy Holiday Desserts Healthy Holiday Party Recipes healthy ingredients Healthy Irish Food Healthy Irish Recipes healthy kids food healthy oils healthy party recipes Healthy Popsicles Healthy St. Patrick's Day healthy thanksgiving recipes healthy thanksgiving side dishes Heart heart disease heart health heart healthy eating heart-healthy foods Herbal Tea herbs high energy high fiber foods holiday baking holiday cookies holiday dinner Holiday Recipes Holiday Superfoods holidays holistic health Hormones how to correct insulin resistance how to prevent insulin resistance hype vs healthy foods Ice Cream immune system immune system boosters immunity inflammation insulin resistance insulin resistance and exercise intelligent gourmet Intuitive Eating Iodine joint pain juice juice cleanse Juice Detox juice fast juice pulp Juice Recipes juice shop juices juicing juicing for health juicing in tampa juicing or blending Kids lemon peels life by daily burn lingonberries losing weight low fat low fat thanksgiving recipes low glycemic foods Low in sodium low-carb recipes low-fat gravy recipe low-fat lunch low-fat recipes low-glycemic diet mama nature meatballs medicinal juicing memory Mental Wellbeing Move Inspired Health & Fitness natural aversion natural flavors natural healing natural medicine Natural Remedies naturally made new year new you new year's resolution New Year's Resolutions New Years niman ranch Non Fat Diet non-fat november Nutrition nutritional coaching Nuts oils omega 3 omega 3 skin organic organic produce ph balance plastic microwave pms popcorn recipes practice preservatives preventing acne with omega 3 Probiotics promotes relaxations pumpkin pumpkin butter pumpkin butter recipe pumpkin healthy pumpkin recipes quinoa raw food raw vegan lasagna recipe raw vegan recipes recipes resolutions restful sleep rituals roasted salad safe to heat plastic in microwave salads sandwiches sea beans seasonal seasonal recipes seasonal vegetables selenium selfcare skin foods skincare diet Smoothie Recipies Smoothies sodium nitrites in food sometimes food Soup soup recipes spices spoiling food and cosmetics spring cleanses spring florida spring fruits Spring Superfoods spring vegetables stevia stress busting foods stress eating stress food Stress-Busting Superfoods substances in your food sugar bomb Sugar Free Diet summer Summer Party Foods summer superfoods super-foods superfood pairings superfoods Superfoods for Dad Sushi Tampa tampeaeats Tea Tea Health Benefits thanksgiving thanksgiving dinner thanksgiving recipes thanksgiving turkey recipe things to practice daily thyroid foods trustworthy sources turkey brine recipe turmeric turmeric root Valentine's Day vanilla health properties vegan Vegan Diet Vegan Food Tampa Bay vegan soup recipes vegan tampa vegetarian Vegetarian Side Dishes vitamin d vitamins walnuts water watermelon watermelon health properties Weight weight loss weight loss superfoods wellness whole food Whole Foods why eat seasonal why organic is healthier will-power winter soups workout Yogurt zucchini noodles
Archives
ig2go