Is there any substance, legal or otherwise, more addictive than sugar? In the UK alone we, in 2020, consumed on average 43kg of sugary foods, per person and we are 7th on the list of worldwide sugar consumers!
I am, however, of the opinion that I would rather have a sugar laden dessert less often than have a sugar free one that tastes of nothing. I mean when you want to be healthy you don't necessarily want your food to taste healthy per se. So is this possible with anything other than sugar?
Below are five alternatives that I think are great contenders. The questions are though: are they really heathy and do they work in the same way that sugar does?
The ones that will not be included here are Maltitol, Sorbitol, Saccharin or Sucralose. These are the sweeteners most often used in sugar free foods and drinks and are high on the glycemic index, meaning that they will spike your blood sugar and are linked to various health issues.
Erythritol
A really great sugar alternative. It is a sugar alcohol and easily available in the shops. You can use it in the same way as sugar for most recipes and I find that the amount of sugar can be equally substituted with erythritol.
Consuming too much can cause some gastro disturbances for some people but it is a safe and found naturally in fruit and fermented foods. It does have a cooling taste that some people may not enjoy, however, this does not bother me personally.
The beauty of erythritol is that it does not spike your insulin levels and is ideal for those on a keto diet or diabetics.
Xylitol
My personal favorite of the healthy sugars. Like erythritol there is a slightest cooling taste if consumed raw but in food I find that this tastes almost exactly like regular, granulated sugar.
It is low on the glycemic index and therefore does not affect your blood sugar levels very much. Again it is a sugar alcohol found in plants and has reportedly some health benefits.
It can be used in recipes just as you would sugar. Like Erythritol, however, the one difference to sugar is the ability to melt and not re-crystalise. I have had very little success in making caramel.
It can be ground to a powder and used in frostings very successfully.
Honey
We all know how amazing honey is and what the health benefits of it are. It is anti-bacterial, it is full of vitamins and minerals and it tastes delicious! It is, however, one to avoid if you are on a diet or trying to avoid sugar as it is made up, like sugar, of 50/50 fructose and glucose. If you do use honey try to get the best you can. Raw honey is infinitely superior.
When substituting honey in baking the general rule is reduce the liquid content of the recipe (take out 25ml of liquid for every 100g of honey used).
Agave Syrup
Though Agave is seen as a healthy sugar alternative it may well be worse than sugar. It is made up of 70% fructose, which is more damaging to the body than glucose and will obviously cause problems with anyone who has a fructose sensitivity.
It does have a lovely light taste and like honey can be easily used in recipes instead of sugar.
Stevia
Made from the leaves of the Stevia plant, it is a very healthy alternative to sugar. Stevia is 200 times sweeter than sugar and is easily available in the shops in many forms (liquid drops, white crystals or the powdered leaf).
I personally do not use stevia much as I find that it has a slight bitter aftertaste but it is very popular and can easily be adapted to use in recipes. As it does not affect blood sugar levels it is a great keto sugar alternative.
Comments