Healthier sugar alternatives

Contemporary sweeteners have all the taste of sugar, but are low GI, and some even provide extra vitamins and minerals, writes Angela Donaldson

If you feel like something sweet, but are looking for an alternative to refined sugar, there's an ever-increasing list of satisfying options. While some alternative sweeteners raise your blood glucose (blood sugar) levels as swiftly as refined sugar, many are less processed, so offer slightly more nutritional benefit.

"Most of us know white sugar is highly refined and doesn't really contain any vitamins and minerals, and that's part of the issue with sugar — it is essentially empty kilojoules," says Dr Alan Barclay, chief scientific officer of the Glycemic Index Foundation.

"Some alternative sweeteners do provide small amounts of vitamins and minerals, but it's important to know that the amounts are small." Here are some up-and-coming sweetening alternatives

Agave syrup
Made from the nectar of the Mexican agave plant, agave syrup is sweeter than cane sugar — you use about 25 percent less to achieve the same sweetness. It is available in dark and light — the dark syrup is less processed, so retains small amounts of vitamins and minerals.

Agave syrup is becoming popular due its low-glycaemic index (GI) of 30, compared to white sugar which has a GI of 65. This means it is digested and absorbed more slowly than white sugar, producing a more gradual rise in blood glucose and insulin levels.

Taste: the light syrup has a neutral flavour, while the dark variety has a rich vanilla-like flavour.
Use it: as you would honey (in the same quantity) in drinks, cakes, slices or over pancakes.
Buy it: at health food stores.

Maple syrup
Made from the sap of the sugar maple tree found in North America, maple syrup contains amino acids, proteins, manganese, riboflavin, magnesium, zinc, calcium and potassium. It also contains 20 antioxidants, according to new research from the University of Rhode Island in the US, but its total antioxidant content is less than 10 percent that of blackstrap molasses.

Pure maple syrup is pricey, but you'll get more nutritional benefit from it than the cheaper 'maple-flavoured' toppings, which have both sugar and water added.

Taste: rich and toffee-like.
Use it: on pancakes, in smoothies and sauces, and almost any time you'd use honey, and in the same quantity.
Buy it: from supermarkets and health food stores.

Stevia
Stevia is a natural sweetener that's not actually sugar, so when used in its pure form, it has no kilojoules and doesn't raise blood glucose at all. It is made from the intensely sweet leaves of the stevia plant, native to South and Central America. Gram for gram, it is 250 to 300 times sweeter than cane sugar.

The amount you need is so small that manufacturers mix it with other sweeteners and a bulking agent, such as cellulose powder, to make it manageable and palatable.

Taste: some say it's undetectable, but others say they notice a slightly licorice after-taste.
Use it: in granule form for cooking in place of white sugar (check packaging for how much to use), and sachets or tablets for hot drinks.
Buy it: at health food stores and some supermarkets. Most supermarkets stock stevia products including Hermesetas Stevia Sweet in tablets, sachets and granules and CSR Smart, a blend of 99.6 percent sugar and 0.4 per cent stevia.

For the full story, see the December issue of Good Health.

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