The Bitter Truth of Sweet Sugar (6)

5. The Notable Sweet Alternatives: Stevia and Xylitol

     Here is the big dilemma for those who want to enjoy good health and successful weight loss. The commonly used alternatives to refined sugar in processed foods and fruit drinks are artificial sweeteners, such as Saccharin, Aspartame or Sorbitol. These come with more health risks than the ones they are there to prevent and are a subject for a separate page all of their own.

     Suffice it to say, all artificial sweeteners should be avoided if you want to be healthy. So should refined sugar, although a small amount daily will not harm you. Other alternatives, if you need to eat something sweet are unrefined honey, some unrefined brown sugars (although many of these still contain a high level of sucrose) and raw, black molasses.

     Unrefined honey contains many of the B vitamins and other nutrients and the sugars it contains are pre-digested into fructose and glucose which are more easily digested by our bodies and converted to instant energy. They are less likely to be stored as fat as long as the body is active.

     Molasses are also packed with goodness in the form of vitamins and minerals which are all refined out when white granulated sugar is produced from this raw substance. While molasses is sweet to the taste, it also has a raw flavor that some people like and others don’t, so it’s a matter of personal preference whether you can use it as a substitute for refined sugar or not.

     All in all, you should be very aware of what you are eating when it comes to refined sugars and other sweeteners, so read the labels of all foods carefully before buying. The best rule of all is to avoid as many processed pre-packaged foods as possible, as well as fizzy soda drinks and other flavored juice concentrates and stick only to natural, fresh fruits and vegetables and fresh fruit juices with no added sugar and definitely no artificial sweeteners!