Cutting down on refined sugar can be tough. Especially when you have a sweet tooth. However, given the detrimental effects of excessive consumption of refined sugar, it’s worth trying.
Fortunately, healthier sugar alternatives can help you satisfy your craving for sugar without bringing in the undesirable effects of refined sugar. Some of the healthy sugar alternatives found in nature are good for your health. So why not replace refined sugar with natural, low caloric, and healthier sugar alternatives?
This post looks at the top six healthiest sugar alternatives that are truly healthy and will also help you maintain better health.
1. Stevia Extracts
Stevia extracts are one of the most popular plant extracts with very few calories. This healthy sugar alternative is derived from the leaves of the plant Stevia rebaudiana. The plant has been grown in South America for centuries and is known for its sweetness and medicinal properties.
If you look at the composition of this sweetener, since it comes from plant extracts, you can find several sweet compounds. Some of the main sweet compounds include stevioside and rebaudioside. Both these sweet compounds are much sweeter than sugar. So if you use stevia extract as a sweetener, know that you will have to use a much lesser quantity.
Surprisingly, despite being sweet, there are very few calories. Hence, it is a healthy sugar alternative especially for those who are trying to lose weight. Moreover, it’s also considered a healthy sugar alternative for people who have diabetes and can also help reduce blood pressure.
Stevia extracts are stable in heat so stevia can be used as a sugar alternative in cakes, pastries, and sauces.
While it comes with some amazing health benefits, one of the undesirable aspects of stevia extracts is the slight aftertaste that most people don’t like. When choosing stevia extracts as a sugar replacement, make sure you choose the right brand.
2. Erythritol
Another healthy sugar alternative is erythritol which is a sugar alcohol and is found in certain fruits. Like stevia extracts, erythritol has very few calories (around 6% calories that you can get from sugar) and brings in around 70% sugar sweetness.
Another similarity between stevia extracts and erythritol is the mild aftertaste that most people don’t enjoy. However, it comes with several health benefits. Unlike sugar, erythritol doesn’t affect the insulin levels in your blood significantly. Moreover, it also doesn’t affect the levels of blood fats (such as triglycerides and cholesterol). Furthermore, when you consume this healthy sugar alternative, your body absorbs it from the intestines and it is eventually excreted through your kidneys. Lastly, unlike sugar, the sugar alcohol is safe for your oral health, diabetes management and weight control.
However, when excessively consumed, erythritol can lead to digestive problems such as bloating and diarrhea.
