Finding a sugar substitute that is healthy without negative side effects is a challenge. There are many choices and with the clever marketing and conflicting arguments it is difficult to determine what direction is best for you. Fortunately there is a lot of information available to help in making the right choice. Here are a few quick thoughts and facts you can use in your search.
When considering sugar substitutes there are two very distinct directions you can go. You can go with a man made artificial or an all natural sweetener. Each have their own side effects or benefits to consider. Artificial sweeteners are specifically engineered to provide some particular benefit, but I don’t know that we have figured out how to create a chemical that provides that benefit without causing another side effect. Even natural sweeteners will have different benefits and side effects to consider. You will need to decide which works best for you.
The most common artificial sweeteners being widely distributed under many different names are Sucralose and Aspartame. Engineered to trick your body of its sweetness upon entry and exit the body without being broken down like a carbohydrate or leaving behind those unwanted calories, artificial sweeteners have become very popular. However, as time passes, reports are mounting of the negative side effects of these impostors. These side effects include headaches, migraines, upset stomach and even seizures. In addition to having potentially dangerous side effects you might also consider that cooking with artificial sweeteners is less than desirable. Aspartame breaks down in heat and becomes useless and because of all the filler required, Sucralose will leave your food sweet to the taste but quite dry in texture. Be sure to consider the long term effects of going artificial. It might be cheap and it might be easy but since when has cheap and easy ever had lasting benefit.
All natural sweeteners are a great and much safer alternative to artificial sweeteners and sugar. Some of the more popular ones are Erythritol, Xylitol, Stevia, Mannitol and Sorbitol. These are all natural sweeteners and are widely available. But, just because they are all natural doesn’t mean they can be consumed at any rate without side effect. There are different benefits and drawbacks of each to consider. After quick study you will see three that stand out most; Stevia, Xylitol and Erythritol. Some of the drawbacks of Xylitol and Stevia include gastric pain and calorie content. Erythritol stands out as the preferred of all on the list as the only one with zero calories and ease of digestion, in addition Erythritol has the added benefit of not promoting tooth decay.
Erythritol is found in many fruits and vegetables and is about 70% sweet as sugar. As mentioned earlier it has zero calories and digests in the small intestine leaving your body through your urine not causing gas pains like many other natural products. Erythritol is also a great choice for diabetics because it will not cause a rise in your blood sugar levels. You can find Erythritol online or in a store and use it alone as a sweetener with great benefit. There are also a few companies now that are finding super sweet natural ingredients and blending that with Erythritol to bring the sweetness up to that of sugar. Because if its physical properties it is also great for cooking and can in fact be measured cup for cup like sugar.
Finding out if Erythritol as a natural sweetener is right for you will require you to do more reading beyond this article and trying the products yourself. Determining if artificial sweeteners are really bad will also require much more reading and critical thought to decipher the truth from all that is out there. Hopefully the thought process used through this article will be of some aid in getting you started down the path to a solid alternative to sugar.
Learn more about natural sweeteners at www.doctorgrandmas.com. Doctor Grandma’s website is filled with information about the benefits of Erythritol and other healthy all natural foods.
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