COCONUT SUGAR

A Healthy Sugar Alternative? With the world finally starting to notice what we put in to our bodies can have a huge effect on our health. People are starting to look for natural alternatives. Refined sugar is one of the most widely used unhealthy substances across the world. A sweetener we have all come to love and often depend on. However, with the rise in being more aware of things going in to our body, one natural sweetener that has become very popular in the past few years is coconut sugar.

What Is Coconut Sugar

Coconut sugar, also known as coconut palm sugar, is derived from the coconut palm tree. It’s a 100% natural sweetener that’s more nutritious than regular sugar, and is much lower on the glycemic index.

A natural sugar made from coconut palm sap. It is often confused with palm sugar, although they are actually very different. Coconut sugar is brown and looks a lot like granulated sugar. Is It Nutritious? Coconut sugar retains high levels of the nutrients found in coconut palms – iron, zinc, calcium and potassium. Along with many antioxidants. It also contains a fibre called inulin, which slows down the absorption of glucose. Just because this is a natural ingredient, don’t forget coconut sugar is very high in calories and shouldn’t be over used.

Lower Glycemic Index (GI) The glycemic index (GI) is a measure of how quickly foods we consume raise our blood sugar levels. Glucose is given a GI out of 100.

Most refined sugar has a GI of around 60-70. Whereas coconut sugar has a GI of around 54. The GI can vary between batches, so you make sure you do your research if it’s a new brand.

Fructose In Sugar

Refined sugar is unhealthy due to it’s poor nutrition content, the high levels of fructose because it rises our blood sugar levels dramatically. Although not all research shows that fructose can cause serious health issues, many agree excessive amounts of fructose may promote health problems. Consumed in excess, refined sugar may cause all sorts of problems like metabolic syndrome, obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Although this natural sugar has a slightly better nutrient profile than table sugar, it’s health effects should be largely similar. Coconut sugar, although a healthier alternative, is still sugar so shouldn’t be over used.