“Don’t be afraid of sweetness. With or without us, sweetness will go on living and is infinitely alive, and forever being revived, for it’s in the mouth, whether singing or eating, that sweetness belongs.” – Pablo Neruda in Dulce, Siempre
While Neruda is talking about poetry, his verse strikes a dulcet chord with today’s sweetener situation. The movements in the food and beverage industries to limit the sugar and/or high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) in products are mere manifestations of a possible fear of the health consequences of our collective long-held sweet tooth. However, sweetness will always be a driver, a lure, and the most popular foods and beverages will meet the consumer’s sweet demands. Fortunately for those seeking a healthier version of sweet, there are some natural alternatives swarming the market with new nectars and granules promising to preserve the sweet and health in one shot.
For a long time, the alternatives to common table sugar, a sugar cane-derived product often bleached of its nutrients, were simply other, natural sources of sugar (sucrose) such as honey (from bee hives) and agave nectar (from the agave plant). Even raw forms of sugar hit the market touting a preserved nutrition from the original source cane. Most recently, corn-based sugar (i.e., HFCS) became a popular food additive for cost reasons. But in the end, isn’t a sugar a sugar?
“The starting point is this: HFCS, table sugar, raw sugar and evaporated cane juice are all made of fructose and glucose in approximately the same ratios,” said Richard L. Kozlenko, Ph.D., NXT Nutritionals, noting all of these sugars break down into glucose and fructose in the body. He noted SUSTA sweetener combines fructose with prebiotic inulin and probiotic Bacillus caogulans, in addition to a small amount of a natural flavonal compound from citrus that intensifies the sweetness
Agave nectar also follows the fructose-glucose pattern, as its hydrolyzed polysaccharides—chiefly inulin—can be classified as either fructose or glucose, with the ratios between the two varying on vendor and process. Honey also contains mostly fructose and glucose as a product of bees making nectar from flowers, although it also contains some sucrose and maltose. The draw of both of these nectars is their reported rosters of trace vitamins and minerals that offer superior nutrition to table sugar. Additionally, honey has a slightly lower glycemic index (GI) than table sugar (sucrose ~ 61, honey ~ 55), while agave nectar has been reported as low as 27 GI.