+ The BEST Sugar Replacement!
THIS IS NOT AN AI GENERATED ARTICLE
Refined sugar (also known as white sugar, cane sugar, brown sugar, etc) has no nutritional value. Zero. Not only that, sugar also weakens your immune system, causes premature aging, alters your emotions, and intensifies cravings.
So, let’s take a deeper dive into the top four reasons you should lower your sugar intake today!
1. Sugar Weakens the Immune System
Refined sugar (especially when consumed in high doses – which is easier to do than you think!) compromises your immune system by affecting your white blood cells, which then hinders your body’s ability to fight off viruses and infections. This makes it easier for you to catch a sickness and hold on to that sickness longer.
It’s especially important to limit sugar intake (watch out for added sugars on labels) in your child’s diet. You should also COMPLETELY eliminate sugar when your child is sick so their little body can give its full potential to healing itself rather than worrying about a spike in blood sugar.
2. Sugar Causes Premature Aging
Sugar damages your skin through a process known as glycation. The sugar that you consume attaches to proteins in your bloodstream and creates free radicals called Advanced Glycation End Products (also known as “AGEs”). The more sugar you eat, the more these AGEs reproduce and damage your skins’ natural collagen and elastin – making it lose elasticity, which leads to wrinkles and sagging.
3. Sugar Alters Mood & Emotions
Your brain runs primarily on glucose. The more sugar you consume, the harder it is for your brain to convert sugar into glucose (energy for your brain and body). Refined sugar quickly enters the bloodstream producing serotonin and dopamine which causes you to feel a quick rush and boost of energy, but this “feel good” rush is always short-lived. This same sugar sends your glucose levels on a rollercoaster making you feel moody, tired and anxious.
There have been many studies done showing that an increase in daily sugar intake causes depression for both men and women.
4. Sugar Intensifies Cravings
Because sugar quickly enters your bloodstream, your body tries to counteract it by releasing insulin to help bring your blood sugar back down to a safer level. What tends to happen is the insulin brings your blood sugar down too low. Your body goes from a “sugar rush” to a “sugar crash”. This is why you then crave foods and beverages that will raise that blood sugar back up and give you some energy. This constant spike in your blood sugar can be responsible for those “out-of-nowhere” cravings.
What’s scary is that sugar is shown to be so addictive that it causes withdrawal symptoms when you attempt to cut down on your sugar intake. These withdrawal symptoms can make you crave sugar even more!
To help combat all of this, try cutting out sugar as much as possible, or at least follow these guidelines for daily sugar intake from the American Heart Association:
- Max daily sugar intake for adults: 25-35 grams
- Max daily sugar intake for children: 10-20 grams
- Max daily sugar intake for toddlers: 5-10 grams
(toddlers should honestly never have sugar!)
Just for some perspective:
- 1 can of fruit can have up to 20 grams of sugar
- 1 can of soda has about 40 grams of sugar
- 1 cup of low-fat yogurt can have up to 45 grams of sugar
- 2 tablespoons of ketchup or BBQ sauce can have anywhere between 8-12 grams
- And just 1 gummy vitamin can have 5 grams of sugar – this alone would be 20% of your daily sugar intake! Wild.
On the other hand, pure maple syrup contains natural sugars and healthy nutrients like antioxidants, prebiotics, vitamins and minerals. So, you can satisfy your sweet tooth without having to worry about weakening your immune system, giving yourself wrinkles, or feeling moody and tired later on.
This is why you should be replacing any recipe that calls for “sugar” as an ingredient with maple syrup.
Maple syrup is an underrated pantry staple that has so many more benefits than typical white sugar.
With its plant-based compounds, maple syrup fights inflammatory diseases and reduces oxidative stress, which is responsible for premature aging and weakening the immune system. Maple syrup may even help reduce the risk of cancer due to its high antioxidant content – which is definitely a plus considering that some research shows a constant spike in blood sugar (from refined sugar and other artificial sweeteners) may cause and feed cancer.
The best thing you can do is be aware of how much sugar (including added sugars on food labels) you’re consuming each day. Read labels and avoid refined sugars (as opposed to natural sugars, like in fruit) as often as possible.
How To Replace Sugar With Maple Syrup:
There might be some trial and error with different recipes, but typically you can
replace 1 cup of sugar with 2/3 cup of maple syrup.
Happy testing!
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