Are Natural Sweeteners Actually Healthy?

As more and more people have become concerned with both the amount of sugar they are consuming, and the large number of artificial sweeteners that are being put into the food chain, attention has turned to trying to find the ‘holy grail’ of sweeteners, one that is both healthy and natural.

The trouble is that what sounds healthy might not be at all, and what has gotten a bad rap might actually be good for you.

Honey
Honey is naturally sweet and derived from the hives of bees, making it all natural. While it does have a lower glycemic index (GI) than table sugar (55 versus 70), it does have a significant impact on your blood sugar when you eat it, leaving you potentially more prone to craving sweet treats. Therefore, use in moderation.

Agave
Agave tastes similar to honey, but has a GI of only 15. It is derived from the cactus plant and can be used in the same way as honey, though it is important to note that it is higher in calories (310 vs. 250) per 100 g.

Corn
Corn has gotten a bad name due to high fructose corn syrup, that is, a natural sweetener which has become so much a part of the food industry it is being blamed as the most likely cause of the US obesity epidemic.

Corn can actually be part of a healthy diet if eaten in moderation. It is great eaten fresh from the cob with a pat of butter. It is excellent when air-popped and served with a sprinkle of cheese, or chocolate chips for a sweet treat. Studies have shown that popped corn has one of the highest levels of disease-fighting antioxidants of any food. In fact, it is said to have twice the level of blueberries.

Corn cobs are used to make the natural sugar substitute xylitol, which you’ve probably seen in sugar free gum. Corn starch is also often used as a thickener and can add some sweetness to recipes.

Corn meal, as in ground corn, is the basis for delicious corn bread or corn pudding. Provided it is not smothered with sugar, salt and gravy, homemade cornbread can be a healthy sweet or savory treat.

Corn is a naturally sweet food, but as with all things, use it in moderation.

No matter which you choose, remember the goal is always to burn more calories than you consume. Aim for a healthy diet and exercise, and sweets in moderation. Then see what a difference it can make to your health.

Are Sugar Substitutes Really Better For Us?

Now that there has been such an extreme backlash against artificial sweeteners like saccharin and Splenda, a great deal of attention is now being paid to sugar substitutes. The goal is to get a sweet taste from a natural source that is safe. So are these sugar substitutes really better for us? The answer is: It depends.

There are literally dozens of sugar substitutes that claim to be natural, healthier than sugar, and so on. The trouble is that many of these claims are unregulated. They also sound natural and safe, but can actually be more dangerous than you can imagine.

Brown rice syrup
For example, most people would consider brown rice to be a health food, so brown rice syrup would seem to be a healthy sweetener. This is a reasonable assumption, until you discover that it has a significant impact on blood sugar and a great deal of it is contaminated with high levels of arsenic.

Arsenic, a metal that is poisonous to humans, is found in the water where the rice grows. When the rice is processed to make the syrup, the arsenic becomes more concentrated. Arsenic can damage every organ in the body even if it doesn’t kill you outright, so this is one natural sugar substitute to steer well clear of.

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
HFCS has been the mainstay of the food industry for decades as a natural sweetener. It is found in almost every packaged food on store shelves in one form or another. It is a cheap by-product of the corn industry, and cheaper than cane sugar. As the low-fat eating trend hit in the 1970s, HFCS started to hit its stride, adding more flavor to the foods that had had their fat content drastically cut. The result: unprecedented levels of obesity and Type 2 diabetes in the last 40 years in the US, far out of proportion to that experienced in other countries around the world.

Here are a few others to watch out for:

Dehydrated Cane Juice, Evaporated Cane Juice=sugar from the sugar cane plant

Dextrose=Sugar
Fructose=Sugar

Fruit Juice Concentrate=usually apple juice, very sweet already, even sweeter if it is concentrated

Honey=a natural sweetener produced by bees, but with a comparable glycemic index (GI) to that of sugar (55 vs 70), so has a significant impact on blood sugar
Your best bet for a natural sugar substitute with no impact on blood sugar and no calories is stevia. But buyer beware. Check the label to make sure it has as few added ingredients as possible. Then see what a difference it can make to your health.

Clean Eating 101 – Steer Clear Of Sugar

Clean eating is one of the latest trends for people trying to lose weight, and those who are health conscious and concerned about what’s really in the food they consume.

They’re right to be worried. Food labeling can be confusing and even deliberately misleading. There’s also all sorts of conflicting information about eating this, not that, and foods that sound healthy are often anything but.

With the rise in obesity and in Type 2 diabetes in the US, particular attention is being paid to the sources of sugar in our diets in an effort to cut down, if not steer clear completely.

Studies have shown that the average American eats around 22 teaspoons of sugar each day. The American Heart Association recommends only 6 teaspoons for women and 9 for men. In terms of clean eating, therefore, it means tracking down and eliminating the main sources of sugar in your diet.

Packaged foods
Cake, cookies, candy, and other dessert-type foods are the obvious culprits for both sugar, and a lot of chemicals, so they should be the first to go when you start clean eating. If you are going to eat dessert, it should be made from all-natural foods and eaten sparingly, with a strict observance of tight portion control.

In fact, many people who start a clean eating regimen begin with a sugar detox because research has shown just how addictive sugar can be. It creates a rollercoaster of sugar highs and lows, alters mood and increases cravings.

Those who have a sweet tooth tend to be emotional eaters who grab sugary treats when they are stressed, bored, or want to ‘reward’ themselves in some way. Think about the foods we eat at birthdays, holidays and other special occasions and you will get an idea of just how common it is in society for sweets to be used as a reward.

Healthy foods that really aren’t
A Nature’s Valley granola bar sounds like the perfect healthy snack-until you read the label and see how much sugar, salt, fat and calories it has it in. Make your own trail mix with raisins, crasins and almonds. It will be better for you and probably even cheaper pound for pound. Use fruit for dessert, such as apples and berries.

Artificial sweeteners and sugar substitutes
Clean eating means eliminating these from the diet. It therefore means learning how to make your own salad dressing, ketchup and more. Read most food labels in the store and you will find these as part of the ingredients. They might be disguised as dextrose and flavorings, but they are usually sugar and trigger cravings.

Try clean eating with a view to eliminating sugar, and see what a difference it can make to your health.

How to Curb Your Sugar Cravings Naturally

Do you suffer from a sweet tooth? You’re not alone. Unfortunately, many people try to curb their sugar cravings by using artificial sweeteners or sugar substitutes that sound healthy, but really aren’t.

The good news is that there are a number of all-natural ways to curb your sugar cravings without a lot of cost or chemicals.

The natural foods you choose
Since we are what we eat, it should come as no surprise that the more sugar we crave and eat, the more we want, in a vicious cycle that has been compared to an addiction.

The foods you choose can benefit you in 2 ways. The first is to satisfy the sweet tooth. The second is to choose foods that help regulate your blood sugar in various ways.

Naturally sweet vegetables
Vegetables are full of fiber and natural sweetness. Carrots, sweet potatoes, beets and corn are natural sweet, and starchy too, meaning they take time to digest and release their energy longer than, for example, a candy bar. For this reason, some foods are termed low carb, and others slow carb. They may be higher in carbs, but they also help maintain steady blood sugar.

Carrots are tasty on their own, or in a carrot cake. Sweet potatoes are delicious straight out of the microwave, or in a pie.

Leafy greens
Leafy greens are low in carbs and make you feel full. Some of them also contain certain minerals that regulate metabolism and can help maintain a steady supply of blood sugar throughout the day. A lot of people are not fond of the taste of broccoli, but it really is a super food that can help curb cravings.

Kale may seem like just a food fad, but there is hard science behind how it can also cut carb cravings. Eat it raw in salads or cooked lightly to preserve its nutrients.

Spinach is another superfood that can be eaten cooked or raw. It is wonderfully versatile as well, making it a perfect addition to omelets, quiches, and even the tops of homemade pizzas.

Fruit
Almost all fruits are naturally sweet. Add an apple a day to your diet as your dessert, for example, or some grapes. They are moist, sweet and filling.

If you’ve been struggling with sugar cravings, add these foods to your diet as you remove processed foods and potentially harmful artificial sweeteners. Then see what a difference it makes to your level of carb consumption.

Is It Possible To Be Addicted To Sugar?

A startling study published in 2007 in the non-profit journal PLOS One rocked the food industry and people’s attitudes toward their eating habits when it reported that in mice, sugar was more addictive to them than cocaine.

This led to a range of new studies seeking to confirm or refute the findings. Fast forward to the present day, and the evidence is growing that sugar does indeed have addictive properties.

Researchers are not yet certain of the mechanisms behind sugar addiction, but they have a couple of significant hints as to why it is possible. Some of them are physical and some are mental.

Physical addiction
From the moment we are young, we are introduced to sweet foods such as applesauce and baby foods that are made with fruit and starchy-sweet vegetables like carrots. The tongue, however, seems to be relatively primitive and can’t handle the intense sweetness of modern foods, which are loaded with sugar, sugar substitutes and artificial sweeteners. The more it gets, the more it craves. If you think about your food cravings, do they start in the stomach, or in your mouth?

Mental addiction
Another physical reason for sugar addiction is that eating sweet things releases the feel-good chemical dopamine, giving you a ‘buzz’ in mood, pain levels and energy levels. This significant chemical change in the brain leads to a desire for continuing ‘happiness’, which means more sugar.

Studies have shown that the cravings produce a feedback loop in the brain. It sees the sugar as a reward, and strives to get more. The more it gets, the more it wants the reward.

Over time this leads to the brain being remodeled and re-wired to the point of addiction and poor impulse control. In addition, this can have a significant effect on mood and brain chemistry, which could be one of the reasons why a high-carb, high sugar diet is associated strongly with Alzheimer’s disease.

Artificial sweeteners
Artificial sweeteners have an impact on the sugar cravings in the brain as well. They have been used for decades under the assumption they were better for us than sugar, but research shows that they have a similar impact on sugar cravings and also affect blood sugar.

Some of them are especially dangerous because they change into harmful chemicals once they are digested. For example, aspartame has been linked to ‘holes in the brain’ in laboratory animals and methanol poisoning, which affects the brain, in humans.

Sweet tastes therefore seem to be very addictive no matter what the sources. If you’ve been struggling to curb your craving, it might be time to cut all desserts and pre-packaged foods from your diet.

Why Do We Crave Sugar?

As a result of the recent obesity epidemic in the US, scientists have turned their attention in the past few years to the question of why we crave sugar. The answer has come in part from studies of laboratory animals, and humans, leading to some startling findings.

The tongue
Early man had tongue receptors that could taste sugar, but the modern trend towards making everything very sweet seems to trigger even more cravings for sweet things, and a desire for greater levels of sweetness. Prior to sugar becoming more widely available in the 17th century, humans consumed an average of 7 pounds of sugar, usually in the form of sweet foods like honey, per year. Now in the US it is about 125 pounds of sugar annually.

Artificial sweeteners have actually make the problem worse, with so-called high-intensity sweeteners (HIS) approved by the FDA, such as aspartame, many times sweeter than natural sugar, which therefore boost the craving.

The brain
The brain is also re-wired as a result of sugar consumption, leading to cravings. The mechanism isn’t completely understood, but it appears to be a vicious cycle of craving, reward, greater craving, an even bigger reward needed, and so on. The ‘reward’ aspect is both physiological and psychological.

We are rewarded when we eat sweets because they raise dopamine levels in the brain. We can describe dopamine as a ‘feel-good’ chemical that elevates mood and naturally relieves pain. Therefore, sweet things make us feel good. The ‘sugar high’ from eating sweets is therefore not just blood sugar, but mood as well.

We are also rewarded when we are younger. Our parents reward us with dessert if we eat all our dinner. We are rewarded at our birthdays and holidays with sweet treats. We even reward ourselves with food when we complete a task. If we are stressed, many people often manage that stress with food, drink, or both.

The trouble is that the more sugar you get, the more you want, until you start to crave it in the same way that an addict craves a fix.

If you’ve been struggling with a sweet tooth and cravings for sugary foods, it might be time to try a sugar detox to eliminate all sweet things from your diet for a few days to see if you can curb the cravings. Also try to find other ways to reward yourself that don’t involve food or spending money. Then see how much less stressful and more enjoyable life can be, free of the sugar habit.

Salt and Health

How much salt we should or shouldn’t eat is a continuing cause of debate and confusion. What we commonly refer to as salt is a crystal compound comprised mainly of sodium chloride. In its natural rock form, it can also contain many other beneficial mineral elements, usually in minute quantities. Our bodies contain and use the elements contained in salt for many of its critical processes.

Sodium is a major component of salt and is necessary for maintaining the right balance of fluids and electrolytes in our bodies. Sodium is also important because it is needed for the transmission of nerve impulses. Additionally, it plays a key role in influencing the relaxation and contraction of the different muscle groups in our body.

The fact that our tongues have specific taste receptors to discern salt is a fair indication that we evolved with a need for it. When salt was only obtainable from within the foods humans ate and not as an optional extra, those taste buds were a survival mechanism.

Unfortunately, our taste buds are not very good at telling us we have had too much. A big question of course is whether we get enough salt from foods without adding any during cooking or at the table. An even bigger question is whether or not this added salt is harmful or beneficial to our health. This is made more difficult when we look at nutrition labels and realize just how much salt is added to processed foods before it even gets to our table.

Most people in western societies consume more sodium than they require on a daily basis. However, even though there are warnings about excess consumption, it can be hard to resist. Firstly, it is deeply ingrained in many cultures to use salt in cooking and to offer it at the table. Secondly, it undoubtedly makes many foods taste even better.

Too Much Salt Can Be Dangerous

An excessive sodium intake can increase a person’s risk of many serious diseases. The major areas of concern relate to increased blood pressure leading to greater risk of both heart attack and stroke.

How Much Sodium Do We Really Need?

The American Heart Association suggests that an adult should limit their salt intake so they are not consuming more than 2,000mg per day. For those people over 51 years of age, their sodium intake should be no more than 1, 500mg a day.
One teaspoon of table salt contains about 2,300mg of sodium. You may be thinking, well I don’t consume a tablespoon of salt a day! Actually, you probably consume more. Most westerners average about two teaspoons per day.

This will largely be due to the sodium content found in many packaged foods. Salt is added to so many foods today which is why you have to read nutrition labels to be aware of your total sodium intake.

It is also important to note that these are the maximum recommended limits, so consuming less is preferable and advised, especially if you have been diagnosed with high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease or diabetes.

Making Changes

Like so many of our dietary preferences, the desire for salty foods is a developed or habitual taste. Giving up or reducing table and cooking salt is achievable and a healthy choice. Those who have done so claim their food tastes bland at first, but after a period they actually start to taste the food itself rather than the masking salt taste. The excess salt is a taste addiction rather than a body need.

If you have any doubts and especially if you suffer from low blood pressure, it is wise to consult your health care provider or your dietitian regarding your specific sodium intake limits or requirements.

Nightshade Vegetables

Common nightshade vegetables that you may be familiar with are tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, paprika and eggplants. Plenty of diets recommend these foods as healthy and beneficial inclusions. For a great many people, some or all of these foods are dietary staples and eaten in large amounts.

However, there are also others who claim these food types are not good for human health. Some health care professionals prohibit their patients from eating nightshades, especially those that are diagnosed with GERD, arthritis and gout.

Nightshades and Arthritis

The biggest claim against nightshade plants is that they cause inflammation which manifests usually as painful arthritis and joint pain. Nightshades are also claimed to contribute to the effects of muscle tremors and stomach discomfort.

There is even a foundation called the ‘Arthritis Nightshades Research Foundation’ which has been around for a long time. This foundation claims to study the effects of nightshade consumption on humans and has many publications available detailing their research. The foundation came into being when the founder, who suffered badly from arthritis, achieved relief by removing nightshades from his diet.

Many others have had similar experiences and there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to support it. However, there are many, many more people who eat plenty of nightshade vegetable without any arthritic effects. There are also other Arthritis Societies who claim there is no scientific evidence that nightshades cause arthritis.

Reasons for Nightshade Reactions

Obviously, a percentage of the population appears to have an adverse reaction to these plants, or actually the compounds they contain. These plants do contain compounds called alkaloids in higher amounts than other plants and these are claimed to cause the attributed problems. One of these is alkaloids is solanin e, which is particularly high in potatoes.

While there are extreme advocates and decriers, it seems that this is yet another area of diet that shows what works for one may not work for another. It is quite likely that in some people the effects of eating nightshade plants are either mitigated or compounded by the effects of other dietary components, which would help explain why only some people experience negative reactions after eating nightshade foods.

Nutritional deficiency may play a role. For instance, those who have low levels of magnesium were found to be more sensitive to the effects of nightshades. If they are also deficient in vitamin D their symptoms could be even worse. If these nutrients and not being supplied by other foods, the alkaloids present could have greater effect. This may also help explain why some have tried to link nightshade consumption to osteoarthritis, as a lack of magnesium and vitamin D will certainly contribute to osteoarthritis effects and symptoms.

Our excretory organs – liver and kidneys – must work that much harder to detoxify the compounds found in nightshades. Those whose organ function is sluggish, for whatever reason, may also suffer more.

Although there may be no hard and fast rules about eliminating nightshades from the diet, it can’t be denied that many people have experienced a reduction in their pain or a complete recovery from chronic inflammation once they avoided nightshades. This is certainly a common claim among those who have been afflicted with arthritis.

Setting Your Own Control Scenario

If you would like to confirm if you are sensitive to these kinds of foods, a common-sense approach would be to avoid eating nightshades for fifteen days or if possible one month, to see if you can notice any relief from your symptoms.
You may not be aware you have a sensitivity at all unless you set up your own control situation and therefore make before and after comparisons. Those who have reported relief by abstaining usually experienced relief with two weeks. They also reported that if eating nightshades is resumed, symptoms return quickly, within days. This means you should be able to test your own susceptibility fairly simply.

If it seems you may be affected but don’t like the idea of totally removing potatoes and tomatoes from your diet, try reducing them, as the total amount eaten would certainly be a factor. It may help to know that baking, steaming, and boiling nightshade foods can help reduce their alkaloid levels up to as much as 50%.

Eating Whole Grains and Reducing Cancer Risks

An increased consumption of whole grains has been found by some studies to greatly reduce one’s risk for developing cancer. Many people do eat whole grains and those who follow the macrobiotic diet, eat a diet that consists of 50-60% of whole grains. Some of these grains include buckwheat, brown rice, quinoa, lentils, corn and rye.

Whole Grains as Good Sources of Fiber

Several studies showed that an increased consumption of whole grains can help reduce the risk for developing colorectal cancer.

This is made possible due to the high fiber content adding bulk to the digestive system, which speed up the digestive process and reduces the length of time that it takes for food wastes to travel into the colon.

This shortened-travel time is beneficial especially if the food waste contains carcinogens as they need to be removed from the body as quickly as possible. As a result, the risk of the lower intestines being affected by these carcinogens will be greatly reduced.

In addition, as fiber is broken down in the lower intestine with the help of bacteria, a substance called butyrate is also produced. Butyrate is known to be helpful for inhibiting the growth of certain types of cancer such as rectum and colon cancer.

Fiber Binds to Estrogen

The dietary fiber found in whole grains also plays a key role in the prevention of breast cancer. This is because fiber has the capability of binding to estrogen.

Having excess levels of estrogen in the body is known to increase the risk of breast cancer. Regular consumption of whole grains helps the liver to filter out estrogen from the bloodstream. Fiber helps expedite the process of removing excess estrogens and prevents them from causing the body harm, thereby helping reduce the risk of developing breast cancer.

Whole Grains Contain Selenium

Several studies have shown that a selenium deficiency can increase the likelihood of several types of cancers developing. The amount of selenium obtained from the grains varies depending on the selenium content of the soil where the grains are grown. An adequate intake of selenium obtained from dietary sources was found to significantly reduce the risk of colorectal and prostate cancers. These types of cancers are two of the most common types of cancer.

A clinical trial showed that a 200mg dose of selenium daily can reduce cancer by as much as 37%. Test tube studies showed that selenium inhibits the growth of tumors and helps ensure that cells die before they become malignant. Selenium is also found to work in synergy with vitamin E in preventing the formation of carcinogens. Another reason why selenium reduces the risk of cancer is because it has the ability to activate a specific enzyme which is responsible for preventing the formation of free radicals.

Grain and Your Insulin Levels

Other studies have shown that the increased consumption of whole grains can help reduce an individual’s insulin levels. Having excess levels of serum insulin can increase the risk for breast, colon and other cancers.

The list of cancer reducing benefits that you can obtain by eating whole grains is quite substantial, especially when whole grains replace highly refined grains in the diet. Individuals need to test their own reactions to a high grain diet, even when whole grain is use, as some people’s systems cannot tolerate high grain consumption.

Diet and Cancer

Not too long ago, within living memory of those now consider aged, cancer did occur, but at nowhere near the rate seen today. The last few generations have seen such an explosion in diagnoses of cancer that people describe it as a cancer epidemic, even though cancer is not contagious. For many of those who have lost a loved one to cancer, their greatest fear is contracting some form of cancer themselves and they live a life of dread between doctors’ visits.

Worldwide, billions are spent annually on cancer research. Researchers look for causes, triggers, clusters, and commonality. They test drugs, foods and other methods to reduce or remove tumor growth.

Those who lack medical knowledge talk hopefully of a ‘cure for cancer’, as if one day there will be either a surgical procedure or a pharmaceutical product that will magically stop and reverse all the different types of cancer. Many people have overcome cancer; they usually speak of being in remission, rather than cured; hopefully the remission will last the rest of their lives.

Diet and Cancer

Researchers crunch the data to discover a common theme or cause for the exponential increase in cancer incidence. They are finding that in step, in time is the change of diet in those societies where cancer is increasing. In so-called advanced societies, over the last eighty years or so, diets have changed dramatically.

What is also entering public consciousness is that the increasing incidence of cancer may also be related to these changes in diet. This does not necessarily mean that diet is the cause of cancer, as the likelihood of contracting cancer may be greatly influenced by genetics and environmental causes. However, most non-accident maladies have components of both breeding (genetic pre-disposition) and feeding (environmental and dietary influences).

Where once a big health risk was malnutrition or starvation, today it is more likely mal-nutrition – overconsumption of poor dietary choices causing a raft of lifestyle diseases.

A normal diet of rationed servings of mainly vegetables and meat (complex carbs, protein and meat-derived fat) with plain water as the main or only drink has morphed into a normal diet of very large servings of an incredible variety of pre-cooked and processed foods.

Today, every day, in addition to eating some highly processed meat and maybe some vegetables, often containing taste enhancers such as sauces, crumbing, etc. (simple carbs and modified vegetable fats) most people also consume desserts (simple carbs), snacks (simple carbs) with soft drink (more simple carbs) as their main fluid source.

Dietary Links to Lifestyle Diseases

There are indisputable parallels in the dietary changes and the health problems in western societies. Obesity, type two diabetes and cancer appear more commonly to be linked not only to one another, but to diet. Data studies prove that increased cancer incidence is linked to obesity. If type two diabetes is confirmed the incidence is even higher.

Observations of indigenous societies and those who have maintained traditional diets show no noticeable increase in markers for these diseases. Where western influences have changed the diets of others, their disease rates have exploded within a single generation. There is an incredibly strong correlation between diet and the incidence of cancer, as well as diabetes and obesity.

The Future and You

Relevant studies are ongoing, but research costs money and the big money is to be made in the production, sale and promotion of foods that are based on taste and therefore repeat sales rather than health. Cancer is a disease where prevention is thousands of time better than a cure, as anyone who has dealt with cancer can affirm.

Even if the weight of non-dietary factors is against you, you have the power to massively reduce your likelihood of succumbing to cancer by taking positive control over the food you eat. Anyone who is concerned about avoiding cancer should take steps to largely eliminate simple sugar foods and highly processed foods from their diet. There are plenty of healthy unrefined choices available as replacements.