Q. What Is The Healthier Substitute Of Coconut Sugar?
What Is The Healthier Substitute Of Coconut Sugar? Coconut sugar has become quite popular as a natural sweetener, but sometimes we need to look beyond it for various reasons. Whether it’s due to dietary restrictions, health concerns, or availability issues, finding a healthier substitute can be beneficial. In this article, we’ll explore several alternatives to coconut sugar, assessing their health benefits and how they stack up in your favourite recipes.
- Answers By Verified Professionals Doctors
- Dr Doug Cook: All sugars are ultimately the same. Depending on the degree of refinement, sugars that are golden brown or dark brown will contain more minerals but the amounts are not considered important when it comes to health. Sugar, regardless of the source, such as coconut, sugar cane, sugar beet, corn, or date essentially has the same number of calories per serving and one isn’t considered healthier than the others. The advice is the same, try to reduce the amount of added sugars that you consume.
- Dr Michael Colangelo: In general, sugar does not get high praise for its health benefits, however, there is room in a healthy diet for some sugar and there are ways to add sweetness without the calories or spikes in blood glucose. Stevia and allulose are two examples of natural non-calorie sweeteners that do not spike blood sugar. Allulose contains a very small number of calories, however, these calories are not absorbed but get shuttled through the digestive tract and excreted. When purchasing either of these sweeteners, be sure to read ingredient labels to make sure there are no added sweeteners or flavourings. Stevia is about 300 times sweeter than table sugar while allulose is 70% less sweet than table sugar so amounts need to be adjusted accordingly.
- Dr Maria Arienti: The best sugars to consume are the ones which are not refined, such as light brown, dark and granulated sugar. As these sugars are sweeter than coconut sugar you can use less amount.
- Dr Livia Dickson: Chen Natural sweeteners like stevia or xylitol are healthy replacement options for coconut sugar. Some people may experience flatulence or even severe diarrhoea when consuming xylitol. It is because xylitol is a FODMAP, meaning it contains short-chain carbohydrates (sugars) that the small intestine absorbs poorly and can cause digestive disturbances. That’s why people with intestinal bacterial overgrowth syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, Crohn’s Disease, and celiac disease, should be careful when consuming xylitol.
- Dr Akshmi Swathi: Coconut sugar can be replaced with stevia which acts as a best replacement for even normal sugar or honey. Stevia is a low glycemic index food as well as it boosts immunity.
