Sugar: it is everywhere. From your morning coffee drinks to your favourite shakes. It’s hard to avoid sugar. Vowing to go sugar-free for the rest of your life simply won’t last. If you are one of those people who are constantly searching for substitutes for sugar or natural sweeteners, you may have to replace sugar with maple syrup. Some studies have suggested maple syrup health benefits, such as antioxidants which help your body to fight against free radicals. But the pertinent question is, one should ask here is, does natural sugar mean better for you? We are going to make a comparison here.
Sugar vs Maple Syrup
To do pros and cons of sugar vs maple syrup, one requires adequate nutritional information:
Do you know granulated sugar has more calories and fewer grams of carbohydrates if compared to maple Syrup? One teaspoon of sugar has 68 calories so the empty calories can add up significantly faster without any real benefits. On the contrary, one tablespoon of pure maple syrup has approximately 52 calories and 13.4 grams of carbohydrates.
Maple syrup has a nutritional advantage over sugar because it doesn’t contain any additives. The processing of the maple syrup allows its nutrients, including Zinc, magnesium, calcium, and potassium, to be retained.
The glycemic index of Maple syrup is on the lower side, so it won’t spike your blood sugar levels as quickly as sugar. The glycemic index of maple syrup is around 54, while sugar has a glycemic index of around 65.
Certain research has shown that consumption of sugar can cause cancer. As mentioned above, the presence of antioxidants in maple syrup can protect cells from DNA damage. Maple syrup seems to be a less harmful sweetener than sugar.
Many dietitians suggest that replacing sugar with maple syrup can increase your total antioxidant intake. It can add more than 67 different types of antioxidants called polyphenols into your diet, and nine of these are unique to pure maple syrup, which can help in reducing inflammation in the body.
So, is maple syrup a better choice?
Antioxidants, which are chemicals that aid our cells in fighting off oxidative stress and defending against disease, are also known to be present in maple syrup. Maple syrup is rich in antioxidants that protect us against the onset of diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, and brain disorders. It also supports gut health and may protect against a number of ailments due to having anti-inflammatory and prebiotic properties. Maple syrup can be substituted in replace refined sugar by easily mixing it in your beverage, adding in plain yoghurt or glazing over your turkey and smoothie.
But there is a catch,
Whether it is found in nature or refined, added sugars are still sugars. Your body handles them accordingly. Even though glucose and fructose are only present in small levels in maple syrup, all sugar eventually breaks down into glucose in the intestine before entering the blood. Though maple syrup has a lower glycemic index than table sugar, it still increases blood sugar levels, albeit more gradually. In comparison to other added sugars, pure maple syrup is less processed.
Conclusion
So, you can understand from the above-said discussion that having maple syrup by your side is one such way to cut sugar from your diet but without losing a touch of sweetness. Before you go to the market, chances are the maple syrup you buy may not be the original syrup. Make sure you have adequate knowledge of how to determine the purity of maple syrup. Many store-bought maple syrups are just plain sugar-heavy syrups with maple flavouring