We all know that sugar is bad for us: it's refined, has a lot of calories, and it's not packing very many nutrients. And, if you are diabetic, which is a disease on the rise, it's a death warrant. But, what are the alternatives? I have used honey as my sweetener of choice for many years now, but there is a new heavy hitter on the market getting a lot of attention the last few years - Agave. It has been a topic of conversation with a few of my friends as of late, so I decided to put the competition to the test and find out once and for all which is better for you.
First, a quick education on these two sweeteners. Agave is a plant grown in Southern North America and Northern South America and looks a lot like the aloe vera plant. Honey, of course, is made by bees from the nectar of flowers.
NUTRITION FACTS
HONEY: 1 Tb AGAVE: 1 Tb SUGAR: 1 Tb
64 Calories 60 Calories 48 Calories
0 Fat 0 Fat 0 Fat
1 mg Sodium 0 Sodium 0 Sodium
11 mg Potassium 0 Potassium 0 Potassium
17 g Sugar 12 g Sugar 13 g Sugar
0% Calcium 17% Calcium 0% Calcium
0% Iron 1% Iron 0% Iron
58 *GI 20 *GI 60 *GI
*GLYCEMIC INDEX
The glycemic index is a system of rating foods 1-100 based on their effect on blood-sugar levels. It provides a measure on how quickly blood sugars rise after eating a particular type of food.The higher the number, the faster blood sugar will spike.
COMPARING
Agave has had a lot of media hype because of it's low glycemic index, making it a very popular sweetener of diabetics. However, the reason for the lower glycemic index is due to the high amount of fructose and studies have shown that high amounts of fructose have been linked to diabetes and obesity.
Both Agave and Honey are sweeter than sugar, so when substituting them in recipes you can use 1/3 to 1/2 less the amount, making the calories and sugar content lower in your recipes. They both pack more nutrients per gram than sugar, which is pretty much a nutrient void ingredient.
Honey is a natural preservative. When baking with natural, whole ingredients, food tends to go bad faster - honey will slow this process down. Honey is also the most natural and unprocessed of the sweeteners. If bought raw, you can't get more unprocessed than that.
THE BOTTOM LINE
My bet is still with honey, I use it in all of my breads and baking, but I always error on the side of caution. Sugar is sugar no matter what form it takes, so always use it sparingly. Sweets should be a special treat, not a common occurrence.
