Natural Ways to Sweeten Food without Sugar

Lisa Franchi April 28, 2014

Many of us have a ‘sweet tooth’. These people can’t resist adding more sweetness to their food, whether it’s coffee, juice, morning cereal, or some creamy fruit salad. Many of us also tend to add more sugar when cooking. And even if it doesn’t taste sweet, your favourite pasta sauce could have more sugar than you think.

The problem with sugar is that it is at the heart of many diseases, such as diabetes, obesity and even heart disease. Numerous studies have been conducted to examine the ill effects of sugar to human health. Just recently, a study published in the JAMA Internal Medicine found that a sugar-laden diet may raise your risk of dying from heart disease even if you aren’t overweight. In this 15-year study, participants who took in 25% or more of their daily calories as sugar were more than twice as likely to die from heart disease as those whose diets included less than 10% added sugar. Overall, the odds of dying from heart disease rose in tandem with the percentage of sugar in the diet. The findings remained the same even after the researchers took into account other factors like age, sex, physical activity level, and body-mass index (BMI).

Sugar-sweetened beverages such as fizzy drinks, energy drinks, and sports drinks are by far the biggest sources of sugar in Britain and elsewhere. Other major sources of sugar are cakes, cookies and pastries, processed meals, and ready-to-eat cereals.

Health experts discourage the public from consuming too much sugar for many reasons. One is that sugar is linked to weight gain and cavities. Two, sugar delivers “empty calories” or those that lack fibre, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients. Too much sweetness in food can cause negative effects to our health.

The good news is that you really don’t have to sacrifice your love for sweets to protect yourself from the ill effects of sugar. There are several, healthier ways to keep the sweetness intact without using too much refined sugar. Here are some tips for you:

Use stevia.

This natural sweetener can be purchased in both powder and liquid forms. It may come as a surprise to you to know how such a plant can be 200-300 times sweeter than table sugar! But that’s true. Stevia has virtually no calories and unlike refined sugar, it does not produce unwanted effects. This is why it works great for people with diabetes.

Add raw, unrefined honey.

Want to sweeten up your yoghurt? Drizzle it with honey. Whilst honey acts like sugar when consumed, there’s a big difference between the two when it comes to nutritional value. Refined sugar has less nutritive value and contains an excessive amount of calories. On the other hand, honey contains a similar amount of calories, but has overwhelming health benefits! What’s more – it is much sweeter than table sugar. Use honey in your smoothies, shakes and other beverages for more pronounced flavour and more health benefits.

Sprinkle a tiny bit of Himalayan pink salt.

If you bake or cook a lot, you probably notice how a pinch of salt can enhance the flavour of your dish or baked goods. Not only does salt makes your food sweeter, it also reduces the need to add more sugar. Just remember – a pinch is enough. Too much salt can be as dangerous as too much sugar.

Dates

Both date paste and date sugar make great sugar substitutes for salad dressings, baked goods and any other dish that calls for sugar. Although they contain natural sugars, dates are a healthier form of sweetener than table sugar. They are packed with fibre too.

Luo han guo

Just like stevia, this plant (also known as the “longevity fruit”) is an all-natural sweetener that is 300 times sweeter than artificial sweeteners. What’s more, it has long been utilised as a healing remedy in Asian countries. This plant is known to fight free radical damage, and promote healthy blood sugar levels. Visit a Chinese medicine store – they probably have this amazing sweetener.

Hope this article has given you an idea on how to sweeten your food without the need for artificial sweeteners. Have a sweet day ahead!