Sponsored: How Sweet It Is…Sugar by other Names

Ask Leah! The Ingles Dietitian

Sponsored: How Sweet It Is…Sugar by other Names

Lately I’ve been seeing recipes listing different sweeteners as “healthier” and less processed alternatives to sugar.

Ironically on food labels, all of these would be classified by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as sugar, and all are processed in some way in order to be packaged and sold. Lately I’ve been seeing recipes listing different sweeteners as “healthier” and less processed alternatives to sugar. Ironically on food labels, all of these would be classified by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as sugar, and all are processed in some way in order to be packaged and sold.

• Date Sugar – made from dried datesServing Size: 1 tspcalories/serving: 11Grams of sugar/serving: 3 gGrams of carbohydrate/serving: 3 g

• Coconut sugar – made from the flower bud stem of the coconut plantServing size: 1 tspcalories per serving: 15 Grams of sugar/serving: 4 gGrams of carbohydrate/serving: 4 g • Coconut nectar/syrup – sap from flowers of coconut tree (Note: Because this is a syrup/liquid the serving size is different)Serving Size: 1 TBSPcalories/serving: 55Grams of sugar/serving: 13 gGrams of carbohydrate/serving: 13 g

• Palm sugar – made from sap of the palm treeServing Size: 1 tspCalories/serving: 18Grams of sugar/serving: 5 gGrams of carbohydrates/serving: 5 g How do these compare with plain white sugar from beets or sugar cane?

• Sugar – made from sugar cane or sugar beetsServing size: 1 tspCalories/serving: 16Grams of sugar/serving: 4 gGrams of carbohydrates/serving: 4 g

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Bottom Line: There are many sweetener options available at Ingles Markets, some have calories from carbohydrates, and some have fewer calories and carbohydrates, and some have no calories. Some may lend a slightly different taste to your cooking or baking. Some may be much more expensive than others. If you are trying to reduce your sugar intake, be aware that substituting some of these new, popular sugars/nectars/syrups like date, palm or coconut may make little or no difference to your intake of sugar, carbohydrates or calories and claims of health benefits for using these more expensive alternatives are overblown.

Leah McGrath, RDN, LDN

Ingles Markets Corporate Dietitian

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