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Honey and Maple Syrup are Good Healthy Sugar Choices

An excellent healthy sugar is honey and could be a supplemental source of antioxidants. Although honey can’t replace fruits and vegetables in the diet as a source of antioxidants, it has a lot to offer as a replacement for refined sugar, which has little value other than as a sweetner. One tablespoon of honey has 64 calories and one tablespoon of refined sugar has 46 calories. But honey is sweeter than sugar so you will use less to make food sweet.

Not only could honey’s antioxidants fight free radicals, they are part of the nutrients that grow new tissue. Honey can help protect the skin under the sun and help the skin stay young looking. The vitamins present in honey are thiamin, niacin, fiboflavin, and certain amino acids. The minerals found in honey include calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, and zinc.

What bees eat determines the level of antioxidants in honey. University of Illinois scientists found that honey made from nectar from Illinois buckwheat flowers had 20 times the antioxidants as honey that came from bees that ate California sage. Clover scored in the middle of the rankings. Antioxidants counter the toxin effects of free radicals. Researchers say darker honey has less water and more antioxidants that light colored honey.

The enzymes present in honey aid in the digestion of food. Honey has already been digested by the bees and is directly absorbed by our body. Refined sugar has to be broken down in our body into simpler forms to be digested and absorbed.

Another healthy sugar is maple syrup, which has fewer calories and a higher concentration of minerals than honey. Maple syrup comes from the sap of black or red maple trees. The sap is almost tasteless until it is boiled to evaporate the water that produces the syrup. It is a good source of manganese which is important in energy production and antioxidant defenses. Manganese helps disarm free radicals produced within the mitochondria (the energy production factories within our cells). Adults deficient in manganese have a decreased level of HDL, the “good” cholesterol. The antioxidant zinc is also found in maple syrup. This can help decrease the progression of atherosclerosis, which is the disease in which plaque builds up on the insides of the arteries. Plaque is made up of fat, cholesterol, and calcium. Plaque hardens over time and narrows arteries which can lead to heart attack or stroke.

Zinc and manganese are both important to the immune system. Many types of immune cells depend upon zinc for optimal function. In studies, zinc deficiency has been shown to compromise numbers of white blood cells and immune response, while zinc supplementation has been shown to restore conditions to normal.

Consider natural, healthy sugar to sweeten your healthy foods and know that you are helping your body repair itself faster and live longer.

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