Personal Worldview Essay

century plant may be iodin of the most popular natural sweeteners today, but its rise in popularity in the U. S. didnt begin until around 2003. Now its comm scarcely use as an alternative to simoleons, honey, or maple syrup for cooking, baking, and sweetening everything from coffee to oatmeal. Agave nectar (or syrup) is produced from the century plant plant the same plant used to remove tequila. It tastes similar to honey with a hint of molasses and is manufactured by extracting the succus from the plants core, which is then filtered, heated or treated with enzymes and saturated until it becomes a syrupy liquid.Proponents of this natural sweetener claim that its a healthy alternative to sugar, honey, and other sweeteners because of its low glycemic index. Its advertised as ideal for wad who are watching their weight or common people with diabetes who are working to lower their blood sugar levels. But to begin with you add agave nectar to your grocery list, heres what the heck you claim to know. Agave nectar contains up to 90 part fructose. Thats importantly much than table sugar, which is 50 percent fructose (and 50 percent glucose) once its broken down by your body.A gaves laid-back fructose content gives it advantages and disadvantages. The good part first Because fructose has a low glycemic index, agave doesnt cause your blood sugars to spike as rapidly after eating it, which means it can temper the sugar rush that occurs after eating something sweet. And even though agave and exsanguinous sugar contain approximately the same number of calories, agave is markedly sweeter. That means you can get away with using less to serrated wrack your coffee, morning oatmeal, or baked goods and potentially save yourself a a couple of(prenominal) calories. Now for the bad part.The high fructose content in agave can stimulate some undesirable health effects. Studies have shown that self-aggrandizing amounts of fructose can increase blood-triglyceride levels , and high triglycerides are a cognise risk factor for heart disease. In addition, some people have trouble absorbing fructose, so eating it can cause bloating, swagger and abdominal discomfort. Agave can be especially problematic for people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The Verdict Should You Switch to Agave? As with so many issues in nutrition, the health-related pros and cons of agave arent clear-cut.My feeling is, if youre only using a few teaspoons of sweetener a day, the differences are negligible and you can choose whichever one you prefer. In other words, limiting the sum up amount of sweetener youre using will have a much bigger impact on your health than altering the pillow slip of sugar you use. With that in mind, dont use agave as an excuse to pump more sweet stuff into your diet on the button because it has a lower glycemic index. Most of us consume far more sugar in all forms than we should. And if agave is your sweetener of choice, just concoct to keep y our intake to no more than one tablespoon (thats three teaspoons) TOTAL per day.