Alternatives to high fructose corn syrup

November 18, 2:34 PMPhiladelphia Health ExaminerThomas Hartmann

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Dates (from HealingVibes.Com) 

Last week’s article concerned some of the potentially insidious effects of consuming high fructose corn syrup, and the difficulty in pinning down these effects. What are the alternatives, if you have established that this food sweetener is behind your symptoms of exhaustion?

The principle to keep in mind is this: the more complex the sugar, the more slowly it enters your bloodstream. High fructose corn syrup is an extremely simple sugar, and enters the bloodstream in a rush, causing your pancreas to overwork to pump out insulin. One often gets a sugar high, followed by a crash, as a result. One also could be moving closer to Type-II Diabetes.

More complex sugars like fruit enter the bloodstream more slowly. This is also true of new sweeteners on the market like rice sweeteners. Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, and Giant all sell drinks and ice-cream-like dessert products sweetened with rice sweetener. Some of them even taste better than the real thing.

On the market during the holidays are also dates. Trader Joe’s sells these year-round, both fresh and crushed with a coconut topping. Watch out for the hard pits, which can break your teeth. It’s nature’s equivalent of an M & M. For those who have never tasted how sweet a complex sugar can be, they are in for a treat.