sugar vs other sweeteners, any nutritionist out there?

Question

I am trying to stay away from eating things that contain sugar. Can anyone tellme what's better, raw sugar, regular sugar, splenda, stevia, honey...ect. I love oat-meal, and drink tea. But not sure which sweetner i shoudl be using. And why is one better over another.

Answer 1

Getting away from the white sugar is a good thing.
I am not a nutritionist, but I am surrounded by them :) and have been doing a lot of research with the information they have been giving me. I have three good friends that are nutritionists or studying nutrition and what food does to the body.
One swears by Stevia, it is an herb so therefore does not have the same effects as sugar on the body but will still give you that sweet flavor. I have not tried it yet as I am told you may have to develop a taste for it as though it is sweet it has a different flavor.- the only thing I use sugar in is my coffee and I am not ready to change that yet.
Raw sugar is better for you than white because it is not processed- anything, in its natural form is going to be 100% better than that thing being altered in any way. YOu still want to use raw sugar in moderation as too much sugar will deplete your body of the minerals and vitamins it needs.
For oatmeal and tea, I use honey. personally, I think it tastes the best and again, natural, unaltered honey is going to be better for you and not have the negtive effects of something that is processed and chemically altered.
I don't know a lot about Splenda yet, but my instinct is , knowing what I know about artificial sweeteners and the processing and altering techniques as opposed to what I know about eating foods as close to their natural form as you can get them that this is probably not a good thing. Iti s not a sweetener in its natural form.
A good rule of thumb is everything that is needed to nourish our bodies has been given to us- the only purpose to altering what God created for us to eat is convenience- not health. Anytime you have a choice between something in its natural stae like raw sugar or honey as opposed to something processed and chemically altered (which in the long run is poisonous to your body) such as Splenda or other artificial sweeteners the choice is obvious- go with what was created to nourish your body- not just appease a craving.

Answer 2

I really love Stevia. I grow my own, by getting a plant in Home depots herb section. This one plant costs $1.99 and grows enough leaves to dry out, put in jars and use for years. Just add a leaf to a blender of smoothie, or a cup of hot tea etc. If you want a sweetner to cook with, I'd get the processed stevia that comes in powder form. The best thing about stevia is it's trace calories if any, and I beleive it's zero on the glycemic index where as sugar, raw or processed, honey, are full of calories, bad for your teeth and all high in glucose. Splenda, nutra sweet etc. is nothing but a chemical, yuck.
Stevia is a natural green herb, what could be better?!

Answer 3

Stay away from sugar absolutely. Honey too, it's just liquid sugar, it has the same effect on your system.

If you use artificial sweeteners, keep it to a minimum. As noted above, they are just chemicals and the less processed crap you eat the better.

I haven't tried Stevia, but I know a lot of people who swear by it. It's a natural herbal product but some say it has a bit of a licorice taste. I would say that's probably your best bet.

I rarely use sweeteners at all any more. My tastes have adjusted and now I find lots of sweetened things to be TOO sweet.

Answer 4

The sugar intake in liquids is better than sugar contents in foods.
For liquids the sugar I recommend using is SPLENDA, few side effects have been discovered.

GOOD LUCK!

Answer 5

Coming from someone who has type 1 diabetes I'd say count your carbs. Carbs are something you have worry about cause carbs are what essentually turn to sugar. Go to a major bookstore in the food section to find a book on counting carbs and carb values of different foods.