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Sweeteners

3 Sweeteners worth looking closely at: Stevia, Xylitol, and Syncepalum Dulcificum (Miraculin)

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Similar to honey. Extracted from the Agave plant (which is also used to make tequila). Agave Nectar has a low glycemic index.

A creamy beverage in Japan made with cultured sweet rice. Used also as a sweetener in cooking and baking.

An artificial sweetener, C14H18N2O5, formed from aspartic acid. Aspartame is the most controversial food additive in history. More information on Aspartame

Made from sprouted barley: this is a thick, dark, slow-digesting sugar which is high in maltose, and nutrients. Because of it's strong taste; it's best used in cooked foods like baked beans.

This is supposed to be the less processed version of processed sucrose. Now it's typically made by adding molasses to white sugar.

Sugar that has been crushed into a powder. It is typically mixed with cornstarch or wheat flour, or calcium phosphate to improve its flowing ability. To avoid these additives, you can follow your blender's instructions to create it from sugar

High in glucose and fructose. Corn Syrup is a highly refined, and quickly absorbed sweet syrup created by processing corn syrup with acids or enzymes.

A quickly absorbed simple sugar with nutrients. Date sugar is dried, ground date powder.

Fruit: A natural by-product of fruit and honey. Fructose is extremely sweet and comes in granulated and syrup forms.
Corn: Higher Fructose than HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup)

Rapidly absorbed syrup, slightly less refined than pure sugar. Most often made from grapes and pears.

Absorbed slower than sucrose, made from grape juice and rice.

Known also as Dextrose which has about half the sweetening of regular sugar. Commonly used in commercial candies and frostings.

Rapidly absorbed thick, sweet liquid made from flower nectar by bees. Honey is high in fructose and glucose and contains some nutrients.

20% less sweet than sugar; lactose is derived from whey and is useful in assisting the growth of beneficial bacteria.

Licorice is not only a natural sweetener, it's also commonly used in Chinese medicine. Some of it's uses and precautions can be found in this article on page 2: Your Spice Rack is a Medicine Chest

A sugar alcohol (polyol). 90% the sweetness of sugar and nearly identical properties, aside from browning. Maltitol doesn't promote tooth decay and has a slightly lower blood sugar response. Maltitol is well known to cause gastric distress, mostly if consumed in great quantities. It's commercially sold as Maltisorb and Maltisweet.

Commonly used in chewing gum; it's derived from seaweed, has half the calories of sugar, and can be used to thicken and stabilize foods.

Twice as sweet as granulated sugar; it's made by boiling down maple syrup until almost all the liquid is evaporated.

Sugar Maples are tapped for sap which is boiled down into a syrup. Maple syrup is high in sucrose, rapidly absorbed, and contains complex carbohydrates and trace minerals.

Nutrient rich by-product of refining sugar from sugar-cane.

Technical name for a sweetener developed by Monsanto Chemical Corp. Reportedly ~8,000x sweeter than sugar. It's very similar in structure to Monsanto's toxic sweetener aspartame.

Unrefined sugar, which has not been separated from molasses during the squeeze drying process. Rapadura has a unique caramel flavor and fine grain texture.

Slow-digesting syrup with a mild flavor. Rice Syrup is made from brown rice and is high in complex carbohydrates, maltose, and potassium, with small amounts of protein, calcium, and b-vitamins.

A by-product of refining brown rice into white rice coming from the bran of the rice. Tastes similar to molasses and is very nutrient rich; particularly a good source of iron and B-vitamins.

Artificial sweetener around 300 times as sweet as sucrose, but has an unpleasant bitter or metallic aftertaste. Known to cause cancer in laboratory animals.

Naturally found in some fruits and seaweeds, but is processed from corn syrup and is absorbed slower which makes suitable as a common ingredient in diabetic foods and softdrinks. -*unsure about the effects of long term use*

Rapidly absorbed, high in sucrose, made from the concentrated juice of the sweet sorghum plant.

Artificial sweetener which is a chlorinated sucrose derivative. "Pre-approval research showed that sucralose caused shrunken thymus glands (up to 40% shrinkage) and enlarged liver and kidneys." - http://www.holisticmed.com/splenda/ Sucralose is is produced with ~2% impurities including heavy metals like lead, and arsenic. - http://www.tuberose.com/Sucralose.html

Native to Paraguay; this herb that has been used in South America as a sweetener for hundreds of years. 30 times sweeter than sugar, the leaves of this small green plant are delicious and refreshing. More information about Stevia

Clarified, filtered, evaporated and crystallized cane juice. Flavor is similar to molasses and is also rich in vitamins, minerals, and trace elements.

(White Sugar) Not as sweet as fructose, but sweeter than glucose.

This berry contains the glycoprotein called Miraculin which sticks to your taste buds turning sour and bitter to sweet. The sweetening effect lasts for an hour and a half to two hours. More info: http://quisqualis.com/mirfrtdmc1a.html

Chemically processed, and highly refined cane or beet sugar which has no nutritive qualities.

Commercial name for naturally occurring Xylose which is commonly derived from corn cobs and birch trees. Bacterial inhibitor in medical and dental use. More information on Xylitol

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