Friday, July 24, 2009

Agave Nectar - the truth?

When my clients ask what sweeteners they can use, I've been recommending agave nectar. My two reasons: it is low on the glycemic index, or hits your bloodstream fairly slowly so that it does not raise insulin levels much, and I was under the impression that it was a sustainable crop.

Well, I've been discovering lately that agave nectar may not be what I thought it was. I don't know why I trusted the food industry's marketing without checking it out for myself. And as usual, our government (in this case the FDA) makes no attempt to protect us from false labeling. As it happens, agave is full of fructose, a substance that can increase triglyceride and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. I first read about this on Natural News. I read more at the Weston Price site.

For now, I'm not going to get all excited and tell you guys not to use agave at all. I'm simply going to remind you that it is a SWEETENER, so you should be watching your intake closely anyways. What do we really know about stevia?

No comments: