Did you try for weight loss multiple times but no success? The biggest problem during weight loss is to quit sugar. Despite lots of efforts, people can’t quit it easily. Sugar is sweet in taste but it brings bitterness in our health life.

But this problem has a very simple solution. You can enjoy sweets without using sugar. Now you must be thinking how is that even possible. Actually sugar and sweetness are two different things. Nature has given us many such things to bring sweetness in our food. If you start using these natural sweeteners then you can lose weight even without quitting sweets. These natural sweeteners also offer numerous health benefits.

So let’s explore and find out what all natural sweeteners can help to replace table sugar from our day to day life.

Studies have found that sugar impacts our brain just like nicotine, cocaine and morphine. The more sugar we eat more sugar cravings we get.

Table sugar can cause many diseases like obesity, diabetes, blood pressure, heart disease and depression. This also aggravates acne and causes wrinkles on our face faster than normal.

We use sugar daily in many forms like tea, coffee, cake, packaged juice, soup, mayonnaise, flavored yogurt, bakery products like bread, biscuits, cold drink, breakfast cereals like corn flakes etc.

Apart from this sugar is also used in preservatives to increase shelf life of food items.

By now you must have understood that directly or indirectly, how much sugar you are taking in your day to day life.

An average person consumes 20 grams of sugar daily. That means approximate of 7 Kg of sugar in a year. Yes that’s true.

In our daily life we consume sugar in such a way that in our life sugar and sweetness have become synonyms. When we plan to lose weight then the very first thing which comes to our mind is that we have to stop sugar. However this is not true. Sugar and sweetness are two different things. There are many ways to sweeten the food and sugar is one of them.

So you have to stop having sugar and switch to alternate natural sweeteners. Today I am going to tell you six such sweeteners which can easily replace sugar in your day to day life. By using these you will also get rid of side effects of sugar.

1 - Coconut Sugar

Coconut sugar does not require much of processing or refining. Because of this fact it is quite nutritional in nature. Besides being sweet it is also source of iron, zinc, calcium and potassium.

The glycemic index of coconut sugar is 35 however glycemic index of sugar of table sugar is 65. More the GI more will be the spike caused at blood sugar level.

Coconut sugar does not have any side effects. People who add sugar in the milk can substiture table sugar by cocont sugar. Coconut sugar can also be used to make smoothie, curd, oat meal, cake or cookies.

In India you can easily get it online within the price range of Rs 150 to 170 for 250 grams.

2 - Dates Sugar

As you can figure out from the name that dates sugar is made of dates or khajoor (in Hindi). You can also make it at home and you can also easily buy it online. To make it at home you fist have to grind it in the grinder. Now you can add powdered dates to the milk, kheer, halwa or cake.

Dates sugar is enriched with Fiber, Potassium and Minerals. Because of fiber dates sugar greatly helps in digestion and it also controls blood sugar level. Dates is also considered good for brain, this improves memory and helps in anxiety.

Not on this, it also helps people suffering from cholesterol problem. It also strengthens our bones. This also helps people who feel tired and who suffer from anemia. This is anti aging and keeps the skin smooth.

Due to so many nutrients in dates, it is considered best alternative of sugar.

You can get 250 grams of Dates sugar somewhere between 200 to 250 Rs from online market.

3- Jaggery

Jaggery is made by boiling sugar cane juice for hours and then pouring it in the molds. Since jaggery is made in a natural way without using any chemical or preservative. Hence its vitamins and minerals are preserved. On the contrary sugar manufacturing requires many chemical agents and that’s the reason sugar has empty calories.

Jaggery should be taken in winters and it can replace all those food items where sugar is used.

Jaggery is good for digestion and helps digestion of the food. This is the reason that from old time, people in India take small bite of jaggery after their meal.

Jaggery flushes toxins from our body and purifies the blood. It also helps people who suffer from constipation. It relieves from joint pain and beneficial during cold and cough. Jaggery also improves our immunity system.

How to identify Pure Jaggery

To identify pure jaggery is easy. Its dark brown in colour. Yellow colour jaggery may have chemicals hence while buying it just make sure it’s dark brown in color.

Apart from this if it tastes little salty then don’t buy it.

One more way to check its purity is that pure jaggery is hard.

4- Raw Honey

Honey is known for its sweetness since long time. 90% of People who have tried for weight loss must have used it. But most of the people do not know which honey they should buy for best results.

While buying money makes sure its raw honey. Yes raw honey and not regular honey. Raw honey is directly packed after straining it thru fine filter. Means it does not go through any kind of chemical processing. Raw honey is absolutely pure and full of nutrients.

On other hand many types of normal honey available in the market goes thru chemical processing like pasteurization, filtration, and heat treatment. This is done to improve its shelf life and also to make it smoother. Basically to make it more appealing to the customer it goes through processing. Because of this it loses many of its nutrients.

Not only this, regular honey can also have hidden sugar or sweeteners. Hence while buying honey just make sure to buy raw honey.

You can also do some basic testing to check the purity of the honey.

If you dissolve pure honey in glass of water, it will settle down at the bottom. However impure honey will dissolve in the water.

Also with the time, pure honey takes the shape of crystals. However impure honey will remain same throughout and there will be no changes with the time.

Pure honey is light yellow in colour and it is not transparent.

Also remember that raw honey and organic honey are not the same. So while buying the bottle just make sure its written Raw honey on it.

Honey has amino acid and antioxidants. Because of this it’s good for heart. It also helps to lower down the blood pressure and also good for cholesterol. Honey is good during weight loss and helps children in cough and cold.

You can use honey in Green Tea, Tea, Smoothie oat meal etc.

5- Stevia

Stevia leaves can be used in place of sugar. Glycemic index of stevia is zero. That means diabetic patients can use stevia in tea or coffee by replacing sugar.

It has zero calories hence people looking for weight loss can easily use this as a replacement for sugar.

Stevia can be easily used in Tea, coffee, lemonade, smoothie or curd.

6 - Rock Sugar (Mishri)

Rock sugar is also prepared using sugar cane juice. But the way many chemicals are used to make sugar, rock sugar or Mishri is given white colour using milk and water.

Ayurveda doctors suggest to take some medicines with rock sugar. Because of its purity rock sugar is also offered as prasad in Indian tradition.

You will two types of rock sugar in the market. One which comes in the form of big crystals. This is also served with fennel seeds in many north Indian restaurants after the dinner. Second one comes with thread in it. We don’t see much of threaded rock sugar in big Indian cities these days.

Rock sugar in the form of crystals is bigger form of sugar hence you should not buy this. However the one with thread is real rock sugar.

Rock sugar is good for digestion, it gives energy and improves hemoglobin level. You can simply replace table sugar by rock sugar in all the dishes.

In Indian you can easily get it from local grocery shop at slightly higher price then sugar.

You can pick natural sweetener as per your taste and requirement. Once you start replacing sugar with above natural sweeteners, gradually you will start feeling the positive difference along with more energy level.

However make sure you use these sweeteners in moderate quantity instead of going overboard.

I hope this article will help you to make wise decision in picking natural sweeteners in place of table sugar. For any further queries, please feel free to email Dietitian Arti at dietitian.arti@gmail.com

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