Agave, Far Worse Than High Fructose Corn Syrup

Here at Zero Worries Foods, Inc. we have found that the majority of people, even the health conscious, are under the impression that agave nectar is an all natural zero calorie sweetener, it's not. Many are consuming agave in large quantities unaware of the actual calories per serving; 16 calories per teaspoon, the same as table sugar (sucrose).

Besides the calories, agave adds more fructose to an average daily diet that is already bombarded by fructose in juice, soda, bread, cereal & other common foods. That much fructose can overload the liver & turn into fat & have other health implications.

In a recent article by Dr. Joseph Mercola he educates consumers in greater detail about agave (fructose) & highlights "two overall reasons fructose is so damaging:
Your body metabolizes fructose in a much different way than glucose. Fructose is broken down in your liver just like alcohol and produces many of the side effects of chronic alcohol use, right down to the "beer belly".
People are consuming fructose in quantities that are 400-800 percent higher than they were 100 years ago due to its pervasive presence in just about all processed foods."
Read the full article here.

We recommend cutting out caloric sweeteners & beverages & limiting sugar - whether fructose, glucose or sucrose as much as possible. ZSweet® is a natural, truly zero calorie way to do just that. Compare the differences of agave nectar & ZSweet® here.

"It’s a sugar problem – any sugar."

In 2004 Professor of Nutrition, Dr. Barry Popkin & Dr. George Bray of Baton Rouge's Pennington Biomedical Research Center, published a now well-known study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition which hypothesized that there was a direct link between the rise in obesity & the consumption of High Fructose Corn Syrup. Their paper started a frenzy of consumer hysteria over HFCS leading the public to abandon products containing the ingredient & swapping it for what they perceived as the healthier, more natural alternative - sugar.

In a recent interview Dr. Popkin commented on the common misperception that sugar is a safer alternative to HFCS stating, “We showed later that fructose from sugar has the same effect,” Popkin said. “We were wrong in our speculations on high fructose corn syrup about their link to weight... it’s a sugar problem – any sugar."

The bottom line is whether you're consuming HFCS, fructose, sucrose, soda or fruit juice, it's all still converting into sugar & calories in the body & they all come with the same health risks. It is important to reduce, or better yet, avoid all of the above. The good news is ZSweet® tastes like sugar but is naturally zero calories & will not raise your blood sugar or contribute to weight gain like the others, including natural sugar, which is still sugar.

Read the full article, "Fructose in the firing line" here.

photo credit: sugarstacks.com