agave syrup!

leila

Please read this about agave syrup, quoted from an article from mercola.com:

Many people interested in staying healthy have switched to agave as a safer "natural" sweetener. They want to avoid well documented dangerous sweeteners like HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) but are unaware that agave is actually WORSE than HFCS.

So just what is agave?

Blue agave is an exotic plant growing in the rich volcanic soil of Mexico under a hot tropical sun, boasting a stately flower stem that blooms only once in its lifetime. "Agave" literally means "noble." It

Dorothy

I've never had agave (and have never been curious enough to try it) but I do wonder about the ecological impact of shipping jars of the stuff all over the world from Mexico...at least honey can be found in many countries locally....

holisticlady

Paul B!

I perfectly agree w/your sentiments. I use ALL sugars sparingly (fruit, agave, maple syrup (if at all) , yacon syrup, date powder, black strap molasses, etc.). However I HAVE had good results w/using agave sparingly. I am formerly very hypoglycemic-prone, & w/agave (the REALLY good, certified low glycemic, organic kind) I have suffered ZERO negative effects. Honey, on the other hand, is harvested inhumanely, as honey is made for for bees, not humans (and I've read that in an entire lifetime, a single worker bee gathers only 1/10 tsp of honey! It requires 10,000 worker bees to gather a just a pound of honey!)

However more notably to the point of this discussion, Dr. Mercola vilifies agave, while SELLING a competing food-honey!! ...He also sells, OSTRICH, BISON, CHICKEN, BEEF, AND CHEESE from his website...so like Paul, I question the overall soundness of his argument, as well as the potential downsides of agave he points out that basically can be said of any sweet (and especially fructose-containing food. (He harshly criticizes fructose, however according to his guidelines, a few of any of the fruits mentioned in this post (apples, raisins, certainly bananas, mangos, etc.) a day would be toxic to one's health, as well)!

I think in moderation, agave is a pleasant indulgence, and I definitely think when a doctor is supplying information while also SELLING competing supplements, the objectiveness of the point of view is easily questioned. Beyond that, his claims just don't appear the most SOUND. However all of this is all food for thought.

:)