Bueller’s Kitchen

I’ve been wondering about this for awhile, whether Agave is actually good for you. I had read it wasn’t because of it’s high fructose make up but then I read that was all false. Now after reading Dr. Mercola’s post on agave syrup I am going to ween myself off of it for sure.

Here’s a portion of the article which you can read here:

The Myth of Agave as a “Healthy” Sugar Substitute

* Agave syrup is neither a natural food nor organic

Fully chemically processed sap from the agave plant is known as hydrolyzed high fructose inulin syrup.

According to Dr. Ingrid Kohlstadt, a fellow of the American College of Nutrition and an associate faculty member at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health:

“[Agave is] almost all fructose, highly processed sugar with great marketing.”

* Agave syrup is not low calorie.

Agave syrup is about 16 calories per teaspoon, the same as table sugar.

* Agave syrup may not have a low glycemic index.

Depending upon where the agave comes from and the amount of heat used to proc­ess it, your agave syrup can be anywhere from 55 percent to 90 percent fructose! (And it’s likely you won’t be able to tell from the product label.)

This range of fructose content hardly makes agave syrup a logical choice if you’re hoping to avoid the high levels of fructose in HFCS (high fructose corn syrup).

And if you’re diabetic, you should know that the alleged benefit of agave for diabetics is purely speculative. Very few agave studies have been docu­mented, and most involved rats. There have been no clinical studies done on its safety for diabetics.

Since most agave syrup has such a high percentage of fructose, your blood sugar will likely spike just as it would if you were consuming regular sugar or HFCS, and you would also run the risk of raising your triglyceride levels. It’s also important to understand that whereas the glucose in other sugars are converted to blood glucose, fructose is a relatively unregulated source of fuel that your liver converts to fat and cholesterol.

A significant danger here is that fructose does not stimulate your insulin secretion, nor enhance leptin production, which is thought to be involved in appetite regulation. (This was detailed in one of the most thorough scientific analyses published to date on this topic.)

Because insulin and leptin act as key signals in regulating how much food you eat, as well as your body weight, dietary fructose can also contribute to increased food intake and weight gain.

Therefore, if you need to lose weight, fructose is one type of sugar you’ll definitely want to avoid, no matter what the source is.

Other Dangers of Fructose

In addition, consuming high amounts of concentrated fructose may cause health problems ranging from mineral depletion, to insulin resistance, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, and even miscarriage in pregnant women.

Fructose may also interfere with your body’s ability to metabolize copper. This can result in depletion of collagen and elastin, which are vital connective tissues. A copper deficiency can also result in anemia, fragile bones, defects in your arteries, infertility, high choles­terol and heart disease, and uncontrolled blood sugar levels. Could this be the reason for my dry skin and few gray hairs? They say gray is caused by copper deficiency?

Additionally, fructose consumption has been shown to significantly increase uric acid. Elevated lev­els of uric acid are markers for heart disease. It has also been shown to increase blood lactic acid, especially in diabetics. Elevations in lactic acid can result in metabolic acido­sis.

Isolated fructose has no enzymes, vitamins or minerals and can rob your body of these nutrients in order to assimilate itself. Hence, consumption of fructose can also lead to loss of vital minerals like calcium, iron, magnesium, and zinc.

Other Reasons You Should Steer Clear of Agave

1. There are very few quality controls in place to monitor the production of agave syrup. Nearly all agave sold in the U.S. comes from Mexico. Industry insiders are concerned agave distributors are using lesser, even toxic, agave plants due to a shortage of blue agave.

There are also concerns that some distributors are cutting agave syrup with corn syrup — how often and to what extent is anyone’s guess. In addition, the FDA has refused shipments of agave syrup due to excessive pesticide residues.

2. Agave syrup is not a whole food — it is fractionated and processed. The sap is sepa­rated from the plant and treated with heat, similar to how maple sap is made into maple syrup. Agave nectar is devoid of many of the nutrients contained in the original, whole plant.

3. Agave syrup is not a live food. The natural enzymes are removed to prevent agave syrup from fermenting and turning into tequila in your food pantry or cabi­net.

4. Agave is, for all intents and purposes, highly concentrated sugar. Sugar and sweet­eners wreak havoc on your health and are highly addictive.