Maple syrup is a healthier alternative to sugar and has many benefits. It's less processed than regular table sugars and therefore contains more nutrients like vitamins, minerals & antioxidants which help improve your health.
But, if you're going to use sugar in a recipe, you might as well substitute in maple syrup since it's slightly better for you than refined sugar. The reality is maple syrup is still high in sugar. It would be very unhealthy to eat several tablespoons of maple syrup per day to add calcium or potassium to your diet.
Both offer benefits in the form of either vitamins or minerals, and both offer protective antioxidant activity. Putting taste aside, as the two have different flavors — honey is more floral while maple syrup is more woodsy — maple syrup tends to be the slightly healthier choice, but we enjoy both throughout the year.
Maple Syrup Health Benefits
Granulated sugar does have more calories, slightly fewer grams of carbohydrates, and slightly more grams of sugar than maple syrup, per the USDA.
Real Maple Syrup has significantly more calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, copper, and manganese than Brown Sugar. These minerals do great work for your body including things like cell formation, maintaining healthy red blood cells, and immune support.
Maple syrup for sugar
Maple syrup is about as sweet as sugar, so you can replace it using an equal amount of syrup (e.g., for 1 cup of sugar, use 1 cup of maple syrup). Decrease the liquid by 3 to 4 tablespoons per 1 cup substitution.
Talking about sugar being good for health, then natural sugar or stevia is the best. They have many health benefits to offer apart from weight loss. It has all the essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals that are essential for your body. While stevia is also known to be the best sugar for weight loss.
A recent maple syrup study has shown that the delicious liquid contains a molecule called quebecol, which has anti-inflammatory properties. The purpose of anti-inflammatory substances are simple; they work to reduce inflammation!
While the refinement process and flavor profile are both very similar, Maple Syrup's health benefits, with it's lower caloric intake, lower sugar content, and stable energy levels, end up winning this head to head.
Maple syrup is a naturally occurring substance packed with various healthy minerals, including manganese, zinc, calcium, and potassium. These minerals can have disease-fighting properties and help strengthen your immune system, metabolize carbs and fats more effectively, and regulate your blood sugar.
When unopened, you can store hot-packed pure maple syrup for at least a year (or more) in the pantry at room temperature. Once opened, you'll need to store pure maple syrup in the fridge—since it's a natural product with no preservatives, it can spoil or grow mold.
Best grade of maple syrup.....
What grade maple syrup is healthiest? Whether it's for use in a master cleanse or as a topping for your pancakes, Grade A Dark will be better for you. It has more antioxidants and mineral content than the lighter colors.
Pure maple syrup is not only high in antioxidants, but every spoonful offers nutrients like riboflavin, zinc, magnesium, calcium, and potassium. Oxidative damage, which is caused by free radicals, is believed to be among the mechanisms behind aging and many diseases.
Maple syrup is a sugar with no fiber attached to it which means eating too much of it will cause swings in your blood sugar and insulin. This could lead to hunger, potential weight gain and other adverse health effects.
Adding maple syrup to your coffee will give it a unique flavor and sweetness that will leave you wanting more. Not only is maple syrup an excellent way to add flavor and sweetness to your coffee, but maple syrup is good for you with naturally occurring minerals and antioxidants.
Studies have shown that maple syrup can help lower cholesterol levels. This is because the phenolic compounds in maple syrup bind to cholesterol molecules, preventing them from being absorbed by the body. Maple syrup can improve blood sugar control.
Sweeteners like fruit juice, honey, molasses and maple syrup contain natural sugar and have some nutritional benefits. Fruit has fiber, vitamins and antioxidants. Even raw honey and maple syrup can contain antioxidants and minerals like iron, zinc, calcium and potassium.
Because coconut sugar is a plant-based, natural sweetener, some people feel it is more nutritious than regular table sugar. In reality, coconut sugar is almost identical to regular cane sugar in terms of nutrients and calories.
People with diabetes typically need to limit how much added sugar they eat. And that includes sugar from honey and other syrups. Honey is sweeter than table sugar (refined sugar), which may help you use less. But it has more carbohydrates and calories, so the benefit of using slightly less probably evens out.
Maple syrup gives you carbohydrates in the form of sugars without associated fiber. As a result, ingesting maple syrup can cause swings in blood sugar and insulin levels. People with diabetes in particular may experience adverse effects from the sugar in maple syrup.
Maple syrup contains inulin, a prebiotic fibre that acts as food for good gut bacteria and aids in healthy digestive and immune systems.
Is Maple syrup a superfood? Yes, pure maple syrup is a superfood, and the reason for this is that it is plant-based and delicious. Of all the natural sweeteners available, it has the least sugar content and the highest value of nutrients and minerals.
Moreover, processed, high fructose corn syrup may be the worst type of sugar a person can consume. Some medical experts relate sugar to cocaine in the way it has addictive effects on the brain in humans and in animals and this notion is supported by research.
The healthiest alternative to sugar is whole fruits, followed by dried fruits, as they contain added nutrients and fiber. In comparison to table sugar, fruit juices, maple syrup, honey, and molasses are marginally healthier as they contain some vitamins and minerals.