What are healthy alternatives to sugary foods & drinks?

When you go grocery shopping next time, remember to read the nutrition labels on the food and drinks you buy to figure out the amount of added sugar they contain. You will surely be surprised to see how much of the stuff you have been eating or drinking has added sugar to them. From regular soda to sports drinks, fruit drinks, sweetened waters, and energy drinks, we ingest sugar at very high levels daily.

Why Should I Care about the Amount of Sugar in my Foods and Drinks?

Why must you be bothered about sugary foods and drinks? Consuming sugary items can lead to a range of health problems, including weight gain, type II diabetes, obesity, cavities, heart disease, arthritis, gout, and more. 

• On the nutrition chart, sugary foods and drinks appear at the bottom since they add loads of calories without any nutritional value.
• Sugary items affect mortality adversely, especially with cardiac diseases.
• Our bone health is compromised if we consume lots of sugary stuff.
• Many dietary guidelines suggest that those two years or older must keep their daily sugar intake to just 10% of daily calories.
• The health of your teeth is hampered by too much sugar intake.

Sugary Items in Disguise

As per FDA (Foods and Drug Administration), added sugars are defined as below:

• Sugars are added during food processing, for instance, dextrose or sucrose.
• Foods that are packaged as sweeteners, for example, table sugar.
• Sugars from honey and syrups.
• Sugars from concentrated vegetable or fruit juices.

Most energy drinks are marketed as products to increase our energy levels. Energy drinks do so with the help of added sugar along with many other legal stimulants, such as huge quantities of caffeine. In addition to the ‘added sugar’ label, your food item may have other names for sugar-sweetened drinks. Check the list of ingredients on the packaging, and if it contains any of the following in it, that item has added sugar:

• Corn syrup
• Cane juice
• Molasses
• Fructose, dextrose, glucose, sucrose
• Fruit nectars, for example, agave nectar.
• Honey
• Malt syrup
• Sugar cane
• Maple syrup
• Raw sugar
• Fruit juice concentrates

Delicious Alternatives to Sugary Foods and Drinks

Now we know how much harm sugary foods and drinks can cause our bodies. So, next time you reach out for an energy drink, try and replace them with the following healthy and tasty alternatives:

• Fruits – When they have sugar cravings, most people reach for foods high in fat and sugar, such as chocolate. But you can get a sweet hit by swapping junk food with a fruit of your choice. Besides being naturally sweet, fruits also have many beneficial properties; for instance, they are high in fiber. Fruits like grapes and mangoes are your best friends whenever you want to grab something sweet.
• Smoothies -Mix a cup of berries and other fruits you like with unsweetened coconut or almond milk to get a delicious smoothie that will give you ample energy in the morning to last a day.
• Homemade iced tea – You could brew naturally sweetened iced tea such as mint, apple cinnamon, or berry tea. Leave the tea bag in, and keep it in the fridge overnight to get your iced tea first thing in the morning.
• Make fizzy drinks – If you can not do without a fizzy drink, try mixing 100% fruit or vegetable juice with plain sparkling water to get a refreshing drink that is also low in calories.
• Dark chocolate for chocolate lovers – Dark chocolate is a healthier choice for chocolates as it is made of 70% cocoa and healthy plant compounds (polyphenols.) But dark chocolates have some fat and sugar, so it is best to limit the intake to a few squares.
• Milk and chocolate – Though plain milk (soy, almond, coconut, or cow) should be the first choice, many of us can not escape our sweet tooth. So if you like flavored milk, have half a glass of chocolate milk mixed with half a glass of white milk.
• Herbal teas – You will not need to add sugar to herbal teas as they already have a mild sweet flavor. Some tremendous herbal tea mixes are ginger, hibiscus, dandelion, and rooibos.

There are many other alternatives for a healthier sweet food or drink, such as snack bars, sugar-free mints or chewing gums, adding stevia to your drinks, etc. But it is advisable to limit the number of sweeteners you add, and you will be surprised how your palate adjusts to less quantity of sugar over time.