7 reasons why you must switch to coconut sugar NOW

Do you find it difficult to cut down on your sugar intake, which is basically a ‘sweet poison’! Yes, a poison which adds sweetness to your palate, but may lead to some major lifestyle diseases like obesity, liver diseases, heart issues and diabetes in the long run.

With an increase in consciousness towards health, people are gradually moving towards healthier options like Coconut sugar. Of late, Coconut sugar has turned out to be a fad among chefs, home cooks and those who choose to eat healthy.

Coconut sugar is basically extracted from the coconut palm sap of the coconut palm tree. This sugar is extracted by making an incision on the flower of the coconut palm and collecting the liquid sap in a container.

This liquid from the tree is then processed by heating it until most of the water evaporates. As a result the sugar has a brown colour, which resembles raw sugar. But what makes it different from raw sugar is the size of the Coconut sugar particle which is very small as compared to raw sugar. Here are 7 reasons why you must switch to Coconut sugar now!

Coconut sugar has a similar texture to brown sugar and it is great for baking as it has a light but distinctive flavour, which is close to molasses. It takes time to melt as compared to other sugar and gives a slight brownish tint to the delicacies. It can be used to add a sweet taste to vegan delicacies or beverages like coffee or tea.

Refined sugar often has additives like bone char, which are basically animal bone extracts added to give the sugar the typical white colour. On the other hand coconut sugar is an unprocessed sugar variant which makes it a much healthier choice.

Electrolytes are essential for maintaining a healthy balance of water as it ensures smooth functioning of the heart, nerves, and muscles.

Coconut sugar is rich in potassium, magnesium and sodium, which helps in regulating the body’s water content. In fact, Coconut sugar has around 400 times more potassium than regular sugar.

Coconut sugar is a good source of Inulin, which is basically a type of dietary fiber that helps in keeping the gut healthy, prevents colon cancer. It also helps in improving digestion and metabolism. Moreover, it helps in maintaining a healthy blood sugar level.

Regular refined sugar has pure sucrose, whereas Coconut sugar has low sucrose and contains around 75 percent of sucrose. Apart from that, the remaining 25 percent of Coconut sugar is made up of dietary fiber, nutrients and antioxidants.

As compared to regular sugar, Coconut sugar is rich in Vitamin C, which helps in boosting the immunity, builds resistance against seasonal ailments and improves the texture of skin and hair.

Coconut sugar is rich in Nitrogen, which keeps the heart healthy by supporting cardiovascular health. What’s more, the presence of iron, zinc and calcium makes Coconut sugar good for overall health.

What makes the sugar variant a healthy choice is its low glycemic index of 35 whereas the regular refined sugar has around 65 glycemic index, which makes it a bad choice for weight watchers or people with high sugar. The glycemic index of Coconut sugar is somewhat close to the GI index of fresh fruits, which is around 25.