KOCHI: Diabetes is becoming a common disease even among youth these days. And, according to health experts, the main culprit is refined sugar. As per the guidance of the World Health Organisation, the daily consumption of free sugars should be less than 10% of total energy intake. This is equivalent to not more than 6 teaspoons of sugar a day, including those added to coffees, drinks, processed foods and others.
“The lifestyle changes have a huge impact on the increase in the number of young diabetics. One should take up an exercise regimen, healthy food habits,” says Dr A S Prem of Aster Medcity. What are the alternatives?
Following the pandemic outbreak, people became increasingly worried about lifestyle diseases. The rush to gyms and monthly check-ups have increased. No-sugar diets are a trend among youth these days.
“The pandemic had a huge impact on my health consciousness and my food habits. I have reduced the amount of sugar intake by replacing it with jaggery powder and sweeteners. Tea and coffee had an odd taste initially with jaggery powder. But slowly, I got used to it,” says Kiran Babu, a businessman.
Homemaker Nancy Joseph says she has been using natural palm candy and palm jaggery powder as an alternative to sugar. “Both these alternatives are rich in iron content. Since the glycemic index is less than 50, it can be used by those with diabetics as well,” she adds.
Jaggery and honey as an alternative for a diabetic person is a bad idea because this would lead to an increase in the sugar levels, says Rajiv Ambat, wellness expert, who runs Nuvoco Vivo Lifestyle Centre in Kochi. “A better option would be sucralose or Splenda. But these are industry manufactured, and may cause adverse effects in the long run. Hence, I would recommend Stevia as an alternative to sugar. It is an organic replacement,” he adds.
One shouldn’t take a radical view, says Dr Tom Babu of Silver Line Hospital, one of the top endocrinologist in Kochi. “I would suggest moderation in doing everything. Honey, jaggery are all energy dense sweeteners. The question should not be about finding an alternative to sugar, rather about maintaining a moderate intake. The approach should be to maintain an ideal body weight and be calorically conscious,” he says.
Dr. Nibu Dominic, endocrinologist at Aster Medcity, says: “Low calorie sweetners like Acesulfame potassium, Advantame, Aspartame, Monk fruit sweeteners, Neotame, Saccharin,Stevia, Sucralose are some substitutes for sugar.”