Sugar Substitutes are all the rage right now as the trend toward healthier lifestyles increases. Whats better as a substitute for your table sugar? Monkfruit? Stevia? Or just your classic honey?
The answer is obviously honey, but not for the reasons you'd expect.
Monkfruit sweetener is derived from monk fruits (duh). It's generally 100-250 times sweeter than regular sugar and holds a special place as a no calorie or low calorie alternative to sugar. This seems all good and all, but the problem with monkfruit sweeteners is that they are generally very expensive, costing upwards of 15$ for a small 8oz bag. If you are also allergic to the monkfruit family (think watermelons), you will have some bad side effects from using monkfruit as your low calorie sweetener of choice. In my experience, it can also be very grainy and not dissolve well.
Stevia is the tried and true no calorie sugar alternative for most people. Just a teaspoon packs the same amount of flavor as a handful of refined sugar. It is regulated by the FDA who states that Stevia extract is safe to use and has very light side effects that are not considered serious. Stevia goes great on most things you'd use a sugar alternative for as well (its a staple in my kitchen for liquids). But try putting it on your pancakes, or your toast, or really anything that isnt a liquid and lets see if it pans out well.
What makes honey so unique is that it is moderately low in caloric content when compared syrups, sugars, and other sweeteners And most importantly it is (in our case) 100% naturally found and cultivated. When speaking of monkfruit and stevia sweeteners, we focus on the side effects as the benefits are just a low calorie sweetener. With honey, we focus on the benefits because there are so many of them. I'll list a few out here below to give you an idea of what im talking about.
Honey can help with:
Cardiovascular disease
Neurological diseases
Sore Throats
Wound Care (this is not a standard as most honey isnt pure, Maya Pura can be used in wound care)
Heart Disease
Antibiotic Resistance
Gut Health
Etc.
All in all, honey is indeed still the king of sugar replacements as it is classified as a super food. If you are trying to optimize your health, reduce your intake of calories from sugar, or just looking for something new, honey should be an absolute staple in your home.