Wow, Kirsteen, thanks for that link.
I haven't used Agave Nectar, but I would have if I could have got it,
and did even think of sending overseas for some. I have even been known
to recommend it based on my reading. It's made from the roots, though,
not from any part that could qualify to be called nectar; the real
traditional product is apparently very expensive, and only a little can
be produced. Just read about the chemical processes used in its
manufacture - this is a major disappointment.
The other information is also stunning.
Sally Fallon Morell and Rami Nagel are the authors.
Quite jaw-dropping. Here are some quotes:
There can be no debate about the fact that both sugar and HFCS, with
their empty, depleting, addictive calories, are bad for you. But the
real question is whether HFCS is actually worse for you—more depleting
and more damaging— than ordinary sugar. The research indicates that it is.
Glucose enters the cells through the action of insulin; fructose enters
the cells through the action of something called a Glut-5 transporter,
which does not depend on insulin. This transporter is absent from
pancreatic B-cells and the brain, which indicates limited entry of
fructose into these tissues. Glucose provides “satiety” signals to the
brain that fructose cannot provide because it is not transported into
the brain.
However, most of the fructose in fruit is in the form of L-fructose or
levulose; the fructose in HFCS is a different isomer, D-fructose
the fructose in HFCS is therefore not recognized in the human Krebs
cycle for primary conversion to blood glucose in any significant
quantity, and therefore cannot be used for energy utilization.^13
Instead, these refined fructose sweeteners are primarily converted into
triglycerides and adipose tissue (body fat). .
obese people who drank a fructose-sweetened beverage with a meal had
triglyceride levels almost 200 percent higher than obese people who
drank a glucose-sweetened beverage with a meal.
the agave nectar purchased in stores is neither of these traditional
foods: “Agave nectar is a newly created sweetener, having been developed
during the 1990’s.
agave “nectar” is not made from the sap of the yucca or agave plant but
from the starch of the giant pineapple-like, root bulb. The principal
constituent of the agave root is starch, similar to the starch in corn
or rice, and a complex carbohydrate called inulin, which is made up of
chains of fructose molecules.. the refined fructose in agave nectar
is much more concentrated than the fructose in HFCS. For comparison, the
high fructose corn syrup used in sodas is 55 percent refined fructose.
(A natural agave product does exist in Mexico, a molasses type of syrup
from concentrated plant nectar, but availability is limited and it is
expensive to produce.)... agave “nectar” and HFCS “are indeed
made the same way, using a highly chemical process with genetically
modified enzymes. They are also using caustic acids, clarifiers,
filtration chemicals and so forth in the conversion of agave starches.”
“Corn syrup treated with enzymes to enhance the fructose levels is to be
labeled ‘High Fructose Corn Syrup.’” According to Mr. Stutsman, agave
requires the label “hydrolyzed inulin syrup.”^37 Even though, like corn,
agave is a starch and fiber food processed with enzymes, it does not
require the label “High Fructose Agave Syrup.” Agave “nectar” is a
misnomer; at the very least, it should be labeled “agave syrup.”
The industry describes saponins in agave syrup as beneficial:...
the truth is that the saponins found in many varieties of agave plants
are toxic steroid derivatives, capable of disrupting red blood cells and
producing diarrhea and vomiting,^39 . to be avoided during pregnancy
or breastfeeding because they might cause or contribute to miscarriage
by stimulating blood flow to the uterus.^40 ...At the very least,
agave products should carry a warning label indicating that the product
may cause a miscarriage.
Clever marketing has led mane consumers to believe that the high level
of fructose in agave syrup makes it a safe and a natural sweetener.
... Agave syrup labels do not conform to FDA labeling requirements,
thus deepening the false illusion of an unprocessed product.. .
As we have demonstrated here, if a sweetener contains manufactured
fructose, it is neither safe, nor natural, especially at levels up to 70
percent.
Agave syrup is a manmade sweetener which has been through a complicated
chemical refining process of enzymatic digestion that converts the
starch and fiber into the unbound, manmade chemical fructose. While
high fructose agave syrup won’t spike your blood glucose levels, the
fructose in it may cause mineral depletion, liver inflammation,
hardening of the arteries, insulin resistance leading to diabetes, high
blood pressure,
