Ditch sugar, try these five healthy alternatives to avoid heart disease, diabetes

Do you prefer your morning tea with a spoonful of sugar to make it more enjoyable? Or do you always reach for a canned juice or an aerated drink instead of plain water, lemon juice, or buttermilk to relieve your thirst?  If you answered yes to these questions, you're consuming a lot of sugar on a daily basis. Though sugar improves our mood, too much of it increases calorie consumption and increases the risk of diabetes and heart disease.

Stevia

The leaves of the South American shrub Stevia rebaudiana are used to make Stevia, a natural sweetener. Stevioside and rebaudioside A are two glycoside molecules that can be used to make this plant-based sweetener. These molecules have no calories, are up to 450 times sweeter than sugar, and have a flavour that is slightly different from sugar.

Sugar alcohols

Polyols, or sugar alcohols, are a form of carbohydrate found naturally in fruits and vegetables. Erythritol, xylitol, and maltitol are three sugar alcohols that are commonly used as sugar substitutes. Sugar alcohols are not fermented by the bacteria in your mouth, therefore they do not cause the same harm to your teeth as conventional sugar. They also contain far fewer calories and have little effect on blood sugar levels, making them an excellent choice for diabetics.

Dates

The dried fruits of the date palm tree are known as dates. These sweet, chewy fruits are a great substitute for refined sugar and have a variety of health benefits. Dates, unlike refined sugar and many other sweeteners, are high in fibre, potassium, magnesium, manganese, vitamin B6, and antioxidants such as carotenoid and polyphenol.

Honey

Honey is a thick, golden liquid that honeybees make. It includes trace levels of vitamins and minerals, as well as an abundance of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant plant components. However, the types of plant chemicals found in honey are dependent on a number of circumstances, including the species of bee that made the honey and the type of flower the bee ate.