Sugar substitutes for diabetes, here’s why jaggery should be replaced with unrefined honey

For diabetes patients, consuming jaggery instead of sugar may not be a good choice, say dietitians. Jaggery, they say, has high glycemic index and should be avoided. Instead, they can have unrefined honey as a substitute for sugar.

fitness Updated: Jun 14, 2018 12:15 IST
Benefits of jaggery: Are you replacing sugar with jaggery? You need to read this.(Shutterstock)

Living with diabetes brings with it many restrictions; the most common one being cutting out sugar from diet. But does this mean that one should eliminate all kinds of sugar?

Diabetic patients are often advised to switch to jaggery as a sugar substitute, but is this really healthy?

According to Mahesh Jayaraman, co-founder, Sepalika.com – a healthcare platform for natural reversal of chronic diseases, “For diabetic, anything that spikes insulin is bad, including jaggery. So jaggery is only relatively better for a diabetic than white sugar. However, organic, unprocessed jaggery does not evoke the same extent of response in the human body as white sugar does. It also contains some essential minerals such as iron and manganese.”

Despite the health benefits, Jayaraman suggests switching to organic, unrefined honey instead of jaggery.

Here’s why jaggery is not an ideal choice for people with diabetes.

Both sugar and jaggery are derived from the same source – sugarcane. This means both sugar and jaggery have high glycemic index. Diabetic patients need to be mindful about the glycemic index of various foods before including them in their diet.

Dr Dhaval Shah, co-founder, Pharmeasy, an organisation that works closely with diabetics says, “Jaggery has a high glycemic index. Jaggery is a form of sugar that gets absorbed rapidly and can spike blood sugar levels. Many diabetic patients are under the misconception that jaggery is a safe replacement for sugar, however that’s not true. It is a good replacement for sugar among non-diabetics.”

If you’re not suffering from diabetes, you can safely include jaggery in your meals. It is best to use organic, unprocessed variant. Apart from adding taste, jaggery helps build immunity. Indian food traditions are rich with references of use of jaggery. For instance, during winters jaggery is mixed with ghee and consumed to keep the body warm. Jaggery also helps purify blood and detoxes the liver.

Women can benefit by including jaggery in their meal as it helps relieve menstrual pain. Due to its high iron content, it also helps combat symptoms of PMS.

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