Its the season to celebrate. And no celebration in the festive season is complete without loads of sweets. A month down the line and we are no longer proud of our waistlines!! The festive season brings with it a heavy intake of processed foods for meals, snacks and the in-betweens. All good things come with a price, which in this case means added sugar and tons of calories.
A quick look at the dietary recommendations first. Good health indicators tell us that we need to limit the total added sugar intake to less than 10% per day. Without playing a spoilt sport in the festive season, we must remember that white sugar consumption is the main cause of lifestyle-related disorders like obesity and type 2 Diabetes. None of these is good news and before we dig into the sweets around us, we must remember a saying I live by. Once on the lips, forever on the hips!!
Its not all that disappointing actually. The recent influx of low-calorie sweeteners (LCS) can make you feel far less guilty before you dig into your next piece of besan ladoo. These sweeteners are food additives that provide sweetness with minimal calories. Low-calorie sweeteners act as a wonderful replacement to traditional sugars without affecting the taste of the food. I have been studying these sweeteners and the options available for quite some time now and have spoken to doctors, health experts and chefs who use them. My view is that it can be safely concluded that LCS may benefit blood glucose levels and are effective in weight management. A healthy diet or low-calorie diet has minimal or no free sugars. Low-calorie sweeteners are a safe alternative to free sugars when consumed within permissible limits.
At a recent forum on low-calorie sweeteners and healthy living, there was a debate on how these additives are safe for consumption. Noted chef Sanjeev Kapoor had a take on this. While he did agree that replacing most high-calorie food products is difficult, yet sugar which adds free calories to the diet can be replaced easily with low-calorie sweeteners. His take was that if we try low-calorie sweeteners for two to three weeks, we get habituated to the taste.
With Diwali in the next few days, you would want to indulge in yummy traditional sweets and distribute the same to your friends and family. While one is merry-making and pleasing the sweet tooth, one needs to be cautious of the sugar intake and at the same time doesnt have to give it up as well.
So here are some tips to go sugar-free this Diwali:
Sharing some healthy sugarfree recipes:
Apple / custard apple kheer
Ingredients:
Method:
Pumpkin Halwa
Ingredients:
Method:
DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.
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Go sugar-free and guilt-free this Diwali! - Economic Times
