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Is Organic Raw Agave Syrup a Healthy Sweetener? Agave syrup is a sweetener derived from agave, a desert plant found in the western and southern United States, Mexico, and parts of Central and South America. Agave is more popularly known as the plant used to make tequila but agave syrup (also known as agave nectar) has actually been used for thousands of years as a food ingredient. Mexicans call it aguamiel or “honey water” because it is about 40 percent sweeter than sugar. Because of the increasing awareness of the dangers of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), people have turned to “healthier” sugar alternatives, which is what food manufacturers are marketing agave syrup to be. But don’t be fooled, Dr. Joseph Mercola warns, because agave syrup is actually WORSE than HFCS! Before anything else, why is fructose so unhealthy for you? First, your body metabolizes fructose very differently from glucose, the form of sugar every cell in your body uses for energy. Fructose is broken down in your liver in the same way as alcohol and is directly converted into dangerous fats, making you, well, fat. Consuming too much fructose is a major risk factor for obesity and weight gain, spikes your uric acid levels and impairs your appetite control mechanism, among other things, Mercola explains. Here are the reasons why Dr. Mercola believes you should avoid agave syrup like the plague: 1.Agave syrup contains the highest amount of fructose – anywhere between 70 to 97 percent, depending on the brand – among all commercial sweetener s, which is FAR HIGHER than HFCS (55 percent on average). Read More...
Tequila is made by distillation, just like mezcal. In the production of mezcal, the agave piña is cooked then ground down with stones, then fermented in wood vats, then distilled in a traditional copper still. To call either tequila or mezcal a ‘fermented’ drink is incorrect. They are distilled liquors just like vodka, gin, whiskey, etc. Where whiskey uses grain, tequila and mezcal use agave. All are distilled.
I don’t know whether the agave nectar that is sold in the US is pure or a chemical concoction (I wouldn’t doubt it’s the latter given our industrialization of all foods), but in Oaxaca, Mexico, the nectar is extracted directly from the plant and sold in markets, unpasteurized and unaltered. It is incredibly healthful and known to have curative properties. This is clearly not the same thing, but I would think that agave nectar labeled ‘raw’ and ‘organic’ in the US would be similar, though no doubt less nutritious since it has gone through some industrialization just to arrive on a US supermarket shelf.
I’ve tried pure Agave and didn’t care for the taste. I’ve also tried pure stevia and the taste was artificial. I’ll remain with my pure organic cane sugar, with herbal tea.
Agave: Warnings
The juice from many species of agave can cause acute contact dermatitis. It will produce reddening and blistering lasting one to two weeks. Episodes of itching may recur up to a year thereafter, even though there is no longer a visible rash. Irritation is, in part, caused by calcium oxalate raphides. Dried parts of the plants can be handled with bare hands with little or no effect. If the skin is pierced deeply enough, by the needle-like ends of the leaf from a vigorously growing plant, this can also cause blood vessels in the surrounding area to erupt and an area some 6-7 cm across appear to be bruised. This may last up to two to three weeks.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agave#Warnings
Dr. Mercola, how can I research your findings concerning Omega3 and vitamin D?
I have become rather un-fond of the whole ‘counterpoint’ concept that the Media in general has assumed.
They somehow believe that ‘counterpoint’ provides balance. Forgetting the fact that there is most often no ‘counterpoint’ to the truth or to provable facts. Counterpoint in these cases are what we call lies… particularly when they are associated with the spin a particular manufacturer may place on their products. The Corn Industry will vigorously defend HFCS, despite what is now becoming overwhelming evidence of its impacts and dangers.
Counterpoint makes things sound much more controversial, and therefore, has become a hot button for sales… something that such "quality" publications as the National Enquirer and Star have known for years. I avoid them for much the same reason.
While I am not intending to imply that everything stated in the above article is 100% fact based, I do believe that generally speaking, the counterpoint notion is too often a substitution for spin and outright falsehoods.
Very thorough use of the scientific literature you’ve got there, Mercola.
You are a doctor of what, again?
Do I believe a CEO over a doctor? I stick with Xylitol, it did wonders for my teeth and gums!
Before you assume that you should take what the author says as a "revelation," how about checking the information for yourself? The author is not necessarily wrong about his information, but he spins the numbers quite a lot. Unless you are a diabetic who needs to count milligrams of various sugar molecules you ingest or you are severely overweight and are trying to count calories to the nth degree, do you need to be concerned about how much fructose is in agave syrup? If stevia does not contain fructose, is it "better?" What does that even mean when we are talking about which sugar to use? It’s sugar.
So then have you had your doctor do a uric acid test? How easy is that and then write about it!
How about that.
Is agave genetically modified? Anyone know?
I agree with you on the nature of this article. It is a little bit suspicious. I have had friends tell me the same thing about agave helping their diabetic needs.
me too. i have been using agave with my tea for over 10 years. in fact i know someone that has a patent on the manufacturing of agave in mexico. she has been at this business for 20 years. dude doctor, your wrong. i think you have an agenda. i stopped using sugar 30 years ago. nothing no cookies, nothing. tea, lemon and agave every morning and i believe in it. my health has never been better.
Why don’t we just get used to eating less sugar? Would that be okay?
I have doubts that high fructose content is enough. At least it’s not FAKE fructose, as in GM. First those companies use fake corn, then they manipulate it for HFCS. Seems like a bad idea especially and worse than anything found in nature.
Thanks for the link. This was certainly not a "balanced" look at agave and sweetners and the link you provided offers some perspective.
So, this article is about Agave nectar, but they show some genus of Aloe which is native to entirely different continent.
I’m very suspicious of this article. I am diabetic and switched to Agave (raw and from a reputable company) four years ago. My blood sugar is under control and I now use LESS sweetners than I used to. Agave has helped me make the change from being a sugar-olic to eating a balanced, healthy vegan diet. The fact that no mention of possible "good" sources of agave are indicated until nearly the end of the article makes me even more suspicious. Because I’m vegan, have allergy to shellfish, and am diabetic, reading food labels is a religion to me and so far, I’ve not seen any agave that lists "high fructose" in the label. Are you saying the company’s are lying? If so, then prove it by including the food labels of those manufacturers.
I suspect if we dig deeper, we will find that the author sells or is supported somehow by a stevia manufacturer. For me, I know my body, I know the difference since switching to Agave, and I’m sticking with it. Stevia is a poor substitute and has a bitter taste Agave doesn’t. And as a vegan, honey is not a choice for me.
"masterful marketing"?
That’s airbrush journalism for fraud and deceit
This was one of the most disappointing recent food revelations for me. I’ve been using agave nectar for years now and have naively assumed that it’s just the pure extracted sugars from the agave plant – kind of as a by-product of the tequila process. For what it really is it is hopelessly overpriced! What a scam! Will be buying stevia next.
Wholefoods has a delicious and affordable line of soda pops made with cane sugar. The coke tastes very natural. If you drink it first and then sip a regular coke you taste all the metallic and chemical contents – nasty!
Good article. Sugar (and its by products) is an insidious killer. It is also a big factor in producing cancer. And it is a factor in decreasing your libido. Over time sugar addiction will cause ever decreasing energy levels. Get rid of it in your diet–ruthlessly.
Wrong photo…totally different plant. That speckled rosette is an aloe, not an agave. Both are succulent and look similar, but completely different species. Aloes are Old World plants, from South Africa, Madagascar, the Saudi peninsula and the Mediterranean. Agaves are New World plants, from the Americas.
It would have been nice if the doctor had provided a resource to find those ethical companies he says we should seek out for agave syrup.
Excellent article, thank you.
Wrong photo, totally different plant. That speckled rosette is an aloe, not an agave. Both are succulents and look the same, but different family and species. Aloes are Old World plants, from South Africa, Madagascar, the Saudi peninsula and the Mediterranean. Agaves are New World plants, from the Americas.
Why would the author complain about saponins when they are found in most vegetables, beans and herbs. Not only are saponins not harmful, but they are phytochemicals that are very good for you. They are antioxidants, reduce cancer risk, reduce bone loss, increase immune function, the list goes on. The saponins in yucca are used to lower ammonia levels in sick patients, and yucca is fed to pigs to decrease the ammonia from their stool. To hear claims like that really detract from any factual basis behind the rest of the story.
I much prefer organic honey to agave.
As far as I’ve heard, this discussion needs a counterpoint — the CEO of Madhava has written extensive responses here: http://www.agavemythbuster.com/
Thank you!
what is kind of disappointing is that at least one soda comapany has for a little while offered Dr Pepper in a "heritage" version with regular sugar (not good for you but IMHO better then syrup) but they have not advertized it or promoted it in any way so it is very hard to find…