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Maple Syrup vs. Honey

I did a post a while back about the nutritious sweetener for the lemonade on the Master Cleanse: maple syrup! In fact, for quite some time now it has been my only sweetner (well, that and agave nectar... YUM!). But why maple syrup... isn't honey the magical sweetener?

First, let's consider where both come from. One comes from a tree and the other comes from flowers, but is predigested and then regurgitated by a bee. Can you guess which is which??? hahahaha! Really though, just the idea that an insect's already digested nectar from a flower lends to the idea that the nectar is already devoid of nutrients when it's vomited back up. Isn't that the whole point of digestion? To pull the nutrients from whatever it is you have ingested. So is it safe to say that honey is a bi product? Or even a waste material? I would certainly call MY vomit a waste material... what about you? But beyond the gross visual I now have in my head of honey, I also have a real concern about using honey as a sweetener.

Here is what I understand about honey. Being that honey is already predigested, it enters the blood stream rapidly causing a spike in blood sugar which then causes a spike in insulin. For being something that I hear soooo much about in the health food circles, I'm truly surprised that it seems to be the exact opposite of healthy or balanced to me.

Now, organic maple syrup on the other hand is LOADED with goodness to actually promote health. It is PACKED with vitamins and minerals, is low in calories and is far less easier to digest than honey.... because it hasn't already been digested once! YUCK! What that means is that your body burns calories to digest it... that sounds pretty good to my waistline!

Yah, I think that I would take maple syrup over honey any day for my diet. That's not to say that honey doesn't have it's place though... check out this great blog post with some great beauty ideas using honey!

Comments

Anonymous said…
yuk... thanks for making me feel sick about honey.. THANKS A LOT.. WISH I NEVER READ YOUR ARTICLE...
FitterTwit said…
Whoops... sorry! If it makes you feel better, I was grossed out writing it! LOL!
Anonymous said…
How can you say honey is void of nutrients. Bees feed it to larva and it supports their life. It's like breast milk. It's digested then excreted but you can not say something has no nutrients. You can't say one is better than the other. They're both different and have different benefits. It's like comparing apples and oranges and saying one is healthier. They're different stop trying to scare people and say it's vomit that's ingeniousness.
FitterTwit said…
Anonymous... you're back! I missed you! :) First, let me just say that I STAND by my comments about honey... while it DOES support life for bees.... humans are quite a bit different. And STILL the idea of eating regurgitated ANYTHING makes me STILL want to vomit. If you will, we can liken it to what birds vomit for their young... I WILL NOT be running out to eat that either. Thank you again for your input and enjoy your honey and your insulin spike... ewwwww!
Anonymous said…
Testing
Anonymous said…
Testing
Anonymous said…
Don't swallow (and regurgitate) everything Stanley Burrows tells you. You can't always base your view of the world from what seems logical without looking at the science behind it. Not to say you haven't done your own research, but it sounds like you haven't. Try this article for starters:

http://losefatloseweight.com/does-honey-affect-insulin-levels-and-make-you-fat
Adrian said…
Are you talking in your article about organic honey? Or the processed type? Please bare in mind the fact that processed honey has the effects you described in your article, but organic honey, that's a different story. Did you know there are several different types of honey, depending on what flowers or plants the bees have been eating? And do your research please, Honey is lower in calories then Maple syrup. Your master cleanse diet contains maple syrup, just so you can get some calories and don't die of starvation.
FitterTwit said…
Adrian, Thank you so much for your comment. However, I DID do my homework. Organic Honey actually has 30 calories per 1/2 Tbsp vs. the 26 calories of a 1/2 Tbsp of Organic Maple syrup... which would actually be less than honey. But the calorie count has nothing to do with the fact that honey, ANY honey, is processed by the body differently than maple syrup. The four calorie difference is really quite negligible. Nice try to get me to convert though, hahahahahaha. I STILL have the vision of vomit stuck in my head and I JUST can't get around it. Please come back though and share links to YOUR homework that suggests organic honey is processed by the body differently than regular honey, because honestly I can't find it. Is it the same homework that states honey is less calories? I'm just curious. Thanx again.
Unknown said…
I am eating a bowl of oatmeal topped with cinnamon and honey with a side of nuts as i write this. I usually eat this with maple syrup, but my supply is running low. I loves me my maple syrup! And I loves me my honey! Honestly for me it is a matter of taste. Unless you are allergic, neither will kill you. And it doesn't disgust me to know that my honey was regurgitated.Wish everything that was regurgitated tasted so SWEET! I have loved it since childhood!
FitterTwit said…
HAHAHAHAHAHA! Martha... that rocks! Thanks for commenting! Oh, and thanks for REALLY commenting and being respectful on someone else's blog! ;) A bowl of oatmeal with nuts and maple syrup DOES sound really good right now.
Anonymous said…
Honey is a monosaccharide and maple syrup is a disaccharide. Honey is digested before any bad bugs in your gut can eat it while maple syrup will take longer to digest and possibly feed bad gut bugs.

Source: Breaking the Vicious Cycle by Elaine Gotschall
FitterTwit said…
WOW Anonymous... you do keep trying!!! "E" for effort!!! But honestly, it's my understanding that ANYTHING digested will feed bad bugs in your stomach if you have them. There's something creepy about something ALREADY digested by something else before I GET A CHANCE to digest it myself.... YUCK!!! And if you have bad bugs in your stomach... your concerns about whether honey is better than maple syrup should be the LEAST of your worries. But thanx again!!! :)

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