Is Honey More Nutritious Than Sugar?

Author: Alexander Bruni Time for reading: ~1 minutes Last Updated: August 08, 2022

In this article, learn more about Is Honey More Nutritious Than Sugar?. Many people prefer honey to sugar as a healthier alternative. And is that so?.

Many people aiming for a healthy diet or weight loss replace refined sugar with honey or other sweeteners. Ordinary sugar contains one molecule of glucose and one molecule of fructose. From a chemical point of view, honey is identical in structure to sugar because it also contains glucose and fructose in almost identical amounts. The enzymes possessed by honey bees process the molecules of glucose and fructose, which leads to honey having a different taste from sugar. As you know, bees store honey in combs and through the movements of their wings they ventilate it and reduce the moisture content.

Honey does not contain more nutrients than sugar, so it is not a healthier option than sugar. The crystal structure of sugar makes it take up more space, ie. one tablespoon of sugar contains fewer calories than one tablespoon of honey. But according to most people, honey is sweeter and we eat less of it.

It is important to note that honey contains bacteria that can cause serious poisoning in children. The more mature immune system of older children and adults manages to deal with the bacteria in honey, unlike that of babies. For this reason, honey should not be given to children under 1 year.

Another interesting question is whether brown sugar and molasses are healthier than refined sugar. In fact, the brown sugar that is available in most stores is not really brown sugar, but is most often produced by further processing the refined sugar. Ie brown sugar is also refined, subject to further processing and additives.

Molasses is a syrup that is released during the production of sugar from sugar cane. It is reddish-brown in color with a distinctive taste and less sweetness than sugar. Molasses contains iron, but it is not a natural ingredient, but is obtained in the process of sugar production. If honey, sugar , brown sugar and molasses are compared in nutritional value, none of these products contain many nutrients that are good for health. The bottom line is that you have to be careful with each of them.

Is Honey More Nutritious Than Sugar?

Related Articles