Authored by: pjmelton on Tuesday, January 26 2010 @ 02:00 PM GMT+5

What do you consider refined sugar?

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"Economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." -- FDR

Authored by: BritSkye on Tuesday, January 26 2010 @ 05:28 PM GMT+5

I plan on only using stevia, xylitol, and agave; I'm undecided about honey and maple syrup right now. I'd like to stay away from white sugar, cane juice, corn syrup, artificial sweeteners...and white flour, ideally...

And it's okay for other people to have different yes/no lists! Your question's actually a great example of why I'd like a support group - so we can talk about things like, "Hey, which sweetener is the healthiest, and why? My dentist says honey's horrible for my teeth, but it has many other help benefits, so is it worth eating? Or is agave better? Does brown rice syrup make better muffins than xylitol?" ETC. :)

Authored by: BritSkye on Tuesday, January 26 2010 @ 05:30 PM GMT+5

I meant "health benefits," not "help"! (Is there a way to edit comments?)

Authored by: mr.mike on Tuesday, January 26 2010 @ 10:03 PM GMT+5

I'm glad to see you included corn syrup in this. I've recently seen a couple ad campaigns, while lobotimizing my brain of course, by Big Corn. They're now retaliating against the bad press of HFCS(High Fructose Corn Syrup). They saying it's ok in moderation. My question to them is how am I supposed to have HFCS in moderation when it's put in freakin everything we eat!!!!!

When you're on the topic of corn syrup watch the movie/documentary King Korn. It's made me read the labels. The industrialized corn we grow today isn't fit for maggots let alone livestock.

I try to use more natural based sweeteners like sucralose/stevia. Like the idea of honey but haven't aquired a taste for it in my coffee yet.

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The four boxes that ensure liberty.
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Ammo Box

Authored by: pjmelton on Wednesday, January 27 2010 @ 08:59 AM GMT+5

"Like the idea of honey but haven't aquired a taste for it in my coffee yet."

I'm actually rather fond of maple syrup in coffee; have you tried it? Honey is better in tea; I think it tastes nasty in coffee because they are both very acidic. I don't like sucralose or stevia. They taste like saccharine to me.

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"Economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." -- FDR

Authored by: David Cadran on Wednesday, January 27 2010 @ 09:33 PM GMT+5

Only in Brattleboro lol

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-David Cadran

Authored by: pjmelton on Thursday, January 28 2010 @ 09:25 AM GMT+5

Oh, I doubt that. Actually, I think it will be hard to find enough people here, since this is such a small town. Given that, and the lack of sugar-free venues, this group might be a better fit on a place like Facebook. OTOH, I bet a lot of diabetics looking to have a better diet without artificial sweeteners would be interested too. There are other tie-ins as well. People who want to use locally produced sugar only, people on restricted diets because of health problems besides diabetes, people who just have an uncomfortable physiological reaction to refined sugar. As for venue, perhaps the co-op community room?

I am saying all this with full knowledge that I will not join the support group, but I still find the idea intriguing.


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"Economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." -- FDR

Authored by: BritSkye on Saturday, January 30 2010 @ 07:51 PM GMT+5

Thanks for the suggestions, pj! I'll look into the Co op community room idea... or maybe even the hospital, if there are, as you suggest, enough people who are sugar-free for medical reasons.

There are plenty of online resources and support groups for this, and those are very helpful for some people, but I was really hoping for something local and in person. For me, the most difficult part of going sugar-free is how anti-social it is. I have no problems staying sugar-free at HOME, and baking all kinds of sugar-free treats with alternate sweeteners... what I struggle with is not being able to hang out with friends in coffee shops much anymore, being the "party pooper" who passes on cake and ice cream, etc.

Authored by: Dfk-b on Sunday, January 31 2010 @ 01:08 PM GMT+5

I'd be interested a sugar free AND grain-free support group for people who really love sweets and grains. I have been experimenting with this for a few years, so I have made some discoveries. And yes, it is so much easier to just always eat at home, but eating is such a social activity.

Authored by: cgrotke on Sunday, January 31 2010 @ 03:31 PM GMT+5

Don't worry too much about being a party pooper. Many, many people
have restrictions on their diets. I don't drink coffee (not for any
medical reason - I just don't). I get funny looks now and then from
people who think it is freakish, but I got over it about 25 years ago...
: )

For both the sugar free and grain free out there, I'd encourage you to
share successful recipes with us here. The Food section is waiting.

I'm currently learning the joys of using flours, sugars, fats, and
glutens in baking, so my recent experiments won't be of much use to
you, alas.

Still, I think everyone who loves to cook appreciates learning
something new. Cooking is art and science mixed together - whether
one is making a raspberry meringue butter cream, sugarless candies,
gluten-free bread, a soup or stew...

... we love ingredients, and methods. The more I learn about flour,
water, sugar, eggs, and butter and what they can make, the more
fascinated I am by anyone who can make foods without using these
seemingly (to me) essential ingredients. Bread without gluten?
Amazing. I'm just starting in on sourdoughs.

So, share your discoveries!

Authored by: paulgardner on Sunday, February 07 2010 @ 09:33 AM GMT+5

I didn't drink coffee till I went I started being self employed. My brother still doesn't.
Like you we both got razzed about it, but he always had the best come back.
He'd say, "Coffe stunts your growth."
He's 6'8".

Authored by: PeterB on Sunday, February 07 2010 @ 09:06 AM GMT+5

I would like to join a group of this sort. Did you watch the Oprah show on diabetes this week? Scary. The average American takes in 150 pounds of sugar a year. Diabetes is a pandemic. If we don't correct our eating habits, we are all candidates for type 2 diabetes. We may not have to eliminate sugar but we had better get control. Some packaging now list as an ingredient 'organic cane juice' or similarly worded euphemisms for sugar. Be aware!

Authored by: javanyet on Tuesday, February 09 2010 @ 02:35 AM GMT+5

Use stevia. Problem solved. It's easy to avoid refined sugar by reading labels; I have diabetes and have no difficulty.

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"No guts, no glory."
Bette Davis

Authored by: mr.mike on Tuesday, February 09 2010 @ 09:45 PM GMT+5

If diabetes is now the #1 problem in the U.S. And we are considering a sugar free support group. Why is there no interest by our local medical community to have an endocrynologist in Brattleboro?

Yes, there is a "visiting" endo. that comes to bratt once a week. But seeing them is very difficult and follow up is poor at best.

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The four boxes that ensure liberty.
Soap Box
Ballot Box
Jury Box
Ammo Box