Sugar for diabetes, which one is safe and healthy?

One of the most frequently asked questions about diabetes mellitus is can i still eat sweet food? Sugar is often considered the cause of diabetes because this disease is also known as diabetes or diabetes. Many people with diabetes are switching to using artificial sweeteners or even honey and palm sugar as a substitute for sugar for diabetes. However, which is actually the safest and healthiest way to replace white sugar?

Daily sugar intake for diabetes

Limiting sugar intake every day actually needs to be done by everyone, not only for diabetics.

Sugar refers to all kinds of sweeteners which are simple carbohydrates, such as sucrose, fructose, glucose. White sugar or sugar is included in the sucrose group.

According to Diabetes UK, the maximum daily intake of sugar for diabetics is less than 30 grams or about 7 tablespoons. This sugar intake not only comes from the sugar found in sweeteners, but also all foods that contain simple carbohydrates. In comparison, 1 packet of chocolate biscuits contains at least 1 tablespoon of sugar.

However, in 2015 WHO also recommended reducing daily sugar consumption to a maximum of 6 tablespoons per day for both diabetics and healthy children and adults.

Artificial sweeteners as a substitute for diabetic sugar

Artificial sweeteners are processed in such a way by chemical manipulation that they have a very low or even zero calorie content.

This makes artificial sweeteners believed not to cause an increase in blood sugar levels like sugar. Therefore, artificial sweeteners are often recommended to be used as a substitute for sugar for diabetes.

However, different types of artificial sweetener products have different effects on blood sugar metabolism. Here are some artificial sweeteners that are commonly on the market to be a sugar substitute for diabetes people.

1. Sucralose

Sucralose is a type of artificial sweetener that can taste 600 times sweeter than regular sugar.

However, the sucralose content used as a sweetener has been adjusted according to its sweetness level. If it is as sweet as natural sugar, of course the artificial sweetener content is much less so that the calories are much lower.

2. Saccharin

Saccharin is a pioneer of artificial sweeteners that have been marketed since a century ago. This artificial sweetener tastes 300-500 times sweeter than natural sugar.

Many recent studies have shown that consuming saccharin can cause side effects, namely being overweight. However, so far the use of saccharin in reasonable doses is still permitted by the Indonesian Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM).

3. Stevia

Stevia is a newcomer to the group of sugar substitutes for diabetes. This artificial sweetener is extracted from natural ingredients, namely the stevia plant that grows in tropical and subtropical climates.

This artificial sweetener is one of the most popularly used, it's no wonder you can find various sweetener products from stevia. Stevia sweeteners are calorie free so they are believed to help prevent weight gain.

4. Aspartame

The artificial sweetener aspartame contains very low calories with a taste that is 200 times sweeter than regular sugar. However, the BPOM reminds people who have or are at risk of diabetes not to consume aspartame excessively.

You should stick to a limited amount of artificial sweeteners, which is 50 milligrams per kilogram of your body weight. This means that if you weigh 50 kilograms, in a day you are not recommended to consume more than 2,500 milligrams or 2.5 grams of aspartame.

5. Asesulfam potassium

One type of artificial sweetener to replace sugar for diabetes that is often added to food and beverage products is potassium acesulfam or acesulfam-k.

According to BPOM recommendations, you should not take more than 15 milligrams of acesulfam-k per kilogram of body weight. If you weigh 50 kilograms, avoid consuming more than 750 milligrams of this artificial sweetener per day.

Can honey and palm sugar be a substitute for sugar for diabetes?

White sugar or sugar is often considered dangerous for the health of diabetics. That is why, many diabetics are trying to find other natural alternatives, such as palm sugar and honey to replace sugar.

Sugar is included in the type of simple carbohydrates. Unfortunately, natural sweeteners, such as brown sugar, palm sugar, and honey are also included in simple carbohydrates.

Simple carbohydrates have a high glycemic index (GI), so they are more quickly processed into glucose in the blood. As a result, blood sugar levels tend to rise faster (hyperglycemia) after consuming these natural sweeteners.

In other words, brown sugar and palm sugar, and honey are not better used as a substitute for sugar for diabetics.

Indeed, honey has a lower glycemic index (61) than sugar, which has a GI value of 65. However, both have a similar ability to raise blood sugar quickly.

The most important thing is to regulate carbohydrate intake

Even if they are labeled "natural," sweeteners such as honey are considered simple carbohydrates, which can quickly raise blood sugar. Eating too much can also trigger fat accumulation.

In fact, fat accumulation is one of the triggers for insulin resistance, which is the main cause of type 2 diabetes.

You can just replace sugar for diabetes with artificial sweeteners. However, you still have to eat it as recommended.

In fact, the most important thing in maintaining blood sugar levels in diabetes treatment, both type 1 and type 2 diabetes is not a matter of restricting sugar or other natural sweeteners. According to the National Institute of Diabetes, the main problem with diabetes control lies in the excess intake of daily carbohydrates.

Carbohydrates will later be converted into glucose with the help of the hormone insulin. This process can affect blood sugar levels. Carbohydrates do not only come from sugar.

How to regulate carbohydrate intake for diabetics is to count the amount of carbohydrates in the daily diet. Consult with your doctor or nutritionist to find out what is the ideal limit for your daily sugar consumption.