Articles
Lets talk about Sugar Alternatives!
Time to get Alternative! We are all becoming more conscious about our daily sugar intake and the amount of hidden sugars consumed. 14 November is World Diabetes Day, and a great opportunity to share about some insight into sugar alternatives. We regularly get asked about the differences between our various “sugar alternatives” especially related to concerns surrounding weight loss, dental health or pre-existing medical conditions such as diabetes. Keto Sweet, Xylitol, Erythritol and are all regarded as “sugar alcohols” which are a form of reduced-calorie sweeteners and a category of sweet carbohydrates. Sugar alcohols are partially resistant to digestion and act like dietary fibre. Despite the word ‘alcohol’ being in the name it doesn’t actually contain ethanol. In fact many sugar alcohols are found naturally in fruits and vegetables. Sugar alcohols have a similar chemical structure to sugar and activate the receptors in your tongue to register a sweet taste. Time to introduce you to our “Big Three” sugar alternatives! 1. Sally-Ann Creed® Keto Sweet is another South African first! Meet the amazing “Monk Fruit”! This amazing fruit got its name from the Buddhist Monks who first used it. As the monk’s meditated and lived on the misty mountains of Guilin, they discovered a fruit they treasured and cultivated for its sweetness and healing properties. To back their ancient claims up, a 2011 study showed that the Monk Fruit’s mogrosides are anti-inflammatory, keep blood sugar levels stable and may help prevent cancer. Mogrosides are compounds which taste sweet but have no glycaemic index, carbs or calories … and no lingering aftertaste! Sally-Ann Creed® Keto Sweet is an amazing product which tastes like sugar (Sally-Ann has said it tastes better than sugar!) and has a host of other benefits. It’s a 1 for 1 sugar replacement. Keto Sweet is useful for diabetics and those with Insulin Resistance. It doesn’t spike insulin and promotes weight loss. Keto Sweet is perfect to bake with and fantastic for any of the following diets: Keto, Diabetic, Candida, Paleo, LCHF, Vegan, Sugar-Free, Non-GMO, Weight loss. Keto Sweet is heat stable, delicious and is the same sweetness as sugar. It is the closest taste to sugar of all the natural keto sweeteners Directions for use: Use as a 1 for 1 sugar replacement 2. Xylitol Xylitol is a common ingredient in sugar-free chewing gums and many oral care products. It is as sweet as sugar but has 40% fewer calories. The health benefits of Xylitol have been widely spoken about and may also be beneficial in the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes. Xylitol is very successfully used in tea, coffee, food and baking. It is also heat stable and very versatile. Directions for use: Use as 1 for 1 sugar replacement. 3. Erythritol Erythritol is produced by fermenting the glucose in corn starch and has 70% of the sweetness of sugar but 5% of the calories. Erythritol mostly gets absorbed in your blood stream and does not doesn’t reach your large intestine in significant amounts For this reason it is very popular and doesn’t have the same digestive side effects as most other sugar alcohols. One study suggested that Erythritol might be a preferred sugar substitute for people with diabetes. Researchers also found Erythritol may act as a strong antioxidant with a favourable effect on blood vessels. Like Xylitol, Erythritol is very successfully used in tea, coffee, food and baking. It is also heat stable and very versatile. Directions for use: You will need a little more than a teaspoon to equal the sweetness of the same amount of sugar. Sources: https://sallyanncreed.co.za/is-xylitol-safe-for-humans/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21765599/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4037362/
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What is Chocolate Blooming?
Have you ever opened a chocolate bar and noticed a white layer over the surface of your chocolate or little, granular white specks? This is a common phenomenon, and is known as Chocolate Blooming. The good news is that it has little to no effect on your chocolate bar, other than making it slightly aesthetically ‘different’ to your standard, brown chocolate bar look and feel. There are two types of chocolate bloom, one referred to as Fat Bloom and the other is known as Sugar Bloom. Fat Bloom Fat bloom – the most common type of bloom – is a result of a change in temperature in your chocolate, or poor tempering during manufacture. It occurs most often when a chocolate melts and then re-solidifies. A good example of this is when one accidentally leaves a chocolate in the car for a few days, and then opens it. You will note a white discolouration across the surface of the bar. The warmer temperature heats the cocoa butter in the chocolate, which causes it to soften and separate from the rest of the ingredients in the bar. The chocolate then re-solidifies, once the temperature cools, and this creates the fat bloom effect – a slick white layer across the surface of your chocolate. Our Sally-Ann Creed® 70% Dark Chocolate would be susceptible to this effect if left in heat for too long. Sugar Bloom Sugar bloom is most recognizable by the hard, dry, granular crystals that develop on the surface of your chocolate bar. There is a noticeable texture change over the surface of the bar, where little crystals have formed. When chocolate is exposed to moisture, the sugar within the chocolate absorbs this moisture and dissolves the crystals. The sugar rises to the surface and forms small, hard granular lumps. How does one avoid Chocolate Blooming? Fat bloom can generally be avoided by ensuring that the chocolates are tempered sufficiently during manufacture, and are thereafter kept at a consistent, room temperature. With sugar bloom, the sugar crystals react to moisture exposure. By avoiding damp storage conditions, such as in the refrigerator or areas with high humidity, you can help prevent this reaction from occuring which results in the crystals dissolving and coming to the surface. To repair chocolate bloom, one can melt the chocolate down, stir the melted mixture and then pour into molds and allow to cool. This will bring the fat or sugar back into the original mixture, and remove the aesthetic discolouration. But can I still eat my chocolate?! Yes, you most definitely can! Fat and sugar bloom have no effect on the nutritional aspects of your chocolate, only a slightly negative effect on the appearance, due to the discolouration. The product remains perfectly safe for consumption.
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Berberine Complex
I think of all the products I’ve developed, this is one of the ones I am most proud of. Some studies say when you take Berberine, it is advisable to take a break every 8 weeks. I don’t really agree with this but the rationale is that it may kill off some beneficial flora if taken indefinitely. Well, this has been taken care of with a powerful probiotic blend built into the recipe. The other thing I’ve included is chromium for even better blood sugar control. Berberine on its own is an amazing product for normalising blood sugars. However with Berberine Complex you have the added chromium for that ‘double whammy’ for those who wish to lose weight while controlling blood sugar levels. Several B Vitamins (which can sometimes be depleted with long-term use of Berberine) have been added. So that this won’t happen especially Vitamins B1, B6 and B12. These vitamins may also help to control homocysteine levels and prevent anaemia. Lastly, Milk Thistle has been included in the formulation to assist the bioavailability of Berberine. Milk thistle acts as an inhibitor of the transporter that limits absorption. So this is a revolutionary product and one I think you’re going to love! Disclaimer: You can simply click on the name of each product mentioned above (in bold) and a hyperlink will take you directly to the product for an easy purchase. Originally published on https://www.facebook.com/SallyAnnCreedSA/ in 2020.
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