If you’ve read our blogs, you know I have a personal beef with sugar. Added sugar was once my crutch in life. When stressed, I turned to chocolate. If I celebrated something, I turned to cake. And when bored, I baked sweet stuff. It’s so addictive! And here’s my other beef with sugar – it can be difficult to identify. Because many of us are onto the fact that sugar is destructive, companies put it in the nutritional information with different names. I decided to do a blog series on the many names of sugar. So what about brown sugar?
What is Brown Sugar?
I think everyone knows that brown sugar exists, but how is it different from white sugar (other than, of course, the color)? I’ve heard that it’s is healthier for you because it isn’t processed as much. I also heard that it’s just white sugar with molasses, which means it’s worse for your health. So, what’s the deal?
Brown sugar does have higher levels of calcium, iron, and potassium than white sugar. However, the amount of these minerals is so small, it’s not really any significant difference. It certainly doesn’t mean that brown sugar is “healthier” for you.
If you look at the nutritional information, a tablespoon of white sugar has 49 calories and 13 grams of carbs. A tablespoon of brown sugar has 42 calories and 11 grams of carbs. However, white sugar is sweeter, so bakers don’t need as much of it to make their baked goods the right flavor. So, it all kind of equals out.
How Is It Made?
Brown sugar comes from the same source as white sugar – either sugarcane or sugar beets. It’s unrefined when the process stops before you get white sugar. At this point, there is still some molasses in the product, so it keeps that texture and color. Refined is when producers make the white sugar and then add molasses to it.
What is Brown Sugar Used For?
The molasses in brown sugar retains moisture, so it makes baked goods softer, but also more dense. It’s used in rich glazes and sauces, chocolate-based goods (like cake and chocolate chip cookies), and fruit cakes. Although, not even this sugar can save fruit cakes.
Brown sugar will give your baked goods a different color and texture than white sugar. Other than that, they are pretty interchangeable. But, if you’re keto, you’ll want to avoid both of these sugars!
What Are the Long Term Effects of Brown Sugar?
So, like many of the sugars we’ve looked at in the previous blogs, there are no real benefits to eating brown sugar, and many potential risks. It can lead to weight gain over the long term. Your body will store any sugar not immediately required. That storage leads to body fat. Over time, excess stored fat can lead to serious diseases, such as heart disease, fatty buildup in your liver, and type 2 diabetes. It can also lead to kidney disease. Your kidneys filter sugar out of your urine, so having high blood sugar levels puts strain on your kidneys.
Nutritionists recommend you limit your added sugars to 5-10% of your calories, however you don’t need any. There are no nutritional benefits to sugar. It doesn’t give you vitamins and minerals you need. It’s not going to matter to the functioning of your body if you don’t take any in. For optimal health, 0% of your calories coming from added sugar is ideal.
A Final Thought
I remember eating brown sugar and cinnamon on toast. It was one of my favorite breakfasts. Now I just shake my head. I was putting sugar on top of carbs, which my body then turned into sugar. With that kind of spike in my blood sugars, it was no wonder I was feeling exhausted by noon!
I don’t like to say that anything is absolutely not keto, but brown sugar is as close as you can get to a “forbidden” food. Not only does it spike your blood sugars, it has 11 grams of carbs in one (1!) tablespoon. That’s over half your carbs for the day. Not to mention that it has no nutritional value at all. And then there’s the cravings it will bring on. Nope, brown sugar is never, ever, keto – at least not for us.
Wendy
