This gives the sweetener a low glycemic index. SUMMARYĪgave nectar is low in glucose and therefore doesn’t spike blood sugar levels much. The harmful effects of agave - and sugar in general - have very little to do with the glycemic index but everything to do with the large amounts of fructose - and agave nectar is very high in fructose. That said, the GI is just one factor to consider when weighing the health effects of sweeteners. In such a short-term study, the glucose in plain sugar elevated both blood sugar and insulin levels, whereas fructose did not. The mice ingesting agave nectar gained less weight and had lower blood sugar and insulin levels ( 8). It has very little glucose, at least compared with regular sugar.Ī study in mice compared the metabolic effects of agave nectar and sucrose, or plain sugar, after 34 days. This is why high fructose sweeteners are often marketed as “healthy” or “diabetes friendly.”Īgave nectar has a very low GI - primarily because almost all of the sugar in it is fructose. Unlike glucose, fructose does not raise blood sugar or insulin levels in the short term. Generally speaking, foods with a higher GI cause greater blood sugar spikes and may affect your health more negatively ( 5, 6, 7). The glycemic index (GI) is a measure of how quickly the sugar in a food enters your bloodstream. The end product is a highly refined, unhealthy syrup. The agave sweetener sold today is made by treating agave sugars with heat and enzymes, which destroys all of its potentially beneficial health effects. This process - which is similar to how other unhealthy sweeteners like high fructose corn syrup are made - destroys all of the health-promoting properties of the agave plant. However, when processed into a syrup, the fructans are extracted and broken down into fructose by exposing the sap to heat and/or enzymes ( 3, 4). While this sap is high in sugar, it also contains healthy fiber like fructans, which are linked to beneficial effects on metabolism and insulin ( 2). The plant is first cut and pressed to extract the sugary sap.
That said, the beginning of its production process is the same.
It has little in common with the traditional sweetener made historically by people in Mexico. The sweetener commonly sold as agave nectar would be more accurately labeled as agave syrup.
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