Sugar Rage

Some people steal cookies and call themselves "the Cookie Monster" when they're caught with crumbs all over their mouths. Others shoplift Weight Watchers desserts or trash cupcake shops that run out of "sweet tooth fairy cakes." And then there are those who fly into a rage when no one'll share their imitation maple syrup.

Ah, sugar.

And don't be all smirky if you're sitting there with a glass of juice and an agave-flavored bowl of whatever it is you're eating. You're just as likely to throw what the Whole9 folks call a "sugar tantrum."

Sugar = Sugar = Sugar

So we know sugar's bad for you, but what about agave nectar? After all, it's all-natural, organic, and it doesn't spike your blood glucose like sugar does. And since it's sweeter than sugar, you can use less of it, right? So isn't it a healthy substitute for sugar?

No, not really.

"People are disgusted with aspartame and Splenda, and they're looking for an alternative to high-fructose corn syrup," said Kantha Shelke, a food chemist specializing in natural foods and principal with the Chicago-based food science think tank Corvus Blue. But Shelke adds that consumers' high hopes for agave may be somewhat misguided. "People say it's a healthful alternative, but it's not really. A sugar is a sugar is a sugar," she says.

More here and here and here and here.

(My favorite line: "Organic junk is still junk.")