Agave Nectar

I've been at a dental convention the last two days learning some awesome stuff that I wanted to share with you all. Yesterday I went and saw this guys... David L. Meinz he is awesome and I had so much fun listening to and most importantly I learned SOOO much! What I'm most excited to share with you all is what I learned about sugar.

• 1 tsp of sugar = 4 grams (now you won't have to worry about converting it yourself and looking at percentages... When you look at a nutrition label go straight to how many grams of sugar it has and now you will be able to see how many teaspoons there are PER SERVING < per serving is key)
• Kids get sugar from three main foods. Cereal, Soda, Candy. David suggested to buy cereals without the sugar. Buy puffed wheat, shredded wheat and crispix. Then place a sugar bowl on the table and tell your child to put as much sugar in his cereal as he wants! I know your thinking this guy is crazy but think about it... All three of those cereals have no sugar, so normally a child is only going to add about two spoonfuls which is still less than what they would get from all those other sugar cereals. Plus what happens to the added sugar? It sinks to he bottom of the bowl. Not a problem.

Now lets talk about sugar substitutes.

• Agave Nectar seems to have had a lot of hype lately. But before you jump into this new sugar trend think again. Agave Nectar has more fructose than High Fructose Corn Syrup, and it isn't even high in anti oxidants like some people claim it to be. Agave Nectar also goes through just about the same chemical process as sugar does. What I'm trying to say is that if you think you are being healthy by changing to Agave Nectar, you're not.
• Honey is sugar. Once digested all it is is sugar. It has "trace" nutrients, keyword being "trace." So don't kid yourself thinking it is any sort of super food.
• Stevia is a natural sweetner that comes from a plant. So if you are going to use any sugar substitute that is an awesome option.

Some other tips David L. Meinz gave us were to...

•  eat closer to the way the food was grown. Like David said "ask yourself, Does a twinkie grow that way?"
• If you want to get more bang for your buck, Fat is where it's at. You will have more results in reducing your fat intake than you would your sugars.
• Your fat intake should be 50 grams a day or less.
• Sodium intake should be 1500 mg a day or less, and guess what 2000 mg of salt equals 1 tsp.
• Frequency and Quantity. It's how much you eat and how often you eat it.
• Count where your calories come from
• You must have physical activity. 50 % nutrition 50% physical activity
• Slowly change your diet. Too far too fast = failure.
• It takes your taste buds 6 months to change.

I loved this class and his presentation of it all I was able to sit and watch the whole time and was learning something every second I was there. I even signed up for his newsletter that's how much I enjoyed it. I highly recommend clicking on the link above and going to his website. Also I know I have the title as Agave Nectar and that I rambled about far more than that, but it was what I found most interesting and memorable about the seminar because so many people are using it thinking it is healthy, no no think again. But now that you are all bored with my tips, facts and no pictures, I'll let you get in on with your lives.

much love,
nicole