I try to be careful about the amount of refined sugar I eat because of the effect it has on the skin. But occasionally (usually around 3pm on a Wednesday afternoon…!) the urge for a sweet treat overwhelms me.
Recently, instead of reaching for the biscuit tin, I’ve been trying to experiment with a few slightly healthier, sweet alternatives I thought I’d share.
Dates
Dates are nature’s own sweeteners, having just two alongside a handful of almonds really satisfies my sugar craving.
It also helps that they taste like mini-sticky toffee puddings!
Dates are packed full of vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants, so they’re actually a pretty healthy sweet treat.
Try and have Mejool Dates wherever possible – the flavour is unbeatable.
Fresh Berries
A handful of super ripe strawberries always manage to hit the spot.
Once you cut down the refined sugar in your diet, you become more aware of the natural sweetness in fruits and strawberries become amazingly sweet!
Dried Figs
Although dried figs look quite unappetising, they actually taste great.
They are full of potassium, fibre and are high in Vitamins B-6 and K – so, much better for you than a chocolate digestive!
Honey
I’m not talking any old ‘squeezy’ honey here – getting your hands on the best possible raw honey is important.
Raw honey, is honey in its purest form – it has not been strained, heated or filtered, unlike most of the honey lining supermarket shelves which has been heated, or pasteurised, to eliminate bacteria.
However, this also destroys the beneficial enzymes, pollen, nutrients and antioxidants which afford the honey many of its health benefits.
A Square of Very Dark Chocolate
This is slightly cheating as dark chocolate does contain some sugar, but the amount is minimal in comparison to your average milk chocolate bar!
The darker the better – you should be going for at least 70% cocoa minimum chocolate.
Dark chocolate is packed with powerful, health-boosting antioxidants called flavonoids, and the darker the chocolate, the higher the levels of flavonoids.
Do you rely on any healthy alternatives to satisfy your sugar craving?
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