I have never heard of Agave nectar. How do you use it? Can you put it in coffee?

Do you buy Agave nectar in the health food stores?

We use Agave Nectar. I can buy it at my regular grocery stores in the organic section. I do use it in my coffee, but it has a taste that takes some getting used to (as do honey, splenda, stevia, etc.). There is light agave nectar and dark agave nectar. I think the light has less flavor, imo. It does have calories (60 per tablespoon), but is low on the glycemic index. It is also quite a bit sweeter than sugar, so you don't need much. I don't even put a teaspoon in a large cup of coffee or tea. I am pretty sure agave nectar is fructose. It comes from the cactus they make tequila out of. you can bake with it, but I never have.

I have some Stevia here and it is like 9 times sweeter than sugar but here is the thing it is ALL fiber, so just a little bit and well most of you know what happens. I feel like I am better off just having sugar in moderation, at least the natural kind.:coffee:

I guess I'm an ingredient reader.... My stevia powder is standardized to at least 85% steviosides (the pure extract) and says to use 1/32 of a tsp to replace every tsp of sugar. It reiterates with "that's 1/4 of 1/8 tsp", just to make sure the user gets the point!

I used to buy stevia (the herb) but didn't like the "stems & seeds (that you don't need!;))" floating in my morning cuppa. Then I tried the less concentrated powders that are easier to measure - but I didn't like what they were "cut" with. Now that I understand what "straight" stevia is like, and have learned how to handle it, I much prefer it!

Speaking of adulterant ingredients, is it only in Canada that Splenda is 99% maltodextrin? I've found that with either packets or loose, Splenda lists its main ingredient as maltodextrin, and THEN sucralose - at 6 mg per tsp (or 5 mL/0.5g, in metric-speak). That's almost a 100:1 ratio of sugar to sweetener!

The maltodextrin is to make the product measure "tsp-for-tsp" like sugar, be easier to dissolve, resist clumping, and withstand baking temps. Its glycemic index is the same as for glucose, 137; and is much higher than that of sucrose at 92! (http://optimalhealth.cia.com.au/gi17.html - 2/3 down the page) So yes, it's quite understandable that some people don't do well with it! There are several Low-Carb diet books that recommend against Splenda (but not sucralose, if you can find it pure), or to treat Splenda just like glucose, HFCS, white sugar, et al.

Wow, did I ever get an answer to my question! My sister-in-laws use and recommend, Stevia instead of the splenda products. I was worried about using splenda too much, causing "hormone" problems.

Whoa, is that true?? Another dang thing to add to my Fitday. :rolleyes:


I eat a lot of Splenda. I mean a lot!! Maybe 12 to 20 packets a day, depending on if I make a stop at Starbucks for an iced coffee or two. I don't notice any side effects.

My sister, on the other hand, thinks the stuff is poison and had many side effects. She went off Splenda and all the nasty stuff she was suffering from went away.

I think it's up to the individual and how they tolerate it. I probably should try to lesson my consumption of it a little more than I do.

So they may determine, some day, that Splenda has some adverse effects. What they've already proven is that being severely obese will kill you. So if a couple of packets of Splenda help me to stay on a diet that will take off 100+ pounds, then I'm not going to worry about my two packets a day.

Can anyone compare the Agave nectar taste to anything I might know? I was going to buy a bottle but it's alittle pricey... worried it will get tossed.

My thoughts are that everything in life has a trade off. The question should be, what is worse, sugar or splenda?
Personally, I use Splenda ALL the time. In my coffee, in my yogurt, etc.

Same sort of deal with trans fats. Coffemate says it has 0.0 trans fats per serving. Really it has .9 grams per serving, but because it's less than 1 gram, it used to be they let it go down as 0 trans fat. It's in the list of ingredients though - partially hydrogenated something or other.
(labeling laws have been changed in the last year or so. I don't know what the labels say now.)

The thing about this is that I used to drink 6 or 7 cups of coffee a day and each time I'd shovel in a heaping spoon of coffeemate. That's .9 X 7 = 6.3 gram a day of trans fat hidden in my daily diet just from drinking coffee. They say the average american doesn't get moe than 3grams per day, but I don't think they took into account hidden trans fat like this.

At the diabetic clinic here in Calgary, Splenda is the recommended artificial sweetener.

As for the chlorine in Splenda, it's not the molecular, elemental form, it's a compound in which some chlorine atoms have chemically bonded to other atoms. Chlorine and chlorine compounds occur naturally in blood, skin, and teeth. Chlorine is also in many plants including ordinary table mushrooms and potatoes. Lots of chemicals that would be otherwise dangerous are quite harmless in compounds with other chemicals. Both hydrogen and oxygen are highly flammable in very small quantities, but they combine to make water.

However, there may be other reasons to restrict your intake of any artificial sweetner. See this link.

I use Splenda, although I've cut way back on diet drinks in general, preferring straight water (although I like to add a slice of lemon). But I think the "moderation" principle is a good one to follow.