There’s a Difference Between Agave Nectar and Agave Syrup

As you know, at Advanced Chiropractic, we strongly advocate using agave nectar as a sweetener. Agave, a nectar, is a low–glycemic food (foods with a glycemic index lower than 55 are considered low glycemic), and as such is less likely to trigger the body’s mechanism for fat storage.
Lately there’s been a great deal of confusion with regard to agave nectar and agave syrup, the two of which are not the same.
The creation of agave nectar is very similar to maple syrup in that it’s made by extracting sap (in this case, from the pina—the center of the agave plant), filtering it, then heating it at low temperature. This breaks down the carbohydrates into sugar. Lighter and darker varieties of agave nectar are made from the same plants.
Low temperatures are used in processing many varieties of agave nectar (118 F) – which is why agave nectar is typically regarded as a “raw food.” No chemicals or enzymes are added in the production of agave nectar.
Then there is, of course, agave syrup, an entirely different ball game. Agave syrup is, shall we say, “modified” no differently than is corn syrup, the end result is HFCS—high fructose corn syrup. HFCS, like agave syrup is anything but natural.
Unfortunately, in the agave industry, the terms nectar and agave syrup, are often used interchangeably. The reason? It wasn’t until recently that the food industry took notice of agave nectar and realized that, with a little bit of modification, it could be sold as a commercial sweetener similar to HFCS. Prior to this discovery, those who’ve used agave nectar for thousands of years simply used the terms nectar and syrup interchangeably.
They never considered that commercial food chemists had a very different future in store for what would become agave syrup. Members of the food industry are less than excited about this low–glycemic, all natural competitor to other more harmful sweeteners, have been attempting to suggest that agave nectar and agave syrup are the same.
While any reasonably intelligent person knows that this is not true, the truth has never stopped anyone of painting fiction as fact.
Dr. Chris Chase is the owner of Advanced Chiropractic in Court House for the past 13 years and is a member of the ANJC, Association New Jersey Chiropractors.. You can follow Chase’s blog at www.advancedchiropracticcmch.com