is it safe for diabetics to have jaggery?
“Diabetics must not consume sugar to worsen their condition,” warns Karishma Chawla, nutritionist and lifestyle educator.
“However, jaggery is better than refined sugar as it does not give the glucose spike like sugar does,” she adds. “Also, unlike refined sugar, jaggery has a lot of health benefits as it is a rich source of iron, magnesium, and potassium.”
Does this mean diabetes patients can count on jaggery and consider themselves covered? The answer is NO.
“Diabetic patients tend to eat jaggery in excess assuming that it will not increase their blood sugar levels. That is not true because it DOES increase blood sugar levels,” Kaur warns and strictly recommends keeping its consumption limited or simply steering clear of it, if your case of diabetes is severe.
The solution?
Apart from limiting their jaggery intake to say 1-2 teaspoons a day, Chawla suggests using natural herbs like ginger, basil, cardamom for flavour instead. She strictly warns against the use of artificial sweetners and points out how they can cause gut health problems and insulin resistance in the long run.
As for the use of stevia for sweetness, Kaur urges people to rely only on the homegrown stevia leaves and not the packaged stevia sweeteners available in the market.
