Agave--Healthy??

From RealAge.com (for the record...I'm a Stevia fan myself :O)

True or False: Agave’s the Healthiest Sweetener Out There
Could it be true? Is there really an all-natural, low-calorie sweetener -- with no aftertaste -- that doesn’t send your blood sugar into the stratosphere? Fans say agave (ah-GAH-vay) nectar fits that description. And to judge by the flood of agave-sweetened foods and drinks on supermarket shelves -- hundreds have been introduced in the last 2 years -- the new sweet stuff has a lot of believers. It’s even showing up in cocktails at trendy bars. So, is it true? Or too good to be?

T or F: Agave is super sweet.
True indeed! It’s four times sweeter than white sugar. Just 1/4 teaspoon of agave nectar/syrup approximates the sweetness of 1 teaspoon of sugar, costing you just 4 calories instead of 16.

T or F: Agave is all natural.
True, sort of. But “all natural” doesn’t mean “not processed.” Agave comes from the desert-dwelling succulent Agave tequilana, which is also the source of tequila. However, turning the plant’s juicy sap into a syrupy nectar you can drizzle on yogurt or stir into tea takes some doing. Some manufacturers heat the sap; others use enzymes to convert it into table-ready syrup.

T or F: Agave has no flavor.
True and false. It depends on whether the syrup is light or dark. The lightest types are virtually flavorless, but darker varieties have a maple- or caramel-like taste that you may take to . . . or not.

T or F: Agave has a low glycemic index (GI).
True. Because agave nectar is mostly fructose, it makes a pit stop for processing in the liver, which lowers its glycemic index (GI) -- a measurement of how quickly a food makes blood sugar rise. Table sugar is about half glucose, which goes straight to the bloodstream and sends blood sugar zooming in minutes.

T or F: Agave is a healthy sweetener.
More false than true. The major health benefit is that you may use less agave than sugar to get the same sweetness. But that’s about where the health-buck stops. People who’ve heard all the bad press about high-fructose corn syrup -- and avoid it like the plague -- need to realize that agave nectar is a high-fructose syrup (at least 75% fructose). Many health experts believe high-fructose foods are not good for you. “Perhaps most worrisome is that excessive fructose may increase the risk of metabolic syndrome and diabetes,” says Richard Johnson, MD, author of The Sugar Fix: The High-Fructose Fallout That is Making You Fat and Sick (2008). It also triggers a combination of unhealthy effects that can eventually lead to a host of troubles, including heart disease and stroke, according to Johnson and others.

Bottom line: If you’ve got a serious sweet tooth, a little agave syrup now and then may help you control calories and blood sugar spikes. But that’s as far as it goes -- and the trade-offs aren’t great. Sorry about that.

IN YOUR GARDEN (Meditation)

Meditation channeled on the 7th January, `2008 by the group Lazarus.
This is a guided meditation for the beginning of a circle, or just
for a reprieve to ground yourself after a stressful day.

Sit comfortably, feet on the floor and hands resting gently on your
lap. Take three deep and cleansing breathes and centre yourself.

Now with eyes closed, let your subconscious bring into your vision a
gate! Let it come as it will and take gentle note of it, what it is made of, the height, width and structure.

Approach the gate and although you may see a lock on it, know that
it will open for you.This is your own boundary, one you have put there; no-one else can get in except you. Now the gate will open and you will walk in to YOUR garden.
Take a moment and turn around to look at the rest of your boundary, see what the gate is attached to, or not as the case may be. Just take gentle note, then turn around and face your garden.

Here there is perfect peace, here you can see all there is to see.
Look around and take note. No-one else can come here and the only living beings will be animals, so if you see them take a note, and then explore where you are.

Please do not have any perceptions of what you will see, allow the
higher guide (your sub-conscious)to show you what is you, a meadow, a lakeside, a beach or a mountain side, it depends on you.

Take a few minutes to look and relax, and when you are ready, sit
down and breathe in the air.Just relax with yourself knowing that you cannot be disturbed, and when you are ready to come back look at your feet.

When you look at your feet, you will see a beam of white light
touching them.On looking up at the beam you will see that it stretches in the far
horizon and is without end.Watch as the beam gentle moves over you and completely encompassesyou within its light.As the light enfolds you, you are surrounded by protection, by love
and by the divine healing that is your right.

The light will transport you back to your chair, safely and with
gentleness, and when you are ready,you will open your eyes and be back again.

Footnote:

The garden represents you, the inner you. On reflection of what you
have been shown, a great deal of where and why things are as they are should/could be made easier to understand.

Please remember that you and only you are the only one allowed in
the garden.If another being is there, even a guide, then there is a problem
with your control.You are allowing others to control you and even when it is with
love, it is truly in my opinion, not the best state of affairs.


Walk in light
Rose
www.onebigcircle. org

Woman