Pregnant women often have cravings for sugar and find it hard to resist. Excess sugar can lead to unwanted weight gain, which can sometimes be hard to shift after the baby is born. Unfortunately, sugar is hidden in so much of the food we eat today that even those of us without a sweet tooth may be consuming more than we should. Sugar is a carbohydrate which naturally occurs in milk, fruit, honey, maple syrup and root vegetables, to name but a few, in the forms of lactose, glucose and fructose. Sugar can cause our blood-sugar levels to peak, giving us that temporary high followed by a rather nasty sugar crash, which in turn can leave us feeling tired, grumpy and craving more sugar.
It’s not all bad news, though, as our bodies need a certain amount of sugar in order to send energy to our muscles and keep our brains active. During pregnancy our bodies are using huge amounts of energy to support our growing babies and changing bodies, so a little sugar is necessary. The best forms of sugar to use (as found in the recipes in this book) are the following:
Manuka honey
Found in large supermarkets and health-food shops, active manuka honey from New Zealand will carry the UMF trademark and a number from 5+ up to 45+. The higher the number, the more active and expensive the honey will be. If you are using manuka honey to cook with, a lower number is more than acceptable. Methylglyoxal, a compound with the capacity to kill bacteria and viruses, is found in most types of honey but is highest in manuka. Manuka honey is also said to have anti-inflammatory qualities, to counteract nausea and acid indigestion, and can help predigest starchy foods such as bread.
If manuka honey is out of your price range, try to get the next best thing, i.e. a honey that isn’t mass-produced and highly processed. A good quality jar of honey will usually be around the £5–£8 mark. Raw manuka and raw honey is also available, and is considered to have excellent health qualities; however, it is not recommend that pregnant women eat raw honey, as it is completely unpasteurised and may contain bacteria that could be considered harmful.
Maple syrup and agave nectar
These are two sugar substitutes that, although not strictly considered to be good for us, are natural products and therefore contain some natural traces of minerals not found in refined sugar. They are, however, high in glucose (maple syrup) and fructose (agave nectar), which cause blood sugar spikes, and so should be consumed in moderation.