TECHNICAL FACT SHEET
The Agave nectar or syrup is obtained from the AGAVE, a succulent desert plant, which prospers in Mexico. The agave syrup or nectar is extracted from the lymph at the “heart” of the plant and is then filtered. The liquid obtained is subsequently heated, causing a thermal hydrolysis, which transforms carbohydrates into sugars. The main carbohydrate is a complex form of fructose called inulin. The filtered juice is then concentrated into a syrup having a slightly more fluid texture than honey.
The glycemic index of the agave syrup is lower than that of other sugars, lower than that of honey itself. What does this mean? The speed at which ingested food increases the blood level of glucose is called glycemic response. Doctor Jenkins and his colleagues at the St. Michael hospital of Toronto have carried out numerous studies in order to classify specific foods according to their glycemic response. The glycemic response of white bread was used as the reference point and was assigned a value of 100 (other studies use glucose as the reference value). Foodstuffs whose value is less than 100 are converted into sugar more slowly than white bread is while those with a higher value, more quickly.
The study shows that the glycemic index not only of fruit and milk but also of common white sugar (saccharose) is lower than that of some of the most common starches. This knowledge allows those people who need to monitor their blood sugar levels to add to their diets certain foods that were previously not recommended to them.
This is a comparative table of the glycemic index of Agave as opposed to other sugars:
Organic Agave nectar 27
Fructose 32
Lactose 65
Honey 83
Corn syrup 89
Saccharose 92
Glucose 137
On the basis of this and other studies carried out in the United States, the FOOD&DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) has acknowledged the fact that - taken in an appropriate doses -the Agave nectar can also be used by diabetics.
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