Should we be swapping refined sugar for maple syrup? (Picture: Maple from Canada)

Let’s face it; we are a nation with a sweet tooth.

Brownies, chocolates, cakes and pastries are there to tempt us in almost all cafes, restaurants, corner shops and supermarkets, and we love them.

So in a world where we are so hungry for sugar yet constantly in search of a ‘healthier’ option, should we be looking to replace our packet of faithful white refined sugar with something more natural?

Enter maple syrup.

We pour it on our pancakes, munch it on our waffles and even add it as a sweetener to our baking, but what do we really know about it?

It’s been coined the ‘best natural’ sweetener and even a ‘superfood’ in its own right, with the likes of Deliciously Ella and Madeleine Shaw using it in their recipes.

So is this great news for us sugar consumers?


If we swap out our granulated sugar for maple syrup are we onto an easy health win?

Dr Rupy Aujla from the The Doctor’s Kitchen told us: ‘Maple syrup is made up of 95 per cent sucrose, which is a simple sugar made up of fructose and glucose. This means it is a free sugar. It has a similar biological effect as any other sugar, whether it’s honey, molasses or icing sugar’.

Ah, so it’s not all that simple then.

Maple syrup is produced by tapping maple trees for the sap and then boiling it down to make pure maple syrup in a traditional Canadian ‘sugar shack’.

Maple syrup sap reducing down to syrup (Picture: Maple from Canada)

71 per cent of the world’s maple syrup is produced this way in Canada, with no extra ingredients or funny business.

Just pure maple syrup, which means no additives.

Maple syrup, like many fruits and vegetables, is packed with phytochemicals, which are chemicals found in plants.

It contains 67 of these phytochemical compounds, so it certainly packs a punch.

Does this mean it’s good for our health?

‘Phytochemicals are attributed to having antioxidant and anti inflammatory properties and it’s unsurprising that maple syrup contains so many, as all plants have some kind of phytochemicals!’ says Dr Aujla.

‘However, because of the high levels of sucrose (i.e. free sugars) in maple syrup, it doesn’t make it any higher up the list than other sugars.’.

If maple syrup does have antioxidant properties and is free from additives, does that mean it’s worth increasing our maple syrup consumption?


‘Whilst I would never say you should replace this sugar with that sugar, or increase your consumption, I would say enjoy different varieties of sugar in your cooking and use it as a flavour enhancer.

The recommended allowance for sugar per day in the UK is anywhere between 5-8 teaspoons, which is around 25-30g for an adult.

That’s referring to free sugars, like white refined sugar, granulated sugar and even honey and maple syrup.

Consuming a variety of foods has been shown to improve your gut microbium, not to mention confidence in the kitchen!’ says Dr Aujla.

Looks pretty good for pancakes (Picture: Maple from Canada)

So in a nutshell sugar is just sugar, wherever it comes from.

There are clearly no easy health wins, but reflecting on the fact there are no additives and it’s rich in manganese, maple syrup is a good alternative to that pack of white refined sugar that’s stashed at the back of the cupboard.

And it just turns out to be a brilliant bonus that maple is natural, low FODMAP and vegan too.


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