Are you trying to lose weight? Keep failing to do so? Then you need some assistance from supplementary foods and drinks. There are many foods and drinks that you can use to assist you in losing weight. Some popular examples are salad, lettuce, basically any vegetables that is leafy greens.
But do you also know that making Sugarcane Juice and consuming it can helps you lose some pounds? That’s right, Sugarcane Juice is believed to have benefits for weight loss. It is a juice that is made of sugarcane. Perhaps you’re wondering, what is this sugarcane?
As the name suggest, Sugarcane (or sugar cane) is a reed-like plant used for sugar production. It is the most used plant in the industry along with the sugar beets. It is also used to produce ethanol, molasses, falernum, rum, cachaca from Brazil, and bagasse. In some regions, the reeds also used to make thatch, pens, mats, and screens. Sugarcane juice is a drink that directly derived from sugarcane plant.
Because it is extracted from pressed sugarcane. This extraction is called Sugarcane juice, but in some countries it has different names e.g. minuman sari tebu, mía đá, betsa-betsa, usacha rass, caldo de cana, guarapa, guarapo, guarab, papelón, aseer asab, mosto, etc. This juice is served in many ways by the people around the world, and it is available in the street vendor, thereby making it easy to find. Sugar cane juice is spread around the world, but you will have easier time finding it in Asia. This is not without reason though, as Asia is one of the world’s largest producer of Sugarcane. (Also read : Benefits of Spinach for Skin and Hair)
Back to Sugarcane Juice. This juice is sweet in taste. Some people have sentiment for sweet foods and drinks. They think that sweet sustenances can cause diabetes and obesity, and therefore it is often harmful for human health if consumed carelessly. Well, the sweetness of a food or drink doesn’t always indicate unhealthiness. Some studies have been shown the effect of Sugarcane for weight loss when it is extracted into juice.
And they found that Sugarcane juice can helps you to lose weight. Interesting, isn’t it? You can enjoy a sweet drink without having to worry about getting diabetes or dramatically increased weight which might cause obesity. So, what is the benefits of Sugar juice for weight loss? Let’s find it out after you look at the nutritional value of the Sugarcane juice below :
NUTRITIONAL VALUE OF SUGAR CANE JUICE
Nutrients and compounds found in 28.35 grams of freshly squashed Sugarcane Juice :
- 111.13 kJ (26.56 kcal) Energy
- 27.51 g Carbohydrates
- 26.98 g Sugars
- 0.27 g Protein
- 11.23 mg (1%) Calcium
- 0.37 mg (3%) Iron
- 41.96 mg (1%) Potassium
- 17.01 mg (1%) Sodium
All nutrient information provided are obtained from ESHA Research.
(You may want to read : Benefits of Ginger for Asthma)
Additional Information :
Sugarcane Juice is low on cholesterol, small amount of sodium and fats, minimum level of calories as well. It is lacking in other nutrients and compounds, such as vitamins, dietary fiber, cholesterol, other minerals, and fats. (See also : Health Benefits of Romaine Lettuce)
Well, so what is the qualities of Sugarcane juice to benefit your weight loss journey? What it provides to helps in the attempt? Let’s find out about the benefits of sugarcane juice for weight loss:
1. It helps you to decrease amount of bad cholesterol in the body
Sugarcane juice contains almost no cholesterol. So other than consuming any kind of drinks that contains high level of cholesterol, alternatively you can choose this juice as part of your diet. It is healthier, and helps in reducing bad cholesterol in your body. You just have to find some sugarcane and squeeze them to extract the syrup and drink it for your own good. (Also read : Health Benefits of Rowan Berries)
2. It helps you to reduce the level of bodyfat
Most sweetened drinks contains a lot of fat. This in conjunction with other factors, will result in increased weight which might cause obesity. For this reason, most people especially diabetic person have preferred less sugary and low fat drinks. Sugarcane juice is an example.
This juice has low amount of fat, thus it can safely consumed by people who are trying to lose weight, and those who want to avoid diabetes and obesity. Keep in mind that just consuming this beverage won’t get you significant effect. You must combine it with enough intensity of weight loss exercises, such as running, jogging, football, calisthenics, etc.
3. It has low glycemic index
There are more benefits of sugarcane juice for weight loss. The glycemic index indicates how long it takes for a food to incease the blood sugar levels in your body. The maximum value of the glycemic index is 100, this is a value you can get from sucrose and white bread. Lower values means less effect on drastic inflation of blood sugar levels. Sugarcane juice is actually a part of the plant itself. And it can be drank directly from the cane.
Based on some researches and an issue of Organic Lifestyle Magazine sugarcane is a low glycemic drink, because it has glycemic index value of 43. This is further approved by American Diabetes Association. The commonly used refined white sugar can be replaced by Sugarcane derived products, such as Sugarcane juice, sugar, or syrup. The reason being the healthier and more natural attributes of Sugarcane. Sugar that is made from the plant is processed in the liver, and not in intestine which refined sugar do.
Hence why it has low glycemic index. Also, this way of processing sugar derived from sugarcane plant means fructose and glucose that found in the sugar, tend to be absorbed slower than sucrose. This act reduce the chance of drastic inflation on blood sugar level in the body. (You may interested in : Health Benefits of Panela Sugar)
CAUTIONS IN USING SUGARCANE JUICE FOR WEIGHT LOSS
An unprocessed fresh sugarcane juice can be risky to drink if prepared in low standard hygiene environment and conditions. Raw sugarcane juice might also pass some diseases onto your body and it may be infected by some viruses, such leptospira which can cause Leptospirosis.
Sugarcane juice has been linked to chagas disease’ cases in Brazil. This is likely because of the traces of suspecting pathogen, Trypanosoma cruzi. This pathogen can be carried and left in the sugar cane by infected bugs. By that means, it is important to properly clean the cane before any use and further consumption.