Very interesting.. I was recently looking at alternatives and I'm more confused about "splenda" while it's not poison like aspartamine.. I still don't fully understand if it's more healthy.. but I am weary of sugar damage... I hear it's something to do with problems you can feel under your jaw..
Don't quote me on that :) but very nice article.
I use it daily in my breakfast smoothies and have never had a problem with it.
ok i have been cutting sugar back when i make my ice tea. i went from white sugar to unrefined raw sugar. this last batch i tryed the agave, this is so crazy to keep up with. i guess i will always be learning?
This is a great post! Thank you for sharing it. When I first heard about agave being 90% fructose I did actually throw mine away. I felt like I had been lied to - it wasn't a "healthy" sweetener. I don't think it's bad if people use it in moderation, it just wasn't what I was looking for or what thought it was. I have now been using brown rice syrup for a sweetener and having great luck with it.
This was an awesome post and goes right along with my decision a couple days ago to start using brown rice syrup more often instead of agave nectar. Now my mind is made up. I'll still use agave now and then--I had just purchased a new bottle--but I'll use brown rice syrup as my main sweetener.
--Emily Sweet http://www.onesweetvegan.com/
I just bought some agave and found it super sweet so a little goes along way. It's extremely hard to find these things in WV, so I often have to buy from the internet. I guess I will be on the lookout for the brown rice syrup as soon as I find some.
Thanks for the info:) I generally use agave, maple syrup, or brown rice syrup for baking/sweetening etc, but I recently found out that I have gestational diabetes (again), and I often wonder if using brown rice syrup or some form of "whole" natural sweetener is healthier than using an artificial sweetener like splenda. I HATE using the artifical sweetener, but I have such a sweet tooth being pregnant, that sometimes I neeeeed it. I just can't seem to get my sugar fix from fruit etc. I had a really bad sweet tooth with my last pregnancy too.... It's like a bad addiction that I can't kick! :(
I agree that agave is fine in moderation. I wouldn't be so comfortable with xylitol, however, which is not technically a natural sweetener. . . if I could make it in my kitchen (or back yard), I'd say it's "natural"--but xylitol, while derived from organic matter, needs to be "made." I've recently discovered coconut/palm sugar and think it's a great alternative to agave--with the bonus that it's a dry sweeetner, so it can be used one-for-one instead of sugar. And it tastes delicious! Yacon syrup is another low glycemic sweetener that can be used (though it has a stronger flavor than agave). And I do love my brown rice syrup, too! :)
I think she means 'inulin' as opposed to 'insulin'.
I used to use agave but it made me feel gross and it was way to sweet. I am a huge fan of brown rice syrup :)
Thanks for this article. I'd heard a few things against using agave nectar, but this is the first indepth account about it's good and bad points.
This was really helpful. I feel agave is a much better choice than honey but after reading this, I'm thinking I need to try brown rice syrup. I have a recipe for chocolate peanut butter cups where I use agave in place of honey and in works very well. I'll have to try alternatives now and see if they work even better.
Altho' I do use AGAVE [sparingly--and only when called for in recipes], I have totally weened myself OFF OF SUGAR as far as adding to: tea, coffee, etc. Yes, it takes time to begin enjoying the new flavor WITHOUT SUGAR, but I NOW prefer sugarless beverages! 
Also, caffeine free WORKS BEST. Can't say whether I'm completely helping myself via avoiding such--but I DON'T FEEL BAD anymore. A girl at a checkout in Wal-Mart asked me if I felt BETTER for having quit BOTH smoking cigarettes and consuming ALCOHOL over 22-years ago, and I told her, "I JUST DON'T FEEL BAD anymore!"
And isn't that what Life is ALL ABOUT? Not Feeling Bad! I think so.
I read an article online (not sure where, probably a raw food blog) that said that most agave is actually comprised of high amounts of HFCS. So you're buying a bottle of supposedly agave, but actually getting mostly HFCS. According to the article, most of the agave sold today is manufactured in Mexico where food standards are lower, making it more difficult to regulate what actually goes into the bottle.
This really made me anti-agave (not the plant but the product) and so I haven't bought it since I read the article. I'm sorry I can't seem to find the article to link it.
Thank you so much for this post - it is exactly the info I was looking for as I have been wondering about Agave (aka Poo-Gave) for some time now. I'll give brown rice syrup a try!