Hand-fried brown sugar bubble tea? Nutritionist: 3 ways to reduce calories and increase nutrition

It was recently revealed that the brown sugar pearl milk sold in a certain store, which required long queues to buy, was actually made by machine-roasting the sugar and contained caramel coloring. The Tung Foundation also calls on everyone to pay attention to the sugar labeling and calories of hand-shaken drinks, including "brown sugar bubble milk". What is the charm of brown sugar that makes it so popular among consumers? Is brown sugar really healthier and more nutritious than other fructose or sugar substitutes? Let’s listen to the nutritionist’s detailed explanation.

Compared with white sugar, granulated sugar and fructose, brown sugar retains minerals and vitamins.

The main sugars used in hand-shaken drinks are high fructose syrup and sucrose liquid, which are often used as the source of sweetness in beverages because they are cheap and easy to use. Nutritionist You Weiming said that the recently emerging black sugar is made by squeezing sugarcane juice, removing impurities and boiling it to make sugar. Compared with white sugar, granulated sugar and fructose, black sugar still retains minerals and vitamins, so it is darker in color and has a special taste. In terms of nutritional value, black sugar is indeed better than the high fructose syrup and sucrose liquid currently used in beverage stores.

However, no matter which type of sugar is chosen to increase the sweetness, brown sugar has 365 calories per 100 grams, which is similar to white sugar, granulated sugar, and fructose. Excessive intake of brown sugar will also result in excessive calories.

In addition to paying attention to calories, have people who like to drink brown sugar bubble tea ever thought about whether it is good for health? Nutritionist You Weiming pointed out that the price of brown sugar bubble tea ranges from NT$30 to NT$85. Usually, the NT$30 brown sugar bubble tea uses creamer powder. A 700cc cup has 700 calories, about 70 grams of brown sugar and about 20 grams of fat. If you choose the more expensive brown sugar fresh milk bubble tea, you can get high-quality protein, B vitamins, calcium, iron, zinc and other nutrients. A 700cc cup has fewer calories, about 600 kcal, and the fat in fresh milk is also healthier than creamer powder.

Will calcium and iron be lost when hand-fried brown sugar is made? Nutritionist: Mineral calcium and iron will not be lost

In pursuit of the old-fashioned taste, hand-fried brown sugar is available on the market. However, do consumers need to worry about whether the high-temperature frying process of brown sugar will produce a "Meina" reaction? Will it even "burn away" the calcium and iron in the original brown sugar? Nutritionist You Weiming said that the real hand-fried brown sugar product is irregularly shaped and has crystals of varying sizes. It is light brown to black in color and smells a bit like sugarcane and caramel. This taste and color are the result of the Mena reaction and caramelization reaction that occur during the high-temperature boiling process of brown sugar.

As for brown sugar, many people are worried about whether it will lose its nutrients, calcium and iron, if it is cooked at high temperature and then heated and fried? Nutritionist You Weiming explained that the minerals calcium and iron in brown sugar are very stable at high temperatures and will not be lost. On the contrary, it should be noted that if the temperature is too high or the time is too long when reheating the brown sugar, it will taste bitter and burnt, and may even produce a large amount of acrylamide, a Class 2A carcinogen.

Although there is currently no evidence that it is carcinogenic to humans, it is carcinogenic to animals and is therefore classified as a Class 2A substance by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). The so-called Class 2A substances refer to substances that are carcinogenic to experimental animals, but epidemiological studies are not sufficient to prove that they are carcinogenic to humans.

A large amount of brown sugar can easily cause a sharp rise in blood sugar levels, which may lead to terrible blood sugar levels.

If you really like brown sugar bubble tea drinks, how can you eat brown sugar in a healthy way? People who often drink brown sugar hand-shaken drinks should be aware that not every beverage shop uses real brown sugar. In order to make money, beverage shops may use blended brown sugar liquid, which is brown sugar mixed with granulated sugar and molasses, and then use caramel coloring to adjust the color. Therefore, the brown sugar bubble tea we drink is not necessarily real brown sugar!

Moreover, eating a large amount of brown sugar can easily cause a sharp rise in blood sugar. For patients with poor blood sugar control, their blood sugar will be horribly high after drinking sugary pearl milk tea. If pearl milk tea uses creamer powder to increase the rich taste, long-term consumption will cause abnormal blood lipids and induce cardiovascular disease.

【3 tips for eating brown sugar healthily】:

Nutritionist You Weiming emphasized that it is actually very easy for people to eat brown sugar in a healthy way. Here are 3 tips:

First, buy real brown sugar with good appearance and color, especially the one whose ingredients on the back of the product are marked as pure brown sugar.

Second, the daily intake of brown sugar should be less than 50-100 grams, and no other refined sugars should be consumed.

Third, avoid heating the brown sugar again at high temperature and frying it by hand, which may cause quality deterioration.

By mastering the above 3 points, you can easily enjoy the deliciousness and nutrition of brown sugar without worrying about the health hazards caused by unknown chemicals and artificial caramel coloring.

Many people and even busy medical staff often treat brown sugar bubble tea as a main meal. Is it okay to do so? Nutritionist You Weiming said that the answer is no, because regular meals must contain complete and balanced nutrients to maintain the normal physiological functions of the human body. If brown sugar milk is taken as a regular meal for a long time, nutrient deficiency symptoms such as fatigue, anemia, and dry skin are likely to occur. Therefore, it is recommended that brown sugar bubble tea is more suitable as a high-quality energy supplement between meals. The smart way to drink brown sugar bubble tea is as follows:

[3 tips for drinking brown sugar milk tea wisely]:

Step 1: Change the large cup into a small cup, and the calories will be cut in half instantly, from 700 calories to 350 calories.

Step 2: Replace full sugar with half sugar, reducing 80 calories, leaving only 270 calories.

Step 3: Creamer becomes fresh milk, avoiding trans fatty acids, and also obtaining rich B vitamins, calcium, and high-quality protein, and finally becomes a high-quality energy supplement of about 220 calories.