When you want to satisfy your sweet tooth, consider
using maple syrup which contains fewer calories and a higher
concentration of minerals than honey.
Sweeten Your Antioxidant Defenses
The trace mineral manganese
is an essential cofactor in a number of enzymes important in energy
production and antioxidant defenses. For example, the key oxidative
enzyme superoxide dismutase, which disarms free radicals produced
within the mitochondria (the energy production factories within our
cells), requires manganese. One ounce of maple syrup supplies 22.0% of
the daily value for this very important trace mineral.
Be Sweet to Your Heart with Maple Syrup
Maple syrup is a good sweetener to use if you are trying to protect the health of your heart. The zinc
supplied by maple syrup, in addition to acting as an antioxidant, has
other functions that can decrease the progression of atherosclerosis.
Zinc is needed for the proper function of endothelial cells and helps to prevent the endothelial damage caused by oxidized LDL cholesterol and other oxidized fats. (The endothelium is the inner lining of blood vessels.) Endothelial
membranes low in zinc are much more prone to injury. Additionally,
studies have found that in adults deficient in manganese, the other
trace mineral amply supplied in maple syrup, the level of HDL (the
"good" cholesterol) is decreased.
Sweet Support for Your Immune System
Zinc and manganese are important allies in the immune system. Many
types of immune cells appear to depend upon zinc for optimal function.
Particularly in children, researchers have studied the effects of zinc
deficiency (and zinc supplementation) on their immune response and their
number of white blood cells, including specific studies on T
lymphocytes, macrophages, and B cells (all types of white blood cells
important for immune defenses). In these studies, zinc deficiency has
been shown to compromise numbers of white blood cell and immune
response, while zinc supplementation has been shown to restore
conditions to normal. In addition to the role played by zinc, the
manganese in maple syrup is important since, as a component of the
antioxidant SOD, it helps lessen inflammation, thus supporting healing.
In addition, manganese may also act as an immunostimulant.
Real Healthy Men Use Maple Syrup
Maple syrup may help to support reproductive health and provides
special benefits for men. Zinc is concentrated more highly in the
prostate than in any other human tissue, and low levels of zinc in this
gland relate to a higher risk for prostate cancer. In fact, zinc is a
mineral used therapeutically by healthcare practitioners to help reduce
prostate size. Manganese may also play a role in supporting men's health
since, as a catalyst in the synthesis of fatty acids and cholesterol,
it also participates in the production of sex hormones, thus helping to
maintain reproductive health.
whfoods.com, about.com