Off late have you seen more Jaggery in grocery stores and shopping malls. That’s because Jaggery is a sweetener that's becoming popular as a "healthy" replacement for sugar.

Jaggery is an unrefined sugar product which is commonly called as Gur in India. Jaggery is mostly made with sugar cane. However, during winter season Jaggery made from date palm is also readily available.

The basic advantage of Jaggery over sugar is that it is having molasses, which is a by-product of sugar making process. Molasses is having micro-nutrients in it which is getting added in the Jaggery. In the production process of refined sugar this molasses is getting filtered, because of which these micro-nutrients are not present in the sugar. Jaggery also contains small amounts of vitamin B and minerals, including calcium, zinc, phosphorus and copper.

Compared to refined sugar, Jaggery is nutritious in every sense. You need to eat a lot of Jaggery to get a meaningful amount of nutrients as the percentage of nutrients in Jaggery is miniscule. Jaggery is gaining popularity because of the various health benefits associated with it, which includes improved digestive health, anemia prevention, liver detoxification and improved immune function.

Here is a list of benefits which one can gain with the intake of Jaggery:

 

1.     Improvement of Immune Function

Jaggery is thought to help promote immune as well as helps to prevent anemia.

People believe that jaggery can help people recover from diseases such as the common cold and flu. The high calorie content of Jaggery can help to increase energy levels for people struggling with eating when they are sick.

 

2.     Common cold prevention

Jaggery consumption helps to combat cold and cough symptoms. A small part mixed in warm water or tea helps to combat common cold.


3.     Enhanced digestive system 

Jaggery helps in digestive system because of its nutritional values. Jaggery also helps to prevent constipation as it contributes to regular bowl movement. Because of this reason, many people take Jaggery post meal. So if you are looking for a sweet dish post your meal, which has got nutritional values, think about Jaggery.

 

4.     Regulates Blood Pressure

Potassium and sodium are present in Jaggery, which play an important role in keeping the body's pH levels. It ensures the correct maintenance of a normal blood pressure level.

 

5.     Prevention of Anemia

Jaggery is a good source of iron. As in the molasses, along with other micro-nutrients, iron is available. In 100 grams of Jaggery, 11 mg of iron is present. Anemia can be combated by the regular intake of Jaggery in any way. A person can receive 3 percent of daily value iron from 10 grams of Jaggery. Intake of Jaggery helps to improve iron quotient in the body.

 

6.     Detoxification of Liver

Many foods are said to support the removal of toxins from your liver. Jaggery is a natural body purifier which further reduces the liver workload. Jaggery helps to purify the liver by flushing harmful corporeal toxins, which helps to detoxify the liver further. For effective detoxing of your body, Jaggery is the ideal food.

  

7.     Reducing Body Pain & Aches

Do you have pain and aches in your articulations? Jaggery can offer enormous relief for you. You can drink Jaggery every day with a glass of milk to enhance your bones. This can help prevent problems of the joint and bone like arthritis.

If you replace Jaggery with white sugar, your calories will provide you with a few additional nutrients. It's a healthier choice in this way. Jaggery remains very much in common with table sugar at the end of the day and should be sparingly used. So, it is slightly healthier to replace refined sugar with a sweetener that has more vitamins and minerals, JAGGERY!!