2 - Sugar free recipes and low carb / low GI diets

It depends on what is meant by 'sugar free'. In theory, any recipe claiming it is sugar free should be OK for a low GI diet as long as it does not contain a significant amount of sugar alternatives such as honey, maple syrup, fructose, concentrated fruit juices or other highly refined carbohydrate foods such as white flour, white rice and white pasta, or large quantities of fruit juice.

In terms of low carb diets, the same holds true as far as sugar alternatives are concerned. However, grains are high in carbohydrates and even the 'good' versions of them such as whole grain flour, whole grain bread, whole grain pasta, brown rice and dried and fresh fruits which may be allowed on a low GI diet are usually unsuitable for a low carb diet.

Sometimes people look for sugar free recipes because they simply want to cut down on the amount of refined sugar they are eating. Other users of sugar free recipes are those following an anti candida diet. However, candida diets are usually yeast free, not just sugar free.

Diabetics are another group of people who look for sugar free recipes. In their case, what they are looking for in sugar free recipes is most likely to be similar to those following low GI diets.

All the recipes in the "Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook" are sugar free and because they are in addition very low carb and yeast free, they are also fine for diabetics and people following the candida diet.

People doing a sugar free diet do it for a variety of reasons. They may be diabetic, hyperactive (ADHD), have candida or yeast overgrowth, or simply want to cut down on refined sugar intake.

Not all low carb recipes omit sugar completely. Some contain reduced amounts of it and count the sugar in the overall carb count, which makes the recipes low sugar rather than sugar free. Other low carb recipes use alternative natural sweeteners such as honey, fructose, maple syrup, dried fruits or concentrated fruit juice which are for many purposes simply sugar by another name.

The recipes in the "Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook" do not contain any of these forms of sugar. They are not only suitable for all low GI and low carb diets, they are also suitable for anyone who wants sugar free recipes for diabetic, candida diet, ADHD or just 'cutting down sugar' reasons.

All recipes that are low carb are likely to be OK for low GI diets (unless they are very high in fat, which many low GI diets restrict). But low GI diet recipes are not necessarily OK for low carb diets.

This is because low GI diets focus on avoiding the highly refined carbohydrates such as sugar, sweets and candy, white bread, pastries, cakes, cookies and sugary desserts rather than limiting all foods high in carbohydrates. Unfortunately, the 'good' carbohydrates allowed on low GI diets are usually still too high in carbs for anyone on a low carb diet.

The recipes in the "Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook" are all very low in carbs, so they are fine for all types of low carb and low GI diets.