Not so sweet!

Sugarcane juice does not help cure diseases, say scientists

Rachit Mankad

Posted On Friday, July 02, 2010   

From curing jaundice to helping fight cancers and strengthening the heart, sugarcane juice has been touted as the best remedy of many of mankind's ailments. But are these claims really true?

Not, think scientists such as Roger Clemens, professor of pharmacology and pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Southern California (USC). "I’ve been working in this field for 40 years, and I’ve never seen any evidence for any of this,” Clemens is reported to have said.

Clemens reiterates that science does not back the claims that raw cane juice can help soothe a sore throat or energise the body. Even the so-called alkalising properties have not been proved to fight breast and prostrate cancer.

How about raw cane juice as an energy drink - maybe it could, at the very least, serve to get you through a  4 o’clock slump at work?

“There’s a difference between nutritionally rich and calorie rich. The bottom line is there isn’t any scientific evidence to support these purported claims,” Clemens said.

So, drink raw cane juice if you like the taste, but don’t expect miracles.

SWEET COOLERS

In most countries where sugarcane is cultivated, there are several drinks derived directly from it:

  • Sugarcane juice: a combination of fresh juice, extracted by hand or small mills, with a touch of lemon and ice to make a popular drink, known variously as ganne ka rass, guarab, guarapa, guarapo, papelón, aseer asab, Ganna sharbat, mosto and caldo de cana
  • Cachaça: the most popular distilled alcoholic beverage in Brazil; a liquor made of the distillation of sugarcane
  • Molasses: used as a sweetener and a syrup accompanying other foods, such as cheese or cookies
  • Rum: especially in the Caribbean
  • Syrup: a traditional sweetener in soft drinks, now largely supplanted (in the US at least) by high-fructose corn syrup, which is less expensive because of subsidies.



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