More nutritious than most sweeteners

Lucuma can be eaten raw but is most commonly found in a dried, powdered supplement form that’s often used as a natural sweetener. One tablespoon (7.5 grams) of lucuma powder provides:

• Calories: 30
• Protein: 0 grams
• Fat: 0 grams
• Carbs: 6 grams
• Sugars: 1.5 grams
• Fiber: 2 grams

Lucuma has fewer calories but more nutrients than table sugar. It has around half the carbohydrates and 75% less sugar than the same quantity of table sugar. Unlike most other conventional sweeteners, such as table sugar, lucuma powder has a considerable quantity of both soluble and insoluble fiber. Insoluble fiber bulks up your stool and helps food travel easily through your stomach, preventing constipation. Soluble fiber feeds healthy gut bacteria, which create short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) such as acetate, propionate, and butyrate. Cells in your intestines then utilize them as nourishment, keeping them healthy.

These short-chain fats also help to reduce inflammation and alleviate symptoms of digestive illnesses such as IBS, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. One tablespoon (7.5 grams) of lucuma powder also contains calcium, iron, potassium, niacin, and vitamin C, however, the levels are often less than 1% of the Daily Value (DV). Nonetheless, it is more nutritional than other common sweeteners.