"Added sugars come in several forms other than table sugar, such as evaporated cane juice and high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Calorie-containing sweeteners like maple syrup, honey, agave, and coconut sugar are marketed as "natural" and often touted as healthier alternatives to these types of added sugars. Is there any truth to these claims?"

Don't go overboard with dates and dried fruit. Avoid all sweetening agents including maple syrup and honey. Excessively sweet foods keep your taste buds accustomed to that excessive sweetness, perpetuating the desire for more sweet foods, which also promotes weight gain. When you consume overly sweetened foods regularly it makes real food such as fresh fruits not taste as spectacular. A piece of fruit for dessert or a small amount of dried fruit to sweeten a sauce or salad dressing is all you need.

Question: "You wrote "Prevent and Reverse Heart Disease" in 2007. Is there anything you would add today?"

Answer: "Oh yeah, several things I think are critical. These blockages and plaque in people's arteries are an oxidative cauldron of inflammation. We need antioxidants, not the kind you buy as a jug of pills, but a greater emphasis on natural antioxidant foods -- raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and more specifically, green leafy vegetables -- bok choy, kale, Swiss chard, collard greens, broccoli, spinach, parsley, arugula -- and I am sure I left some out, but you just can't get enough of those."

"The other thing we did not know when the book was written is that one of the real rascals in this whole thing is sugar. Maple syrup, molasses and honey were in our book. We can't do that anymore. Fructose injures the lining of the blood vessels. Even orange juice or apple juice. It is fine to eat an orange or an apple, but when you have the juice, the sugar is separated from the fiber and the absorption is so rapid."

Are there any health-promoting sweeteners? The only two concentrated sweeteners I consider to be green-light foods—ones that should be maximized—may be blackstrap molasses and date sugar. Other natural caloric sweeteners, such as honey, less processed cane sugars, and maple, agave, and brown rice syrups don’t appear to have much to offer nutritionally.

IIIB. Simple sugar foods provide concentrated calories and often little else.
1. White sugar (worst).
2. Brown sugar.
3. Corn syrup.
4. Honey.
5. Maple syrup.
6. Molasses.
7. Malt syrup.
8. Agave nectar.
9. Sorbet.
10. Jams and jellies.
11. Fruit puree (like applesauce -- significant content of vitamins and minerals).
12. Dried fruit (best) (significant content of fiber, vitamins and minerals).

Simple sugars include white table sugar (sucrose) and high-fructose corn syrup. But simple sugars are also the main ingredients in sweet-tasting honey, molasses, agave, and maple syrup. All of these concentrated simple sugars contain 2.5 to 4 calories per gram of mostly "empty calories".

Fighting your inborn love for sugar is as senseless as fighting your hunger drive; you are destined to lose. My recommendation is to eat first and foremost the natural sugars in starches, vegetables, and fruits. For additional pleasure, add some simple sugars. The most taste for the least sugar is accomplished by placing the sweetener on the surface of the food where the tip of the tongue can taste it directly. My experience has been that most people will enjoy their bowl of morning oatmeal even more with a teaspoon of brown sugar on top rather than plain. That spoonful of pleasure is only 16 additional calories. The same enhanced enjoyment comes from a drizzle of maple syrup over pancakes, molasses mixed into baked beans, or a little barbecue sauce poured over potatoes. Simply put, for long-term compliance and a pleasure-filled life, your meals must taste great.