A sweeter life for diabetics — baking studio promotes sugar substitutes

Sweet flavour often goes with good times, like cakes for celebrations, sweet soups after a meal, or bubble tea for a treat. Social enterprise Carpediem House not only makes delightful desserts with sugar substitutes but also holds baking classes for diabetics.

Diabetics make up 10% of Hong Kong’s population

Sugar substitutes are no good? Diabetics cannot eat sweets? Founders Ivan and Calder noted that the general public has a shallow understanding towards diabetes. In Hong Kong, 10% of the population suffers from diabetes, and many of them avoid speaking about it, in fear of being stigmatised. The first diabetic that Ivan came across is a social worker, whom he met as a teen during a volunteer service. “Every time after cleaning the kennel, the social worker would treat us to Swiss rolls, which were very sweet and delicious, but she never ate them…it turns out that she had diabetes since she was 20, and so abstained from eating freely.” This small revelation came as a big surprise to Ivan, “I have done a lot of volunteer services, but never noticed this group of people or realised they may need help.” 

Sharing is the sweetest treat 

He kept this in mind until he met Calder during his summer job, who was also interested in setting up a social enterprise. They co-founded Carpediem House, which was selected as one of the Incubatees of Impact Innovation Lab. With The Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Fund, they organise baking classes with sugar substitutes for diabetics, so they can master baking skills, make their own healthy desserts, and share them with their family and friends. During the 6-month Incubation Period, they collaborated with different NGOs. In Calder’s view, it is not just about baking skills but also sharing joy. “To address participants’ varying abilities, we start with something simple. In fact, all an elderly needs to be happy is someone to share or chat with.” During a class at a remote elderly home, the elderly were so into chatting that they forgot what they were doing. “We had a great time together.”

A cupcake is worth a thousand words

The most memorable experience for Ivan is working with Silence, a service centre for the deaf, where they made desserts together in silence. “Even though I do not know sign language and could not communicate with them directly, we share the same happiness through a cupcake.” He also realised that a person in need is not correlated with ability, social status, wealth, or age. “Dessert making is a good entry point for them to understand sugar substitutes and their usage, offering them an alternative in life, which is also our mission.” 

Sugar substitutes do no harm

Putting training into practice, Calder believed that they got a clearer picture going forward, and education is the key, through which they hope to raise awareness of diabetes, promote healthy eating, and dispel misconceptions about sugar substitutes. Ivan cited the example of sweetener Aspartame, which has long been regarded as harmful, but in fact it poses the same health hazard as red meat. Natural sweeteners vary in nature — Stevia has a strong flavour that may affect the taste of desserts; Xylitol is mint-like, but can upset the stomach. Carpediem House currently uses the more expensive monk fruit sweetener. “It is closer to the taste of sugar than others, and the refining process is relatively simple and environmentally friendly.”

Carpediem House is all about sweet treats for diabetics, but its name has nothing to do with it. “Diabetes is a disease, but it is very common. We don’t want society to label diabetics or treat them as patients.” Carpe Diem is a Latin expression that means “seize the day” — let’s live in the present and enjoy every moment.