If you’re into health food, and alternative and holistic foods you’ve probably heard of Stevia extract, Stevia rebaudiana, a sweetener that comes from South America and used by the Guarani Indians in Paraguay for a long time.  It has no calories, no fats, and will not significantly increase your glycemic load.

If you have not heard of it, you probably will soon.  Many food producers, including Pepsi, CocaCola, and Cargill (a huge food and agribusiness corporation) are now beginning to market it.  You’ll soon find it in a bunch of new drinks and foods, and in packets of sweeteners, under such names as Truvia, PureVia, SweetLeaf, and of course, Stevia.

It’s been sold in health food stores and drug stores for years as a “dietary supplement.”  Now, more research has supposedly been done by several major food companies claiming they have proven it as safe, so its pure form has just been approved for use food and beverages by the FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration), here’s a Wall Street Journal news article on it.

There are a couple of studies that may indicate that Stevia could have positive health benefits, such as one from Chinese studies that say it may lower blood pressure, and another from Denmark that it might lower glycemic levels in Type 2 diabetics.  These studies, though, have purportedly been on huge amounts of the sweeteners.  There’s also been a controversial ban on imports of it into the U.S., due to some 1960’s small studies that may have shown a connection to cancers in animals, despite a good record of safety for many years in Japan.  There’s a good article from U.S. News and World Report on it.

I’ve tried it, and it is indeed sweet.  It does however, have a bit of an aftertaste, somewhat similar to licorice, which I hate.  This aftertaste has been eliminated in some new versions, I read.

Stevia extract will stand up to baking, and in hot or cold foods.  You can theoretically save calories if you need a lot of sweetener in your foods.

The bottom line for me, though, and what I teach my clients and workshop attendees is that it’s best not to have to use any sweeteners or sugar, ultimately.  Best to get the sweetness from fruits, and from life.

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