Stevia Natures Perfect Natural Sweetener

Recently, sugar has come under intense scrutiny, some even referring to it as the "white devil." In the U.S., sugar is so widespread that it's hard to imagine life without it. Both children and adults have been addicted to it's sweet taste and high caloric food offerings since toddlerhood.

There have been hundreds of independent and government-funded research studies that link sugar to a variety of health problems including obesity, cancer, diabetes and tooth decay. A high intake of sugar is also many times the root cause of behavioral problems and hyperactivity in children.

Americans have become so accustomed to eating and drinking sugar-laden foods they don't stop to realize that their accumulative sugar intake is deteriorating their health. When nutrient-void sugar enters the body it steals vital nutrients like calcium and magnesium from other parts of the body to metabolize it.

Increased rates of sugar intake and diabetes

Back in 1915, the annual per person sugar intake was around 17 pounds. That increased dramatically to 124 pounds in 1980 and currently the annual per person sugar consumption is 155 pounds. What's interesting is that the diabetes rate has also increased at an alarming rate. In 1963, 13.6 people out of 1,000 had diabetes. In 2005 the prevalence of diabetes increased to 54.5 per 1,000 people! Sugar has long been associated with diabetes because a high sugar intake means the pancreas has to work harder to produce enough insulin required to normalize the blood sugar. An overproduction of insulin can end up leaving a body with high blood sugar, resulting in diabetes.

A safer alternative

The naturally-sweetened leaves of the plant Stevia have been safely used for centuries in South America and since the 1970s throughout Japan. As a sweetener, stevia extract has become so popular in Japan that it now has over 50% share of the commercial sweetener market. It can be found in everything from soy sauce to vegetables to soft drinks. With no calories, added chemicals, or serious side effects Stevia is quickly growing in popularity all over the world. Unlike sugar, where you need to add cups of it to a recipe to enhance the flavor, Stevia uses only a drop or two because it's up to 300 times sweeter than sugar.

Unlike nutritionally void sugar, Stevia offers a multitude of health benefits that have been proven in more than 500 studies:

• Does not effect blood glucose levels, so it is safe for diabetics to use
• Prevents tooth decay by inhibiting the growth of bacteria in the mouth
• Aids in digestion and helps to soothe an upset stomach
• Is excellent for weight management as it helps curb cravings for high-caloric sugary foods.

Stevia is sold in various forms: live plant, dried leaves, powder or liquid; each with it's own unique flavor and sweetness. Due to increased customer demand, more health, nutrition and grocery stores are stocking their shelves with Stevia. However, since the FDA has labeled Stevia a notional supplement and not a sweetener, it will be stocked by the vitamins and supplements rather than next to the sugar and sugar substitutes.

Stevia is a naturally sweet-leafed herb that has been growing in South America for hundreds of years. As the popularity of Stevia grows, it begins to slowly claim it's share of the multi-billion dollar sweetener market. The companies at stake have noticed and you can bet the sugar, Aspartame, Saccharine and Splenda manufacturers are frantically trying to prove Stevia has some ill side effects to prevent the FDA from labeling it a sweetener and allowing it to be used as a food additive. Currently, the FDA has allowed Stevia to only be labeled as a food supplement.

So, what have all these scientific studies conclusively come up with for Stevia side effects? Well, since Stevia belongs to the same family of plants that includes chrysanthemums and daisies, those who are sensitive to any of these plants may also be sensitive to Stevia. Not quite on par with links to diabetes, multiple sclerosis, seizures and cancer as the other sweeteners have.

Other studies have inconclusively shown the "possibility" of dizziness, headaches and bloating. However, decades of widespread use throughout Asia and Europe have shown that no real side effects exist and that Stevia is completely safe and safer to use over sugar and any other sugar substitute. Since the 1970s Japan has been using Stevia in a wide variety of foods such as ice cream, sodas, pickles, sauces, and a variety of beverages. In fact, Stevia now has over 50% of the sweetener market share in Japan. That number continues to grow as the evidence against Aspartame and other artificial sweeteners mount.

As Stevia is continually being shown to have minimal possible side effects, Aspartame is becoming under heavy attack for it's long list of hazardous health risks including severe damage to the nervous system and altercations to the brain's chemistry. It has been proven that once Aspartame reaches 86 degrees it turns into Formaldehyde poisoning. Think of how hot those delivery trucks get in the summer time, sitting for days in the back of boiling hot delivery trucks. Aspartame is even being looked at as the blame for the mysterious illnesses our military troops became stricken with during Desert Storm. Millions of cans of soda containing Aspartame were delivered to the 100+ degree temperatures of the Arabian desert. Our soldiers were drinking cans of soda all day long in that heat.

What little possible side effects Stevia has is nothing in comparison to the dangers of sugar (obesity, cancer, tooth decay, hyperactivity, behavioral problems, etc) and artificial sweeteners (memory loss, nerve damage, seizures, coma and even death.) As Stevia is becoming more well-known and widely available, consumers are realizing they are able to make their own choice on whether to ingest unnecessary dangers and chemicals to their body or use an all natural sweetening herb with zero calories and minimal side effects. For many, the choice is clear that the benefits of Stevia far outweigh the very real dangers and toxicity of it's sweetening alternatives: sugar, Aspartame, Saccharin and Splenda.