Let The Organic “Sugar-leaf”, Stevia Sweetener Spice Up Your Sugar Free Recipes!
Although there are many different types of Stevia Sweetener, the most commonly used is Stevia Rebaudiana (but we will just call it Stevia from now on).
What is stevia anyways?
Stevia is a natural plant that has superman-like sweetening properties. The plant is up to 300 times sweeter than sugar, and is so good for you it will keep you as regular as your morning bran muffin!
Stevia is a natural plant, and through most refining processes it is considered safe to eat even for diabetics!
I find that Stevia has a bit of an aftertaste, but the refining processes are getting better and better, and it is slowly simulating the taste of sugar better and better.
Where Does It Come From?
Stevia comes from all over the world. The most notable growth locations are in:
- China
- Japan
- South America
- Europe
- India
- Ukraine
- Northern Paraguay
- Southern Brazil
Who Makes The Best Brand?
Although there are literally hundreds of companies in the world that produce it, the best brand of stevia that I have found so far is from a company called Herbal Advantage.
Stevia is known for it’s bitter aftertaste, but through years of cross-pollination, they have created a type of stevia that no longer has this bitter taste.
You can find their website here
How Long Has It Been Around?
In the United States, studies were actually done on stevia in the 1950’s.
Obviously it took way longer than that for it to be approved for use, due to dirty politics and other nasty stuff floating around in the time.
So even though Stevia may seem like a new discovery, it’s not as new as you think.
Why Use It?
Stevia has tremendous health benefits, especially for diabetics and people with high blood pressure.
You can learn more about the benefits of stevia in that article.
You can learn more about Stevia, how to use it in baking, and any other information I run into on my page about the Stevia Sweetener.
Different Types of Stevia
Truvia
The newest brand of Stevia Sweetener in my opinion is “Truvia”. Developed only a few years ago by Coca-Cola, it is a natural sweetener that combines Erythritol with Stevia.
I won’t vouch for it until I’ve tried it, but they claim that it is safe for Diabetics, and it seems to be getting really popular.
Stevia Powder
This is part of the traditional “Straight-from-stevia” type products. It’s basically just a refined version of Stevia (with no other ingredients added whatsoever).
Stevia Leaf
Some people just use the straight, unrefined, Stevia leaf in order to sweeten their drinks. Brazilians have done it for hundreds of years, so it sounds like it might work for you too!
Learn where to get the best dried stevia leaves here.
Health Concerns
There are a lot of rumors floating around saying things like “Stevia Gives you Cancer” and other such things saying that Stevia is not good for you.
Many of these rumors have started because the FDA has been…well…turds when it comes to approving it. They claim that “Stevia does not have adequate evidence to prove it is safe”.
In reality, there is much more evidence proving Stevia’s Safety from Japanese research, than any other sugar substitute on the market.
The reason they have been on the fence about it, is basically because…Stevia is cheap! And that puts a lot of other sugar substitutes out of business, because it tastes great!
So you can see how there might be some debate here.
But alas, I can assure you that Stevia is quite safe to eat. Although I obviously can not vouch for any products that simply use Stevia in their product (as they could have other unsafe ingredients in them).