I need to know the truth about stevia!

treeeee

I am a coffee drinker. I used to use sweet n low, then I heard how bad artificial sweeters like sweet n low and splenda are. Fast forward a few days of plain, bitter coffee, and one of the girls I work with told me that years ago she used to have an actual stevia plant - she'd pick a leaf and stick it in with her tea and it would sweeten it even more than sugar. Sounded wonderful!! Well I looked around just a little (went to like two stores..) and couldn't find an actual stevia plant anywhere but at my grocery store, they sell Stevia In The Raw (same brand that sells Sugar In The Raw). The only ingredients are stevia and dextrose. So that's what I switched to.

And then...... the bad news, I read something a few days ago that listed "ingredients to avoid" and stevia was one of the items on the list.

I JUST NEED TO KNOW!!! Is it just as bad as the other artificial sweeteners? Should just I just suck it up and drink my coffee plain?

Bluescat1

I would like to know also. I have started drinking mine black and I'm just fine with it.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

I don't know why stevia would have been on the list to avoid???

It is just a plant. No processing needed. Pick a leaf and float it in your coffee or tea............Dry the leaves and crush them then sprinkle as needed.

Invest in one of these.

WhatDoesLisa

The only thing I can think of is they may have been refering to Stevia extract (liquid with a dropper). I bought one that had 10% alcohol and my sister found one with no alcohol. 10% alcohol is like sucking down Nyquil. That could be it.

PaleoPath4Lyfe

I don't use the powdered stuff that is extract with dextrose added in.

I got plants from my local farmers market.

prov31jd

Here is what I posted on another thread about sugar substitutes:

"Unlike many other white powder sugar substitutes (think nutrasweet, sweet and low, even splenda), stevia is not some chemical concoction. It is a pure extract from the stevia plant. You can actually harvest it yourself if it is not available commercially where you live. Grow the stevia plant in a pot, and when it reaches maturity, pull the leaves off, put them in a brown paper bag to dry. When they're completely dried up, over a fine mesh strainer, crush the leaves between your hands and sift out the pure white powder, which is the very same thing sold commercially."

There are many brands sold commercially. My personal favorite is NOW brand organic stevia -- they call it "Better Stevia" -- I guess because it's organic.

Stevia is a pure plant derivative -- no chemical processing at all. I work with several people from Japan, and they all say they don't know what the big deal is. Stevia has been used there commercially for decades. They even have sodas sweetened with stevia.

I agree with the other poster also: it is better to get used to less sweetener all the way around, whether it's sugar, honey, or some sweet substitute, or whatever. But I'm telling you, stevia is the most natural zero calorie sweetener around. Actually, it's the only one that I know of that you can grow / harvest easily on your own. I believe it's 100% safe. IMHO, the only people who call it unsafe are either ignorant, or have another agenda.

Hope this helps!

awilke03

I asked my nutritionist about it last week & she said it has been linked to liver damage .

prov31jd

I asked my nutritionist about it last week & she said it has been linked to liver damage .

I'd be really interested in the scientific study linking stevia to liver damage.

irridia

Not all stevia is created equal. I have found 3 brands that are okay. Stevia in the Raw, Sweet leaf, and Pure Via. These all contain stevia and destrose or just stevia. Dextrose is added to fill out the product and make it more usable especially in baking.

Brands to avoid for sure: Truvia and Purvia. These are manufactured by Coca-Cola and Pepsi co respectively. They both have sugar alcahols in them which can cause intestinal destress. The store brands of Kroger and Western family also have sugar alcahols.

Usully to find stevia plants you have to go to an actual nursury. You can over winter your stevia by cutting it off at the stem and keeping it in a dark environment. Best harvest is at the end of the season, that is when it is the sweetest.

Stevia can actually help drive down/stabalize blood sugar. I avoid everything else.

irridia

I asked my nutritionist about it last week & she said it has been linked to liver damage .

I'd be really interested in the scientific study linking stevia to liver damage.

Yeah, like who paid for the study, and what was in/on it besides stevia?! How was it refined?, etc. "Studies" said the same thing about comfrey and yet I've found out that it is used cullinarily through out the world as salsify. All gormet and everything.

irridia

this article has pretty much everything I've ever read regarding stevia. I started using it before it was commercially available other than a supplement in the health food section of grocery stores; along with some stuff I hadn't read: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia

murphy612

It's important to keep in mind that just because it's a plant doesn't mean there are no health risks. There seems to be the common misconception that "all natural" means healthy. Oleander's are just a plant/flower, but I won't be putting that in my tea any time soon

Having said that, Stevia is my 0 calorie sweetner of choice. The lesser of the evils maybe? I have also read evidence of increased occurances of mouth/throat cancer for people who drink it in large quantities in South America. Emphasis on LARGE quantities. I'm a huge Yerba Matte fan and when researching the whole culture of the tea I came across this information. Please don't yell at me asking for proof, I'm not saying this is fact, fiction, or myth, I'm just expressing my reason for trying to limit how much I use. I like it to sweeten my drinks but I doubt I'd cook with it.

Like just about anything I think the key is moderation

pantsdailyon

The only thing I can think of is they may have been refering to Stevia extract (liquid with a dropper). I bought one that had 10% alcohol and my sister found one with no alcohol. 10% alcohol is like sucking down Nyquil. That could be it.

I don't see how a few drops of something with 10% alcohol would be like "sucking down" anything.

lmbigsby

Just planted my first 2 stevia plants yesterday.

treeeee

Thanks so much for all of the info everyone. I think I may put a little more effort into finding my very own stevia plant. Other than that... for now it sounds like Stevia in the Raw or the Better Stevia that was suggested are the best options for my morning coffee.

I really appreciate the responses!

yubafarm

Does anyone have an opinion on Stevita, http://stevitastevia.com/. I just invested in a container of the powdered form ($20!! but you do save money this way) to reduce waste from all of the little packets, but it says they use natural products from plant to crystalize the product:

From their website:
**To make it possible to package the powder in small individual servings and to make it easier to measure for cooking purposes, we add in erythritol ,a bulking agent naturally extracted from fruits, vegetables and grains . Unlike other fillers in the market such as lactose, maltodextrine, F.O.S., etc, , erythritol has a very high digestive tolerance and is very safe for diabetics.**

I know this product is heavily processed, which I am not super thrilled about...I'm going to experiment with growing the plant and using the leaves directly but for now it is soooo helpful to me, it tastes so good in plain yogurt.

prov31jd

Does anyone have an opinion on Stevita, http://stevitastevia.com/. I just invested in a container of the powdered form ($20!! but you do save money this way) to reduce waste from all of the little packets, but it says they use natural products from plant to crystalize the product:

From their website:
**To make it possible to package the powder in small individual servings and to make it easier to measure for cooking purposes, we add in erythritol ,a bulking agent naturally extracted from fruits, vegetables and grains . Unlike other fillers in the market such as lactose, maltodextrine, F.O.S., etc, , erythritol has a very high digestive tolerance and is very safe for diabetics.**

I know this product is heavily processed, which I am not super thrilled about...I'm going to experiment with growing the plant and using the leaves directly but for now it is soooo helpful to me, it tastes so good in plain yogurt.

Until you get your own plant going and harvested, there are other brands of stevia that are purely stevia, with no additives, and even organic ones. They are not that expensive either. Read back through the thread -- I think 3 or 4 brands were mentioned.

MoreBean13

Bumping because I'm interested in any studies about health consequences of stevia. As far as I know, the most significant consequence is that it may actually HEAL pancreatic cells, so it's excellent for diabetics. I'm always open to new info though...

I buy Kal brand stevia from amazon- my local grocery stores only stock truvia and purvia. I made the choice by reading hundreds of amazon reviews on stevia products. It might seem expensive, but a little bit goes a really long way- the spice shaker size I bought has 2300 servings. And the pure stuff is truly that sweet, too- not like 2300 servings but you need 10 to sweeten a cup of tea.

LeaninBack916

Just LIFT and keep calories low. /end

mistij68

excellent, that was very helpful. I use stevia all the time in my tea.

angieleighbyrd

i actually found my stevia packets in the vitamin aisle