Stevia

My trainer told me to use either stevia or xylitol if I was going to use a sweetener. They're both herbal and as long as you get the organic/natural stuff, it's not bad for you at all. Xylitol tastes more like sugar, but it's more expensive and and takes a lot more to get it sweet - stevia doesn't take much at all! I use it every day.

I get a caramel one from the natural food store - goes GREAT in coffee!

i use Truvia and Stevia in the Raw. i put it in greek unsweetened yogurt and in my tea. it tastes so good and it's good for you. From Wikipedia:

No evidence for stevia constituents causing cancer or birth defects has been found.[50][51]
Other studies have shown stevia to improve insulin sensitivity in rats,[52] and possibly even to promote additional insulin production,[53] helping to reverse diabetes and metabolic syndrome.[54] Preliminary human studies suggest stevia can help reduce hypertension,[55] although another study has shown it to have no effect on hypertension.[56] Indeed, millions of Japanese have been using stevia for over thirty years with no reported or known harmful effects.[57] Similarly, stevia leaves have been used for centuries in South America, spanning multiple generations in ethnomedical tradition as a treatment for Diabetes mellitus type 2.[58]
In 2006, the World Health Organization (WHO) performed a thorough evaluation of recent experimental studies of stevioside and steviols conducted on animals and humans, and concluded "stevioside and rebaudioside A are not genotoxic in vitro or in vivo and that the genotoxicity of steviol and some of its oxidative derivatives in vitro is not expressed in vivo."[59] The report also found no evidence of carcinogenic activity.

love it, have it in my coffee every day.

I use it everyday too. I love it!

I have been searching for a good sweetener for so long. I went from Splenda to Agave to Truvia and now I just started using the stevia liquid and my quest is finally over!! I love it! I have the plain one for when I make fresh brewed iced tea and I got a chocolate flavored one for my coffee but I've also used it in smoothies, desserts and unsweetened almond milk. I can't wait to try some of the other flavors I've seen! As far as I've read so far, there are no side effects or risks associated with it. If I use too much I notice a bit of an aftertaste, but you really only need a couple of drops to get the sweetness.

Thank you to all the replys so far! I had no idea there were flavors...I will definately have to look for those. The one I tried was Nu Naturals and its the clear plain one...but caramel sounds great for coffee! and vanilla too! I loove sugar and have tried to find an artificial sweetner that I liked and haven't found one til now. Is it supposed to better for you than splenda or aspartame?

Per Wikipedia:

No evidence for stevia constituents causing cancer or birth defects has been found.[50][51]

Other studies have shown stevia to improve insulin sensitivity in rats,[52] and possibly even to promote additional insulin production,[53] helping to reverse diabetes and metabolic syndrome.[54]

Preliminary human studies suggest stevia can help reduce hypertension,[55] although another study has shown it to have no effect on hypertension.[56]

Indeed, millions of Japanese have been using stevia for over thirty years with no reported or known harmful effects.[57]

Similarly, stevia leaves have been used for centuries in South America, spanning multiple generations in ethnomedical tradition as a treatment for Diabetes mellitus type 2.[58]

In 2006, the World Health Organization (WHO) performed a thorough evaluation of recent experimental studies of stevioside and steviols conducted on animals and humans, and concluded "stevioside and rebaudioside A are not genotoxic in vitro or in vivo and that the genotoxicity of steviol and some of its oxidative derivatives in vitro is not expressed in vivo."[59] The report also found no evidence of carcinogenic activity.