Truvia Natural.. Fact or Fiction

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jkleman79
jkleman79 Posts: 706 Member
in Food and Nutrition
No wonder Truvia is growing like gangbusters. It’s Honestly Sweet. Yum! Where has this product been hiding all these years? But if all this marketing hype sounds too good to be true, you’re right. After digging to discover Truvia’s TRUE story, you may not be so excited to jump on its bandwagon.


stevia leaves
First things first, is Truvia made from a leaf? Well the answer is kinda, sorta. Truvia has three ingredients: erythritol, rebiana, and natural flavors. Rebiana is made from the stevia leaf by soaking it in water. Although Cargill whitewashes the process as similar to making tea, the truth is revealed in Coca-Cola’s patent where it outlines a 40+ step process that includes the use of acetone, methanol, ethanol, acetonitrile, and isopropanol. I don’t know about you, but when I make a cup of tea, I’ve never used any of those ingredients.

The second fallacy of Truvia’s “guilt-free” naturalness is it’s main ingredient, erythritol. Now while erythritol is a naturally-occurring sweetener found in many fruits, in nature it is present in such small amounts (less than .005% by weight) it’s impractical to use natural sources. So Cargill manufacturers Truvia’s erythritol by chemically converting genetically modified corn into a food grade starch which it ferments to create glucose and then processes further to create erythritol. Ah, the gentle hand of Mother Nature. Sorry for the sarcasm, but really Cargill? All Natural? Truvia sounds more like a GMO lab experiment than a sweetener straight from nature.

Finally, Cargill uses “natural flavors” to round out the taste of Truvia. On Truvia’s website it says “… Natural flavors are used to bring out the best of our natural sweetness, like pepper or salt would be used to heighten the taste of a meal.” The processed food industry’s dirty little secret about “natural flavors” is unlike regular table salt or pepper you and I use, food companies manufacture many “natural flavors” since the only legal requirement is that they are chemically equivalent to a natural flavor. So get back out the test tubes, beakers, and distilling equipment. Mother Nature’s not needed here either.

So when it’s all said and done, is Truvia really “Honestly Sweet”? I don’t think so. While it may pass the FDA’s sniff test, as we’ve seen in my series “All Natural … Really?” that really isn’t so hard to do.

Replies

  • misSportylady
    misSportylady Posts: 1
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    What about Stevia?
  • mom2lyla
    mom2lyla Posts: 123 Member
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    I'm digging all these posts. Making me think critically about what I'm putting in my body, thanks! So what do you use to sweeten your tea? I was using Stevia in the Raw but I'm guessing that's probably very similar to the Truvia.
  • Sallycinnimon
    Sallycinnimon Posts: 102 Member
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    I had heard all that too, so I tried Stevia In The Raw. I don't care for the taste though, so I'm just trying to use less sugar until I get to to using none at all. I also use Organic Agave for tea. That's a whole different hot button issue though. =)
  • tjsusong
    tjsusong Posts: 195 Member
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    CRAP!!! I was really enjoying it!!! I guess back to Sweet and Low it is:(
  • 8dozendiets
    8dozendiets Posts: 47
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    Great post. My husband is a chemist and I asked him about Truvia. He said that nasty things could be done to it during the processing which might negate the fact that it comes from a plant.

    Who knows anymore? I should probably learn to drink my tea unsweetened.
  • NashvilleShelley
    NashvilleShelley Posts: 238
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    One teaspoon of sugar has only 16 calories. Seems to be "natural". Not really sure how they make it. But I can budget 16 calories for something that I don't think was made in a test tube. Have never liked artificial sweetener. I'll stick with sugar!

    Please don't post how sugar is made! LOL!!
  • Sheriemae
    Sheriemae Posts: 248
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    Ugh! I use Truvia every morning in my coffee. Wondering if I should just start using Real Sugar?
  • Sallycinnimon
    Sallycinnimon Posts: 102 Member
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    Please don't post how sugar is made! LOL!!

    Agreed!! LOL
  • babykanguruh
    babykanguruh Posts: 53
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    Though I'm certainly no expert, I think that regular Stevia (i.e. Stevia in the Raw) should be fine. It has been around for a long time, and is derived from the leaves of the Stevia plant. I actually grow Stevia in my herb garden. To sweeten a drink, I simply pick a leaf off the plant and put it in the cup with the beverage, then smoosh it around a bit. It works wonderfully. Hope this helps!
  • julessimeone
    julessimeone Posts: 3
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    How about you guys just try honey?
  • Sheriemae
    Sheriemae Posts: 248
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    How about you guys just try honey?

    Think I'll pick some up this weekend and try it. How much would you use for a cup of coffee?
  • mom2lyla
    mom2lyla Posts: 123 Member
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    How about you guys just try honey?

    Depending on what I'm using it in, I don't love the taste. I've heard good things about agave nectar, though...may need to look into that.
  • jkleman79
    jkleman79 Posts: 706 Member
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    http://www.brucebradley.com/

    Here is the link to more great reads from him.... He has a book coming out called FAT PROFITS I cant wait to read it.

    He was a big food industy executive for the past 15 years and is now speaking out.
  • jltother
    jltother Posts: 14 Member
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    Honey works great! I put a tablespoon in my coffee in the morning and am working on cutting that down. It's 60 calories but I budget around it. I also put a little cinnamon in it for flavor and the health benefits. I've discovered that since I've cut out so much sugar and such that I can actually enjoy unsweetened iced tea which was unheard of for this southern boy a year ago. Just remember every little change in the right direction helps you reach your goals!
  • wdmom
    wdmom Posts: 24 Member
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    Interesting posts. I had a look at some of your previous posts. I have to make sure I can find you again.

    Keep up the good work.
  • Mommawarrior
    Mommawarrior Posts: 897 Member
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    http://www.brucebradley.com/

    Here is the link to more great reads from him.... He has a book coming out called FAT PROFITS I cant wait to read it.

    He was a big food industy executive for the past 15 years and is now speaking out.

    I have been reading his writing a lot. Thanks for the posts.
  • vs1023
    vs1023 Posts: 417 Member
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    I've done a lot of research on this stuff and come to my own conclusions. Truvia is owned by one of the biggie soda companies (Coke, pepsi? not sure) cause they want to put it in soda which they've started already replacing splenda, etc. The thing is they have still chemically altered it so it's not TRUE stevia. The govt of the US won't allow true stevia as a sweetener, but as a dietary supplement. I buy the liquid stevia from Whole Foods avoiding the one made with alcohol. I do use a little in my coffee. I was once using Splenda and i found it made me more anxious and a bit nutty in general. Either way I try to limit any artificial sweetener and go for sugar from real sources instead.

    Companies want to make money. They don't care about your well being. It is up to YOU to make informed decisions. Don't buy all the hype you see on packaging and tv :)
  • marquesajen
    marquesajen Posts: 641
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    I think I'll just stick to organic sugar and use it in moderation. Thanks for the information!

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