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| Stevia |
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Stevia is a genus of about 240 species of herbs and shrubs in the
sunflower family (Asteraceae), native to subtropical and tropical
South America and Central America. The species Stevia rebaudiana,
commonly known as sweetleaf, sweet leaf, sugarleaf, or simply stevia,
is widely grown for its sweet leaves. As a sweetener and sugar
substitute, stevia's taste has a slower onset and longer duration
than that of sugar, although some of its extracts may have a bitter
or licorice-like aftertaste at high concentrations. With its extracts having up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar, stevia has garnered attention with the rise in demand for low-carbohydrate, low-sugar food alternatives. Medical research has also shown possible benefits of stevia in treating obesity and high blood pressure. Because stevia has a negligible effect on blood glucose, it is attractive as a natural sweetener to people on carbohydrate-controlled diets. However, health and political controversies have limited stevia's availability in many countries; for example, the United States banned it in the early 1990s unless labeled as a supplement. Stevia is widely used as a sweetener in Japan, and it is now available in Canada as a dietary supplement. Rebiana is a trade name for a zero-calorie sweetener containing mainly the steviol glycoside rebaudioside A (Reb-A), which is extracted from stevia. Truvia is the consumer brand for a sweetener made of erythritol and Rebiana marketed by Cargill and developed jointly with The Coca-Cola Company. In December 2008, the United States Food and Drug Administration permitted Reb A based sweeteners as food additives. PureVia is the PepsiCo and Merisant brand of Reb A. |
| History and use |
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The genus Stevia consists of 240 species of plants native to South
America, Central America, and Mexico, with several species found as
far north as Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. Human use of the sweet
species S. rebaudiana originated in South America. The leaves of the
stevia plant have 30–45 times the sweetness of sucrose (ordinary
table sugar). The leaves can be eaten fresh, or put in teas and
foods. In 1899, The Swiss botanist Moisés Santiago Bertoni first described the plant and the sweet taste in detail. But only limited research was conducted on the topic, until in 1931, two French chemists isolated the glycosides that give stevia its sweet taste. These compounds were named stevioside and rebaudioside, and are 250–300 times sweeter than sucrose, heat stable, pH stable, and non-fermentable. The exact structure of the aglycone and the glycoside were published in 1955. In the early 1970s, Japan began cultivating stevia as an alternative to artificial sweeteners such as cyclamate and saccharin, which were suspected carcinogens. The plant's leaves, the aqueous extract of the leaves, and purified steviosides are used as sweeteners. Since the Japanese firm Morita Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd. produced the first commercial stevia sweetener in Japan in 1971, the Japanese have been using stevia in food products, soft drinks (including Coca Cola), and for table use. Japan currently consumes more stevia than any other country, with stevia accounting for 40% of the sweetener market. Today, stevia is cultivated and used in food elsewhere in east Asia, including in China (since 1984), Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Malaysia. It can also be found in Saint Kitts and Nevis, in parts of South America (Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Paraguay, and Uruguay) and in Israel. China is the world's largest exporter of stevioside. Stevia species are found in the wild in semi-arid habitats ranging from grassland to mountain terrain. Stevia does produce seeds, but only a small percentage of them germinate. Planting cloned stevia is a more effective method of reproduction. |
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