Moises Santiago Bertoni (1857-1929), a Swiss botanist, was the first European to discover the sweet leaf plant, after he and his wife settled in Paraguay, doing scientific research in 1899. He and his wife’s name became the scientific name for the species Stevia Rebaudiana Bertoni. His wife, who shared in the discovery, was Eugenia Rossetti Rebaud. Bertoni discovered that the Paraguayan Guarani natives had been using the sweet leaves in their yerba mate teas and in their medicinal teas for hundreds of years.
In 1931, two unnamed French chemists isolated the glycosides that contain the sweetness in the Stevia leaves and named them Stevioside and Rebaudioside. These two compounds are 250-300 times sweeter than sucrose from sugar and are heat stable, pH stable, and non-fermentable.
Begining of the Spread of Stevia:
In 1971, Morita Kagaku Kogyo Co., Ltd., of Japan, was the first in the world to commercialize the Stevia sweetener. Since then, Morita has developed their own “Rebaudio” (rebaudioside) variety. Morita controls the whole process from cultivation of the Stevia plants to extraction and refinement of the rebaudiside glycosides. The Japanese have been using Stevia for over 30 years with no adverse effects. Stevia is used in Japan to sweeten Coca-Cola, other soft drinks, teas and food. Japan is the largest consumer of Stevia in the world.
Brazil approved Stevia Rebaudiana products in 1980. China began using Stevia in 1984. China is the world’s largest exporter of Stevioside. Stevia has been used in powder and extract form in the United States (U.S.), since 1995.
Stevia and Antioxidants
Stevia is an antioxidant. Antioxidants help your body fight off the damage caused by free radicals (and limiting free radical aging). Stevia, as with all plants, contains a number of antioxidants. This puts stevia (assuming it is safe) way ahead of other sweeteners which contain no such beneficial antioxidants.2007 study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry reported that the Stevia plant may be useful as a potential source of natural antioxidants.
One such study, published in the December 2008 issue of the Journal of Animal Psychology and Animal Nutrition, comments on its antimicrobial and antifungal properties
In 2006 the World Health Organization declared that stevia is safe.
2008, the FDA issued a “no objection” letter to Rebiana being used as a food additive. Rebiana and other stevia extracts that meet the criteria of extraction mentioned in the FDA documents.
The FDA approved two versions of a new zero-calorie sweetener developed by the Coca-Cola Company and PepsiCo.
Cargill, which is marketing the sweetener Truvia from Coca-Cola, received notification from the FDA that it had no objection to the product, calling it “generally recognized as safe.”
PepsiCo said it also had received a similar letter and the same “generally recognized as safe” designation for its sweetener, PureVia.
Both products use rebiana, an extract from the stevia plant.
Health Benefits
The Stevia plants are rich in nutrients. These include: protein, calcium, phosphorous, sodium, magnesium, zinc, rutin, vitamin A, vitamin C, and others, but has no caloric value.
In 2000, The British journal of Pharmacology prinrted a Chinese study from Taipei Medical College and affiliated Taipai Wan Fang Hospital on a double-blind placebo-controlled study of the effectiveness and tolerablity of oral Stevioside in human hypertension. The report showed no significant adverse effect and no deterioration of quality of life. The study concluded that oral Stevioside is an “effective alternaive or supplementary therapy for hypertension”.
The World Health Organization (W.H.O.) in 2006, performed a thorough evaluation of the recent studies of Stevioside and Steviols on animals and humans and concluded that Stevioside and Rebaudioside A are not toxic and that no evidence of carcinogenic activity was found. The W.H.O. also noted that Stevioside has a pharmacological effect in patients with hypertension (lowers elevated blood pressure) and with the Type 2 diabetes (helps stabilize blood sugar levels).
As of 2008, the governments of Australia, New Zealand and Canada have
approved the use of Stevia as a sweetener and food additive.The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Joint Expert Committee on Food additives (J.E.C.F.A), in 2008,concluded that Stevia steviol glycosides are safe for human consumption.
Stevia is also cultivated in Korea, Taiwan, China, and Israel.
In Atlanta, Georgia, Coca-Cola researchers Indra Prakash, John F. Clos and Grant E. DuBois studied clear glass containers of cola and lemon-lime sodas containing the two major naturally sweet components in Stevia, Stevioside and Rebaudioside A. The beverages were exposed to sunlight for one week to test the stability of the components. The scientist found no significant photodegration in either component of Stevia.
Even though Stevia may soon replace sugar in soft drinks, this does not make soft drinks any healthier. Why? Most, if not all, soft drinks contain phosphorous. Some soft drinks not only contain phosphorous but also excessive amounts of caffein. Both caffein and phosphorous strip calcium from your bones and may result in kidney stones (because the body cannot reabsorb the stripped calcium) and eventually causes osteoporosis (brittle bones) which leads to bone fractures. Better to drink water, tea or fruit juice.
Stevia is the only REAL natural sweetner that offers health benefits
besides its sweetness. It has been proven safe world wide. Even though
Europe has not as yet accepted Stevia as GRAS, more and more countries
around the world are seeing the benefits of using Stevia as a sweetener
and food additive. England, especially, has an obesity problem as big as
the U.S., and could reduce the obesity rate in half just by using
Stevia. The United States (U.S.) can do the same. Using Stevia is a
matter of national defense in preventing an ever growing obese
population. We need a healthy populace to defend the nation. Use Stevia
as your only sugar substitute.
You can collect your Stevia in any form Dry leaves,
Extract, Stevia plant from
Organic innovation
H.no-8, Survey, Brindaban Path, Guwahati-28
Assam
Email: organicinnovation@rediffmail.com
For More Information on Stevia Cultivation
Pankaj kalita: 09854093470, 09085578408
For More Information on Stevia Cultivation
Pankaj kalita: 09854093470, 09085578408
