[Read More] [Read Less]

Stevia is useful for those who desire or need to minimize their sugar intake. It serves as a sweetener as sweet as sucrose without the calories. Since it is natural, stevia is different than other alternative low/no calorie sweeteners that are artificial such as aspartame and saccharin.

Stevia is also useful for those with diabetes and hypoglycemia, as it does not result in blood sugar spikes. Additionally, it is a stable substance that does not break down at high temperatures like aspartame and saccharin. Thus it is suitable in more recipes. However, it is structurally different than sucrose, so it does not caramelize or work well in cookies and fudge.

Stevia is also useful for people with candida/yeast overgrowth that need to avoid sugar, as stevia does not feed yeast. However, for the same reason it will not make bread rise if used in place of sucrose.

Stevia is gaining popularity as a natural swettener, but it faces several hurdles. This includes it being expensive to make, so food manufacturers are reluctant to use it.

Stevia can be purchased on its own in liquid, powdered, fresh, dried, or ground forms. Powdered extracts are 80 to 95% sweet glycosides, so it is 200 to 300 times sweeter than sugar. Some powdered forms are only 40 to 50% sweet glycosides, which is not as sweet, although still much sweeter than sugar. Since it is so sweet, it is often mixed with fillers like lactose and maltodextrin to reduce the sweetness.

There are some possible safety issues related to using stevia. This includes possibly causing cancer, reproductive issues, and disrupting carbohydrate metabolism. These negative effects were found in rat and hamster studies, although the overall results are inconclusive considering it has been used safely in Japan for about 30 years. However, it does seem best consume stevia in moderation.