Quote:

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From: Nutrition Action, Health Letter
May 2004, Volume 31 / Number 4
Center for Science in the Public Interest

SREVIA

Also known as:

Sweet Leaf, Honey Leaf

What is it?

An extract from a shrub that grows in Brazil and Paraguay.

Why is it lo-calorie:

Or bodies can't metabolize stevia.

Safety:

When male rats were fed high doses of stevioside (stevia's active ingredient) for 22 months, they produced fewer sperm and there was increased cell proliferation in their testicles, which could cause infertility. And when female hamsters were fed large amounts of the derivative of stevioside, they had fewer and smaller offspring. That----combined with the absence of other animal studies that are normally required for food additives—led the FDA, Health Canada, and the European Union, and the World Health Organization to conclude that stevia shouldn't be allowed in food.

Comments:

Stevia can't be used as an ingredient in food. But can be sold as a supplement, since safety rules for supplements are looser than for foods. Stevia is promoted by the health-food industry as a natural alternative to synthetic sweeteners like saccharin, aspartame, and sucralose. But "natural" doesn't automatically mean "safe".

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