Stevia may not be classified as a food, but consumers are using it as one

"ISN'T THIS GREAT STUFF?" said the cashier at Puget Consumers Coop. "I'm glad we could get it in again." Then he added, sardonically, "It's OK to sell tobacco, but not this?"

"This" is stevia, an herb that - depending on who's talking - is an amazing no-calorie sweetener, a diabetic's salvation, a nutritious health enhancer or an unproved folk flavoring with uncertain effects on heart, kidneys and blood sugar, and a possible detriment to female reproduction.

In more than a dozen countries, stevia, sometimes called sweet leaf, is incorporated into manufactured foods and used as a sweetener. But in the U.S., it's categorized by the Food and Drug Administration as a dietary supplement, not a safe food or food additive, so it cannot be used in manufactured products or sold as a sweetener.

Critics charge the FDA with yielding to pressure from lobbyists in the artificial-sweetener industry. The FDA says petitions to re-classify stevia have been inadequate.

Stevia rebaudiana, native to Paraguay and Brazil, today is cultivated not only in South America but in China and even in Cottage Grove, Ore. Wholesale grower Log House Plants (541-942-2288) supplies many local nurseries, including Bainbridge Gardens, Magnolia Gardens and City People's, where a 4-inch pot of the tender perennial sells for $2.19. One well-established plant provides more than enough sweetener for a family of four for a year, says Log House's Alice Doyle, who hopes to sell stevia seed through the Jackson and Perkins catalog next year.

The fresh leaf, added to tea or even chewed, imparts a sweet and faint licorice flavor. Dried crushed leaves are about 30 times sweeter than table sugar.

Powdered stevia leaf, commonly sold in small packets or in bulk, also is about 30 times as sweet as sugar and often is used atop cereal, although it doesn't dissolve. A dark syrup-like extract is 70 times sweeter than sugar and usually comes in a dropper bottle, handy for coffee or tea. Both can have a slight herbal taste.

A white powder extract has a cleaner flavor, doesn't discolor foods, dissolves in water and is heat-stable to 388 degrees Fahrenheit, making it useful in light-colored or baked goods.

I dissolved a teaspoon of the white (sometimes called stevioside) in three tablespoons of filtered water to yield a clear liquid that sweetened a cup of tea with just two drops - three was too much. A quarter-teaspoon of this liquid balanced a glass of fresh lemonade. A quarter-teaspoon of the powder helped make a nice big batch of rice pudding.

Modifying recipes can be tricky. Stevia is so strong that many early attempts with old recipes resulted in over-sweet foods. Breads don't rise as much as those made with sugar. Stevia can't be caramelized. When one-quarter teaspoon substitutes for a cup of sugar, the sugar's bulk often must be replaced with something else. And potency can vary by brand, soil, climate and manufacturer.

Some manufacturers promote stevia for more than its sweet qualities. Jim May, president of Wisdom of the Ancients in Tempe, Ariz., says stevia's vitamins and minerals can help fight systemic yeast infections, aid intestinal flora, improve dental health, help diabetics regulate blood sugar, support the healing of some skin conditions and even make a dent in drug traffic from South America by giving farmers an alternative crop that will be lucrative once U.S. manufacturers are allowed to include stevia in food products.

For stevia to be re-classified as a food additive, FDA spokesman Alan Bennett says, manufacturers must prove that it is safe. (To be prohibited as a dietary supplement, the FDA would have to prove that it was unsafe.) He believes that many manufacturers are unaware that the once-complicated process to have a food accepted as "generally regarded as safe" has been simplified recently.

Perhaps a well-organized industry petition will change stevia's standing and lead to more products, more recipes, more access, and more research on its effects.

The case for stevia is well summarized in "The Stevia Story" by Linda Bonvie, Bill Bonvie and Donna Gates ($6.95, Body Ecology). Cookbooks include two volumes of "Baking With Stevia" by Rita Depuydt ($12.95 each, Sun Coast) and "The Stevia Cookbook" by Ray Sahelian, M.D., and Donna Gates ($12.95, Avery).

You should try SweetOne.

Here's a link to a warning page about Acesulfame K (the sweetener in SweetOne):

http://www.holisticmed.com/acek/

I don't mean to rain on the artificial sweetener parade, but I really am more interested in a natural product. I figure I've got enough chemicals floating around in me already.

I really hate to break this to you but everything is made of chemicals. Just because it is so-called natural does not mean that it is good for you and just because it is so-called man made does not mean that it is bad for you. Dosage is everything.

a.cricket

"Salt has a chlorine molecule in it as well...so when you use salt you are putting chlorine in your system."

Point well taken. I really do like splenda, just became suspicious when it seemed too good to be true, if you know what I mean.

(Re: NutraSweet/Aspartame)- "I was using it with iced tea and discovered that I was experiencing uncontrolled hand and arm movements and also vocal problems. The stuff was definately affecting my nervous system, ie: brain functions regarding more than one system.

I regard the stuff as dangerous."

Do a Google search on neurology and aspartame; I believe you'll find that the stuff is considered quite dangerous indeed. I know that my sister-in-law (who is an epileptic) was warned not to touch the stuff by her doctor. It somehow lowers the seizure threshold. To make matters worse, most diet soft drinks are made with it.

I appreciate your reply. I do not drink soft drinks anymore. Just plenty of water and beer. (keeps the system flushed)

The symptoms I experienced were wierd (to put it mildly) I no longer have them and feel better than I have in years. I watch labels intently. The stuff seems to affect the motor synapses. Some sort of misfire I suppose. You notice it when inactive or resting, even driving.

G'nite all............wirestripper

I've found that if I stir my drink with my finger it tends to sweeten up each time. (:^)

My wife's finger produces a lemony taste. I let her stir the tea.

I have used it to sweeten tea, and bought the powder at a health food store. I also, in the past, bought a box of packets to take with me to restaraunts. I haven't bought any lately, but my feeling is that it is safe. I liked it, but it is harder to find where I live now. I believe that saccharin is safer than nutrasweet. I am not diabetic, but would like to have my teeth when I am old and am something of a sugar fiend.

I have become more cautious about 'natural' foods and remedies lately, particularly the herbal "supplements" as kavakava has been found to cause liver damage in some, with at least one person dying. My advice, for any of that, would be to find information on how long it has been used in Europe, for what symptoms, and any side effects that have been found. The Europeans are ahead of us in this aspect. I hope this helps.

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