STEVIA: Never Ending Debate (Question of Naturalness)

Stevia, an alternative to sugar, has been taking some headlines due to vigorous marketing and the increasing of health-conscious people. Manufacturers are taking this opportunity to put a ' War on sugar' as the market of sugar has been dominance since thousand years ago that worth around USD65 billion in 2016 alone.

Recently I had the chance to better understand Stevia and its opportunities as I was making a research paper about it (non-technical). My findings showed that there is an ongoing debate on how everyone perceives Stevia. The answer is still in gray area whereby it is up to you on how you want to perceive it. It comes from a plant, but it is then processed into an extract. At the end of this article, share your views okay?

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Stevia leaf is native to South American heritage particularly Brazil and Paraguay.

The leaves have been used traditionally for hundreds of years in both Brazil and Paraguay to sweeten local teas and medicines, and as a "sweet treat".
Source: Wiki

Traditionally used for medicinal purposes by the Guarani people of South America, and first developed commercially as sweetener in Japan in 1970s Source

People of Brazil and Paraguay, called it ka'a he'ê ("sweet herb") Image Source

Stevia is also known as stevia rebaudiana. It has zero calories and the plant contains steviol glycosides which can be 250-300 times sweeter than sugar. Pricing wise, stevia sweeteners products are much expensive than normal sugar making shifting purchases from conventional sugar only targeted to the health conscious and middle-to-high income consumer.

Known Side Effects

If a food or additive is natural, how can it comes with side effects?

All things when taking excessively have a side effect even water, that can cause you to urinate frequently although that is not a bad thing - that proves my point.

Allergy also can happen to most natural things such as vegetable, milk, soy etc.

In the case of Stevia sweetener, studies showed that there are 3 possible side effects when taking stevia sweetener.

• Allergic reactions
  Many studies show that stevia extract can cause severe allergic reactions like anaphylaxis (occurs rarely among consumers). However, consumers with pre-existing allergies to chrysanthemums, marigolds, and ragweed or daisies are at a greater risk in consuming the product. Many consumers suffer symptoms of an allergic reaction like dizziness, hives, wheezing, shortness of breath, general weakness, or difficulty swallowing shortly after consuming this zero-calorie sweetener.

• Reactions in the digestive system
  Steviosides in stevia can also cause irritation in consumers' stomach and can result in issues associated with the digestive system like bloating and lowered appetite.

• Possible drug interactions
  Studies have found that stevia, when consumed with certain medications, can lead to adverse reactions. For instance, lithium has been known to interact negatively with stevia.

How Healthy Is Stevia?

We know that sugar isn't healthy either but we still take it daily. In terms of caloric content, Stevia is the much healthier choice. But does that make it a better sweetener? Should you start adding stevia to your morning coffee? I say you wouldn't replace it unless you thoroughly understand better what you are replacing. The only healthy aspect that is confirmed until now is that it bears no calories.

Why People Buy Stevia? and Why Manufacturers Make Them?

• Healthy Habit
  Demand for zero-calorie sweeteners is rising, particularly among the youth who are more health-conscious and aware of the benefits of natural sweeteners. Consumers are paying attention to the number of calories they consume per day. Young consumers within the 21-34 age groups are willing to pay premium prices for zero-calorie sweetener-associated products. Even health organizations and agencies involved in the food and health sectors are creating policies to promote health awareness worldwide.

• Sugar Tax
  In January 2016, World Health Organization (WHO) called on governments to introduce ‘Sugar Taxes’ on sugar-sweetened soft drinks to reduce childhood obesity. In August 2016, the UK announced that it will tax companies that sell sugary soft drinks. The government planned the tax to come into effect in 2018. During March 2015-March 2016, stevia extracts were featured in nearly 4% of global soft drink launches as influenced by the sugar tax.

Ethanol

Chemical procedure to process the stevia extract is a concerning method, to begin with. To extract stevia, manufacturers used chemicals like ethanol or methanol as solvent.

Ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol, is a flammable, colorless chemical compound. The largest single use of ethanol is as an engine fuel and fuel additive. Source

The Marketing Push and Profit

• Marketing
  Manufacturers invested heavily for you to notice its brand. Awareness is expensive particularly in the case of stevia base sweeteners where its main competitor, sugar. Due to sugar has established as the commonly referred sweetener, the large marketing budget is required in order to have effective market outreach.

• High Yield Crop
  Stevia crop is a non-GMO (genetically modified organism) which requires less water, land, and energy compared to other plants. This means, manufacturers, get more stevia leaf with less cost.

Product Substitutes

Stevia is not the only 'natural sweetener' in the market. It is heavily challenged by other natural-based sweeteners such as coconut sugar and monk fruit. Monk fruit expected to have the potential to compete with stevia-based sweetener as it does not have a bitter aftertaste, making it more versatile than stevia sweetener.

My Take on Stevia

Disclaimer: heavy opinion ahead. Take as casual reading.

As a consumer, we have a choice and needs to be well informed when making purchases especially when it comes to health products. In this subject, to getting as close as possible to natural, I think raw stevia leaf is the best choice of all. As a fragile consumer, we often get heavily influenced by marketing that shields us from the exact truth.

With all due respect to the needs to cut sugar intake, the best possible way is to 'cut' it rather than 'substituting' it, making our choice easier.

Health is wealth ^_~