Diabetes and Stevia: Sweetness Without Spiking

Food sweetness is one of the fundamental pleasures of eating. It is a pleasure that in America equates to an annual consumption of 120 pounds of sugar per year. The consequences of these sweet indulgences are obesity, heart disease, and diabetes. As awareness grows, more and more people are turning to sugar substitutes to avoid the calories of sugar while retaining the sweetness.

One popular sugar substitute is aspartame (NutraSweet). Aspartame is 180 times sweeter than sugar. However, it increases cravings for carbohydrates, which in turn causes weight gain. Diabetics are particularly susceptible to aspartame, making the blood sugar more difficult to control.

Yet there is a sweetener that is natural and actually works to stabilize blood sugars. That sweetener is stevia. Stevia is a perennial shrub native to Paraguay and has been used for centuries in South America. Also known as dulce yerba and honey leaf, it is 300 times sweeter than sugar cane.

For the last twenty years, stevia has commanded a higher and higher market share of sweeteners in Japan, Korea and China. Stevia cannot legally be sold in the United States as a sweetener, however it is sold as a dietary supplement. Yet American companies such as CocaCola are using stevia in their products in Japan, China and Korea.

A natural sugar substitute, stevia is not absorbed through the digestive tract and is non-caloric. In addition studies show that stevia may lower blood pressure and prevent or even reverse diabetes.

Stevia can be obtained in health food stores and over the Internet in both powder and liquid forms. It is easily used to sweeten coffee, tea, cereal and sauces, but becomes more problematic as a substitute in baked goods. However given its desirable outcomes, a little experimentation and a good stevia cookbook can ease the transition.

Diabetes and obesity are on the increase due largely to two important factors: lack of exercise and sugar. Making a good choice for a sugar substitute is the first step on the road to a healthier society.

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