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Stevia-based
Sweeteners:
FDA Approved
After 10+ years.
So,
Why Now?
(PART ONE OF TWO)
By Kelly Campbell
HEALTHYNEWAGE.COM
What is Stevia?
Stevia Rebaudiana
is an herb in the
Chrysanthemum family
which grows wild as
a small shrub in parts
of South America.
When extracted from the
leaf of the stevia plant,
Rebiana becomes the natural,
non-caloric sweetener that
has just recently been
GRAS-approved by the FDA
(”Generally Recognized As Safe”).
What’s the big deal,
you ask about whole
food stevia extract?
Well, in 1991,
stevia was banned by the FDA –
which stated that
“toxicological information on
stevia [was] inadequate to
demonstrate stevia safety.”
Four years later,
the Dietary Supplement Health
and Education Act forced the
FDA to permit it as a
dietary supplement.
Fast forward to December 2008:
the FDA gave a “no objection”
approval for GRAS status
to Truvia®
(developed by Cargill and
The Coca-Cola Company)
and PureVia®
(developed by PepsiCo
and the Whole Earth
Sweetener Company,
a subsidiary of Merisant –
makers of aspartame),
both of which are derived
from the Stevia plant.
They both contain Rebiana,
or Rebaudioside A.
The isolation process for
Reb A results in a product
that delivers the desired
sweetness without a
bitter aftertaste.
Pure stevia extract must
continue to be labeled as a
“dietary supplement” because
the FDA has not actually
permitted the stevia plant itself
to be used as a food additive,
only the chemically-refined
Reb A extract.
All of the products containing
pure stevia are forced to reside
amongst the other supplements
in any given health food store,
not on the shelves where all
the other foods and beverages
are placed.
The pressure to approve a
natural sweetener was also due,
in part, to the myriad of adverse
health risks being reported
to the FDA by many who
consumed artificial sweeteners,
like aspartame
(sold as NutriSweet® or Equal®),
sucralose (sold as Splenda®),
or saccharin
(sold as Sweet ‘N Low®).
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Regardless of its prior ban
and classification of stevia,
the FDA has no choice but to
approve Truvia® and PureVia®
when both Pepsi and Coca-Cola
wanted to use the Rebiana-based
sweeteners in their respective
product lines.
If the FDA decided not to
approve them as safe
food additives,
then those particular bottles
of Pepsi and Coke containing
the herb would have only been
accessible in the supplement
aisle.
Clearly,
that would never happen!
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Aspartame is a molecule
composed of three ingredients:
40% aspartic acid
(an excitotoxin:
as an isolate,
a product that stimulates the
neurons of the brain to death,
causing brain damage),
10% methyl ester that
immediately converts
to methyl alcohol,
which then breaks down
to formaldehyde
(embalming fluid)
and formic acid
(ant sting poison),
and 50% phenylalanine,
(as an isolate,
a neurotoxin that lowers
the seizure threshold and
depletes serotonin,
triggering psychiatric
and behavioral problems).
The molecule itself breaks
down into multiple toxins,
including diketopiperazine,
an agent that triggered brain
tumors in original studies.
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It’s important to note that
the FDA has, to-date,
received more complaints
about adverse reactions to
aspartame than any other food
ingredient in the agency’s
history.
There is an enlightening
documentary on the subject
called
(LINK)
which exposes
Aspartame Dangers.
Consumers who shop in
grocery stores and supermarkets
will now find they have a
healthier alternative to
NutriSweet and other
artificial sweeteners.
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The two new products,
Truvia® and PureVia®,
could be patented because
they are not 100% stevia extract,
the first listed ingredient is
Erythritol
(a naturally fermented
sugar alcohol),
and Rebiana,
as well as other
“natural flavors.”
Excessive consumption
of Erythritol
(over 80 grams per day)
may result in digestive upset,
diarrhea,
and bloating.
Both of these sweeteners
can be purchased in boxes
of small packets.
Truvia® is an ingredient in
some new Coca-Cola products,
within its’ Odwalla® line.
PureVia® will be an ingredient
in some new PepsiCo products,
such as Sobe LifeWater
and Trop50 –
a light orange juice product.
“Although stevia today is sold in
the U.S. as a dietary supplement,
rebiana [is] the first available
sweetener that has been purified
from the stevia plant.
Unlike many existing
stevia products,
which generally contain
[unrefined] extracts of the plant,
rebiana is…consistent in quality,”
said the Truvia®
manufacturer,Cargill.
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