Stevia rebaudiana is an herbaceous perennial shrub in the family Asteraceae (the composite, or daisy, family) that is native to northeastern Paraguay and adjacent Brazil and Argentina--although it is now grown far more widely as a source of the extremely sweet glycoside compounds derived from its leaves as an alternative low-calorie sweetener that is several hundred times sweeter than sucrose. A range of claims have been made for health benefits from ingestion of stevia extracts, which also reportedly have antibacterial and anti-fungal activity.
The main producers of stevia are Japan, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Korea, Brazil, Malaysia, and Paraguay. Currently, stevia is consumed in Japan, Brazil, Korea, Israel, the United States, Argentina, China, Canada, Paraguay, and Indonesia. In its native state, Stevia rebaudiana grows on the edges of marshes or in grassland communities on soils with a shallow water table. The sweetening power of its leaves (and supposed medicinal properties) have long been known to the local Guaraní Indians and others (Lewis 1992). It is indigenous to the Rio Monday Valley of the Amambay moutain region at altitudes between 200 and 500 m. The climate in this area is semi-humid subtropical, with temperatures ranging from -6 to 43 C, with an average of 23 C, and annual rainfall ranging from 1500 to 1800 mm. In 1943, the first seeds were exported to the United Kingdom, but the plants were not successfully brought into cultivation. In 1968, Stevia rebaudiana was exported to Japan and from there awareness of and cultivation of the plant spread throughout the world. It has now been introduced to many countries, including Brazil, Korea, Mexico, the United States of America, Indonesia, Tanzania, Canada, and India. Individuals of this species are self-incompatible and probably insect-pollinated. This is a short-day plant that flowers from January to March in the southern hemisphere and from September to December in the northern hemisphere.
(Yadav et al. 2011 and references therein; Lemus-Mondaca et al. 2012 and references therein)
Stevia rebaudiana is a plant species in the genus Stevia of the family Asteraceae. It is commonly known as candyleaf, sweetleaf or sugarleaf.[1][2]
It is a small seasonal plant which grows to a height of 30–60 centimetres (1–2 feet).[2] It has elongated leaves that grow along the stems and are lined up against each other. The flowers are typically trimmed to improve the taste of the leaves.[3] Stevia is a tender perennial native to parts of Brazil and Paraguay having humid, wet environments.[2][3]
Stevia is widely grown for its leaves, from which extracts can be manufactured as sweetener products known generically as stevia and sold under various trade names.[4] The chemical compounds that produce its sweetness are various steviol glycosides (mainly stevioside and rebaudioside), which have 200–300 times the sweetness of sugar.[2][5] Stevia leaves contain 9.1% stevioside and 3.8% rebaudioside A.[6]
The flowers are white with light purple accents and no fragrance. Plants produce fruit which is ribbed spindle-shaped. Stevia prefers sandy-like soil.[2]
In 1931, chemists M. Bridel and R. Lavielle isolated the glycosides stevioside and rebaudioside that give the leaves their sweet taste.[7] The exact structures of the aglycone steviol and its glycoside were published in 1955.
Begun in the 1960s,[4] commercial cultivation has spread to Japan, Southeast Asia and the US, but also in mildly tropical climates in hilly areas of Nepal or India (Assam region). The plant prefers warm, moist and sunny conditions.[2] The plant cannot survive frost during the winter and therefore greenhouses are used to grow stevia in Europe.[8]
Stevia rebaudiana is found in the wild in semiarid habitats ranging from grassland to mountain terrain, do produce seeds, but only a small percentage of the seeds germinate.
Stevia rebaudiana has been grown on an experimental basis in Ontario, Canada, since 1987 to determine the feasibility of commercial cultivation.[9] Duke University researchers developed a strategic plan to assist farmers and exporters in Paraguay to compete in the global market for stevia.[10]
Stevia rebaudiana has been used over centuries by the Guaraní people of Brazil and Paraguay, who called it ka'a he'ẽ ("sweet herb"), to sweeten the local yerba mate tea, as medicine, and as a "sweet treat".[11]
In 1899, botanist Moisés Santiago Bertoni first described the plant as growing in eastern Paraguay, and observed its sweet taste.[12]
When extracts of its leaves are processed into a powder, stevia is used as a sugar substitute in most of the developed world.[6][13]
Based on the JECFA (Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives) declaration, safe consumption of steviol glycosides for humans is determined to be 4 mg/kg body weight per day. It was also agreed by the European Commission in 2011 for use in food in European countries. Steviol glycosides have also been accepted in the US as generally recognized as safe (GRAS).
Stevia leaf and raw extracts are not treated as GRAS and their import into the US is not allowed for usage as sweeteners.[14][15]
{{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help) Stevia rebaudiana is a plant species in the genus Stevia of the family Asteraceae. It is commonly known as candyleaf, sweetleaf or sugarleaf.
It is a small seasonal plant which grows to a height of 30–60 centimetres (1–2 feet). It has elongated leaves that grow along the stems and are lined up against each other. The flowers are typically trimmed to improve the taste of the leaves. Stevia is a tender perennial native to parts of Brazil and Paraguay having humid, wet environments.
Stevia is widely grown for its leaves, from which extracts can be manufactured as sweetener products known generically as stevia and sold under various trade names. The chemical compounds that produce its sweetness are various steviol glycosides (mainly stevioside and rebaudioside), which have 200–300 times the sweetness of sugar. Stevia leaves contain 9.1% stevioside and 3.8% rebaudioside A.
Stevia rebaudiana
