What Are the Health Benefits of Stevia?

Stevia is a plant which can be used alternatively to sugar as a sweetener. It is naively growing in South America, where it is used as sweetener by the natives since centuries. Its extracts can be up to 300 times sweeter then normal sugar. In 1987 it was discovered by a Swiss botanist (Moisés Santiago Bertoni). But from then on it took pretty long to make it more popular in the western world. The first country which thought about Stevia as a sugar substitute was Japan. They made their first cultivating experiments in the 1950's, and started to use it as complementary food and sweetener in the 1970's. In 1980 the consumption has already risen up to 2000 tons of Stevia per year.

So far for the far east, but in Europe and North America Stevia was, and still is mainly prohibited, due to concerns about side effects of Stevia, especially about steviol, the metabolized aglycone of stevioside,what is the main component of Stevia. Some studies with animals, especially rats, in the 1980's affirmed that the steviol would be mutagenic. But these studies were hardly criticized, and considered not to be transferable to the human by the critics. If a human ate the proportional amount of Stevia which one rat in the experiments ate, he would have eaten a half of his body weight in Stevia leaves. In these amounts even sugar would be very unhealthy. Because of these concerns it is still unapproved as consumable in the most parts of the western world, and can only be sold as a beauty product, in some places in diet food or as tea.

But to come back to the title, I will now talk about the health benefits of Stevia. Some studies say that it is effective against dental caries and the accumulation of plaque, in opposite to sugar, what is doing harm to the teeth. Some other studies affirm that Stevia does not cause a raise of the blood sugar, but even lowers it. So it is perfectly usable as a sugar substitute for diabetics and better then other artificial sweeteners like aspartame or sucralose (Splenda), as it is natural and not chemical. What makes it even more suitable for dietary foods, is the fact that the extract of Stevia literally has got zero calories. Stevia also contains about 100 minerals and vitamins, but in the amounts consumed by the human, the effects are pretty negligible.

As mentioned above, the negative side effects are literally inexistent, so the health organizations of the European Union and the USA should really reconsider the prohibition of Stevia, or enforce some real studies about it, to clear the true risks of Stevia consumption. Then it could be used for dietary food and generally as sugar supplement and to replace the artificial sweeteners in the future.

What Are the Health Benefits of Stevia?

Stevia is a plant which can be used alternatively to sugar as a sweetener. It is naively growing in South America, where it is used as sweetener by the natives since centuries. Its extracts can be up to 300 times sweeter then normal sugar. In 1987 it was discovered by a Swiss botanist (Moisés Santiago Bertoni). But from then on it took pretty long to make it more popular in the western world. The first country which thought about Stevia as a sugar substitute was Japan. They made their first cultivating experiments in the 1950's, and started to use it as complementary food and sweetener in the 1970's. In 1980 the consumption has already risen up to 2000 tons of Stevia per year.

So far for the far east, but in Europe and North America Stevia was, and still is mainly prohibited, due to concerns about side effects of Stevia, especially about steviol, the metabolized aglycone of stevioside,what is the main component of Stevia. Some studies with animals, especially rats, in the 1980's affirmed that the steviol would be mutagenic. But these studies were hardly criticized, and considered not to be transferable to the human by the critics. If a human ate the proportional amount of Stevia which one rat in the experiments ate, he would have eaten a half of his body weight in Stevia leaves. In these amounts even sugar would be very unhealthy. Because of these concerns it is still unapproved as consumable in the most parts of the western world, and can only be sold as a beauty product, in some places in diet food or as tea.

But to come back to the title, I will now talk about the health benefits of Stevia. Some studies say that it is effective against dental caries and the accumulation of plaque, in opposite to sugar, what is doing harm to the teeth. Some other studies affirm that Stevia does not cause a raise of the blood sugar, but even lowers it. So it is perfectly usable as a sugar substitute for diabetics and better then other artificial sweeteners like aspartame or sucralose (Splenda), as it is natural and not chemical. What makes it even more suitable for dietary foods, is the fact that the extract of Stevia literally has got zero calories. Stevia also contains about 100 minerals and vitamins, but in the amounts consumed by the human, the effects are pretty negligible.

As mentioned above, the negative side effects are literally inexistent, so the health organizations of the European Union and the USA should really reconsider the prohibition of Stevia, or enforce some real studies about it, to clear the true risks of Stevia consumption. Then it could be used for dietary food and generally as sugar supplement and to replace the artificial sweeteners in the future.

Food That Burns Fat Fast - Food That Burns Fats With Health Benefits As Well

We all know that we need to consume food that burns fat fast and that exercise is not the only thing that helps you lose weight. You should also be aware that with the food you eat, you might be harming your chances of losing weight. This means that the need for a balanced diet is very important.


Experts suggest that nutrition is a good source of food that burns fat that can help you to lose weight if taken correctly as they are foods rich in protein and fiber.


You should also stay away from foods that can quickly accumulate fat. Examples of some of these fat-accumulating foods are fast food, fried food, pizza, pasta, sweets, desserts and tidbits. Avoid foods high in sugar. The reason is that if they are not healthy and the sugars remain in the form of fats in the body.


For a full breakdown, here are some of the food that will help you lose excess weight in your stomach.



Eggs

One might think that the eggs have cholesterol, and you are right. You have been warned. The egg puts excess fat in the body. If you do not know the amount of cholesterol in eggs, then take away the egg yolk. The egg white is the one that helps in the break down of fats in the stomach.



Low Fat Dairy Products

Studies have shown that women who consume low-fat dairy products lost at least 70% of their fats. These products not only help the bones but are also a good source of food that burns fat fast.



Beans

There are several types of beans to help you to lose weight - white beans and broad beans just to name a few - and they are very rich in protein and fiber. But ensure that the seeds are not boiled or fried, as these grains are rich in unhealthy fat and contain lots of sugar.