Stevioside is a
glycoside
In chemistry, a glycoside is a molecule in which a sugar is bound to another functional group via a glycosidic bond. Glycosides play numerous important roles in living organisms. Many plants store chemicals in the form of inactive glycosides. ...
derived from the
stevia
Stevia () is a sweet sugar substitute that is about 50 to 300 times sweetness, sweeter than sugar. It is extracted from the leaves of ''Stevia rebaudiana'', a plant native to areas of Paraguay and Brazil. The active compounds in stevia are ...
plant, which can be used as a sweetener.
Evidence of benefit is lacking for long-term effects on
weight loss
Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...
and heart disease risks.
Origin
Stevioside is the main sweetener (along with
rebaudioside A) found in the leaves of ''
Stevia rebaudiana'', a plant originating in South America. Dried leaves, as well as aqueous extracts, have been used for decades as a sweetener in many countries, notably in Latin America and Asia (Japan, China).
Stevioside was discovered in 1931 by French chemists who gave it its name.
The sweetening power of stevioside was estimated to be about 300 times stronger than cane sugar.
Safety
Since 2008, the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...
has not objected to the use of stevia extracts and some purified steviosides, mainly stevioside and
rebaudioside, as
GRAS
Gras may refer to:
People
* Basile Gras (1836–1901), French firearm designer
* Enrico Gras (1919–1981), Italian filmmaker
* Felix Gras (1844–1901), Provençal poet and novelist
* Laurent Gras (disambiguation)
* N. S. B. Gras (1884–1956), ...
for use as an ingredient in manufactured foods.
See also
*
Steviol glycoside
Steviol glycosides are the chemical compounds responsible for the sweet taste of the leaves of the South American plant ''Stevia rebaudiana'' (Asteraceae) and the main ingredients (or chemical precursor, precursors) of many sugar substitute, swee ...
References
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Glucosides
Stevia (genus)
Vinylidene compounds