Following up to the piece the other day about the safety of artificial sweeteners, time to cover another sweetener that comes from a plant and has made some serious waves in the nutrition market, as it’s commonly pitched as the "natural sweetener."  It’s Stevia.

Is IT the answer to shedding body fat healthfully?

Is it a safe alternative to Splenda and Equal?

OF COURSE — it’s natural!  

Hope you didn’t fall for that, did you? 

There a lot of "natural" herbs and other ingredients that we should probably stay away from.

Let’s find out the truth.

Stevia is a relatively new comer in terms of popularity, even though it’s been used for 100′s of years.  It’s exploded in the last few years as consumers are looking for a "natural" calorie free alternative to artificial sweeteners.

Stevia fits that bill.  Stevia’s real name is Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) and it is an herb native to Paraguay and Brazil.  

But, while it has been used for 100′s of year now, it has always been labeled a "dietary supplement" since it didn’t have the OK from the FDA as a food ingredient.

There were some concerns with Stevia after early studies suggested there may be some concern with its use with fertility and reproductive development and even genetic mutations!  Lo and behold, more recent data submitted to the FDA regarding the safety of a Stevia extract, known as Reb A, granted this particular extract GRAS status (generally recognized as safe).  This was in December 2008/

However, the FDA still maintained the position about calling Stevia at dietary supplement with this statement "Reb A is different than whole leaf stevia or other stevia extracts, which can only be sold as dietary supplements."  They continued "Nobody has provided the FDA with evidence that whole-leaf stevia is safe."

In fact, one consumer advocacy group, the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) stands by their position that Reb A GRAS status was granted too early, suggesting not enough supportive safety data is available.

As usual, there are of course two sides to each story.  Let’s look at the pros and cons of this ingredient.

Pros:

• Stevia is about 250-300 times sweeter than sugar
• Stevia is stable to heat, making it safe for cooking
• Stevia is calorie free
• Stevia doesn’t promote dental caries like sugar

Cons:

• It has a bitter taste that some may not enjoy, also making it difficult to include in large quantities (in baking, for example).
• It’s more expensive than most other sweeteners
• Data is mixed here – some show DNA damage with high doses of stevia intake, others show no effect at all.

From what we know now, the FDA considers Reb A safe…

If searching for this in the store, look for either "Truvia" and "PureVia" — the consumer names for the Stevia extract.

Or, you can maybe find a stevia plant, like I did, at our local farmers market. 

What do you think?  Is Stevia the next big thing in terms of sugar replacements?

Organic foods are hot – more and more consumers are looking for the term "organic."

But is organic "stuff" worth the extra money?  Sometimes organic produce costs at least double what "conventional" produce costs.

So why do people spend the extra money?
1. Less pesticides
2. More nutrients
3. More flavor

But are these valid reasons?

According to research published just the other day in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition …

… not a chance.  Organic foods didn’t turn out to be any "better" than conventionally grown foods.

Here’s the deal — the goal of the study was to measure the differences in nutrient content between organic vs. conventional food.

Very simply the researchers scoured the literature, studies published over a 50 year time span, and looked at the nutrient differences, if any.

Their conclusions?  "There is no evidence of a difference in nutrient quality between organic and conventional foods … "

So is this the be all and end all?  Should we boycott Whole Foods — turning our noses up at the organic food "industry?" foods?

Not quite.  Here’s how we feel about this.

First, more important than organic … simply eat more fruits and vegetables.  Produce is great for you — whether you’re trying to lose fat, improve health, decrease your risk of disease, etc.  With the average American eating just 2 servings total per day, eating organic isn’t my main concern…eating MORE fruits and vegetables is my concern.

We also believe local is actually more important than organic.  Local … meaning foods that are grown close to where you live, like those found at Farmer’s Markets.  An organic food flown 3000 miles to your grocery store is not even close to the same as a fresh vegetable picked that morning from a farm that’s just a short drive from your house.  It’s also a great way to support the local economy since you’re helping local farmers.

While I mentioned this very recent study that compared some nutrient differences in conventional and organic produce, there are also other "issues" with organic foods that are a concern for many

• Are they better for the environment?
• Are there less pesticides used in production, meaning we eat less pesticides?
• Are they safer with the recent disease outbreaks that have popped up lately (e coli, salmonella, etc)?
  There are still a lot of questions to be answered.  Remember that this study was just one of many … and all studies need others to support (or refute) the claims.

Here’s our take as of now:

• Eat more produce, organic or not
• Buy local

If you are thinking about buying organic produce, but cost is a factor, focus on those fruits and veggies where you eat the skin vs. those you don’t.  For example, you peel a banana, but eat the entire raspberry — the raspberry would therefore be more to ‘go organic’

What do you think?  Is organic worth it?  Why do you (or don’t you) buy organic foods?  Leave us a comment.