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A “Stevia Rebaudiana”
or Stevia a native of Paraguay
is a sweet herb and is a member of Composite family (sunflower family of plants).
Stevia is fast becoming a major source of high potency bio-sweetener for the rapidly
growing market for “natural” foods, replacing chemical sweetener and even table
sugar. As Stevia leaf powder is highly same to use, calorie free and around 30 times
sweeter than cane sugar, it can replace cane sugar too. Given the escalating cost
of production of sugar (and the reality of the troubled sugar industry), with its
unquenchable thirst for irrigation, cultivation of Stevia opens up new areas for
crop diversification and a viable alternative to sugarcane. There is a huge market
potential for this natural sweetener waiting to be untapped by progressive farmers.
The sweetness in the leaf is due to the presence of an intensive sweetening agent called Stevioside. Experiments have proved that Stevioside apart from being calorie
free is 300 times sweeter than cane sugar. Hence, Stevia has been termed as the
“calorie free bio sweetener” (hypocaloric bio-sweetener). The leaf of Stevia contains
15-20% of Stevioside. Besides it has also therapeutic qualities in treatment of
cough, joints pains, liver ailments and skin rejuvenation.
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India has the hightest diabetics in (he world and the scene is feared to be getting
worse each year. Clearly there is an urgent need and the concomitant demand for
such a calorie free bio sweetener like Stevia. Besides such other industries as
soft drinks, confectionery bakery, etc. too have large potential or using Stevia.
These industries at present use artificial sweeteners that are known to have adverse
side effects in the long run. Stevia as an herb prevents tooth decay with its anti-microbial
property Majority of the supplementary food products for diabetic patients emphasize
on the fiber and protein content. The addition of Stevia leaves dried or in powder
form, in such products would not only aid in increasing the natural sweetness but would also help in rejuvenating the pancreatic gland. Apart from this, Stevia is
nutrient rich, containing substantial amount of protein, calcium and phosphorus.
Besides Stevia can also be used as a household sweetener in preparation of most
Indian sweetmeats.
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