Stevia rebaudiana: composition, benefits to the health, toxicity and use

Abstract

This review had as objective to gather and to analyze the information about the historical origin of the consumption of Stevia rebaudiana, its chemical composition, benefits to the health, toxicity and use. This plant in its natural form is 15 times sweeter than sucrose and the extract is 100 to 300 times sweeter. The main sweet component of the leaves of this plant is a glucoside named stevioside, they are also present other, but in smaller concentrations, like they are the rebaudoside A, B, C, D, and F, steviolbioside and dulcoside A. The extraction of the sweetener substances from of the dry leaf of estevia is easily carried out with water or ethanol, followed by a purification process. The Expert's Committee in Alimentary Preservatives together with FAO and WHO established an Acceptable Daily Ingest for the stevioside from 0-2 mg/kg of corporal weight, based on the toxicity studies that demonstrate that stevia extracts and the stevioside do not present acute toxicity, neither carcinogenic and/or teratogenic effects. On the other hand, the sweetener substances of stevia are highly soluble in water, stable to heat (200 ºC) and to a wide range of pH values (3-9), which allows to be used in a wide range of nutritional products.