About Stevia Stevia is a plant native to South America that has been used for centuries as a sweetener and for other purposes, such as to lower blood sugar. Stevia was first described in the scientific literature as Eupatorium rebaudianum by Moisés Santiago de Bertoni (Director of the College of Agriculture of Asuncion, Paraguay) in 1899, and later Kew Gardens concluded that it belonged to the genus Stevia rather than Eupatorium. In 1905, Bertoni redefined it as Stevia rebaudiana, a member of the Compositae, which is what it is known as today. The name “rebaudiana” is given in honor of a Paraguayan chemist Dr. O. Rebaudi who first extracted a sweet substance from the stevia leaves. Several natural substances can be derived from the stevia plant (scientifically known as steviol gylcosides, which includes glucose as part of its structure). One of the best-tasting and sweetest of all the steviol glycosides is high purity Rebaudioside-A (Reb-A), which can be up to 400 times sweeter than sugar. The safety of stevia for human consumption has been established through rigorous peer-reviewed research, and the FDA and Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) recognize it as safe. More than 200 extensive studies have attested to the safety of stevia. After considering all available data on stability, degradation products, metabolism and toxicology, the European Food Safety Agency’s Panel on Food Additives and Nutrient Sources created an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) in 2010 for steviol glycosides, expressed as steviol equivalents, of 4 mg/kg of body weight per day. This is the same ADI set forth by JECFA in 2008. Stevia is commercially cultivated most significantly in China, Paraguay, Colombia, India, Kenya, and Brazil, with small-scale plantations or trials in many other parts of the world, ranging from Vietnam to the United States. The steviol glycosides, from the stevia plant, are significantly sweeter than sucrose and are heat and pH stable. Stevia can be found in hundreds of food products from around the world, including teas, soft drinks, juices, yogurt, soymilk, baked goods, cereals, salad dressings, confections and as a tabletop sweetener. Studies show that stevia has no affect on blood sugar levels and may increase insulin sensitivity.