I am a health nut and have been for years. Quite honestly I would take sugar over aspartame or splenda anyday because they have both been chemically engineered and over time can cause quite possibly cause health problems. Anyways, for those of you who don't know, there is a natural leaf called Stevia that first was discovered in Paraguay. The Guarani Indians used the leaf for centuries to sweeten their teas and as a health aid in digestion and other medicinal purposes. In the 1800's an Italian botanist discovered this little miracle plant and spread the word. By the 1960's, Japan banned artificial sweeteners and replaced them with Stevia (also in all diet beverages). Stevia has 0 calories/0 carbs and has a ton of beneficial fiber. It is 100 X sweeter than sugar and can become bitter if you use too much. It's a bit difficult to bake with, but it's possible to use half the amount of sugar and replace the other half with stevia in certain recipes.
You can get Stevia at your local health food store in either powder or liquid form. Because I use it mostly in drinks, I use the liquid stevia as it's easier to mix. It is awesome for lemonade - I use about 9 drops of stevia and one whole lemon's juice and about 12 oz of water and it tastes just like lemonade without the calories or carbs! You can also use unsweetened cranberry juice and mix with water and stevia - it's awesome.
I have had stomach issues off an on my whole life, but after using this daily, I can tell a huge difference. When I don't use it for a few days, I get stomach issues again, so I know it is doing something good!
Just thought I'd share
Melanie
P.S. I use this in hot tea, hot chocolate & plain yogurt as well.
All Natural Sugar Substitute
