I'm often asked about the "new" sweetener showing up on supermarket shelves called Stevia. The main concern is why it's found in the "dietary supplements" aisle in a store, and not with the "sugars and sweeteners", since it comes from a plant.
Reactions I've heard are mixed: People either love it or hate it! Stevia is one of the growing number of products trying to tame America's sweet tooth.
For hundreds of years, the leaves of the stevia plant have been used to sweeten beverages, without added calories. While popular in South America and Asia, it's relatively new to the American market. Stevia is found in the “dietary supplement” aisle because the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not yet given approval for stevia to be used as a sweetener in soda, and other drinks.
While some people regularly use it to sweeten both cold and hot beverages, stevia does not have a taste, nor does it have the “mouth-feel” of regular sugar like some other low-calorie sweeteners.
Bottom line? Until the FDA approves this for general use, based on more scientific data, it’s probably wise to limit intake to occasional use.
Have you tried it? What do you think?
译文:
你喜爱甜菊吗？
我经常被问及超市货柜上的一种新的甜味剂，它叫做甜菊。但是我不明白的是，为什么将它放在商场的膳食补品区域，而不是与糖和甜味剂放在一起，难道仅仅因为它是一种植物?
人们对它褒贬不一：有些人喜欢它，有些人讨厌它。甜菊是一种新兴产品，试图满足美国人对于甜食的喜好。
多年来，甜菊的叶子被用来增加饮料的甜味，它没有额外的卡路里。虽然在南美和亚洲甜菊被广泛使用，但对于美国市场它还是一种新产品。甜菊之所以被列于膳食补品柜台，是因为美国食品与药物管理局尚未批准将甜菊用作苏打水或其他饮料的甜味剂。
虽然人们通常把甜菊用于增加冷饮或热饮的甜味，但它本身是没有味道的，不像我们一般食用的低卡路里甜味剂那样有口腔能感受到的糖的甜味。
那底线是什么？在美国食品与药物管理局批准普遍运用它之前，根据科学调查数据，在非经常性使用时，我们还是要注意量的摄取。
你尝过了吗？你认为怎么样？