Nutraceutical Herbs and Insulin Resistance
Robert E.C. Wildman, Richard S. Bruno in Handbook of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods, 2019
Stevia rebaudiana is one such herb of the genus Stevia, widely grown for its sweet leaves. Its glycosides are stevioside and rebaudoside, which are 250–300 times sweeter than sucrose, heat stable, pH stable, and non-fermentable.71 Stevia has several beneficial effects, such as helping in weight control, the management of diabetes, control of dental caries, anti-fungal and antibacterial properties, a healing effect on blemishes and cuts, blood pressure management, and aiding immune modulation. It is completely safe and non-toxic.71 The possible glucose-lowering action may be due to the direct impact of steviosides on pancreatic beta cells to secrete more insulin and to improve their function in gluco-toxicity. It can also impose its hypoglycemic effect, as it enhances the first phase insulin response and concomitantly suppresses the glucagon levels.72
Personal Weight Loss Strategies in Obesity
Emily Crews Splane, Neil E. Rowland, Anaya Mitra in Psychology of Eating, 2019
Some currently popular sweeteners include Splenda®, Truvia®, and Monk fruit sweeteners. Sucralose (marketed as Splenda®) is derived from sucrose and probably has the most authentic sugar flavor when compared with saccharin and aspartame (Quinlan & Jenner, 2006). As of 2008 it is believed to be the most widely used sweetener in the United States (Sylvetsky & Rother, 2016). Steviol glycoside sweeteners (commonly called stevia) are a class of zero-calorie sweeteners derived from the Stevia rebaudiana plant, which is native to parts of South America. Luo han guo sweeteners are derived from the Siraitia grosvenorii plant or Monk fruit which is native to parts of China and Thailand. Both stevia and Monk fruit sweeteners are relatively recent arrivals on the United States market (circa 2008). The largest-by-weight ingredient of Truvia® (which is sold as a stevia-based “natural” sweetener) is in fact not stevia but the sugar alcohol, erythritol (“Truvia FAQ”, 2018). Sugar alcohols, also called polyols, are an example of a nutritive sweetener. While they contain some calories (ranging from 0–3 kcal/g, which is lower than table sugar which has ~4 kcal/g), they are incompletely absorbed by humans, resulting in fewer calories retained following their consumption. Examples of sugar alcohols include xylitol, erythritol, and sorbitol. Sugar alcohols are frequently used in sugar-free candies and chewing gum.
Impact of Sulphur Dioxide Deposition on Medicinal Plants' Growth and Production of Active Constituents
Azamal Husen in Environmental Pollution and Medicinal Plants, 2022
The lowest plant height of Aloe vera was reported from plants grown in the soil of rich acid sulphate (Chowdhury et al. 2018). The highest fresh leaf gel weight was obtained from plants grown in calcareous soil, which was identical to the gel weight of plants grown in acid soil. Zaman et al. (2015) recorded similar findings in the case of Stevia rebaudiana as the tallest plant and highest numbers of leaves were counted from non-calcareous soil and the shortest plant and an identical number of leaves from acid sulphate soil. An identical number of leaves are produced in saline soils. Improved presentation of non-calcareous and calcareous soils might be due to their moderate pH, good soil texture, less water holding capacity, and higher nutrient contents compared to other soils. These findings were in good agreement with the results reported by Khanom et al. (2008) and Zaman et al. (2015) for Stevia rebaudiana. The plant grown in acid sulphate soil has the lowest fresh weight, which was identical to the fresh weight of the plant grown in peat soil. Better performance of acid soil might be due to having pH less than 7, strongly acid in reaction with the moderate status of organic matter and low moisture-holding capacity.
Do steviol glycosides affect the oxidative and genotoxicity parameters in BALB/c mice?
Published in Drug and Chemical Toxicology, 2022
Şemsi Gül Yılmaz, Aslı Uçar, Serkan Yılmaz
Stevia is a sweetener and sugar substitute derived from the leaves of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni. This plant species is a member of the Asteraceae family and was first cultivated in the Amambay region, north of Paraguay, and then in Brazil and Argentina. Presently, S. rebaudiana is cultivated worldwide, mainly in Asia, Europe, and Canada (Hossain et al.2010, Lemus-Mondaca et al.2012). Steviol glycosides (SG) are natural steviols, i.e., diterpene derivatives, that are responsible for the sweetness of the S. rebaudiana leaves. Approximately 40 varieties of SG, especially stevioside, rebaudioside A, B, C, and dulchoside have been identified. Stevioside, the most well-known glycoside, has a steviol structure that is formed from the binding of three molecules of glucose to an aglycone. Stevioside is a natural component with a high level of sweetness that is extracted from stevia leaves (Barriocanal et al.2008, Goyal and Goyal 2010).
Dietary prophage inducers and antimicrobials: toward landscaping the human gut microbiome
Published in Gut Microbes, 2020
Lance Boling, Daniel A. Cuevas, Juris A. Grasis, Han Suh Kang, Ben Knowles, Kyle Levi, Heather Maughan, Katelyn McNair, Maria Isabel Rojas, Savannah E. Sanchez, Cameron Smurthwaite, Forest Rohwer
Stevia, an artificial sweetener extracted from the plant species Stevia rebaudiana, was the most potent prophage inducer with an increase of 410% and 321% VLPs detected from B. thetaiotaomicron and S. aureus, respectively. Several studies have demonstrated the antimicrobial potential of stevia extracts,34–36 but none has proposed a mechanism of action. Abundant terpenes may be responsible for the antimicrobial properties of stevia (as reviewed by37). Our results agree with this possibility, in that terpenes have been shown to be more effective against gram-positive bacteria (E. faecalis and S. aureus). Tomita et al.36 showed that fermented stevia is effective against food-borne pathogenic bacteria, with no significant killing of gut microbes.36 A stevoside mixture from Stevia rebaudiana has also been shown to be anti-tumorigenic,38,39 which may involve proviral induction. Together, these studies and our results suggest stevia could be used to manipulate the gut microbiome.
The influence of stevia on the flow, shear and compression behavior of sorbitol, a pharmaceutical excipient for direct compression
Published in Pharmaceutical Development and Technology, 2018
Hana Hurychová, Pavel Ondrejček, Zdenka Šklubalová, Barbora Vraníková, Tomáš Svěrák
The highly refined preparations of Stevia rebaudiana, that is, steviol-glycosides (rebaudioside A) can be considered GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) and have been approved by the FDA. Of approximately 100 different compounds, stevioside and rebaudiosides A to E are the most important (Goyal et al. 2010; Nabors 2012). Rebaudioside A (Reb-A) has a pleasant sweet taste, higher water solubility and better stability in comparison with stevioside; a sweet taste starts off slowly and a slightly bitter aftertaste or licorice flavor can be suppressed by mixing with other sweeteners (Caracostas et al. 2008; Goyal et al. 2010; Nabors 2012; O’Donnell & Kearsley 2012).
Related Knowledge Centers
- Aglycone
- Extract
- Stevia
- Steviol Glycoside
- Sweetness
- Yerba Mate
- Glycoside
- Stevioside
- Rebaudioside A
- Steviol