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Stevia-An herb sweetener with 1 carbohydrate and 0 calories.
Eunice Gibbs
Several years ago I purchased two stevia cookbooks. I
tried many of the recipes in them, all disasters! Last
year, I purchased a new cookbook on stevia (I didn't
want to give up on this valuable herb.). Again, I tried
recipe after recipe. Didn't work. In all fairness, I did
change the recipes from white flour to whole-wheat
flour.
Stevia has a lot of potential if the manufacturers can get
it to the point where it is more usable in its substitution
for sugar. Substituting stevia for sugar can help people
to lose weight and help people with the many diseases
that go with being overweight.
Some of the benefits of stevia are: 0 calories, 1
carbohydrate, non-toxic, non-fermentable, does not
impact blood sugar levels, plaque retardant, i.e. prevents
cavities. Another major benefit, this applies only to the
herb stevia and not the extracted steviosides commonly
used in cookbooks, is chromium. Stevia is in the top 10
list of plant foods high in chromium. Chromium is a
popular mineral supplement people take to lose weight.
It helps insulin to work better and so can help prevent
the loss of blood sugar control. It is also necessary for
fat metabolism.
Ninety percent of the American population is deficient in
chromium. While obtaining chromium in foods is safe,
care must be used in supplementation . Toxicity results
in anxiety, fatigue, glucose intolerance and adult onset
diabetes. Recommended amounts 200-400mcg, this is
often increased for weight loss and diabetes up to 600 mcg.
(check with your Dr.). Please note mcg is micrograms not
milligrams.
I finally, after alot of experimenting, came to this
conclusion. If possible, I use the herb stevia to sweeten,
as opposed to its white powder extract. Take 1/2 cup
powdered stevia and soak it in 1 cup warm water overnight.
Next day strain, bottle and refrigerate the stevia liquid up to
1 month. To sweetened a 1/2 gallon herbal tea use 2 Tablespoons.
To substitute in recipes I've had to compromise, 3 T liquid stevia
plus 1/3 cup natural sugar equals 1 cup sugar. For some recipes,
especially if you're new to this, you may want to use less liquid
stevia.
Just to clarify, stevioside is an extraction of stevia often
recommended in cookbooks. It is not the whole herb as
is used in the recipe above. Both are difficult to use in
cooking. Steviosides advantage is its color, it is white
where the whole herb is green. I personally find stevia
liquid easier to work with.
Stevia is a good example of synergism, the whole is
better than the sum of its parts. In using the herb you
obtain chromium and many other nutrients, some
probably undiscovered. While steviosides will probably
help many people, once it can be used without
sacrificing the flavor and texture we all like, it will be
devoid of many nutrients.
This brings me to the subject to be covered next month.
Homocysteine and Dr. Kilmer, a Harvard physician
kicked out of Harvard in the 60's, because he had the gall
to point the blame of major diseases to the refining of our
foods. Dr. Kilmer gives an excellent understanding of the
major differences between complex carbohydrates and simple
carbohydrate foods. Dr. Kilmer has since been vindicated and
has been written about in all the major medical journals.
He's a champion!
Eunice has had years of herbal training from the best
in the field, Gladstar, Hoffman, Hobbs, Duke and the
Christophers. She has a B.S. in Nutrition and Food
Science and has taken post-graduate classes in Holistic
Health and Advance Clinical Nutrition. Information on
nutritional stress can be found at www.help4stress.com. |
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