Stevia: An all natural sweetener Alternative to Splenda & Aspartame

Are you trying to avoid artificial sweeteners and lower your sugar intake? Then try using Stevia. What is Stevia? It is an herb from South America. The leaves of the plant are used as a sweetener usually in a powder form or a liquid supplement. You will find stevia at natural health food stores and it is sold as a dietary supplement in the United States. There are also no calories in stevia and it's not made with chemicals like artificial sweeteners such as Aspartame. Stevia has been used safely for hundreds of years in Japan.

I avoid buying products with any artificial sweeteners such as Aspartame and even Splenda aka: Sucralose. Artificial sweeteners are everywhere now. You'll find it in yogurt (low calorie versions),Fiber One Cereal (I was really surprised by this!), Diet sodas,cookies, snack bars and more. I look at all labels when I am grocery shopping. It may take longer but it is well worth for myself and my familie's health.

Just recently I purchased this Stevia supplement in liquid form:
http://www.steviasmart.com/sc-liq-1-3z.html
It is wonderful. It comes in a convenient dropper bottle. Stevia is sweeter than table sugar so only a few drops are needed. I keep it in my purse and use it in my coffee and espresso drinks.

Limiting Hight Fructose Corn Syrup

Here is another lovely chemical that I avoid when purchasing food products. What is High Fructose corn syrup? High-fructose corn syrup is a sweetener and preservative used in many processed food products. It is made by converting the sugar in cornstarch to fructose, another form of sugar. HFCS extends the shelf life of many foods and is sweeter and more cost effective than sugar. HFCS can be found in yogurt,ice cream,bread,soda, and other processed foods. Some nutrition experts believe that HFCS is linked to the growing obesity problem in the United States. One thought is that fructose can be more easily converted to fat by your liver than is sucrose, thus increasing the fat in your bloodstream. This hasn't been proved yet though.

There have been animal studies to prove that increased ingestion of HFCS can cause adverse health effects such as diabetes and high cholesterol. This is not as clear in human studies.

Even with the lack of research we know that humans consume quite a bit of HFCS laden products. Usually these products lack in nutritional value and are high in calories. No wonder why obesity is a problem in the U.S.

Be sure to read your labels and look for High fructose corn syrup. You can buy these products with no HFCS: StonyField farm yogurt and some store brands, Breyer's Ice Cream, Organic Breads and drinking pure fruit juice instead of sodas.