To date, stevia is the only vegetable substitute for sugar that does not have a negative effect on the body, but, on the contrary, is beneficial. It increases immunity, normalizes the activity of the cardiovascular and endocrine systems and some internal organs. So what is this - stevia?
This is a perennial herb, the stems of which die every year and are reborn again. Stevia grows in South America, in the favorable subtropical climate of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil. The height of this cultural plant reaches one meter.
Stevia is a non-decorative plant. In autumn in the period of rest it gradually dies off and does not look very presentable, and in summer and spring it's nice to look at these curly bushes. The photo shows that the stevia is externally similar to chrysanthemum and mint. The plant blooms continuously, especially during intensive growth. The flowers are rather small and collected in small baskets. In a temperate climate, stevia can bloom only in the summer, its seeds grow very poorly, so they plant it with seedlings.
Useful properties of
Guarani Indians began to use the leaves of a plant for food for the first time to give a sweet taste to the national drink - tea mate.
On the useful medicinal properties of stevia, the Japanese began to speak first. In the eighties of the last century in Japan, they began to collect and actively replace sugar with stevia. This beneficially affected the health of the whole nation, due to which the Japanese live the longest on the planet.
In Russia, the study of the beneficial properties of this plant began a little later - in the 90s. Numerous studies have been carried out in one of the laboratories in Moscow that have established that stevioside is an extract from stevia leaves:
- lowers blood sugar level,
- improves blood microcirculation,
- normalizes pancreatic and liver functions,
- has diuretic, anti-inflammatory effect,
- reducesthe amount of cholesterol in the blood.
The reception of stevia is indicated to diabetics, as the plant prevents the development of hypo- and hyperglycemic conditions, and also reduces the dose of insulin. With the simultaneous administration of herbs and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, the pathogenic effect of the latter on the mucosa of the digestive tract is reduced. Stevia grass is a sweetener, which should be used for angina pectoris, obesity, digestive system diseases, atherosclerosis, skin pathology, teeth and gums, but most of all - for their prevention. This herbal medicine of folk medicine can stimulate the work of the adrenal medulla and prolong the life of a person.
Plant stevia is ten times sweeter than sugar due to the content of a complex substance - stevioside. It consists of glucose, sucrose, steviol and other compounds. Stevioside is now recognized as the sweetest and harmless natural product. Due to its wide therapeutic effect, it is useful for human health. Despite the fact that stevioside in its pure form is much sweeter than sugar, it contains few calories, does not change the level of glucose in the blood, has a mild antibacterial effect.
Stevia is a honey herb, which is an ideal sweetener for healthy people and obese patients suffering from cardiovascular pathology, as well as for diabetics. About the use of this natural sweetener in diabetic nutrition read in the article: Stevia sugar will replace with dignity, With diabetes you can safely!
In addition to sweet glycosides, the plant contains antioxidants, flavonoids, minerals, vitamins. The composition of stevia explains its unique healing and healing properties.
The medicinal plant possesses a number of the following properties:
- antihypertensive,
- reparative,
- immunomodulatory,
- bactericidal,
- normalizing immune defense,
- increasing bioenergetic capabilities of the body.
The healing properties of stevia leaves have a stimulating effect on the work of the immune and cardiovascular systems, kidneys and liver, thyroid gland, spleen. The plant normalizes blood pressure, has an antioxidant effect, has adaptogenic, anti-inflammatory, anti-allergic and choleretic effects. Regular use of stevia helps reduce blood sugar, strengthen blood vessels and stop the growth of tumors. Glycosides of the plant have a slight bactericidal effect, due to which the symptoms of caries and periodontal disease, leading to loss of teeth, decrease. In foreign countries, chewing gum and toothpastes are produced with stevioside.
Stevia is also used to normalize the function of the gastrointestinal tract, since it contains inulin-fructooligosaccharide, which serves as a nutrient medium for representatives of normal intestinal microflora-bifidobacteria and lactobacilli.
Contraindications to the use of stevia
Useful properties of the plant are clear and proven. But apart from the benefits of stevia, it can damage the human body. Therefore, independent treatment with herbal remedies is strictly prohibited.
The main contraindications to the use of stevia herbs:
- individual intolerance,
- blood pressure changes,
- allergic reactions.