What About Stevia?

The use of sugar substitutes is becoming more and more popular these days as low or zero calorie sweeteners can be quite appealing to those attempting to lose weight, manage their blood glucose or minimize dental carries.
Stevia comes from the sweet leaves and extract of the plant Stevia rebaudiana. Originating in South America, stevia is sold under brands such as PureVia and Truvia. Purified stevia extract (>95% pure) known as steviol glycoside is 200 times sweeter than sucrose (table sugar) and has been approved by Health Canada as a table top sweetener and food additive in some foods such as cereals, nut spreads, baking mixes, chewing gum, and unstandardized beverages, condiments and candy.
It is important to understand that whole stevia leaves and crude extracts have not yet been approved by Health Canada or the FDA due to incomplete scientific data on the safety of their use; purified stevia/ steviol glycosides/ rebaudioside A are versions that have been approved as safe for use. The U.S Food and Drug Administration has considered rebaudioside A "generally recognized as safe" since 2009.
Now that I've gotten you confused, lets confuse you some more! Although purified extracts have been approved by Health Canada and the FDA, the Center of Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) suggests a need for further research to determine the safety of stevia. The CSPI suggests that guidelines require new food additives to be tested on rats and mice for 2 years. Rebiana (high purity rebaudioside A) had been tested only on rats and not mice, and some studies found rebiana-related substances to cause DNA damage in rats.
Ovcourse, just because high doses of a related substance may cause toxic damage in rats, does not mean that similar affects would be seen in humans. Stevia has been used for years in South America, Central America, and Japan, however, whether or not it is associated with negative side effects in humans remains unclear with some critics.
In the end, choosing conventional sugar or sugar substitutes is always up to you. Extensive use of sugar or sugar substitutes could create a preference for sweeter foods, increase cravings for these foods, and make it more difficult to manage weight and/or diabetes. And don't forget, conventional sources of sugar are still an option if you can manage how much you use and how often you use it!

Information Sources:
http://www.dietitians.ca/Nutrition-Resources-A-Z/Factsheets/Food-Safety/Artificial-Sweeteners.aspx
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/addit/list/9-sweetener-edulcorant-eng.php
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/addit/sweeten-edulcor/index-eng.php
http://www.cspinet.org/stevia/
http://www.healthcastle.com/diabetes_stevia.shtml