White or Green Stevia?
Naturally Sweet Products
Carbohdrate-alternative sweeteners are all the rage nowadays with people becoming more health conscious. Carbohydrate-alternative sweeteners claim to be low in calories, yet still providing a sweet taste, therefore they are considered a popular choice for those who have a sweet tooth yet are calorie conscious. A popular brand of sweeteners available in the market is Stevia,a natural sweetner. Two kinds of Stevia sweeteners are present for the consumers. A white coloured and a green coloured. An extract taken from a Stevia Rebaudiana plant, Stevia is used in place of sugar. The raw extract contains very little carbohydrates; therefore negligible difference is noticed on our blood sugar level. The green coloured Stevia sweetener is derived from plants. The extract from these plants happens to be much sweeter than sugar, yet without calories. Even though no scientific proof is available, it has been claimed by many that green Stevia can aid in overcoming a number of ailments Iike diabetes, heart conditions etc. Some people also attribute the loss of weight to green Stevia. However benefits or not, the question remains, white or green Stevia: which one is more popular. Human psychology claims that the human mind is more attracted to colourful things. Therefore most developers make use of this fact and make their product available in bright vibrant colours. Artificial food colouring is used in almost all food items especially fruit juices to make them appear brighter and more scrumptious. . As a result the artificial colouring is now a billion dollar industry providing colours to almost every processed food, from juices to tinned fish. The actual difference between green and white Stevia is that, green Stevia is made from whole Stevia leaf, whereas the white one is made after most of them leaf’s contents are removed leaving behind only the sweet containing mixture. The green Stevia is said to be more nutritious, with a stronger licorice flavour. People usually consider white products to be processed and manufactured, hence without any natural ingredients. Same is with white Stevia, people link it with the other highly processed food items and so label it as unhealthy. The idea behind green Stevia is to associate it with the herbs it is derived from. The products which bear the colour of the natural foods that they claim to be extracted from, are generally more popular with consumers. This is because they bring to the mind the natural food products and all the goodness that they proffer. Using the same idea, the green Stevia has been developed, to give consumers the sense of knowing which organic material it is coming from. However colour is not the only thing on which a sweetener should be chosen. Artificial sweeteners have recently come under serious criticism for being unhealthy. Many studies have shown them to display a certain toxicity which could be detrimental to human health. But the developers of Stevia use mostly natural herbs and ingredients while making the product deeming it much safer.
