Potential Health Benefits of Stevia

Stevia has been used for several hundred years by the Guarani Indians of Paraguay as an antibacterial and general tonic. The inhabitants of South and Central America traditionally used stevia topically to treat skin rashes, wounds, and acne, and internally to help with digestion, birth control, and high blood pressure.⁽¹³⁾

Stevia Could Help Keep You Healthy

Modern research corroborates the potential health benefits of stevia. Stevia's leaves and sweet steviol compounds in stevia have a number of properties that could help:⁽¹¹⁾

• Regulate blood sugar levels and reduce glucose levels.^(11, 24)
• Counteract insulin resistance.⁽²⁴⁾
• Suppress high blood pressure.⁽¹¹⁾
• 
  Resist microbes, including those that can cause bacterial and fungal infections.^(7, 25)
• Naturally preserve food and prevent food-borne illness.⁽⁷⁾
• Reduce inflammation.⁽¹¹⁾
• Prevent and fight cancer.^{(11, 24, 26)}
• Treat diarrhea.⁽¹¹⁾
• Reduce water retention.⁽¹¹⁾
• Boost/regulate the immune system.⁽¹¹⁾
• Protect against liver damage and disease.⁽²⁷⁾
• Limit inflammatory lung injury from serious infection, trauma, acidosis, or toxic gases.⁽²⁸⁾
• Treat polycystic kidney disease.⁽²⁶⁾
• Protect the brain and nervous system from the effects of aging and diabetes.^(60, 61)
• Prevent damage to kidneys from toxic effects of cisplatin chemotherapy.⁽⁶²⁾
• Improve and accelerate wound healing (oral extract and topical crude stevia extract).^(63, 64)

Antioxidant Effects of Stevia

Stevia leaves also possess flavonoid compounds that have significant antioxidant activity - up to almost 57% inhibition of free radicals in one study. Antioxidants are present in dried, fresh, and fermented stevia leaves. This may be one mechanism that contributes to stevia's wide range of benefits.^(6, 29)

Beneficial Compounds in Stevia

Did you know stevia contains naturally beneficial plant phytochemicals and nutrients? These include alpha-pinene, beta carotene, caffeic acid, calcium, folic acid, iron, limonene, linoleic acid, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, protocatechuic acid, quercetin, riboflavin, vitamin C, and zinc.^(26, 30)

Clinical Evidence of Benefit

Although limited, there has been some clinical research using stevia both topically (skin gel and mouth rinse) and as a supplement.^(31-33)

Results show that stevia and its stevioside compounds may help prevent or treat:

• Aging skin⁽³¹⁾
• Cavities⁽³²⁾
• Chronic kidney disease⁽⁶⁵⁾
• Diabetes⁽³⁴⁾
• Heart disease⁽³⁵⁾