Stevia is the only natural sweetener that does not affect blood-sugar levels, is suitable for diabetics, has zero calories, and zero GI-value. This we found out ourselves after a bit of private research.
Unfortunately, almost the whole world is led to believe that the synthetic sweeteners (aspartame, sucralose, sorbitol, and others) are NOT dangerous. Lately, though, the contrary has been proven, beyond the shadow of a doubt. (Although aspartame has been illegal for more than 30 years in Japan... and there, e.g. light soft-drinks contain Stevia instead.)
We trust that each will find out by himself, the dangers of synthetic sweeteners - it is readily available information - and this is why we, FriendlyShop, will concentrate on the alternative instead.
Background on Stevia:
There are a few manufacturers out there, but we have found one that delivers both organically certified and the highest quality. And with a shorter chain of distribution, we believe our prices are unbeatable!
The general quality of Stevia, has to do with both the plant itself and the ground leaves, and how the subsequent extraction of white crystals is made.
There are different species in the Stevia family. Stevia Rebaudiana is the one that contains most of the sweet component rebaudioside A, that has the most neutral sweet flavor, and least of the anis-seed/liquorice aftertaste.
When picking from the bush for drying and subsequent grinding, it can be done by hand to get only the leaves - or mechanically, where stems are ground into the product. Stems have more of a bitter flavor and contain only three percent stevioside.
Stevia is grown different ways, with or without pesticides and artificial fertilizers.
When extracting into white crystals, a greater or smaller quota of this rebaudioside A can be attained. There are white crystals in circulation that have a quota of 10 to 90 percent rebaudioside A.
FriendlyShop has aquired Stevia of the best quality.
Our dried leaf Stevia Green comes from Stevia Rebaudiana with the most neutral sweet flavor. 40 times as sweet as regular sugar.
It is ground from hand-picked leaves; no stems are included.
Our Stevia Crystals are extracted in a way that yields the most neutral sweetness. 250 times sweeter than regular sugar.
The refining process now takes place in close proximity to where the plants are grown, which creates jobs locally, and no need for shipping far away for extraction, e.g. to China.
Our Stevia is not mixed with anything!
Many other producers of Stevia mix it, dilute it, some say to make it easier to measure. The problems with mixing Stevia with other ingredients are many:
What Stevia is mixed with might be
unsuitable for diabetics (glucose, maltose, etc)
products that induce to much gas (inulin, etc)
new and un-researched (erythritol, etc)
unspecified at all - neither content or amont - so that you cannot tell how much Stevia the product contains
We have chosen to not mix or dilute our Stevia at all, so that you can trust the content 100%.
Furthermore - if you desire a procuct that is easier to measure, you can easily mix Stevia with water in a bottle, e.g. in a bottle with a pipette (a cleaned out one for nose-drops). Read more about how to do this!
Stevia is the only natural sweetener that does not affect blood-sugar levels, is suitable for diabetics, has zero calories, and zero GI-value. This we found out ourselves after a bit of private research.
