Stevia is a perennial plant on the basis of which a sweetener is made, because its leaves have a sweet taste. It helps to maintain youthfulness, restores the work of cells and is used as an addition to treatment and preventive measures against diabetes.
Want to get rid of extra pounds? Or have you been ill recently? Want to boost your immunity? Want to reduce the amount of sugar in your body? Learn more about stevia tea from the article.
Description
Stevia is an interesting plant that grows in fairly warm countries. On the basis of it, many sweeteners are made, since in Europe over the past years it has become fashionable to refuse sugar, it is believed that it is a sweet death. Stevia sweeteners can be harmful, but beneficial for most people. It is full of vitamins, amino acids and minerals, helps to organize the work of all systems of the human body, especially metabolism, which contributes to weight loss. With all this, it can have a negative effect on the respiratory, nervous and cardiovascular systems.
Appearance story
The first laboratory studies of the plant in the sixteenth century began to be carried out by the Spanish botanist and physician P. Stevus. He gave it a name and discovered the benefits of stevia in its use. So she became famous in Europe.
At the same time, some tribes of American Indians used stevia honey, and it was they who named it after a bee delicacy for a characteristic aftertaste. And already in the middle of the twentieth century, scientists from France isolated glycosides from the plant, which gave it a sweet taste. Since the end of that century, Japan began to grow stevia and use it for food.
Different properties of stevia sweetener have been discovered. The benefits and harms of the product should be found out before using it or choosing tea or syrup from this plant.
Beneficial features
There are many positive properties of stevia. The benefits have been proven by a large number of observations and studies. So, a small part of the advantages:
- It removes "bad" cholesterol from the body due to the antioxidants and pectins contained in the composition.
- It normalizes metabolic processes in the body, because amino acids and vitamins break down fats and activate the metabolism.
- It improves the state of the digestive system: it establishes the work of the intestines, copes with violations of the liver, eliminates the causes of heartburn, normalizes the functioning of the gastric mucosa.
- It is indicated for use as a sugar substitute for people with diabetes, since it does not contain carbohydrates and prevents the growth of glucose in the blood.
- It is used to treat urological diseases and remove excess fluid from the body so that there is no swelling, as it causes a strong diuretic effect.
- Helps in recovery after illness, in wound healing, helps to activate tissue regeneration processes.
- It copes with stress and insomnia, because it produces a sedative effect.
- It is an antipyretic, but to get this effect you need to drink Stevia tea at least three times a day.
Contraindications
Recommendations for taking tea or a sweetener should be considered to avoid the consequences:
- If you are hypotensive, in no case do not drink tea with stevia, find another, less dangerous remedy, because the drink can provoke a very strong drop in pressure.
- Also not very often, but still there is an allergy to this herb.
- With dystonia and congenital malformations, stevia is also contraindicated, therefore it can both slow down and accelerate the pulse, which is very dangerous for this group of people and threatens with fainting and loss of consciousness.
- Young children are also not recommended to give tea with stevia. A different reaction to consumption is possible.
- It is also not recommended to drink tea with stevia for people suffering from diseases associated with the respiratory system, especially bronchial asthma. Because sometimes the reception can cause coughing attacks in this group of people.
- After operations during the recovery period, doctors also recommend postponing the process of consuming products from this plant, because the body should not experience stressful situations during this period of time.
- This herb is recommended more for women, but men should use a limited amount of sweeteners and teas from stevia. It has an antiandrogenic effect and reduces the concentration of male sex hormones
Syrup
Stevia syrup is very useful and can be used as a sweetener in the preparation of food and drinks.
For its use, you need to collect and dry the leaves or purchase in a pharmacy. Take 100 grams of dry stevia leaves in syrup and pour a liter of boiled water. Put on fire and cook for about 60 minutes. Then strain the resulting broth, and add 0.5 liters of water to the resulting thick mixture and boil again. Now combine the resulting mixture and boil one more time.
The resulting syrup can be stored in the basement or in the pantry at room temperature for several years.
Stevia honey gives all its sweetness in cooking, so this figure is one hundred times higher than the sweetness of sugar.
It is recommended to add five drops per 1 cup of liquid.
Tea
Tea from stevia is a source of life-giving energy and strength. It awakens internal resources and tones.
To make Stevia tea from packages with packaged contents, you need to take one bag and pour a liter of boiling water in the teapot. But no less, this is done in such a ratio due to the high degree of sweetness and astringency of the resulting product. Tea will have a pleasant but unusual honey-sweet taste with a light floral aroma. It will be golden in color, but if you skip the necessary time until full brewing, and this is 3-5 minutes, the drink will darken very much and become greenish.
If you managed to independently collect and are going to brew a dry leaf, then you need to follow a few simple rules:
- Take 1 tablespoon of washed and dried pre-leaves and a glass of boiling water 90-95 degrees.
- Pour the raw materials with water and leave to insist 10-15 minutes.
- Then take a strainer and strain the resulting tincture.
- The result is a golden amber color infusion, which exceeds the sweetness of sugar by about a hundred times.
- In this ratio, approximately it is necessary, and diluted or added instead of sugar in another tea.
It is worth considering that tea from stevia in bags is easier to prepare, and there are variations of such a product mixed with other herbs.
Recipes for combining herbs in tea
Since stevia tea is a sweetener in its own right, options for creating herbal preparations should be considered. At the same time, keep in mind that the plant should occupy one hundredth part among other leaves, otherwise the drink will turn sugary-sweet.
For stevia tea for new taste and healthy qualities, you can add other herbs, create your own combinations.
The most popular stevia plants:
- Jerusalem artichoke;
- mulberry;
- mint;
- lingonberry;
- blackberry;
- burdock root;
Interesting combinations can be created not only with herbs, but also with squeezed and nut butters, you will get a spicy, pleasant aroma in tea, which, combined with the honey taste of stevia, will brighten the evening and give strength for new achievements.
conclusions
Stevia is a natural healthy sweetener with a honey flavor. Combined in tea collections with different herbs, helps reduce blood sugar, lose weight. The benefits and harms of stevia sweetener are controversial, but if you compare the product with sugar and the effects of diabetes, then this is the best option for sweet lovers.
Sometimes it’s nice to gather a company of friends over a glass of tasty and healthy tea, talk about something exciting, so that it goes by the wayside.