Most of us crave sweets. Food processors have learned to exploit this craving by adding highly refined sweeteners to processed foods. You don’t have to subject yourself to all that unhealthy food! Stevia is a healthy, delicious alternative to sugars and artificial sweeteners. Delicious, that is, if you use a recipe designed for stevia.
A child’s first candy bar could be the start of a an addiction to sweets. Sugar makes us feel “good,” but only for a while. Sweets can become “comfort” foods and that’s when we’re hooked. There are many fine books which explain the details of why refined sugars and other sweeteners are harmful. Suffice it to say, there is more to these health problems than tooth decay and weight gain. There are serious concerns with artificial sweeteners as well. I encourage you to look into the subject before you choose to consume foods loaded with refined sugar or artificial sweeteners.
Years ago, I gave up refined sugars and honey to see if I could break the addiction cycle. I didn’t know about stevia yet, and it was difficult at first, but soon I was happier and healthier without sugar. I can tell you from my own experience that stevia, even though many times sweeter than sugar, does not produce mood swings, hyperactivity, and addiction as does sugar.
When I stopped eating sugar, I discovered how tightly desserts are woven into our social structure. At first, I felt practically un-American, refusing a piece of apple pie after a supper. A young man like me is supposed to eat his dessert! I became accustomed to surprised reactions at my abstaining from sweets, but my mother proceeded do something about the situation.
My mother, who loves to cook for her children, knows I won’t eat artificial sweeteners such as saccharin or aspartame, and she won’t eat them either. One day we were shopping at A to Z’s Fresh Air Fair health food store in Saint Joseph, Missouri and I heard Mom ask for stevia, a natural alternative to those artificial sweeteners. So began our multi-faceted adventure with this amazing herb.
My desire is that this book will help you kick the sugar habit and feel better as a result. Stevia tickles the tastebuds as sugar does, but the resemblance stops there. Stevia has been shown to have beneficial medicinal effects. In fact, stevia may be sold in the United States only as a dietary supplement. Under today’s FDA regulations, the sweetness is considered a “side effect.” This is why stevia is not currently used in processed products here in the United States. This means we must cook with stevia for ourselves in order to make full use of this very fortunate “side effect.”
Happy Cooking!
