Infographic

This is clearly not done.  When it is finished, the actual image will be slighty translucent so that the text can be better read.  Also the text will most likely be all black but different sizes to tell them apart.  Also the sugar packet container image is cited but the picture of a stevia leaf I have overlayed is not.  I do not believe I even have the source info on it but I will check.  oh and the text will be different…they will most likely be quotes out of the article.  I just have that info in there as place holders to give you an idea of what I am trying to do here.

Introduction: first draft

It is widely known that too much sugar can have adverse effects on your health.  People trying to lose weight, and diabetics alike, have been searching for a safe, calorie free, low glycemic alternative for decades.  In fact, saccharin was first used over a century ago.  Reports of lab rats getting cancer gave this product a lot of negative publicity.  It has been thus proven that saccharin does not act the same way in the human body but there are plenty of other undesired side effects of this little pink packet.   Then came aspartame, the incredibly sweet, incredibly addictive drug, originally designed for ulcers.  As more negative reports surfaced, of using the blue packet instead, the demand for a more natural alternative grew.  Enter sucralose, after all it is made from sugar and tastes like it too, but in actuality, it is processed with chlorine.  Besides, to me this splendid yellow packet, tastes no different than all the other artificial sweeteners, awful.  Well there is hope yet and a new colored packet on the market.  In these eco-conscious times, the color is green, and the sweetener is an all natural shrub called Stevia.  But are all Stevia products created equal?  As the wife of a diabetic and a long time Stevia user, I can tell you that they aren’t.  After extensive research, I will share with you the, not so secret, truth behind these sweeteners.

Visuals

This image I find interesting because although it shows different forms of Stevia available, it almost has a negative drug-like vibe showing leaves, tablets, and a pile of extract.  Ironic considering it’s competition, aspartame IS actually a drug.  I am unsure of this photo’s source.

I am working on an info graphic still, hopefully

Interacting With Sources

A truly all natural alternative to sugar is finally here!  Since the 16th century, Guarani Indians of Paraguay have used the herb Stevia to sweeten.  Even though it’s extracts can be 300 times sweeter than sugar, as of 1999, steviol glycosides had not approved for use as a sweetener in the European Union.  Despite it being banned as a food additive, I have been using stevia extract for years, as it can be purchased as a dietary supplement.  For my type 1 diabetic spouse, it is a great replacement for sugar.  This natural sweetener wasn’t allowed in foods, toothpastes, and such due to insufficient available data.  In fact, some studies stated that steviol, a metabolite of stevioside, is a mutagenic and may also cause reproductive toxicity.  Almost 10 years later, the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JEFCA) of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization (WHO) reviewed steviol glycosides again. This time they found positive results, thus setting a temporary ADI (acceptable daily intake) level for steviol glycosides.

In 1999, the European Commission ’s Scientific Commitee on Food released their “Opinion on Stevioside as a Sweetener”.  In it, they cite a study where steviol shows mutagenic activity, in vitro, meaning in a test tube.  Without evidence that steviol is not mutagenic in vivo, meaning in the body, the EU obviosly could not approve it’s used in foods.  However, the JEFCA/WHO report states new data has been reviewed and in actuality, steviol is toxic in vitro but studies, in vivo, on rats, mice, & hamsters show that steviol is not toxic, even at doeses of 8000mg per kg of bodyweight! I agree that although steviol may be toxic in the right test tube environment, does not mean that it acts the same way in the body.

Another reason the EU wasn’t ready to approve steviol glycosides in 1999 was the conflicting information about steviol’s affects on the reproductive system.  One study shows that stevia extracts given to rats in thier drinking water causes infertility for up to 2 months.  Another shows decreased seminal vesicle weight.  The European Commission ’s Scientific Commitee on Food even notices, “However, in most old studies of reproduction performance the administered dose has been low and not comparable to those used in other toxicological studies.  Furthermore, the adminstered stevioside extracts have chemically not been adequately described.”  The way the extract is prepared affects the results of the study.  Three more studies are cited that show stevioside is not developmentally toxic in hamsters or rats but steviol can be at very high doses.   JEFCA/WHO says “The adverse reproductive effects associated with administration of (stevia)…were unlikely to be caused by steviol glycosides.”  I agree, people around the world have been using stevia, and it’s extracts, without negative reproductive effects for generations.  We are daily stevia users in our home and we had no infertility issues.

I know here in the US, forms of stevia have been approved and are becoming available to the consumer.  As for the EU, an application has been submitted to permit steviol glycosides, as a food additive, and it is being evaluated.  According to Gloria Obasogie at the Food Standards Agency, “The assessment process can be lenghty and if a positive opinion is gien, it may take a couple of years for steviol glycosides to be permitted in law.”  For now, consumers can still get it like we have been, as a dietary supplement.

The research/writing/thinking process…

Before writing my first draft I’d like to cite a few more sources in my annotated bibliography on the medical benefits of stevia.  Oh and the dangers of aspartame, sucralose and sugar (very briefly though).  I am also waiting to hear back from a few sources but all in all if I had to start writing, I could give it a go.  I am still working on finding the specific topic I want to build an info-graphic around and will be searching for visuals I’d like to include.  I can already tell my biggest problem is knowing when to stop.  Over the last few weeks I have developed such a passion for this subject that essentially I could research & take notes endlessly.  If I were to include everything I would want for this article it would have like 10,000 words and like 30 pics!  Not to mention it would take the rest of the year!  I do, however, need to start actually writing a first draft so I have a better idea in which direction this article is going.  With so much to write about, I am having a hard time even figuring out where to start.  I don’t want my article to sound like a shameless advertising gimick for the brand of stevia product I prefer, however, I do think it is important to get the word out to the consumers on the differences in quality, taste, and safety of stevia derived products.

Assignment for WRT 105

For this assignment I would like you to write an article to submit to GOOD magazine for publication.  The topic of this article is Stevia and it should be targeted towards the All You Can Eat section of GOOD’s site.  This article should be no less than 1,000 words, as this topic involves lots of information, and no more than 3,500 words, as the longest article in this section is approx. 3,406 words.  Also include images of the plant itself and maybe a few of it’s products.  An info-graphic, such as a timeline of stevias history, a map showing where stevia is grown and consumed, or maybe a statstical comparison of competing brands of Stevia products, should also be included.

The discourse community of GOOD’s readers consists of new-agey type individuals.  The progressive thinkers are interested in the environmental, humane, and political issues around the globe.  Keep this in mind when compsing your article.  The main purpose of this article should be to inform consumers of the safety, benefits, and quality of this product.  There should also be emphasis on how big businesses involvement in it’s production affects the industry, the product, and it’s consumers.

For this to be a strong article make sure to have plenty of quality sources (at least 10), such as journal articles, scientific studies, media publications, and personal interviews or testimonies.  Make sure to evaluate your sources credibility and use the information in proper context, as opinions can be biased (even in scientific studies!).  If you are unsure on a supposed fact or claim be sure to let your readers know this by using words such as “this product may help with this ailment according to so and so” not “the products cures this disease”.  Also when stating claims or facts include enough info on your source so your reader may “check up” on your info.  I have often read an article and thought to myself “Hogwash, where did they hear that!”.  Making your claims easy to verify helps establish your ethos as a writer when using data (logos).  Also don’t forget to put a personal tone & passion into your writing to connect with your audience (pathos).

The current EU stance

Dear Danielle

Thank you for your enquiry today, regarding whether the EU are in the process of approving stevia as a food or food ingredient.

I can confirm that stevia (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni), its leaves and extracts from stevia (steviol glycosides including stevioside) are currently not approved for sale as food or food ingredients across the European Union (EU) due to safety concerns raised during the 1999 evaluations. We are aware that the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA) of the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization, an international expert scientific committee, reviewed new studies on steviol glycosides in June 2008 and concluded that there was sufficient new evidence available to establish an Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) of 0 – 4 mg/kg bw expressed as steviol. The ADI is an estimate of the amount of an additive that could be routinely consumed every day over a lifetime with no appreciable health risk.

However, food additive legislation is harmonised across the European Union (EU) and safety evaluations are undertaken at an EU level. These evaluations are carried out on the basis of evidence submitted by an individual or company as part of an application for approval to the European Commission, who in turn seek advice from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Therefore, although there may be additional evidence to suggest stevioside is not genotoxic, before it would be permitted for use in the European Union as a sweetener it would need to be evaluated by EFSA.

As far as we are aware an application has been made to the European Commission to authorise steviol glycosides and that the application is currently being evaluated by EFSA. The assessment process can be lengthy and if a positive opinion is given, it may take a couple of years for steviol glycosides to be permitted in law.

I hope this helps.

Kind Regards

Gloria
——————————————————–
Mrs Gloria Obasogie
Food Additives Branch
Novel Foods, Additives and Supplements Division
Food Standards Agency
Room 5C
Aviation House
125 Kingsway
London WC2B 6NH
Tel: 020 7276 8162
Fax 020 7276 8193

Annotated Bibliography – Study on antidiabetic activity of Stevia

Bekele, Tedesse. “Antidiabetic activity and phytochemical screening of crude extracts of Stevia rebaudiana bertoni and Ajuga remota Benth grown in Ethiopia on alloxan-induced diabetic mice.”  Not sure how to cite this one either…

This is “A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies, Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia) in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirement for the Degree of Masters of Science in Medicinal Chemistry”.

To sum this study up as simply as possible, crude extracts of these herbs were given to mice that were previously given diabetes by alloxan injection.  Alloxan makes the pancreas stop creating insulin producing beta cells thus creating type 1 diabetic mice.  With stevia extract prepared with water, blood glucose lowered over 42% in two weeks (dose – 500mg/kg of body weight).  Interestingly the crude ethanol stevia extract only lowered BG 33% at this dose.  This study also shows that stevia grown out of it’s natural habitat (in this case in Ethiopia), still has antidiabetic properties.

***Wanna hear something sick?  Alloxan is allowed by the FDA in white four.  It’s function? Alloxan makes flour look pretty. < http://www.naturalnews.com/008191.html> I’ll take plain old, naturally nutrient rich, whole grain flour, thanks***

Annotated Bibliography – FDA states “no questions asked”

Tarantino Ph.D, Laura M. Letter to Sue Andress. 17 Dec. 2008. Hmm…Really unsure about citing these letters…

Wisdom™ also sent me two letters sent from Laura M tarantino, Ph.D, Director of the Office of Food Additive Safety in the Department of Health and Human Services at the FDA.  One letter was sent to Whole Earth Sweetener Company, LLC (makers of PureVia – for PepsiCo) and the other to Cargill (Makers of Truvia).  These letters both state “the agency (FDA) has no questions at the time reguarding Whole Earth’s (Cargill’s) conclusion that Rebaudioside A purified from S. rebaudiana (Bertoni) Bertoni is GRAS (generally regarded as safe) under the intended conditions of use.”  The FDA continues to explain that they themselves have not undergone the tests to determine this themselves (they just go by the studies and research provided) and that it is the responsibility of the makers of these products to make sure that they are safe.

***Well I dont know about you but I feel safe leaving it in their hands.  There is nothing more true or pure than a wonderfully tasting natural plant treated with chemicals and then mixed with more chemicals to be added to our food supply.  How stupid do corporations think consumers are?  I can no longer pretend to be unbiased.  I am trying to get to the bottom of Truvia’s erythritol – is it made with GMO corn?  Also I am digging for studies to support the health benefits of stevia consumption and waiting to get more info from Wisdom reguarding SweetLeaf’s GRAS status and their safer production methods.  I’d also like to investigate other makers of stevia products, if I can find the time.***

Annotated Bibliography – What is “natural” anyway?

Heller, Lorraine. “‘Natural’ will remain undefined, says FDA.” Food navigator-usa. 2009. Decision News Media SAS. 4 Jan. 2008. <http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Financial-Industry/Natural-will-remain-undefined-says-FDA>

Heller tells us that the FDA received two petitions to clearly define the term “natural” to avoid problems resulting from misleading and confusing consumers.  These petitions are still on file but have not been responded to (as of this articles date of publish).  Currently companies may put the word “natural” on their products so long as it is truthful.  The product can’t have artificial colors or flavors or man made substances.  For 15 years the FDA has maintained that it has more pressing responsibilities than defining this term.