甜葉菊(Stevia rebaudiana)是一般人所熟悉的甘味料，也是南美洲巴拉圭與巴西交界處常見的多年生草本植物，甜菊的葉子含有名叫「甜菊素」的甜味物質，精製的甜菊素是無色無味的結晶，有砂糖200倍的甜味。由於熱量低、易溶於水或酒精，也具耐熱性，可謂無熱量之代糖產品，是糖尿病患者的飲食或瘦身食品常用的甘味料。
Stevia rebaudiana is a well-known sweetener, and it is also a perennial herb commonly found on the border between Paraguay and Brazil in South America. The leaves of Stevia contain a sweet substance called "steviol". The refined stevia is colorless and tasteless The crystallization has a sweetness 200 times that of granulated sugar. Due to its low calorie content, easy solubility in water or alcohol, and heat resistance, it can be described as a non-caloric sugar substitute product, and is often used as a sweetener in diets for diabetics or slimming foods.
Stevia rebaudiana是一種南美植物，由於其甜味高，種植在世界各地一直在增加中。甜葉菊的甜味主要來自甜菊糖苷，其甜度是蔗糖的 250-300 倍。
Stevia is a South American plant whose plantings have been increasing around the world due to its high sweetness. Stevia's sweetness comes mainly from steviol glycosides, which are 250-300 times sweeter than sucrose.
許多研究表明Stevia rebaudiana提取物的好處優於糖和人造甜味劑，但它仍然不是一種非常受歡迎的糖替代品。有報導稱，早在 16世紀，Stevia rebaudiana就已在西班牙廣為人知。然而，直到 19 世紀末，植物學家 Moises Santiago Bertoni 引進和推廣Stevia rebaudiana後，其他歐洲人才了解這種植物，瓜拉尼印第安人稱Stevia rebaudiana為“Ka-a He-e”，意思是「甜草」。
Many studies have shown the benefits of Stevia extract over sugar and artificial sweeteners, but it's still not a very popular sugar substitute. There are reports that the Stevia rebaudiana was known in Spain as early as the 16th century. However, the plant was not known to Europeans until it was introduced and popularized by botanist Moises Santiago Bertoni in the late 19th century, and the Guaraní Indians called Stevia "Ka-a He-e," which means "sweet grass."
在 1970 年代，Stevia rebaudiana被引入日本，並開始研究評估其對人類健康的有益潛力。從那時起，日本人在各種食品中積極使用這種甜味劑，日本現在是Stevia rebaudiana的主要生產國之一，可口可樂公司開始生產這樣的可樂，含有Stevia rebaudiana且熱量減少 30% 的飲料。這款飲料現在在全球許多國家/地區銷售。目前，除了日本、巴西和巴拉圭以外，世界上許多其他國家也商業種植甜葉菊。
In the 1970's, stevia was introduced to Japan, and research began on its human health benefits. Since then, the Japanese have actively used this sweetener in various foods, and Japan is now one of the main producers of Stevia, and the Coca-Cola Company later also started producing this drink containing ｓtevia rebaudiana with 30% fewer calories. The drink is now sold in many countries around the world. Currently, besides Japan, Brazil, and Paraguay, stevia is grown commercially in many other countries around the world.
總之，Stevia 除了在實驗中沒有表現出毒性之外，因Stevia 含有類黃酮和脂肪酸等成份，這些成份具有抗肥胖、抗糖尿病、抗高血壓、抗腫瘤、抗齲齒、抗炎和殺菌作用特性，是合成甜味劑的絕佳替代品。
In conclusion, in addition to the fact that stevia did not show toxicity in the experiment, because it contains components such as flavonoids and fatty acids, these components have anti-obesity, anti-diabetic, anti-hypertensive, anti-tumor, anti-caries, anti-inflammatory and bactericidal effects. Therefore, stevia is an excellent alternative to synthetic sweeteners.
