Just as Sucanat is a brand name for a type of minimally processed sugar, Truvia is the name of the recent natural sweetener product from The Coca-Cola Company and Cargill. It is labeled “natural” because the sugar-like substances that compose it are derived from and naturally occur in plants.

Truvia is mostly known as a stevia-based sweetener because one of its major ingredients is rebiana. Again, this is just a trade name for the actual glycoside compound found in the stevia plant called rebaudioside A. This particular compound contains three glucose molecules and that explains why it’s the sweetest of all stevia’s sugar-like substances (at least 350 times more than ordinary sugar).

Another component in Truvia that adds to its sweetness is erythritol. This substance is known as a sugar alcohol which means that it has the chemical properties of both sugar and alcohol. Erythritol has around 60% of the sweetness of regular sugar and it naturally occurs in certain types of fruits.

These ingredients give Truvia an advantage over ordinary table sugar and other alternative sweeteners. However it is still recommended for moderate use in the Superhuman Food Pyramid because taking too much can cause negative side effects.

Keep reading to find out the pros and cons of Truvia so you can make a more informed decision on how to use it in your quest to Become Superhuman. Continue reading →