stevioside and Weight-Gain

Numerous food organizations have identified excessive calorie consumption and accompanying ailments as significant health risks associated with high sugar consumption. Administering stevioside (ST), sucralose (SU), and the two synergically (SU+ST) affected normal rats' weight gain. In the current study, SU showed the highest undesired effect. Indeed, administering the three treatments to diabetic rats (DR) did not improve the rats' weight gain. Although, insulin injection synergically with the treatments improved the weight gain, as recorded after three weeks. The best-improving rate was observed in the ST group. After the administration of ST and ST+SU to the DR, the blood glucose level (GL) was positively affected, with SU having no effects on reducing the GL. A considerable reduction in serum insulin (SIL) was noted in the DR+SU group. On the contrary, ST did not negatively affect the SIL, rather an improvement was recorded. In addition, giving SU did not significantly affect the ALT level in the DR or normal rats (NR). A significant improvement in total bilirubin (TBILI) was observed when insulin was injected with ST or SU in DR groups. Further, triglycerides (TG) after administering ST, SU, or ST+SU to NR had no significant difference compared to the control group (NR). Although, the three treatments markedly but not significantly lowered TG in the DR. For total cholesterol (CHO), both DR and NR had no significant effect after the three treatments. No histopathological alterations were recorded in the NR group. Diffuse and severe atrophy of the islands of Langerhans due to depletion of their cells and mild papillary hyperplasia of the pancreatic ducts were represented by a slightly folded ductal basement membrane and newly formed ductules in STZ-DR. Simultaneous atrophy and absence of the cells of islands of Langerhans besides ductal hyperplasia were evident in DR+SU. Hyperplastic ductal epithelium and atrophic Langerhans cells were seen in DR+SU+In. Degeneration and mild atrophy were observed in the islands of Langerhans structures. There was essentially no noticeable change after utilizing ST. A slight shrinkage of the Langerhans' islets was detected in DR+ST. In DR+ST+In, no histopathological alterations in the islands of Langerhans were recorded. Congestion in the stromal blood vessels associated with degenerative and necrotic changes in the cells of the islands of Langerhans in DR+SU+ST was observed. In NR+SU, congestion of the blood vessels ass

Topics: Animals; Blood Glucose; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental; Humans; Hyperplasia; Insulin; Insulin Resistance; Islets of Langerhans; Rats; Sucrose; Weight Gain

A perennial schrub, stevia, and its extracts are used as a natural sweetener and have been shown to possess antimicrobial properties. Stevia contains high levels of sweetening glycosides including stevioside which is thought to possess antimicrobial and antifungal properties. Little is known about the nutritional value of the schrub in livestock. This study determined the potential use of the shrub as a prebiotic animal feed supplement in light of the recent ban on the use of antibiotics in animal feed and the role of its constituent stevioside in the effects of the shrub. Male Cobb broiler chicks were fed a basal broiler diet without antibiotic but with performance enhancing enzyme mix (positive control), a basal diet without antibiotic and enzymes (negative control), or diets in which 2% of the negative control diet was replaced with either dried ground stevia leaves or 130 ppm pure stevioside during 2 week starter and 2 week grower periods. Body weight gains, feed conversion, abdominal fat deposition, plasma hormone and metabolites and caecal short chain fatty acids (SCFA) were measured in the broilers at 2 and 4 weeks of age. There was no significant effect of the treatments on feed intake during the starter period but birds fed diet supplemented with stevia leaves and stevioside consumed more feed (p < 0.05) than those fed the positive control diet during the grower period. Weight gain by birds fed the positive control and stevioside diets was higher (p < 0.05) than those fed other diets only during the starter period. Feed/gain ratio of birds fed the positive control and stevioside diets was superior (p < 0.05) to others. There was no effect of the treatments on nutrient retention and water content of the excreta. Dietary stevia leave and stevioside decreased total concentration of SCFA and changed their profile in the ceca. There was no effect of the treatments on pancreas weight. Dietary stevia reduced blood levels of glucose, triglycerides and triiodothyronine (T(3)) but had no effect on non-esterified fatty acids. In contrast, stevioside only decreased T(3). Both the stevia leaves and stevioside diets significantly increased abdominal fat content. It is concluded that dietary enzyme growth promoters are beneficial to the broilers only during the starter stage and that inclusion of stevia leaves or stevioside has no beneficial effect on the performance of broilers.

Topics: Animal Feed; Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents; Body Composition; Cecum; Chickens; Diterpenes, Kaurane; Eating; Fatty Acids; Fatty Acids, Volatile; Glucosides; Male; Nutritive Value; Plant Leaves; Probiotics; Random Allocation; Stevia; Weight Gain

In intubation experiments (643-1168 mg per animal), most of the stevioside administered to chickens was recovered unchanged in the excreta, and only about 2% was converted into steviol. Neither stevioside nor steviol could be found in the blood. In chronic studies (667 mg of stevioside/kg of feed) with laying hens and meat-type chickens, no significant differences were found in feed uptake, weight gain, and feed conversion as the result of stevioside administration. The egg production and egg composition of laying hens were not influenced. Most of the stevioside taken up was found untransformed in the excreta, and about 21.5% or 7.3% was converted to steviol by meat-type chickens or laying hens, respectively. No stevioside or steviol could be detected in the blood or in the eggs of the different groups of animals. In anaerobic incubation experiments with chicken excreta, only a 20% conversion of stevioside into steviol was found. No harmful effects were observed in the chronic stevioside supplementation experiments nor in the intubation experiments in which very high stevioside doses were given.

Topics: Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena; Animals; Chickens; Diet; Diterpenes; Diterpenes, Kaurane; Eating; Eggs; Feces; Female; Glucosides; Oviposition; Sweetening Agents; Weight Gain

The developmental toxicity of steviol, a metabolite of stevioside, was studied in hamsters. Pregnant hamsters were intubated with steviol at dose levels of 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1.0 g/kg BW/day on days 6-10 of gestation. Steviol at doses of 0.75 and 1.0 g/kg BW/day were highly toxic to both dams and fetuses. Significant decrease of maternal body-weight gain during the experimental period (days 6-14) and high percentage of maternal mortality indicated the general toxicity of these two high doses. The number of live fetuses per litter and mean fetal weight also significantly decreased in the steviol-treated animals at doses of 0.75 and 1.0 g/kg BW day. The animals treated with an intermediate dose (0.50 g/kg BW/day) exhibited less signs of maternal and developmental toxicity than the two high doses (0.75 and 1.0 g/kg BW/day). One craniomeningocele was found in a fetus under the maternal toxic condition in steviol-treated at a dose of 0.75 g/kg BW/day. Neither the skeleton nor visceral development of the offspring was affected by steviol treatment except delayed ossification of the xiphoid (bifid) and long bones of the limbs and supernumerary thoracic ribs (14th ribs) tended to be increased at doses of 0.5 to 1.0 g/kg BW/day steviol. No dose-related teratogenesis was detected. From the result of the present study concerning maternal toxic condition and embryotoxicity, an oral dose of 0.25 g steviol/kg BW/day is regarded as having no observable effect. This steviol-treated dose is derived from stevioside 625 mg/kg BW/day which is approximately 80 times higher than the suggested acceptable daily intake of stevioside for humans (7.938 mg/kg BW/day).

Topics: Abnormalities, Drug-Induced; Administration, Oral; Animals; Cricetinae; Diterpenes; Diterpenes, Kaurane; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Embryonic and Fetal Development; Female; Fetal Viability; Gestational Age; Glucosides; Pregnancy; Sweetening Agents; Terpenes; Weight Gain

The effect on growth and reproduction in hamsters of stevioside, which is extracted from stevia leaves (Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni) and is currently used as a non-caloric sweetener, was investigated. Four groups of 20 one-month-old hamsters (10 males and 10 females) were daily force-fed with stevioside (0.0, 0.5, 1.0 and 2.5 g/kg body wt/day, respectively). No abnormalities were found in growth and fertility in both sexes. All males mated females efficiently and successfully. Females showed normal 4-day oestrus cycles and became pregnant after mating. Each female was mated and allowed to bear three litters during the period of experiment. The duration of pregnancy, number of fetuses, as well as number of young delivered each time from females in the experimental groups were not significantly different from those in the control group. The young F1 and F2 hamsters continuously receiving stevioside via drinking water until one month old and daily force-fed afterwards at the same doses as their parents showed normal growth and fertility. Histological examinations of reproductive tissues from all three generations revealed no evidence of abnormality which could be linked to the effects of consuming stevioside. We conclude that stevioside at a dose as high as 2.5 g/kg body wt/day affects neither growth nor reproduction in hamsters.

Topics: Animals; Cricetinae; Diterpenes; Diterpenes, Kaurane; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Estrus; Female; Fertility; Genitalia; Glucosides; Growth; Litter Size; Male; Pregnancy; Reproduction; Sweetening Agents; Terpenes; Weight Gain