Study adds to stevia Reb A safety

Rebaudiside A does not pose any safety questions regarding genotoxicity, according to a new study in Food and Chemical Toxicology: “These studies provide additional evidence that Reb A is not genotoxic at the doses tested and further support the generally recognized as safe determination of Reb A.” Researchers tested high purity (over 95 per cent) Reb A according to Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and FDA Redbook guidelines for genotoxicity studies. The study supports findings from published in the same journal last year (Food and Chemical Toxicology, July 2008, Vol. 46, Supplement 1, Pages S1-S92), which found that rebiana - a high-purity Rebaudioside A from stevia - is safe for use as a sweetener for foods and beverages. According to tests using Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, mouse lymphoma and Chinese Hamster V79 cells the sweetener was non-mutagenic. Further studies using bone marrow from mice showed that Reb A was non-genotoxic at doses up 750 mg per kg of body weight. In a DNA synthesis test in rats the sweetener was found to be safe up to a dose of 2000 mg per kg of body weight.