LLVLC On YouTube (Episode 46): Cargill Introduces A New Stevia-Based Sweetener Called Truvia

I was in New York City for the Truvia™ first taste test

Last week, I told you I was gonna be in New York City for a quick trip to find out more about a new stevia-based sweetener product called Truvia™. As you know from my previous blog post about this joint effort between Cargill Foods and The Coca-Cola Company to bring stevia to the market, aggressive efforts are being made to get approval from the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) to sell stevia as a sweetener for the first time in the United States.



This is promising news for Americans who are seeking healthy NATURAL choices for sugar alternatives since Truvia is made from the sweetest part of the stevia leaf--rebiana. The very best-tasting stevia is then combined with the sugar alcohol erythritol as a bulking agent to create a very clean-tasting, maltodextrin-free substitute for sugar. And it's not bitter even in the least. I was VERY pleased with that since the major complaint most people have with stevia is the puckered-up face they get when they taste it. Not with Truvia.



In Episode 46 of "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube," Christine and I share about my trip to the Rockefeller Center in New York City on July 9, 2008 as the people passing by the Truvia Greenhouse were given a golden opportunity to be some of the first people in the entire world to try this new product coming to store shelves in the Fall 2008. There was iced tea and lemonade available for people to try and most of them gave a very positive review of the Truvia. There were a few knuckleheads who refused to even try "nature's first zero-calorie sweetener," but it was their loss. This stuff is OUTSTANDING!

Learn more about Truvia and what makes it different in today's video:



If you're excited to try Truvia for yourself, then it is currently available for purchase online at Truvia.com and in a few select New York City stores. The immediate reaction I had to the Truvia when I tasted it was how much it resembled cotton candy. That's a good tasting product, I'd say! There is a bit of the "cooling" sensation from the erythritol, but it's not unpleasant. In fact, that gives it a very nice mouth feel to me and Truvia is just about as close to real sugar I have seen in a sweetener before! Try it for yourself and I'll be telling you more about this product when widespread availability hits later this year.

THANK YOU for watching "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube." Please send us your comments at livinlowcarbman@charter.net and watch our previous YouTube videos anytime you'd like! Take a moment now to subscribe to our YouTube videos and catch the low-carb wave that's rolling across YouTube right now. :D We'll be back again soon for another fun and quirky video about the healthy low-carb lifestyle.

FDA Is Strongarming The Vitamin Industry

If you are like me and enjoy taking supplements as part of your low-carb lifestyle, then you will definitely want to read this World Net Daily story about something the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is currently proposing that could directly impact your life. This may sound like a very sick joke, but it is DEAD SERIOUS!

According to FDA Docket No. 2006D-0480, aka the "Draft Guidance for Complementary and Alternative Medicine Products and Their Regulation by the Food and Drug Administration," the government agency would take over regulation of all vitamins, supplements, and any other natural health remedies. What would this mean? Well, any natural remedy items, even bottled water, would then be considered "drugs" coming under the strongarm authority of the FDA.

In fact, pretty much anything and everything that can be used to treat disease would fall under FDA control. Here's the language they use in this draft proposal:

Biologically based products include, but not limited to botanicals, animal-derived extracts, vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, amino acids, proteins, prebiotics and probiotics, whole diets and “functional foods.” A botanical product intended for use in treating a disease would be generally regulated as a drug. “Functional foods” may be subject to FDA regulation as foods dietary supplements, or drugs under the Act.

If the manipulative and body-based practices involve the use of equipment (such as massage devices) or the application of a product (such as lotion, cream, or oil) to the skin or other parts of the body, those products may be subject to regulation under the ACT.

Does all this sound preposterous? Think again. Imagine this:

Do you own a home gym for medical purposes? It would need FDA approval for use or commerce. How about heading down to your local drugstore to find your favorite vitamins? Good luck because the FDA would need to give their go-ahead. In fact, any store caught selling vitamins without the FDA's magic stamp could be prosecuted for "practicing medicine." Yikes!

FDA Commissioner Dr. Andrew C. von Eschenbach has put this draft guidance on the fast-track for implementation, but they are soliciting feedback from concerned citizens through May 29, 2007. The original date was set for Monday, April 30, 2007, but they decided to extend it for an additional month since there has been such an outcry from the public. You can send your concerned comments and reaction to the FDA about this by using their feedback form.

With one out of every three Americans using nondrug treatments for their health at an estimated cost of $5 billion annually, it appears the FDA is watching out for their buddies in the pharmaceutical industry. The medical establishment doesn't like the fact that people are getting healthy without the use of their overpriced medications. Sure, there are SOME drugs that do some fantastic work, but a lot of people find equally effective relief from all-natural homeopathic remedies.

Ever since I've been taking supplements like so many do on a daily basis as part of my low-carb lifestyle, I have not had to see the doctor because I haven't been sick. That's a fact that apparently doesn't sit too well with the medical profession. It's not all of them, but the people in powerful positions are none too happy that they're losing out on "business" from people who are supposed to be sick. Twisted, ain't it?

We've already seen severe restrictions to vitamins in our neighboring countries Mexico and Canada as well as in Europe where you even need a prescription from a doctor to have access to them. EEEEK! Don't you know the FDA would love to bring this policy to the good ole United States of America. They've been working on it for a while now.

I've previously blogged about the concerted effort to outlaw vitamins in this country before, but the FDA has stepped it up. What makes this bad is the outright corruption that already exists in that government entity and it's well-documented. Can you say Vioxx? Or their approval of the wheat gluten imported from China that was responsible for the pet food contamination that killed thousands of beloved pets? Shall I continue?

From allowing spray-on viruses for luncheon meats to their controversial approval of a risky over-the-counter weight loss drug, the FDA is no friend of the natural health community. Why else would they describe livin' la vida low-carb as "sheer nonsense?" Oh yeah, that's right, eating this healthy is a threat to the drug companies, too!

If you care about this issue as much as I do, then leave your feedback for the FDA TODAY! You have until May 29, 2007 to voice your concerns about this important issue. Let Commissioner von Eschenbach hear from us all!