Stevia Supplemented Diet for Management of Cardiovascular Disease

Ground legume, cereal and stevia (Stevia reaudiana Bertoni) leaves were used to formulate five types of food items (food-1, food-2, food-3, food-4 and food-5) with decreasing rate of cereal (wheat) and increasing rate of Legume (soybean) and vice-verse. A control food was also formulated. The objectives of this work were to evaluate the proximate composition of food and to study the effects of these foods on the growth, body weight and serum lipid of rats. Each rat was fed the formulated food 15 g per day throughout the experimental period. Weight gain was measured in two days interval. This study showed that it is possible to reduce the lipid profile of rat through cereal and legume based formulated food added with stevia. These findings might be helpful for men to reduce cardiovascular disease as a naturally occurring therapeutic agent.