Is Stevia Safe?
The purified form is accepted, and the raw leaf is not. The FDA says it has evaluated many GRAS notices for high purity, at least 95 percent, steviol glycosides such as Rebaudioside A, and has not questioned the notifiers’ conclusions that they are generally recognized as safe under the intended conditions of use. It says the use of stevia leaf and crude stevia extracts is not considered GRAS, and their import into the US is not permitted for use as sweeteners.
The FDA says steviol glycosides are natural constituents of the leaves of the stevia plant, native to parts of South America, and are reported to be 200 to 400 times sweeter than table sugar. It says whole-leaf and crude stevia extracts are subject to an import alert, and differ from the highly purified steviol glycosides that have been the subject of GRAS notices and whose use as sweeteners it has not objected to.
The acceptable daily intake for steviol glycosides is 4 mg per kilogram of body weight, expressed as steviol equivalents, set by JECFA, which the FDA says works out to 12 mg per kilogram for Rebaudioside A. In its 2026 evaluation, JECFA said no new information indicated a need to revise that intake, and confirmed it.
Sources checked September 15, 2026. Every point below links the page it came from.
The sources behind this answer
- Regulatory filingThe FDA says it has evaluated many GRAS notices for high purity, 95 percent minimum, steviol glycosides such as Rebaudioside A, and has not questioned the notifiers’ GRAS conclusions under the intended conditions of use. US FDA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe FDA says the use of stevia leaf and crude stevia extracts is not considered GRAS, and their import into the US is not permitted for use as sweeteners. US FDA ↗
- Government sourceThe FDA says whole-leaf and crude stevia extracts are subject to an import alert and differ from highly purified steviol glycosides, whose use as sweeteners it has not objected to. US FDA ↗
- Government sourceThe FDA says steviol glycosides are natural constituents of the leaves of the stevia plant, native to parts of South America, and are reported to be 200 to 400 times sweeter than table sugar. US FDA ↗
- Regulatory filingThe FDA says the acceptable daily intake for steviol glycosides is 4 mg per kilogram of body weight, expressed as steviol equivalents, set by JECFA, and 12 mg per kilogram for Rebaudioside A. US FDA ↗
- Government sourceJECFA’s 2026 evaluation of steviol glycosides found no new information indicating a need to revise the acceptable daily intake, and confirmed the current ADI of 0 to 4 mg per kilogram, expressed as steviol. JECFA, WHO evaluations database ↗
Sources checked September 15, 2026. A brand statement is the company’s own claim, which we report but have not verified. Our grades are model-based estimates, not lab tests.