Does sweet stevia tea affect baby rats?
Early consumption of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni on rat females: actions on their fertility, progeny and behavior.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Rats that drank stevia water before and during pregnancy had fewer babies, mostly girls, took longer to give birth, and their babies were heavier at birth. The mom rats also acted differently—less interested in male rats, less nervous, and more cautious.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
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Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Rats that drank stevia water before and during pregnancy had fewer babies, mostly girls, took longer to give birth, and their babies were heavier at birth. The mom rats also acted differently—less interested in male rats, less nervous, and more cautious.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 511 / 72
Evidence Score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
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Claims (6)
Stevia consumption at dietary-relevant doses significantly reduces fertility rates in mammalian models by disrupting hormonal regulation of reproductive function.
When female rats drank stevia water from a young age, they had trouble getting pregnant, had fewer babies, and had more girl babies than boy babies.
The longer the rats drank stevia before getting pregnant, the longer their pregnancies lasted, they had fewer babies, but the babies they did have were heavier at birth.
Rats that drank stevia didn’t prefer male rats as much, seemed less nervous in new places, but were more cautious and took longer to explore.
Even though the stevia-drinking rats ate and drank the same amount as others, they weighed less during mid-pregnancy.