Steviol glycosides and enzymatically modified stevia in foods: a review of their physicochemical properties and current analytical methods

Steviol glycosides and enzymatically modified stevia are attracting increasing consumer interest due to their health benefits as natural, non-caloric sweeteners. As their applications expand, the need for systematic intake monitoring and reliable analytical methods that account for diverse food matrices has increased. Commercially available sweetener products and food additives containing steviol glycosides and enzymatically modified stevia generally consist of mixtures of multiple, structurally similar compounds rather than single components. This creates technical limitations in the accurate determination of total content as well as in the simultaneous separation and quantification of individual constituents. Therefore, this review aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of steviol glycosides and enzymatically modified stevia by summarizing their physicochemical properties, metabolism, and regulatory status, along with a critical analysis of current trends in sample pretreatment and qualitative and quantitative analytical methods.