Monk Fruit – The King of Sweeteners

Monkfruit, commonly known as luohan guo, is a Cucurbitaceae gourd family herbaceous perennial vine. Southern China and northern Thailand are its native habitats. The fruit was first recorded in the records of Chinese monks in Guangxi, in the Guilin region, in the 13th century. Because of its difficulty in growing, the fruit was never included in the Chinese herbal tradition, which relied on more commonly available products. The plant is grown for the mogrosides in its fruit, which produce a sweetness sensation 250 times stronger than sucrose. Mogrosides, a collection of triterpene glycosides that make up roughly 1% of the flesh of the fresh fruit, are primarily responsible for the fruit's sweetness. Solvent extraction yields a powder containing 80% mogrosides, the most important of which is mogroside-5 (esgoside). Siamenoside and neomogroside are two more related agents found in the fruit.

Monk fruit has been deemed "generally recognised as safe" (GRAS) for everyone, including pregnant women and children, by the Food and Drug Administration Trusted Source; however, because monk fruit is still relatively new to the mass market, there are no scientific studies on the effects of long-term use.

The plant is well known for its sweet fruits, which are used as a sweetener and medicine. It's used for cough and sore throat in traditional Chinese medicine, and it's thought to help people live longer in southern China. The dried fruits are commonly available and are traditionally used in herbal teas or soups.