Kabelitz published a detailed evaluation of a database on heavy metals, which included more than 12 000
samples originating from quality control analyses by several pharmaceutical companies. On this basis, maximum
levels of Pb of 10 mg/kg-1 and for Cd of 0.5 mg/kg-1 were proposed. In this context, the WHO again proposes a limit
of 10 mg/kg-1 for plumbum and 0.3 mg/kg-1 for cadmium dried herbs. The concentrations of plumbum and
cadmium in leaves, stems and flowers of Stevia rebaudiana given in Table 2, assessed are in the range that classifies
them as a low source of plumbum and cadmium according to Kabelitz and WHO propose.