High Fructose Corn Syrup: Sweet, but Sinister

Summarized from Debra Ginsberg's "Sweet, but Sinister"

What is high fructose corn syrup?
High fructose corn syrup has been in the news in the past few years, mostly in connection with stories about the alarming rise in obesity and diabetes. HFCS, made from cornstarch, is much sweeter than regular granulated sugar, or sucrose (made from sugarcane or sugar beets), and it's cheaper to produce, so the food industry loves it. Although it didn't exist before the sixties, it's now the leading sweetener used in the country. Nearly all soft drinks and sweet snack foods are loaded with it. And because it also prevents freezer burn and extends shelf life, it is in many processed and frozen foods U.S. consumption of HFCS increased by more than 1,000 percent from 1970 to 1990!

How is it harmful to your body?
The body digests HFCS differently than how it digests sugar. It's processed in the liver rather than in the stomach, increasing the liver's release of fat cells (triglycerides). High blood triglyceride levels increase your risk for heart disease. The sweetener is also thought to decrease the release of leptin, a hormone that tells the body it is full. Too much of it can also cause stomach cramps and fatigue.

Where to find (and avoid) high fructose corn syrup
HFCS is in all sorts of unexpected places-bread, yogurt, crackers, cereal-even "natural" foods. Read the labels! Refuse to buy foods that contain HFCS.

How has it made America fatter?
HFCS is sweeter and cheaper than sugar so the food industry substituted it for sugar. They also facilitated the super sizing of fast food, because it was just as cheap to produce a 24-ounce soda as a 12-ounce size. Today the average person consumes approximately 63 pounds of HFCS a year.

What are the major health risks?
HFCS raises an alarm because we consume so much of it. High soda consumption has been implicated in rising rates of diabetes and heart disease.

Is it really addictive?
HFCS does not stimulate the release of the appetite regulating hormone leptin, which may keep you reaching for more soda or foods containing HFCS.

What's the difference between high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup, and fructose?
Like HFCS, corn syrup is manmade, but it's mostly dextrose (glucose). It's the fructose-making up about half of HFCS-that is absorbed differently from other sugars. Fructose, or fruit sugar, usually occurs naturally and is not widely used by itself as an added sugar in food products.

How much HFCS can we safely consume?
No more than 10 percent of your daily calories should come from added sugar. If you're eating a 2,000 calorie diet, then consume no more than 200 calories of added sugar per day-which can work out to a 16.9 ounce soda or three ounces of plan M&Ms. But since sugar (often in the form of HFCS) is added to so many packaged foods, you don't have to eat any sugary snacks to reach your limit. A good rule of thumb: If HFCS is listed as the first or second ingredient, consider buying something else.




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