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  ArticlesFat on High Fructose Corn Syrup |
Fat on High Fructose Corn Syrup
Originally thought to be a natural sugar, High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is in fact a refined sweetener and preservative linked to obesity and cardiovascular disease. HFCS can be found in abundance in many packaged food products such as soda pop, fruit-flavoured beverages, frozen foods, baked goods, chocolate bars, and ketchup, among many others. Fructose Digests Poorly Fructose occurs naturally in fruits and some vegetables. In small amounts it is generally thought to act as an intermediary in helping the body to process glucose properly. However, excess fructose is metabolized in the liver where it is readily converted to fat and sent into the bloodstream in the form of triglycerides (long associated with obesity and heart disease). On the other hand, glucose (found in more tradtional forms of sugar such as cane and beet sugar) is digested in the pancreas, regulated in the bloodstream by insulin, and then stored in the body as energy. Empty Calories Glucose intake also causes the increase of the hormone leptin (controls appetite and fat storage) and a decrease in the hormone ghrelin (controls hunger pangs). With fructose, the opposite occurs: leptin levels decrease and ghrelin levels increase. So essentially the consumption of HCFS delivers empty calories as it triggers sensations of hunger while storing fat at the same time. Corn Syrup Intake Explodes Since the introduction of corn syrup in the 1970s, fructose intake has increased dramatically. It is estimated the average annual intake of fructose has increased 60-fold per person over the last 35 years. Instead of digesting moderate amounts of fructose from natural sources, we are eating a wide variety of processed food saturated in HFCS. For example, a pound of fruit contains anywhere between 2 to 8 teaspoons of fructose; whereas a 12-ounce can of soda contains approximately 13 teaspoons of sugar in the form of HFCS. Health Implications The rise in fructose consumption has been linked to:
Solutions The simple remedy is to consume less refined sugar. This means reading food labels of processed foods to find where hidden sugars might be lurking. The recommended daily intake of added sugars is 10-12 teaspoons a day.
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