Day 15: HFCS??

Skip to the bottom for why you should stay away from HFCS.

I have mentioned High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) in several posts. Today I'd like to explore a bit into this nasty little syrup that is so prevelant in almost everything on the grocery store shelves these days.

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a calorie-providing sweetener used to sweeten foods and beverages, particularly processed and store-bought foods (that's another good reason to stay away from processed foods) It is made by an enzymatic process from glucose syrup that is derived from corn. A relatively new food ingredient, it was first produced in Japan in the late 1960s, then entered the American food supply system in the early 1970s. HFCS is a desirable food ingredient for food manufacturers because it is equally as sweet as table sugar, blends well with other foods, helps foods to maintain a longer shelf life, and is less expensive (due to government subsidies on corn) than other sweeteners. It can be found in a variety of food products including soft drinks, salad dressings, ketchup, jams, sauces, ice cream and even bread and crackers.

In some ways, HFCS and Table Sugar are the same. They contain the same number of calories and both contain fructose and glucose. The effects on the body however, are different.

You may have seen the marketing campaigns by the Corn Refiners Association trying to improve the reputation of HFCS...don't buy it!

A Princeton University Research team has recently revealed a study that shows that High Fructose Corn Syrup leads to significantly higher weight gain than table sugar. The study found that consumption of HFCS led to abnormal increases in body fat, especially in the abdomen, along with raised levels of triglycerides (circulating blood fats).

According to the Princeton press release for the study, in the 40 years since the introduction of high-fructose corn syrup as a cost-effective sweetener in the American diet, rates of obesity in the U.S. have skyrocketed. In 1970, around 15 percent of the U.S. population met the definition for obesity; today, roughly one-third of the American adults are considered obese, the CDC reported.

On average, Americans consume 60 pounds of High Fructose Corn Syrup per year!!

Please check out the links below for more in-depth info.

Here's 4 basic reasons you should avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup:

1. High-fructose corn syrup has been linked directly to obesity, diabetes and metabolic dysfunction.
2. High-fructose corn syrup elevates triglycerides levels, which can lead to heart disease.
3. High-fructose corn syrup is simply empty calories with no nutritional value whatsoever.
4. The environmental footprint of high-fructose corn syrup is exceedingly large.

Sources:
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=486
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/hfcs-causes-surprising-weight-gain.html?amp%3Bpage=2&
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-03/pu-prf032210.php
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/just-desserts-hfcs-redux-and-why-obesity-is-just-so-delicious.html
http://www.care2.com/greenliving/high-fructose-corn-syrup-that-sweet-sweet-bully.html


::Tip of the Day:: Decrease your sugar intake. To be fair, neither high fructose corn syrup, or sugar is good for you in large amounts. Use a little when necessary, or even better, use honey!