Is High Fructose Corn Syrup Really That Bad for You?

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is an insidious chemical that has crept into our food supply over the past few decades. Today HFCS represents [1] more than 40 percent of caloric sweeteners added to foods and beverages. HFCS can contain anywhere from 55 to 90 percent fructose [2] and is derived from corn, a heavily subsidized (read: cheap) crop. Manufacturers love HFCS because, especially when compared to regular sugar, it's cheaper, sweeter and produced in abundance. Not surprisingly, HFCS's ubiquity in the 1980s correlated with the beginning of the obesity epidemic. Other factors, including increased portion sizes, certainly play a role, but the inclusion of HFCS in soft drinks and other sweetened beverages merits serious consideration as an important cause of the obesity epidemic. Public opinion about HCFS has radically shifted from a diabetic-friendly sweetener to a very harmful one. "Fructose was initially thought to be advisable for patients with diabetes due to its low glycemic index," researchers in the journal Physiological Reviews wrote. [3] "However, chronically high consumption of fructose in rodents leads to [liver and systemic] insulin resistance, obesity, Type 2 diabetes mellitus, and high blood pressure." Realizing the public has a rather dismal view about this sweetener, manufacturers have gradually removed HFCS from processed foods. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) data shows [4] decreased HFCS consumption since 2002, while other sugar c...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news