Corn Syrup Makes us FAT

Fructose is the sugar found in fruit and is healthier to consume in a granulated form than sucrose (table sugar). However, when corn refiners pull fructose from corn starch and combine it with glucose to make liquid high fructose corn syrup, the original DNA, if you will, is dramatically altered. Fructose does not stimulate the production of insulin or leptin. Both of these hormones decrease appetite and the body’s ability to control weight. Corn syrup increases the production of gherlin, a hormone that increases hunger and appetite. There are many more side effects from HFCS, too many to list. This is a great article to check out.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2004/02/18/FDGS24VKMH1.DTL

It seems that high fructose corn syrup is in practically every processed product on retail shelves these days. The commercials sponsored by The Corn Refiners Association claim that HFCS has the same calories as sugar and that it is fine in moderation. Although HFCS may have the same calories as sugar, it is everywhere and in everything. Why is HFCS so popular among food manufacturers? It’s cheap, about 20% cheaper than regular sugar. It extends the shelf life of a product, mixes easily with other products, and prevents freezer burn. For manufacturers, it's all about the bottom line. You end up consuming HFCS whether you want to or not. We eat and drink 76 more calories per day just from sweeteners. This is up 19% since 1970. HFCS is even in foods that aren't normally associated with being sweet or sugary. In 2003, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated that the American public consumed 79 pounds of corn-derived sweetener per year. That's gone up from 63 pounds consumed in 2001. So what? We like things sweet.

A study at Harvard School of Public Health showed that having one or more corn or sugar sweetened drinks a day dramatically increases your chance of gaining weight and developing diabetes. Soda has 13 teaspoons of HFCS in 12 ounces. Americans drink about 56 gallons per person per year. The USDA recommends that we limit our intake of sugar, including HFCS, to 10-12 teaspoons a day. Think twice before you hit up the soda machine for your midday boost or give your kids a sugary fruit juice. The fact is, the more corn syrup you consume, the more you want.

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/kingcorn/taste.html

When it comes right down to it, with all the frozen foods, baked goods, and drinks we consume, we eat more sweeteners made from corn than from sugarcane or beets. Most nutritionists blame HFCS for the nation's obesity problem. They aren't blaming fat or carbs (those without HFCS). The sweetener started infiltrating food products in the 1980s, the same time the rise in obesity started -- it seems almost coincidental. HFCS has absolutely no nutritional value. It is the epitome of empty calories. Have you ever eaten a meal or snack and ended up being hungry 10-20 minutes later? Not only does HFCS not lend us any nutrition, the body processes the fructose in HFCS differently than it does old-fashioned cane or beet sugar; this in turn alters the way our metabolic-regulating hormones function. It also forces the liver to kick more fat out into the bloodstream, making us want to eat more while storing fat. In conclusion: the Food Giants love corn syrup because the product will last longer on the shelf, and the more we eat the more we want. Basically their bottom line gets larger -- and so does ours.