The New Drug of Choice?
Obesity and diabetes rates have skyrocketed in the United States since the 1980s. One problem is that the average American receives 10% of their caloric intake from high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS). One study in 2005 found that the average individual in the United States consumed 42 pounds of HFCS every year. But how does this link HFCS to obesity and Type-2 diabetes?
Why Is High Fructose Corn Syrup So Bad?
Some people claim that HFCS is no different from regular sugar – and it is true that in terms of chemical makeup, there is not a huge difference between the two. So, why is it so much worse? The food production companies have created an environment where you are actually consuming a lot more HFCS than you may realize. Another issue is that your body doesn’t process HFCS the same way as sugar. Once again something made in a lab can’t fully replace what nature provides. How Stuff Works noted that glucose is metabolized in your body in many different ways. However, fructose is only processed through your liver. This means whatever the liver cannot process is turned into fats – triglycerides to be more precise. Triglycerides are harmful to your heart and your arteries. This puts you at higher risk for heart disease! Usually when you eat sugar your body produces insulin, leptin, or ghrelin which communicates to your body how much sugar you need. These substances are not produced when you take in fructose and so you don’t have a “shut off” switch telling your body that enough is enough. This causes an individual to eat more and easily overload their liver. Your body may react to HFCS similar to an addictive drug where you crave more and more of it. The more you eat the more you want to eat!
I Just Won’t Eat Sweet Stuff
Deciding to simply cut out anything sweet may not make that much of a difference when it comes to your daily HFCS intake. HFCS is being added to foods that would not normally need any sweetener. The preserving quality of HFCS and the reaction it creates in the body to crave more of it makes it desirable to food manufacturers. If you ate one thing in the day with HFCS you may not feel the effects to your health. But on average you may be consuming even more than what the FDA deems as allowable in food. You may have it in several breakfast foods, snacks, lunch, afternoon drink, and then again at dinner time. By the end of you day you have consumed so much your liver is already taxed to process it all. Where can you find it? There are a number of places you can find HFCS. It can even show up in foods that may not taste sweet. It is very important to read those labels!
- Breads & Baked goods
- Prepared fruits and vegetables (pickles, baked beans…etc)
- Breakfast cereals and Bars
- Processed Snacks (popcorn, chips, nut mixes)
- Sauces and Dressings (including ketchup, mustards, steak sauce, salad dressings)
- Soft Drinks
- Foods such as breaded meats & potato products
- Juice Cocktails
- Yogurt (check the label!)
- Candy
- Nutrition Bars & Energy Bars
- Cured Meats
- Tonic
- Boxed foods and Canned Fruit
This is not a complete list by any means. But if you think about what foods you eat in a day you can see how easily these items can add up. Keep yourself heart healthy by avoiding high-fructose corn syrup whenever you can.
Applications & High Fructose Corn Syrup Resources
- Check out 6 popular foods with HFCS
- Read more about where you can find high-fructose corn syrup by Sheer Balance
- You may find some of your favorite foods are listed here
- Go to Celestial Healing’s website and for a long list of foods commonly containing HFCS