Browsing September, 2008
Corn Refiners Association Thinks We Are All Idiots
Have you seen the ads on TV lately about High Fructose Corn Syrup? You know, like the one where a couple is sitting in a park while the female takes out a Popsicle and explains to her boyfriend that it’s no big deal that it contains HFCS. She tells him that its made from corn and has the same calories as sugar.
Do these people really think we are that dumb? Everyone knows sugar is unhealthy. So these ads are saying, “HFCS is as safe as that other crap that will make you fat, rot your teeth and give you diabetes”. (Oh, they say in moderation it’s okay, mmmm…much better; much more responsible).
It seems that the Corn Refiners Association is behind these ads. In fact, they have begun a campaign that cost at least $20 million bucks aimed at making us think that we should start eating more of this stuff. The good news about all of this is that obviously less of us are consuming HFCS, which is why this new campaign has been drummed up in the first place.
Part of the campaign is their website, SweetSurprise.com where they have comparison charts for Sugar, HFCS, Honey, Xylitol, and Saccharin.
There is also a FAQ list, and one question in particular I need to quote here:
Are all caloric (nutritive) sweeteners metabolized similarly?
Yes. The body digests caloric (nutritive) sweeteners by breaking them into smaller units, primarily glucose and fructose. These “simple” sugars are absorbed into the bloodstream, where they are transported to the cells of the body and are then converted into energy. Though the individual sugars are metabolized by different pathways, this is of little consequence since the body sees the same mix of sugars from caloric (nutritive) sweeteners, regardless of source.
Now, when I read that I thought, well that doesn’t look right, I don’t think that is actually true. But don’t take my word for it, why not see what an actual real life doctor says. Here is a quote from Dr. Mercola’s website, regarding the sweetsurprise website:
High Fructose Corn Syrup Does NOT Metabolize in the Same Way as Sugar
“HFCS is a highly processed product that contains similar amounts of unbound fructose and glucose. Sucrose, on the other hand, is a larger sugar molecule that is metabolized into glucose and fructose in your intestine.
Part of what makes HFCS such an unhealthy product is that it is metabolized to fat in your body far more rapidly than any other sugar, and, because most fructose is consumed in liquid form, its negative metabolic effects are significantly magnified.
Whereas the glucose in other sugars is used by your body, and is converted to blood glucose, fructose is a relatively unregulated source of fuel that your liver converts to fat and cholesterol.
There are over 35 years of hard empirical evidence that refined man-made fructose like high fructose corn syrup metabolizes to triglycerides and adipose tissue, not blood glucose. The downside of this is that fructose does not stimulate your insulin secretion, nor enhance leptin production. (Leptin is a hormone thought to be involved in appetite regulation.)
Because insulin and leptin act as key signals in regulating how much food you eat, as well as your body weight, this suggests that dietary fructose may contribute to increased food intake and weight gain.
Additionally, fructose is also known to significantly raise your triglycerides and LDL (bad cholesterol).
Triglycerides, the chemical form of fat found in foods and in your body, are not something you want in excess amounts. Intense research over the past 40 years has confirmed that elevated blood levels of triglycerides, known as hypertriglyceridemia, puts you at an increased risk of heart disease.”-Dr. Mercola
Well, I guess one would expect that the people who peddle this HFCS would not mind getting a few of their facts wrong. What is even more amazing is that there is a perfectly safe sweetener called Stevia which is an herb that the FDA has basically outlawed, saying that there is not enough evidence that Stevia is safe for consumption.
There have been hundreds of studies done on Stevia, and none of them have come up with evidence to suggest that Stevia is harmful to anyone. Japan has been using Stevia in their food for years, but we have the FDA allowing damaging substances like HFCS into our food supply in huge quantities. Hmmm… maybe they get something from the sugar industry? Well, I’ll let you do the math. Maybe I’ll do a post on Stevia next.
For now, I just laugh when I see those commercials applauding HFCS as a great, safe substance. What a joke.
To your Health and Wellness,
James Hosmer