How High Fructose Corn Syrup is Killing You

High fructose corn syrup is prevalent in so many popular foods and beverages that it has become one of the largest sources of empty calories Americans consume.Use as a sweetener, high fructose corn syrup is found in pop including Coca Cola and Pepsi products, it is in cake mixes, ready made cookies, breakfast foods like cereals and syrup and other pre-made mixes. High fructose corn syrup is so common in everyday diets that Americans are literally eating themselves to death with empty calories.

There is a big push for the companies associated with high fructose corn syrup to state the fact that the sweetener contains almost exactly the same attributes of sugar. In fact, they are pushing to change the name to "corn sugar". There are several facts that support this claim such as the fact that both sugar and high fructose corn syrup contain about the same amount of proportions of glucose and fructose. To be fair, I think it is important to note this fact and to be aware of products containing processed sugars as well.

Does High Fructose Corn Syrup Make gain More Weight Than Sugar?
I don't know if it makes you gain weight more than sugar although a Princeton University found that long term consumption of the corn syrup leads to increased body fat beyond the "norm", especially in the abdominal region. Others have claimed that single biggest part of why Americans are obese at such a wide spread level is because of high fructose corn syrup. The facts are limited on this notion except for the associations found in some studies.

Liquid Fat: High Fructose Corn Syrup and Soda:
While the point remains that most carbonate drinks don't contain any "fat", it has been shown time and time again that weight gain is linked to regular consumption of pop intake. Some believe this is because of the carbonation in the pop, others claim it is the high fructose corn syrup and most blame both. The point is, people who drink pop are more inclined to weight gain than those who don't.

So I don't get it... Why is High Fructose Corn Syrup So Bad if it's Just Like Sugar?
Here are three points to consider:

1. High fructose corn syrup does not come naturally from corn. It is a process of converting cornstarch into fructose and then blending it with glucose. Some question this process in that it is not natural and therefore it is somehow tainted. As to date there are little known facts that this process does make high fructose corn syrup worst than sugar.
2. The awareness of consumption of high fructose corn syrup was not as high as the awareness in the consumption of sugar. Just the fact that this product is in pop makes it wide spread and consumed on a daily basis for most Americans. Now that people are recognizing the dangers, pop companies have actually started going back to "classic" soda "made with real sugar".
3. High amounts of empty calories. With the vast amount of food and beverage products containing these sweetners, Americans are getting little to no nutritional value. This on top of the fact that heart disease is the #1 killer in America. Those who are overweight (often caused by eating too many "empty calories" are much more at risk of getting heart disease.

The bottom line is simple, cut back on sugar and on high fructose corn syrup.

Products that may be replacing high fructose corn syrup with other sweeteners like sugar:

• Soda Pop
• Sara Lee bread
• Capri Sun Juice flavored crinks
• Nabisco 100-calorie pack snacks
• Wheat Thins and Premium Crackers