Dr. Robert Lustig 's A Professor Of A University Program

The past fifty years has seen a spike in the consumption of sugar, that number totaling a tripling increase. However, sugar is not the only risk factor here, alcohol and tobacco can also be attributed with the spike, albeit not as prevalent as sugar. The biggest question that Lustig et al. poses to its’ readers is this: “What aspects of the Western diet should be the focus of intervention”? (par. 3) The current USDA has been deemed “boogeymen” of diets, as well as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). Lustig et al. all believe that our attention should be turned towards “added sugar”, which is a sweetener that has fructose in it. Perhaps the biggest controversy from the past fifty years has been none other than a severe culprit that experts know as high fructose corn syrup or HFCS.

Lustig addresses is excess fat production related to fructose consumption. People who consume high amounts of fructose tend to gain excess weight, which can lead to other health issues. When fructose enters the body, it is transported to the liver where it will be broken down into a usable form of energy. Fructose is eventually turned into pyruvate and undergoes pyruvate dehydrogenase creating acetyl-CoA. From acetyl-CoA, there are two possible pathways for fructose to take; fatty acid metabolism or the TCA cycle. The TCA cycle is limited in the rate that acetyl-CoA can enter. Because of this, when an excessive amount of sugar is consumed more acetyl-CoA will undergo fatty acid metabolism. Fatty acids are stored in the body as triglycerides. When too much sugar is consumed, fatty liver disease may result. This occurs when too many fatty acids are created, thus the body cannot ship them out to storage. Instead, these fatty acids become stored in the liver. An excessive amount of sugar intake will lead to fat production, but with proper exercise this problem can be mediated. Exercise can speed up the TCA cycle as well as allow gluconeogenesis, which drastically decreases the amount of fat production. This leads to the conclusion that not every person who consumes fructose will accumulate excess

We need to say away from foods that are unnatural because they have a negative effect on our bodies. There are two different kinds of fats. Hydrogenated fat, which is the worst for you, which includes such foods as crackers. Natural plant based fats, which is good for you that include such foods as avocadoes. We humans tend to misread the difference. If it has a name for something that is good for you in the title doesn’t mean that it’s good for you. An example of this would be high fruit corn syrup. The writers told us that it is like smoking cocaine because even cocaine or high fruit corn syrup is made from something so pure at one time is now super unhealthy. Sugar is like drugs and alcohol addicting and sometimes very harmful. It comes in all forms such as therefore carbonates like bread. Even though it is not in a crystalized form it still is sugar. Humans become habituated to the effect of sugar. The facts are absolutely true because each individual person tends to consume 150 lbs. of sugar per year. Our mood can change and chronic disease can occur just because of this everyday “comfort food”.

High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is an inexpensive syrup created by changing about half of the particles comprising corn starch into fructose. Due to the cheapness of HFCS it has replaced natural sugars in most of the food consumed in America. Resulting in HFCS being found in just about all processed foods made today. Consuming any kind of sweetener has shown to greatly increase the chances of obesity, diabetes, high cholesterol and metabolic syndrome (Zeratsky, 2015). Since the invention of HFCS American obesity rates went from fifteen percent of the population to around one third of the population suggesting a strong

The daily food energy intake of Americans has been consistently rising since the early 1970’s while the energy expenditure has remained constant. A closer look at the data indicates that calories from fat are the same or even slightly decreased, while the calories from carbohydrates have increased by about 20% (Gaesser). Coincidentally or not, this is also about the same time that high fructose corn syrup was introduced. Between 1970 and 2000 consumption increased from 0.6 to 73.5 lbs per person per year (Bray). Doing the math, this would result in an additional 360 calories a day, though it should be noted that other sugars were decreased over this time so the impact is roughly half of that. At the same time, the energy intake increased from 3200kcal/day to 3900 kcal/day (Gaesser). Taking this a step further is the fact that there is a strong linkage between diabetes and obesity or excess weight gain. Between 60 and 90% cases of type 2 diabetes can be linked to obesity. Increases in body mass index (BMI) are as linked to increased risk for diabetes as demonstrated by both the Pima Indians and female nurses. (Anderson) Altogether, this paints a picture that type 2 diabetes is primarily due to excess body weight, which is fundamentally due to increased carbohydrate consumption, and in particular high fructose corn syrup. As obesity looks to be the principal cause of type 2 diabetes, treatments need to address both

We like everything in an instant. Individuals like fast cars, fast communication, and most of all we love fast food. Having things in life come in an instant seems great but there is a price to pay. Therefore, fast food may be convenient but it is costly. Although, fast food may save you time now, it will cost you years of your life later. Most foods that are quick and convenient are full of refined sugars, carbohydrates and other processed food. Sadly, these attributes of convenient food causes many of us to overeat. Dr. Lustig referred to individuals who eat a lot as “gourmands.” Sadly, there are a number of things that happen when we consume sugars, carbohydrate and fats. First, due to overeating an individual may have higher levels of leptin. Leptin is a protein produced by fatty tissue and believed to regulate fat storage in the body. According to Stephan Guyenet, when we become leptin resistance when our brain does not know when we are full therefore we overeat. Leptin resistance comes from a high consumption of sugar. Dr. Lustig suggest that sugar in the presence of insulin creates fat. I believe that obesity is direct effect of another underlying issue. Correspondingly, we all know the effects sugar has on our bodies, but yet we continue to consume it in high quantities. In my opinion, sugar is a drug and many people have an addiction to it. Sugars sends the same signals and high levels of dopamine to brain just as drugs. For example, I have an uncle who weighs about 900 pounds. He was not always this big, so what happened? As a child, he ate a lot of sugary foods and food that contains a lot of fat. Not only did my uncle eat unhealthy, but he was not very active. Therefore, there was a combination of factors that contributed to his massive weight gain. Obviously, his body started to become leptin resistant at some point. If you become leptin resistance and have an addiction to sugar then you

Down the road, added sugar has increased health complications tenfold. According to Quanhe Yang, from the Center of Disease and Control, “ 'death resulting from cardiovascular disease increases exponentially from added sugar consumption.' ”(Hellmich) Atherosclerosis, the most common cause of cardiovascular disease, is caused by correctable problems such as

This research essay will investigate the effects of High Fructose Corn Syrup. The liver is effected because the fructose—as it is being metabolized deposits fatty acids into the liver, it also develops cirrhosis, which has the same effect normally seen in alcoholics. High Fructose Corn Syrup increases cholesterol which blocks the inner walls of the arteries and may be fatal if not treated. High Fructose Corn Syrup was believed to be beneficial to diabetics, but studies show the they may actually promote more diseases. Obesity is a major problem, as High Fructose Corn Syrup does not release leptin—which is what signals the brain to stop eating, so society is prone to over consumption. It also alters the heart's use of other

Sugar is a very common thing we can find in our modern world. It’s in the majority of what we eat, drink, and snack on. Convenience is its best friend, because it can be found anywhere we look. We can find it at our corner gas station, our local supermarket, favorite movie theater, and in our own homes. Sugar is so closely related to the obesity crisis, and is believed to be the number one reason obesity exists.

The spike in blood glucose levels after ingestion of simple sugars is thought to be related to some of the heart and vascular diseases which have become more frequent in recent times. Simple sugars form a greater part of modern diets than formerly, perhaps leading to more cardiovascular disease. The degree of causation is still not clear, however.

Leptin is a hormone that is produced by the body’s fat cells. It is called the “satiety hormone”. The target cells of Leptin are found in the hypothalamus. The main function of leptin is to tell the brain that there is enough fat in our body so that we lose appetite. When the amount of fat decreases, the level of plasma leptin falls so that appetite is stimulated until the fat mass is recovered. And when fat mass increases, so do leptin levels and appetite is suppressed until weight loss occurs. Leptin levels fell during weight loss and increased brain activity in areas involved in emotional, cognitive, and sensory control of food intake. Restoration of leptin levels maintained weight loss and reversed the changes in brain activity. Thus, leptin is a critical factor linking reduced energy stores to eating behavior. Potentially, leptin therapy could sustain weight loss by overriding the tendency toward energy conservation. Obesity increases the risk of diabetes, coronary artery disease, fatty liver, gallstones, sleep apnea, arthritis, and cancer and may shorten the

The lack of eating leafy vegetables and fruits cause a lack of nutrients necessary for the body which works to reduce the immune system of the young children and cause metabolic syndrome. Thus, Fast food contains the beverages that help on high sugar in the blood, especially in children. This helps to increase the chances of developing type II diabetes. Which makes the amount of insulin secreted by the body is able to burn the total amount of sugars in the blood. The Type II diabetes disease works to increase the chances of developing heart disease 4 times and directly contributes to the decline in the performance of the kidneys and lead to a weak means of cognition and memory impairment. Saturated fats found in fast-food work by a large margin

As we hear of more studies exclaiming alarming findings of negative health concerns related to obesity and our continuously growing percentage of obesity in our country, particularly childhood obesity, sugar is in the spotlight. We often hear of dieticians and weight loss experts warning us that we

There is less controversy concerning the effects of fructose on components of metabolic syndrome; consumption of fructose has been shown to increase visceral adipose deposition and de novo lipogenesis (DNL), produce dyslipidemia, and decrease insulin sensitivity in older, overweight/obese subjects. 83,84 Bray and his colleagues study the relation between the intake of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and the development of obesity. They analyzed food consumption patterns by using US Department of Agriculture food consumption tables from 1967 to 2000. The consumption of HFCS increased > 1000% between 1970 and 1990, far exceeding the changes in intake of any other food or food group. HFCS now represents > 40% of caloric sweeteners added to foods and beverages and is the sole caloric sweetener in soft drinks in the United States. Their estimation of the consumption of HFCS indicates a daily average of 132 kcal for all Americans aged ≥ 2 y, and the top 20% of consumers of caloric sweeteners ingest 316 kcal from HFCS/d. The increased use of HFCS in the United States mirrors the rapid increase in obesity. The digestion, absorption, and metabolism of fructose differ from those of glucose. Hepatic metabolism of fructose favors de novo lipogenesis. In addition, unlike glucose, fructose does not stimulate insulin secretion or enhance leptin production. Because insulin and leptin act as key afferent

Advertisement and commercial industries portray table sugar, and other artificial sweeteners as fuel needed by the body. Though body and body cells need sugar as fuel source. The body mechanism is just like the case of engine, there are bad fuels which can destroy engine. Table sugar is just a bad fuel for the body. Several research studies have arraigned sugar first culprit for the epidemics of complicated health problems such as diabetes, obesity, heart disease and cancer. Worst of it, several research now ranking sugar as addictive substance as drugs.