Health Problems Of High Fructose Corn Syrup

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.

Ultimately, the debate continues as to whether the US government should create strict sugar regulations or not. Sugar regulations should be enforced in order to decrease the rate of diabetes, risk of liver failures, and sugar addiction problems. These problems outright can ruin a person’s life, even leading to death. These problems give the necessary reason for the government to take action for a stricter sugar regulation for population

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

We eat every day, rarely thinking about what’s going into our bodies. Take soda, for example, when was the last time you read the label before taking a sip? For me, it is never. One of the first ingredients listed on the can is HFCS or high fructose corn syrup. This ingredient is a secret additive to many products in today's market. High Fructose Corn Syrup is one of the cheapest to make and hardest to get rid of in the body. Since its introduction to food products in the 70's it has slowly been added to most foods, even ketchup.

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

Abstract: The use of high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener in various food and drink products has drastically affected the American people in the last three decades. Dominating 55% of the sweetener market because of its industrial benefits, HFCS’s increased use has caused dramatic effects in its consumers, including upsetting normal hormonal functions, destroying vital organs, nerves, and throwing off the body’s mineral balance. As the use of HFCS increased, the rates of obesity, diabetes, and related health problems have escalated, resulting in a nationwide epidemic.

High fructose corn syrup is one of the main causes of the rise in obesity rates in america. In Michael Pollan's book The Omnivore's Dilemma he writes “National health and nutrition examination survey results from 1976 to 2006 show an alarming increase in the percentage of obese children ages 6-19” pg.92, This is especially important because along with obesity means risks of diabetes, heart disease, shorter life span, and many other unpleasant things. Michael Pollan also writes “every year approximately 500 million bushels of corn are turned into hfcs. One bushel of corn yields 33 pounds of hfcs, that's more than 16 billion pounds of hfcs a year” pg.93. Which is a lot of high fructose corn syrup that is being manufactured and

Pollan states, “In the United States most of the corn we consume is invisible, having been heavily processed or passed through food animals before it reaches us. Most of the animals we eat (chickens, pigs and cows) today subsist on a diet of corn, regardless of whether it is good for them” (pollan 1). Food companies hide all of these corn products in the food and drinks as sweeteners and syrups. The livestock eat a corn diet, which isn’t good for them, forcing us to give them antibiotics so they don’t get sick. We then eat these livestock that are drugged and full of corn. The most successful way we’ve found to sneak it into our food and drinks is through high-fructose corn syrup. This is a substitute for sugars and is extremely cheap. It’s so cheap that majority of snack and drink companies use it to save money and increase profit. Pollan says, “Nearly 10 percent of the calories Americans consume now come from corn sweeteners; the figure is 20 percent for many children” (Pollan 2). We eat these foods and drink these drinks and expect us to be fine. “A recent study at the University of Minnesota found that a diet high in fructose (as compared to glucose) elevates triglyceride levels in men shortly after eating, a phenomenon that has been linked to an increased risk of obesity and heart disease” (Pollan 2). The food companies are feeding

High-fructose corn syrup is a commonly used artificial sweetener in foods. High-fructose corn syrup is a hydrolyzed version of ordinary corn syrup, which is produced via a steeping process. It is so widely used because it is both economically favorable and it helps to preserve food for extended periods of time. However, the drawbacks of high-fructose corn syrup include issues like potential obesity, diabetes, loss of liver function, malnutrition, and cancer. The fact that the producers of high-fructose corn syrup can deceive people that HFCS is harmless makes matters worse.

I hope all is well with you. Thank you for asking my opinion about high fructose corn syrup. Rest assure I do not want you to be concerned, I will try to explain it as much as I can. Let me start by explaining to you what high fructose syrup means in comparison to regular sugar. HFCS is composed of a mix of glucose and fructose (Beil). This same chemical components are also found in “regular” table sugar. Table sugar also has another name called sucrose. It has a linear ring structure with three to seven carbon atoms (Phelan 854). To make it easier on you to understand, we eat sugar it breaks down in our stomach as glucose and fructose (Busken 112-113). If the breakdown of HFCS and sugar is compared you will find that HFCS gives the better opportunity of using in food (Busken 112-113). The digestion of sugar is 50/50, while the breakdown of HFCS is 42% fructose and 55% glucose (Busken 112-113). The remaining 3% are chains of saccharides (Busken 112-113).

Confusions and debate over sugar and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) which leads into a large debatable topic. With food and bread products that HFCS has found its way into. Most are unaware of this product as processed sugar. HFCS is an altered sweetened product. Natural sugar is an entirely unprocessed ingredient, for example, milk, and vegetables. A standout between the most widely known everyday sugars is fructose, which is found in natural fruit product (“Add”). To make corn syrup, first will blend the corn starch with water and then include a catalyst, which breaks down into a sweeter sugar substance that is delivered by a bacterium that separates the starch into shorter chains

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

Studies show that high fructose corn syrup fat. The article “sweet confusion” Say’s that high fructose corn syrup started out as a scientific achievement. After high fructose corn syrup was made most factories started using it instead of sugar cane because it was a lot cheaper. Which is bad because now the factories are mainly only using high fructose corn syrup, which is also really bad for you and they have yet to find that out. This done by “After factories started using high fructose corn syrup obesity rates grew rapidly.” (Beil, Laura, 2013) So then people began to wonder if the unnatural sweetener was the effect of why the rates were growing.“Beil then exams science designed to look for any health effects specific to fructose.” (Beil,

Pollan states that energy-dense foods are the cheapest on the market. For example, one dollar can either buy 1,200 calories of potato chips/cookies or 250 calories of carrots. One dollar can also buy either 875 calories of soda or 170 calories of juice. Most people opt for the first options because you get more calories for your money. This is the reason the daily intake of calories has jumped ten percent and all of these extra calories can be traced back to the farm. Corn has become a product in many of the things we eat. In 1980, corn, or rather high-fructose corn syrup, became an ingredient in Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola had clever marketing when they changed their eight ounce bottles to twenty ounces to get people to pay a little more for a larger amount of coke. Because of this, consumption of sugars has grown from 128 pounds to 158 pounds per person. If corn had never been put in Coca-Cola would we be healthier today? Would our consumption of sugars be lower? This chapter led me to think more about why people choose to eat the things they do and made me realize that these less nutritious foods have a big impact on us in the long run.

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.