HFCS

Watching the film "King Corn" reminded me of how much corn is produced and how much corn we, as americans, consume.  

This movie reminded me of a presentation I gave on High Fructose Corn Syrup for my health care class when I was abroad in Stockholm, Sweden. 

Here is what I learned about HFCS: 

What exactly is High Fructose Corn syrup? 

 It is a sugar extracted from corn, which is then chemically altered into one of two compositions: HFCS-42 or HFCS- 55. Its chemical composition highly resembles table sugar, which is 50% fructose and 50% glucose.  HFCS 42 is 42% fructose and 58% glucose while HFCS 55 is 55% glucose and 45% glucose.  High fructose corn syrup first hit the markets in the 1950s as a "wonder product"

What foods contain High Fructose Corn Syrup? 

here are a few: 

• soda
• candy
• yogurt
• cake
• breads
• cereal bars
• frozen pizza
• mac and cheese 
• coctail peanuts
• tonic water 
• salad dressing 
• canned fruit 
• ketchup 
• applesauce
• jams
• basically everything you can imagine 

Why use High Fructose Corn Syrup? 

According to the Corn Refiners Association, HFCS is just as safe for consumption as table sugar.  

The benefits they list are: COST, TASTE, and COMPOSITION:

"High fructose corn syrup has been used for over forty years and the International Food Information Council agrees that, “HFCS is a useful ingredient because of its sweetness and ability to blend with other food and beverage ingredients.” -CRA 

Along with this reason, cost is a huge factor in using HFCS.  Due to tariffs on sugar imposed by the United States, sugar prices are two to three times higher here than the rest of the world, making HFCS a significantly cheaper option.  Governmental production quotas of domestic sugar and subsidies of US corn make HFCS even cheaper to make.  HFCS is easier to blend and transport than table sugar and is also sweeter in taste than sugar. Since Americans like their food sweet, HFCS is the better option to use.  

Health Risks and HFCS?

Since introducing HFCS into the American diet, every American ingests over 60 pounds of it per year.  Obesity rates have tripled and diabetes has increased sevenfold.  It enhances caloric over-consumption and may lead to liver failure, kidney failure, and some types of cancer.  

HFCS is also a marker of foods that are poor quality, nutritionally depleted, and full of empty calories.  It is also rumored ot contain contaminants (including mercury) that are not regulated or measured by the FDA. 

Is High Fructose Corn Syrup just as bad for you as sugar? 

HFCS and cane sugar are not chemically the same and they are not processed by the body in the same way.  HFCS is not a natural substance.  No digestion is required for HFCS, so it is directly absorbed into your blood stream, unlike cane sugar.  

Yes, it is true that both are not good for you in large quantities. Sugar consumption in general now makes up 16% of Americans diet. (which is a 50% increase from the 1970s).  

Americans and Europeans can eat up to 100g of sugar per day.......

BOTTOM LINE: 

More needs to be done to control BOTH sugar and HFCS consumption in American diets