High Fructose Corn Syrup: Not Such a Sweet Surprise

Have you all seen these commercials on TV about high fructose corn syrup and how it’s just like sugar and good in moderation? I thought I was watching a Saturday Night Live skit. With the Corn Refiner’s Association backing the commercial, we should all take a good look at what there trying to sell.

Most common types of High-Fructose Corn Syrup are: HFCS 90 (mostly for making HFCS 55), approximately 90% fructose and 10% glucose; HFCS 55 (mostly used in soft drinks), approximately 55% fructose and 45% glucose; and HFCS 42 (used in most foods and baked goods), approximately 42% fructose and 58% glucose.

Many studies have shown the negative effects of HFCS, while new studies also claim there is no difference in consuming HFCS and all the other sugars. Fructose, of course, is the sugar that naturally occurs in fruit. So what do you make of all this? I'll tell you everything I know.

Consumption of HFCS has been linked to obesity when it taking in high amounts as it is in a typical American diet. Would it cause more harm than other sugars like sucrose, glucose etc? As much as the corn refiner’s association would like you to believe it does not cause more harm, studies have shown that there is more to the story.

According to the University of Florida, researchers fed rats on sucrose, fructose and glucose for six months. All three groups did not show weight gain, high blood sugar, leptin levels or cholesterol. However, the group that was fed fructose had high triglycerides in their blood.

Next, the the same rats were fed a high fat diet for two weeks and given leptin shots (which should have reduced their appetite and therefore their intake). The fructose- free rats did respond by eating less but the fructose fed rats did not. The fructose fed rats became leptin resistant, which is what happens in obesity. How does this happen? The high triglycerides in the blood prevents leptin from signaling the brain properly to reduce appetite, so you eat more. In addition fructose is metabolized by the body differently than other sugars and is stored as fat much more quickly.

To simplify high fructose consumption makes you gain more weight when you eat a high fat diet. Can you have fructose in moderate amounts and not gain weight when you eat a balanced low fat diet ? Most likely, no. The problem is that that most Americans consume excessive amounts of HFCS, it is found in almost all processed food , soda and baked products. So what about fruit? Fruit is packed with vitamins and fiber, which is essential to good health. Very rarely do you find that people eat an excess of fruit.

The best remedy is to eat foods that are low in sugar and that generally means eating less processed foods. No one wants to take sugar out of their diet completely but moderation and a clean, lean diet is essential for optimal health.

Start fresh, go through your kitchen cabinets and clear out the soda and most of the packaged foods. HFCS came into the American diet in the 1970s, which consequently is when the obesity rates began to rise. What do you think people ate before the processed foods? It’s possible to find tasty alternatives to processed foods, don’t be lazy. You can have your cake eat it too, in moderation.

Fiorella

Top Five Mistakes Dieters Make

Before I conduct any fitness workshop, I give every participant a nutritional assessment in which a daily food journal is kept for one week. It is important for me to understand my client and their particular needs and what they expect from the workshop. My latest workshop is for a corporation that has numerous restaurants all over the United States. Most of the employees are ground level servers and hostesses that are also actors and models. Most of them would describe themselves as healthy and image conscious but would love to be more fit.

Interestingly enough, when they were asked to fill out the food journal for a week, they were very nervous and later admitted that they were a bit embarrassed to actually write down what they eat. In my experience this reaction is not abnormal; most people have a truly emotional relationship with their food and generally have counterproductive feelings of guilt about what they eat. The emotional aspect of eating is really my toughest problem to conquer with my clients but it can be overcome.

The assessment also pointed out several obvious “diet dangers” that can ruin an otherwise moderate diet. Here are the top five mistakes:

1. Do not drink your calories- Orange juice, fruit juices and smoothies sound healthy, but most have a high added sugar content which can pile on unnecessary calories. Be very careful with places like Jamba Juice because their smoothies can also be filled with tons of calories. Smoothies should contain milk or soy milk or yogurt with no added sugar, a banana for thickness and your favorite fruit and maybe some protein powder.

2. Protein and energy bars— most protein bars or cereal is filled with sugar and you really might as well be eating a candy bar. The best combo for a protein bar is high protein, very low carb and no added sugar-everything else is really a waste of time. Just eat real food and you can avoid all the chemicals and preservatives that are added to these bars.

3. Do not make coffee dessert- besides being overpriced; Starbucks will always get you in trouble. Super high sugar, whipped profusions of caffeinated joy, will set you back with tons of calories, a quick fix and a hard crash. If you must, try their non fat latte with extra foam and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

4. Happy hour pitfalls- there is way too much alcohol consumption going around nowadays, or at least that’s how it feels to me. Studies show that a glass of wine can be beneficial while two can promote stress on the body. Alcohol is metabolized in body as sugar and is treated such- that means fat. I don’t want to be a party pooper but ease up guys, partying is overrated.

5. Midnight snack attacks- Fight late night urges with healthy snacks. Keep them on hand, so there are no “snack traps” in your house. T.V and boredom can lead to uninhibited eating. Keep yourself occupied and try to incorporate your evening snacks into your entire caloric intake of the day.

6. When encouraging clients to be fit, I urge them to take a good look at their food intake and it really does make a difference in their eating habits. Try it yourselves, if you don’t want to carry an extra journal around just write you intake in.

Fiorella