Wednesday, 17 April 2013 19:33

What is the health conern with HFCS?

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Recently new FDA laws have restricted the labeling of packages. Manufactures are no longer able to label High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) as corn sugar. There have been concerns that the labelling can be misleading. When you read sugar it is believed that you expect a solid and not a syrup, although they are both considered sweeteners. In addition those with an allergy or sensitivity to fructose, risk a reaction from HFCS if it is labeled as corn sugar.

high fructose corn syrupThese are both very significant concerns however there are some additions that you as the consumer should be aware of. First there is a difference between the metabolism of fructose and glucose (simple sugar) in the body. Glucose is our main source of energy. Table sugar (sucrose) is made of one molecule of glucose and one molecule of fructose. Excess glucose can be stored in the liver for later conversion to energy. Fructose, on the other hand, is metabolised faster, floods pathways, increases triglyceride synthesis and becomes stored as fat. Elevating cardiovascular risk, obesity risk and weight associated risk factors.  Second, HFCS increases your exposure to Mercury consumption.  Mercury is used as part of the processing and is supposed to be removed from the final product; however in 2003 30 out of 38 tons of the total mercury used in the processing of HFCS could not be accounted for. Foods containing HFCS were found to be contaminated with mercury!

Excess consumption of sugar is a major factor in many chronic diseases. Remember to read labels and pay attention to how much sugar you are consuming.

Read 8884 times Last modified on Wednesday, 15 May 2013 15:09
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