While folding laundry and watching “I Love Lucy” last week I noticed a bunch of new ads promoting sweetsurprise.com, the Corn Growers Association (or whatever they’re called) touting the benefits of High Fructose Corn Syrup.
I almost smashed out the television set.
The ads tell us that when used in moderation, just like sugar, it isn’t so bad for you after all. Here’s the deal with high fructose corn syrup:
1. It is digested in a completely different way than regular white sugar. It goes straight for the liver and then releases enzymes that tells the body to store fat. This in turn may elevate triglycerides, which increases cholesterol levels.
2. It is an artificial product derived from transforming corn starch into a thick, clear liquid.
3. Since the introduction of high fructose corn syrup, the average weight of Americans has increased considerably. Type 2 diabetes is running rampant and for the first time in history, this generation’s life expectancy is lower than their parents.
One of the “benefits” of high fructose corn syrup is that it has a really long shelf life. I have remarked before that something seems amiss when bread doesn’t go bad for a month when it used to last only a week or two. If it doesn’t go bad, it can’t be good, because it’s pumped full of way too many chemicals!
When an organisation has to run ads to tell you why you should consume a product that is getting a lot of bad press then red flags should go up in your head. High fructose corn syrup is found in everything these days. Read your labels. It’s even in ketchup and tomato sauce. Notice the correlation between the introduction of the stuff and the obesity epidemic. The use of high fructose corn syrup is cheap which in turn allows food manufacturers to make larger portions for less.
Don’t blindly follow the ads on television. Take a moment to read your labels and do your research.
And I’ll refrain from kicking in the television set.
I also believe that “New Coke” was introduced to distract us from the conversion of cane sugar to high fructose corn syrup in the original/”Classic Coke”. “New Coke” was never meant to fly, it was a deterrent. Ask any Coca-Cola fan from the era, Classic Coke was not the same as the original Coca-Cola. High fructose corn syrup.
Corn syrup in moderation.. hmmm.. considering that corn syrup has made its way into EVERYTHING these days, if you don’t read your labels you’re likely to eat corn syrup with every meal (and anything in between).
I like buying bottled soda when traveling outside of the U.S. since they usually use real sugar! Much yummier!!!