HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP (HFCS)

One television commercial that comes to mind is the one where a couple is sitting in a park and the woman hands the man a Popsicle. He is reluctant to take it and says “What about high fructose corn syrup?” She replies, “What about it? It’s made from corn….?” I can’t remember everything she says to him, but she basically compares it to sugar in such a way that it would sound like there is nothing wrong with either one in moderation. He smiles and takes the Popsicle and asks for a second one.

The commercial and others similar in content are sponsored by the Corn Grower’s of America. Who else? If HFCS gets bad press, then the corn consumption drops and so do their profits. After all, it seems that in this country profit is much more important than the health and well-being of the citizens.

So what is High Fructose Corn Syrup? It is a highly processed, chemically altered sweetener that is used in almost all processed and pre-packaged foods. It was invented in a laboratory in 1971 by a Japanese Scientist and since then, the consumption of this CHEMICAL has increased by 1000%. That is not a typo! That is 1000%! So, just because it originates from corn, doesn’t make it a vegetable and it is not good for you, in any amount. Another fact is that the corn used to make the HFCS was genetically altered to begin with. Although there is no long term data available to document the effects of eating altered corn, the fact is that it isn’t the way Mother Nature intended it to be. When we start messing around with the molecular structure of food, it can be pretty scary.

In our culture today, people are on the go and they look for fast, easy, convenient and cheap. Unfortunately, the foods that fit into these categories are junk and shouldn’t even be called food. In fact, JUNK FOOD is an oxymoron. It’s either Food or Junk. The junk is high in refined carbohydrates and sugars. They are energy dense food which are high in calories, but have very little nutritional value. When people eat these types of substances, they tend to ingest more calories than people who eat foods that are rich in nutrition. Nutrient rich foods give you more nutrition for your money. Obesity has become an epidemic in the United States and the cause of this is the reduction in physical activity, eating at restaurants and fast food establishments, eating toxic foods and super sizing everything they eat! It isn’t bad enough that we drive through and get toxic fast food, for a few pennies we can double the intake of poison.

The obesity epidemic can be traced back to the introduction of high fructose corn syrup. Eating this chemical sweetener, even in slight amounts will increase your appetite. Regular table sugar is 50% glucose and 50% fructose, while high fructose corn syrup is 45% glucose and 55% fructose. Now 5% doesn’t sound like a huge difference, but the effects on your appetite and health certainly can be.

When you eat good foods, there are chemical reactions and hormones that are released in your body which tell your brain that you are full. Fructose doesn’t set these processes in to motion nor does it stimulate the insulin secretion or increase the leptin. Leptin is the hormone that makes you feel full. Glucose is transported into the brain, affecting brain signals that control or limit appetite, but fructose is not. In addition, fructose doesn’t reduce grehlin and may decrease adiponectin levels. Grehlin is a stomach hormone that stimulates appetite and adiponectin is a hormone made by fat cells that helps make you more sensitive to insulin and helps you control your weight and appetite.

When you have HFCS in your diet, you never feel full and you continue to eat and crave and eat and crave. As you can ascertain from this information, HFCS causes weight gain. Much worse is that it is just bad for your health altogether.

Fructose is a source of the chemical building blocks of cholesterol and triglyceride production. If you were to put glucose into your system by IV, you could survive. If you did the same thing with fructose, you would end up with a fatty liver. Fructose isn’t digested, absorbed or metabolized in the same way that glucose is, but rather, it goes right to your cells without the help of insulin. Therefore, fructose moves right into fat production, spiking your triglycerides, while lowering your good cholesterol (HDL). On the flip side, it then increases the smaller, more dense LDL-B, which is much more dangerous that the more common bad cholesterol known as LDL.

Fructose consumption is responsible for insulin resistance, increased calorie intake, impaired metabolism, weight gain, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Any of these problems are just the stepping stones to other problems. Once your body is out of balance, it is just a matter of time. The process of degeneration has already begun.
I have stated in other articles that sugars and artificial sweeteners are just not good for you. Stevia is a natural, plant based sweetener that contains no calories and is 100% whole and natural. It is not chemically processed. Sunrider has a couple of different Stevia based products. Sunny Dew and SunNectar. These products can be used abundantly, as they actually nourish the body, particularly the pancreas. They have antiseptic, anti-fungal and natural antibiotic properties to them, as well.

Eating a plant-based, whole-food diet of fruits, vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds and whole grains will get your body in balance and reverse the signs of age. Sunrider is all plant-based, whole, original species, highly concentrated and enzymatically active foods. They are the best on the planet, in my opinion. It takes all of the guess work out of eating and it’s convenient. You don’t have to wonder if you are eating enough or if you are eating truly organic foods. You don’t have to read labels. You can throw them into your purse, lunchbox, briefcase or car. You can take them anywhere you go and you always know that your body is perfectly nourished, cleansed and balanced.