High Fructose Corn Syrup's Effects On The Body

The average American eats and drinks an astounding 60 pounds of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) every year, according to Time.com. While entire non-profit organizations have sprung up to fight the growing international intake of this man-made sugar, scientists are looking into how HFCS affects the body.

While research is conflicting, research suggests that HFCS may influence body weight, insulin resistance, and cardiac disease risk factors.

Inside HFCS

HFCS is a processed sugar that's made from corn. The unique sugar molecule is produced by replacing a certain type of sugar found in corn starch, glucose, to fructose.

This little tweak greatly extends the shelf life of food containing sugar and it is much cheaper than sweetening foods with cane sugar. In the 20 year time span of 1970 to 1990, HFCS intake exploded by 1,000 percent, according to Diabeteshealth.com.

This sudden influx has scientists, health care professionals and even politicians looking into HFCS's effects on the body.

Obesity

Many scientists have made note of the fact that the rise of obesity coincided with a rapid increase in HFCS consumption.

A Princeton University research study, reported by WashingtonPost.com found that rats fed a high HFCS had higher rates of obesity -even though they ate the same amount of calories as the rats that didn't eat HFCS.

However, many other studies have linked obesity and HFCS intake. This link is far from conclusive and no cause and effect link has been made.

That's why the American Medical Association has officially announced that HFCS poses the same risk to obesity as all other sugars.

Insulin

A November 2006 study published in the journal "Nutrition" looked into the effects of HFCS intake and insulin resistance in a group of normal weight woman. They found that HFCS didn't affect insulin metabolism any differently than table sugar.

Sugar

Although HFCS may not act differently than normal sugar within the body, you should limit your HFCS intake to keep dietary sugar in check. A high sugar intake has been associated with obesity and diabetes.

In Food

HFCS is common in the food supply, especially in processed food. To limit your intake of HFCS, stick to natural, unprocessed foods like fresh fruits and vegetables, and whole grains.

Food with particularly high levels of HFCS include soda, bread, sugary cereals, condiments, frozen food, candy, cookies, cakes and ice cream.