Why High Fructose Corn Syrup Is Bad For You

Major sources of sugar in the American diet include candy, sodas and fruit drinks; baked goods such as cookies and cakes; and other sweet desserts. Sugar or other calorie-containing sweeteners are added to these products during processing. The most commonly used sweetener today is high fructose corn syrup, sometimes called corn sugar on product labels, and consuming excessive amounts of it may be unhealthy. Consult your doctor or a dietitian to develop a suitable diet for your situation.

The Biology

Glucose is the major component in common table sugar, while fructose is found in fruits or in additives such as high-fructose corn syrup. Less insulin is released when you consume fructose than when you take in glucose. As a result, your blood sugar remains high for a longer period of time. In addition, insulin increases production of another hormone, leptin, that reduces hunger and lessens your desire for food. Because fructose produces a lowered insulin response, you will feel hungry longer and your intake of food is likely to be higher after a high-fructose meal than after consuming glucose.

Weight Gain

High fructose corn syrup may promote greater and more rapid weight gain than other sweeteners, according to a laboratory study published in 2010 in the journal, "Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior." When rats were given water containing high fructose corn syrup, they gained substantially more weight than rats given water sweetened with table sugar. Over the six-month period of the study, rats given high fructose corn syrup were particularly prone to gaining fat in the abdominal area. They also developed high levels of blood triglycerides, an unhealthy fat linked in humans to increased risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

Diabetes

Because fructose does not trigger the same insulin response as glucose, it may also lead to rapid and higher increases in blood sugar than common table sugar. This situation may produce insulin resistance, in which the body responds slowly or at a decreased level to insulin. Since high fructose corn syrup may also increase weight gain and promote obesity, these factors along with insulin resistance may raise your risk for developing type 2 diabetes.

Recommendations

The American Heart Association recommends women consume a maximum of 100 calories and men a maximum of 150 calories from sugar added to food each day, or 6 tsp. and 9 tsp. of sugar, respectively. To minimize your intake of high fructose corn syrup, avoid consuming sweetened sodas and fruit drinks, pancake syrups, sweetened yogurt or other dairy products and sweetened cereals. Check food labels for listings of high fructose corn syrup or corn sugar as ingredients, and choose products sweetened with regular sugar whenever possible.