High Fructose Corn Syrup

If you can recall from a previous post, I mentioned that high fructose corn syrup is one of the greatest contributors to the caloric consumption of Americans.

I think a little background information would be helpful right now. At first, there was just plain table sugar. And at one point, it used to be fairly expensive. This wasn't so for an average person, but for food manufacturers it was a high price item. The cost was a main reason why sucrose (table sugar) wasn't in every single item. As a result of the price, manufacturers were on the look out to find a cheaper replacement for sugar.

This is where high fructose corn syrup came into play.

After processing the corn, a substance is produced that can sweeten products at a fraction of the cost of sugar. The main problem with this substance is that it is now found practically everywhere, including products that didn't used to be sweetened!

Dr. Johnny Bowden said it best: "corn syrup may be natural because it's made from corn, but so is ethanol, and I'm not drinking that either."

The commercials are an attempt by wealthy companies to keep people buying their products. They are not concerned with your health. They want you to buy more of their products so they can make more money. That is it.

I heard a wonderful nutrition tip the other day, and I will pass it on to you.

Look at food labels and avoid all of these items and you will be on your way to better health and a smaller waist line:

1) High fructose corn syrup
2) Hydrogenated oil
3) Colors and numbers (yellow 5, blue 3, etc)