Link Between High Fructose Corn Syrup & Obesity – Disproven!

I have been proven wrong.  Along with a great deal of other people, I suspect.  I’ve believed for years that there was a special link between high fructose corn syrup and obesity.  When I decided it was time to lose weight, the prevailing thought was that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is somehow more likely to cause obesity than cane sugar.  (That’s the white stuff I love so much…)

Now admittedly, the reason for this has always been beyond me.  Sucrose and fructose are both simple sugars, and from a physiological perspective, I would think they would be handled somewhat similarly in the body, but I’m not an expert.  From a manufacturer’s perspective, HFCS offers the advantage of being a liquid, so it can be pumped, rather than dumped in bags.  But we the consumers have been told to avoid high fructose corn syrup like the plague due to its innate obesity-causing properties.  Instead, it has been suggested that if we are going to consume sugar-containing products, it would be best to consume sucrose.  Examples of this advice abound across the ‘net and in diet books.

High Fructose Corn Syrup and Obesity – Today

The funny thing about prevailing wisdom is how much it changes.  There has been yet another body of research conducted, and a review of the literature, which has concluded that high fructose corn syrup is NOT more likely to cause obesity than is sucrose!  What!!  Researchers found that calories from HFCS are identical to those from sucrose, when it comes to the likelihood of causing obesity.  So, I’ve got to wonder if that makes HFCS as good as sucrose, or does it make sucrose as bad as HFCS?

The whole thing is enough to make my head spin.  They went on to say that there is some suspicion that fructose-consumers may be at higher risk of increased triglycerides and early onset diabetes, but there’s not enough evidence to draw a conclusion.

I’ve mentioned before that I really do like sodas.  My favorite is Royal Crown, packaged in a glass bottle.  Some people say there’s not difference in the taste between glass and plastic, but that’s bunk.  For a good long while, I’ve felt guilty when I drink one of those, just knowing that I’m filling my body with obesity-causing stuff.  But no more.  Now I know that, when I indulge, it’s no worse than drinking Kool-Aid.

Science can be so liberating sometimes…

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