According to the Corn Refiners Association, high-fructose corn syrup contains the same amount of calories as cane and beet sugar, is metabolized by the body the same way as these sweeteners are, and is an all-natural product.
Their current ad campaign insists that high-fructose corn syrup is just like honey, which is made by enzymes in a bee's abdomen -- as opposed to the enzymes and acids in centrifuges, ion exchange columns and liquid chromatographers used to make high-fructose corn syrup.
High-fructose corn syrup could be all-natural, if cornstarch happened to fall into a vat of alpha-amylase, soak there for a while, then trickle into another vat of glucoamylase, get strained to remove the Aspergillus fungus likely growing on top, and then find its way into some industrial-grade D-xylose isomerase.
High-fructose corn syrup is indeed similar to cane sugar in that it is about 50 percent fructose and 50 percent glucose. The American Medical Association issued a statement explaining that "high-fructose syrup does not appear to contribute more to obesity than other caloric sweeteners" ... but they also said that "consumers [should] limit the amount of all added caloric sweeteners to no more than 32 grams of sugar daily." Most sodas contain about 40 grams of high-fructose corn syrup.
Sources:
• Live Science October 21, 2008
