For once we agree on something. Add to that the fact that High Fructose Corn Syrup had not yet invaded our diet. It's now in just about everything we buy at the grocery store.
Too bad you don`t know the first thing of what you are talking about. You are DEAD wrong on HFCS.http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/88/6/1716S?ijkey=QWxerxxoSOP4o&keytype=ref&siteid=ajcnAmerican Journal of Clinical Nutrition, doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.25825B
Vol. 88, No. 6, 1716S-1721S, December 2008
2008 American Society for Clinical Nutrition
Supplement: High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS): Everything You Wanted to Know, but Were Afraid to Ask
Straight talk about high-fructose corn syrup: what it is and what it ain't1,2,3,4HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP AND SUCROSE ARE NOT SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT
HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP IS NOT UNIQUELY OBESITY-PROMOTING
HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP IS NOT PREDICTIVE OF US OBESITY
HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP IS NOT PREDICTIVE OF GLOBAL OBESITY
ELIMINATING HIGH-FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP WOULD NOT HAVE A SIGNIFICANT EFFECT ON OBESITY
CONCLUSIONSThe hypothesis that HFCS is a unique cause of obesity is not supportable in the United States or elsewhere, and the reasons are clear:HFCS has the same sugars composition as other "benign" fructose-glucose sweeteners such as sucrose, honey, and fruit juice concentrates and dietary sources such as fruits and juices; Increased caloric intake since 1970 was not due to added sugars (including HFCS) but rather was due to increased consumption of all caloric nutrients, especially fats and flour and cereals;
HFCS is consumed in equal amounts with sucrose in the United States, but at <10% of the amount of sucrose worldwide;
Fructose-glucose sweeteners are metabolized through the same pathways regardless of dietary source; Although pure fructose can cause metabolic upsets at high concentrations and in the absence of glucose, such experiments are irrelevant for HFCS, which is not consumed at extreme high levels and contains both fructose and glucose;
There is no longer an association between HFCS and obesity in the United States: per capita consumption of HFCS has declined in recent years, whereas obesity rates continue to rise; and
There is absolutely no association between HFCS use and worldwide obesity; HFCS is really a minor sweetener in the global perspective.
No one would disagree that HFCS as a caloric ingredient can lead to weight gain if products sweetened with it are consumed to excess. After all, the same may be said for all caloric ingredients, such as fats, protein, alcohol, and other carbohydrates. But there is absolutely no proof that HFCS acts in any exclusive manner to promote obesity.
It is time to retire the hypothesis that HFCS is uniquely responsible for obesity. (Other articles in this supplement to the Journal include references 34-37.)
