IndexIntroductionWhat is high fructose corn syrup?What's in the name of HFCS?Diabetes and HFCSAdvantages of HFCSHigh Fructose ConspiracyIntroductionA primary concern for Many Americans are experiencing unwanted weight gain that is related to the food choices made daily. But what if people were aware of their food choices, but not what was in the food itself? With obesity on the rise, as well as other major health problems, many people are looking for reasons and answers. Since most humans are omnivores, we consume various amounts of carbohydrates, sugars, and other fatty substances. In particular, the high fructose corn syrup found in many of the daily food choices we consume. Yet ask yourself: do you know what high fructose corn syrup is or where it is found? In a society where maintaining a healthy lifestyle is important, people need to investigate what they are putting into their bodies, such as high fructose corn syrup. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayWhat is High Fructose Corn Syrup? High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a liquid fructose-glucose substitute for sucrose (also known as table sugar), first introduced to food and beverage manufacturing in the 1970s. It is not particularly different in structure or metabolism from other fructose-glucose sweeteners such as honey, sucrose, and fruit juice concentrates. High fructose corn syrup was widely incorporated by food formulators, and its consumption increased around the mid-1970s and mid-1990s, primarily as a backup for sucrose. This is mainly due to its sucrose-like sweetness, better consistency and functionality, and ease of use. High fructose corn syrup (HFCS), also called isoglucose, is primarily a mixture of two sugars, fructose and glucose. Soda and ice cream often blend 55% fructose and 45% glucose, while HFCS used in canned fruit and condiments is generally a 42/48% blend (with other ingredients). White sugar is a 50/50 split. In the United States, heavy corn subsidies and sugar import barricades have made HFCS about 20% cheaper than sugar. In 2004 the United States accounted for nearly 80 percent of global construction, and last year U.S. patrons accepted 58 pounds of syrup per person in numerous harvests, giving it to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Other producers include Japan, Argentina, the European Union and China. Some argue that the global growth of HFCS and the parallel increase in obesity are related. Distressed dieters argue that unlike glucose, which triggers appetite-suppressing signals in the body, fructose doesn't tell its consumers to stop. The theory is unconfirmed, but a growing body of literature suggests that the syrup could certainly respond to leptin, the satiety hormone. Conflicting research, bolstered by the American Beverage Institute, states that HFCS is not dissimilar to other sweeteners and is "safe in control." The food industry began replacing cane and beet sugar with HFCS after sugar prices quadrupled in the 1970s, and soft drink companies followed suit a few years later. The affordability of syrup in theUnited States has helped soda companies sell larger bottles and dramatically expand consumption of calorie-rich drinks. You won't find it in the USDA pyramid, but there is a food category that includes breakfast cereals, ice cream, granola bars, hot dog buns, baby food, soft drinks, yogurt, soups, ketchup and barbecue sauce. Those and countless other products found on the shelves of any grocery store are united by one common ingredient: high fructose corn syrup. The sweetener's growing use over the past three decades roughly corresponds to a dramatic increase in obesity and related health problems among Americans, and some nutrition experts say that's no coincidence. The question of whether high fructose corn syrup poses a clear health threat or is unfairly blamed for the effects of general overconsumption is divisive and generates disagreement even among scientists with no financial stake in the answer. For decades, processed foods have usually been sweetened with liquefied sugar, also called sucrose. But food researchers in the 1970s found a way to modify cornstarch into a syrup with a higher level of fructose, or fruit sugar, than glucose, another form of sugar. Because the corn product is cheaper, easier to use, and more durable than sugar derived from cane or beets, food manufacturers quickly adopted the new ingredient. (Diet sodas and other products contain new sugar substitutes, such as aspartame and sucralose, that provide few or no calories.) The growing use of HFCS in the United States mirrors the rapid increase in obesity. The digestion, absorption and metabolism of fructose differ from that of glucose. Hepatic fructose metabolism promotes de novo lipogenesis. Furthermore, unlike glucose, fructose does not stimulate insulin secretion or increase leptin production. Since insulin and leptin act as key afferent signals in the regulation of food intake and body weight, this suggests that dietary fructose may contribute to increased energy intake and weight gain. Additionally, calorically sweetened drinks can increase excessive calorie consumption. Therefore, increased HFCS consumption has a temporal relationship with the obesity epidemic, and excessive HFCS consumption in calorically sweetened beverages may play a role in the obesity epidemic. The digestive and absorption processes of glucose and fructose are different. When disaccharides such as sucrose or maltose enter the intestine, they are broken down from the disaccharides. A sodium-glucose cotransporter takes up glucose that is formed from the breakdown of sucrose. Fructose, in contrast, is absorbed more deeply in the duodenum and jejunum by a process that is not dependent on sodium. After absorption, glucose and fructose enter the portal circulation and are transported to the liver, where fructose can be absorbed and converted to glucose, or pass into the general circulation. The addition of small catalytic amounts of fructose to orally ingested glucose increases hepatic glycogen synthesis in human subjects and reduces glycemic responses in subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus (12), suggesting the importance of fructose in modulation of metabolism in the liver. However, when large quantities of fructose are ingested, they provide a relatively unregulated source of carbon precursors for hepatic lipogenesis. The metabolism of fructose differs from that of glucosealso in many other ways (3). Glucose enters cells via a transport mechanism (Glut-4) which in most tissues is insulin-dependent. Insulin activates the insulin receptor, which in turn increases the density of glucose transporters on the cell surface and thus facilitates the entry of glucose. Once inside the cell, glucose is phosphorylated by glucokinase to become glucose-6-phosphate, from which intracellular glucose metabolism begins. Intracellular enzymes can tightly control the conversion of glucose-6-phosphate into the glycerol backbone of triacylglycerols through modulation by phosphofructokinase. Unlike glucose, fructose enters cells via a Glut-5 transporter that does not depend on insulin. This transporter is absent in pancreatic β-cells and the brain, indicating limited entry of fructose into these tissues. Glucose provides the brain with “satiety” signals that fructose cannot provide because it is not transported into the brain. Once inside the cell, fructose is phosphorylated to form fructose-1-phosphate (26). In this configuration, fructose is easily cleaved by aldolase to form trioses that form the backbone of the synthesis of phospholipids and triacglycerols. Fructose also provides carbon atoms for the synthesis of long-chain fatty acids, although in humans the amount of these carbon atoms is small. Therefore, fructose facilitates the biochemical formation of triacylglycerols more efficiently than glucose (3). For example, when a diet containing 17% fructose was administered to healthy men and women, the men, but not the women, showed a highly significant 32% increase in plasma triacylglycerol concentrations (27). In the United States, HFCS has been found in nearly all foods containing caloric sweeteners. These include most soft drinks and fruit drinks, candied fruit and canned fruit, flavored milk and yoghurt desserts, most baked goods, many cereals and jellies. Over 60% of the calories in apple juice, used as the base for many fruit drinks, come from fructose and therefore apple juice is another source of fructose in the diet. Lists of foods containing HFCs can be obtained from organizations concerned with HFC-related allergies (33). It is clear that almost all caloric sweeteners used by soft drink and fruit drink manufacturers are HFCS (4, 34). In fact, approximately two-thirds of all HFCS consumed in the United States are contained in beverages. Aside from beverages, there is no definitive literature on the proportion of caloric sweeteners present in HFCS in other processed foods. HFCS are found in most processed foods; however, the exact compositions are not available either from the manufacturer or in any publicly available food composition table. What's in the name HFCS? Corn is rich in starch, which is simply chains of glucose molecules held together. When the chains are broken, individual glucose molecules are released and form glucose syrup. In the 1970s, scientists discovered how to convert some of that glucose into fructose, and the resulting product was called high-fructose corn syrup. At the time all other corn syrups were glucose based. While accurate to the term glucose syrup, the name high fructose corn syrup has, over the years, been a source of confusion for both consumers and scientists. Various are available on the marketforms of HFCS with different percentages of fructose and glucose. The most commonly used are HFCS-42 and HFCS-55 which contain 42% and 55% fructose respectively. Therefore, despite its name, HFCS is not particularly rich in fructose compared to sucrose. In 1983, the FDA approved HFCS as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS), and that decision was reaffirmed in 1996. To be included on the FDA's GRAS list, there must be evidence that the ingredient is safe under the conditions of intended use, and the approval process involves an extensive review of the science, including estimated dietary intake. The FDA's decision to approve and subsequently reaffirm HFCS as GRAS was based in part on the substantial similarity between HFCS and table sugar. Diabetes and HFCS Research clearly shows that sugar does not cause diabetes. The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists identifies the following factors as risk factors for diabetes: family history of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, overweight or obese status, sedentary lifestyle, previously identified ethnicity, impaired glucose tolerance or reduced blood sugar fasting, hypertension, increased triglyceride levels. and/or low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, history of gestational diabetes, history of delivering a baby weighing more than nine pounds, polycystic ovary syndrome, and psychiatric illnesses. Suffice it to say that diabetes is multifactorial. Older enough people may remember that,Benefits of HFCS Compared to other sweeteners, HFCS have historically been relatively cheap. And although HFCS is inexpensive, HFCS is often the sweetener of choice due to its many positive characteristics, which go far beyond cost. The sweetness and flavor profile of HFCS is similar to table sugar. It also controls microbial growth more than sucrose and controls crystallization. The high fructose content helps maintain the texture of canned and baked goods. Another benefit of HFCS is that it reduces crystallization of canned, frozen and baked products. It promotes ideal and controlled browning of baked goods and breakfast cereals. Likewise, HFCS stabilize temperature fluctuations and wide acidity ranges. It mixes easily with the other ingredients. HFCS similarly lowers freezing points which contribute to the pourability of frozen beverage concentrates. High Fructose Conspiracy The use of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) has increased over the past few decades in the United States as rates of overweight and obesity have increased dramatically. Some scientists hypothesize that HFCS consumption has uniquely contributed to the increase in the average body mass index (BMI) of the US population. The Center for Food, Nutrition, and Agriculture Policy convened a panel of experts to discuss published scientific literature examining the relationship between consumption of HFCS or “soft drinks” (proxies for HFCS) and weight gain. The authors conducted an original analysis to fill some gaps in the literature. Evidence from ecological studies linking HFCS consumption with increased BMI rates is not reliable. Evidence from epidemiological studies and randomized controlled trials is inconclusive. There are no studies analyzing the differences between HFCS and sucrose consumption and their contribution to weight gain. HFCS and sucrose have similar monosaccharide compositions and sweetness values. The fructose:glucose (F:G) ratio in the U.S. food supply has not changed appreciably since the introduction of HFCS in the 1960s. It is unclear why HFCSthey might affect satiety or the absorption and metabolism of fructose differently than sucrose. Based on the currently available evidence, the Panel concluded that HFCS do not appear to contribute to overweight and obesity differently than other energy sources. Research recommendations have been made to improve our understanding of the association between HFCS and weight gain. Overweight and obesity have become increasingly problematic in the United States from an individual and population perspective. According to body mass index (BMI) categories defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 65% ​​of the U.S. adult population between the ages of 20 and 74 is currently overweight. Additionally, 31% of all overweight adults are classified as obese. In 1976-80, only 47% and 15% of adults in the United States were considered overweight and obese, respectively (CDC, 2004). About 16% of American children and adolescents ages 6 to 19 are also currently overweight. Two decades ago, approximately 6% of individuals in this age group were classified as overweight (CDC, 2004). Before 1976-80, such dramatic rates of overweight and obesity had not been observed in the United States. Overweight and obese individuals are subject to social stigma and are at increased risk of deleterious health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hypertension, osteoarthritis. and some cancers (CDC, 2004). Overweight and obesity increase healthcare costs (USDA, 2004) and mortality rates (Mokdad et al., 2004, 2005; Flegal et al., 2005). Overweight and obesity are influenced by many genetic and environmental factors, including race/ethnicity, age, physical activity, sedentary behaviors, food consumption patterns, smoking, technological advances, and psychological factors (CDC, 2004; Columbia Univ., 2000; Rashad and Grossman 2004). Researchers, government officials, policymakers, and activist organizations are contributing significant resources in an effort to understand and reduce the “epidemic” of overweight and obesity in the United States. All energy sources consumed in excess of energy needs can contribute to increasing BMI and the risk of overweight and obesity. However, several arguments suggest that, in addition to providing energy, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) may contribute to the development of overweight and obesity through other mechanisms. In the United States, HFCS have increasingly replaced refined sugar (sucrose) in many foods and most sugar-sweetened beverages. Outside of the United States, HFCS is not widely used, and sucrose continues to be the primary caloric sweetener. Some evidence suggests that high fructose consumption plays a role in epidemics of obesity, hypertension, diabetes and kidney disease. In the United States, these epidemics were accompanied by increased sugar consumption. High intake of free fructose (present in high-fructose corn syrup, but not sucrose) is associated with hypertension and hyperlipidemia in animals and with dyslipidemia and insulin resistance in adults. Additionally, small low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particle size is associated with obesity, metabolic syndrome, and central adiposity in older children and adults. Researchers in Switzerland examined the relationship between dietary fructose consumption and obesity, body fat distribution, plasma lipids and LDL particle size in a convenience sample of 74 children (age range 6-14 years) recruited from schools and pediatric clinics; 43 children were overweight (average BMI,