Wednesday, January 19, 2011

What's all the Hype About High Fructose Corn Syrup?

High Fructose Corn Syrup has been getting a lot of bad press.  And I notice a good amount of people reading labels to make sure they aren't getting any of it in their diet.  It's being treated like it's a component of gasoline (a - gulp! - dietary topic I will cover on another Blog...).  I think what puzzles me is that I see the same people buying white table sugar or cakes, cookies, and other snacks that are chock full of it.  Heck, sugar is even an ingredient in many popular Pasta sauces and other prepared foods.  And put side by side there is really no difference between the two.  Both are processed sweeteners and they contain the same amount of calories per teaspoon.  Both offer nothing to our diet, nutritionally, and they have even been linked to hyperactivity in children (and some adults as well). 

I guess my point is that if you really want to "cut out the bad stuff", go easy on all processed sweeteners.  If you drink coffee or tea and like it sweet, try raw sugar, agave nectar, or brown rice syrup.  And check labels in the organic sections of your supermarkets to find items sweetened with them.  A real challenge, and it is one I am trying this year, is to drink your hot beverages and iced teas without any sweetener.  But I digress...

When you shop, be honest with yourself.  If you are buying cookies, cakes, and other sweets, don't let the addition of high fructose corn syrup scare you away.  None of these items are "good" for you anyway.  If they have removed that ingredient from an item that once contained it, chances are they have just added more sugar to make up for it.  Does the new, "contains no high fructose corn syrup" version taste any less sweet? 

If you really want to eat healthier (because the truth is there is a lot of junk out there that ticks me off to think that it is in or on our food), keep checking this site.  I want to help you make some changes that will really reap benefits that your body will thank you for (in its own "feeling better" sort of way...). 

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