Preview

High Fructose Corn Syrup

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1562 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Health Effects of High Fructose Corn Syrup

Abstract: What is high fructose corn syrup? Is it some kind of disease making machine? High fructose corn syrup is causing many problems in the United States and two of the main problems are obesity and type two diabetes. There are also many other diseases that branch off from these two main diseases, like liver and heart disease. In this paper, the reason why high fructose corn syrup is becoming such a huge problem in the United States will be explored.

The Japanese first developed high fructose corn syrup. When they saw that it is more cost effective than other sugars, other companies started to use high fructose corn syrup in their products. High fructose corn syrup is a sugar made of fifty-five percent fructose and forty-five percent glucose. Compared to normal table sugar, which is fifty percent fructose and fifty percent glucose, it doesn?t seem like much. Yet the fructose in high fructose corn syrup is less attached from normal sugar. This fructose that is free from the glucose part is more harmful to the body. It was first introduced in 1970 but it hasn?t been actively used until the late 1900?s. Yet because we started to use high fructose corn syrup, it is now causing a lot of problems. It has many negative side effects after consumption, and most of the consuming is done in the United States. Two of the main problems caused by high fructose corn syrup are obesity and type two diabetes. Some of the other branches of these problems are liver and heart disease, osteoporosis, an increase in triglycerides, and many other kinds of health problems. Since high fructose corn syrup is very common in our daily diets, ranging for drinks to desserts, it is becoming a huge problem. (Severson, K. 2004)
One of the main problems of high fructose corn syrup is obesity. Eating high fructose corn syrup is like eating fat. Fructose isn?t absorbed the large intestine or the first part of the small intestine. Fructose is

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    HFCS strongly influence the American eating habit and put American’s health into a depth of despair. Research showed that between the years from 1970 to 1990, American consumed HFCS as a sugar substitute has increased 1000%. “It now represents 40% of the non-calorie-free sweeteners added to U.S foods and is virtually the only source of sweeteners for soft drinks.” Scott mentioned. Overly in taking of HFCS is also coming with economical concern. HFCS is very cheap, which has allowed for “25¢ snack cakes, 60¢ candy bars, and especially giant-sized soft drinks in stores” declared by Scott Field on The fact on the land. Although people immersed in the fantasies created by HFCS, cheap and non-calories, the function of human body to process fructose is totally different from it does glucose, which means even HFCS doesn’t come with calories, but doesn’t mean it couldn’t directly transfer fructose into fat. So, it is not surprising that HFCS’s sales skyrocket, the American waistline is keeping…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Both high fructose corn syrup and any other sweetener gives food a more pleasurable taste and they contain about the same amount of calories. High fructose corn syrup and sugar are metabolically similar and both cause negative effects on the body when not eaten in moderation (Hyman). Vast amounts of HFCS promotes teeth decay and it raises triglyceride levels in the blood which increases the risk of heart disease. It makes the liver fatty which increases the risk of diabetes and fructose affects hormone levels like insulin which results in obesity (Food Additives – CSPI’s). High fructose corn syrup punches holes within the intestinal lining allowing bacteria from toxic gut byproducts and partially ingested food proteins to infiltrate into the blood stream which provokes obesity, diabetes, and cancer…

    • 732 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Every one has seen the infamous TV commercial with the young couple sitting in a park on a blanket, innocently sharing a Popsicle made out of High Fructose Corn Syrup. The female offers her male cohort a portion of the frozen treat, responding to his hesitance with the disreputable claim hosted by the corn industry, “sugar is sugar.” Ironic, this commercial enticing the general public to accept the ill-fated ingredient of High Fructose Corn Syrup, is the epitome of Eve offering Adam the apple in The Garden of Eden. High Fructose Corn Syrup has seemed to invade even the most discrete products in the current day kitchen. Hiding in ketchup, soups, and meats, to name only a few, this overused sweetener has wreaked havoc on the American people; much less the unfortunate, overweight, diseased, diabetic rats that fell victim to its studies. High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a man made, chemically altered, and potentially neurotoxic byproduct, largely at fault for our nation’s health epidemics of obesity diabetes and cardiac disease, but if eradicated from our diet the sequelae of its morbid effects could be alleviated.…

    • 2780 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    We spend more than a trillion dollars each year fighting the damaging health effects of sugar. This, combined with the massive waste, fraud, and inefficiency of our healthcare system, make it completely unsustainable over time.…

    • 1707 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Is HFCS use ethical?

    • 1492 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Corn is among the most planted and produced crops in the US. According to 2013 statistics, the US is the largest corn producer in the world with 80 million acres of corn fields and almost $64 billion annual sales. Besides its consumption as raw food, industrial processing of corn yields high economic value. Among industrial uses of corn, High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is the most controversial one from an ethics perspective. HFCS is an artificial sweetener that is found in a wide range of processed foods. It is produced by applying enzymatic processes to convert corn’s glucose into fructose. HCFS is used as a sweetener in various foods and beverages such as yogurts, breakfast bars, cereals, breads, soups, lunch meats, and soft drinks. Since 1970s, it has become the most economical alternative to cane sugar and replaced most of its use as an industrial sweetener. Due to quotas on domestic increased tariffs on sugar imports, the US has the highest price for sugar around the world while government subsidies to corn production make HFCS a much cheaper alternative to sugar. Moreover, HFCS is easy to transport, %20 sweeter than table sugar, and extends the shelf life of products. As a result, HFCS has become a major substitute for cane sugar for the U.S industry such that soft drink giants like Coke and Pepsi use HFCS in their products instead of sugar since 1984. Despite its economic value, HFCS is shown to be related to obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and fatty liver disease. This paper examines the ethical issues of HFCS use in foods and beverages.…

    • 1492 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    | high fructose corn syrup (HCFS) has a much different metabolic effect on lipids than sucrose when eaten in the same amounts…

    • 2600 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Do we really know what is being used when creating proceed foods? When shopping in our local grocery stores, we commonly gravitate towards healthier foods such as items that claim to be low calorie or sugar-free. Most products that claim to be organic or all natural are actually using supplements to take the place of raw materials, in hopes of making their produces more appetizing. The manufacturers are able to advertise their products as sugar-free due to the use of added sugars or what is commonly known as Splenda or high fructose corn syrup. According to Readers Digest in their article “4 Most Harmful Ingredients in Packaged Foods”, they claim that high fructose corn syrup is used commonly throughout all processed foods because it is a cheaper…

    • 269 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    High Fructose Corn Syrup

    • 780 Words
    • 4 Pages

    High Fructose or Syrup as you now knows are any almost everything we eat and drink. But what you don't know is what it is really doing inside your body. High Fructose Corn Syrup started being mass produced in 1982. It was around that time that researchers noticed an increase in children…

    • 780 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This article informs the readers of the negative effects that added sugar in the diet has on a person and what the differences between natural sugars and added sugars are. The healthy amount of added sugar daily is recommended, and the statistics on the average amount of added sugar consumed per capita annually is examined. The addictive qualities of sugar are also touched upon. The author of this article, Kris Gunnars, is the CEO and founder of the article’s website; Authority Nutrition, and possesses a bachelor degree in medicine…

    • 841 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Michael Pollan's Summary

    • 371 Words
    • 2 Pages

    High fructose corn syrup containing foods and food products has to be avoided. This is added to most of the cereals, soft drinks, baked goods, ketchup, bologna, soups and salad dressings. Nutritional science has to be given less importance as it has opined that margarine from trans fat is better than butter prepared from cow milk. The science of nutrition does not give suggestions…

    • 371 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Sucrose

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Research indicates that there is a positive correlation between consumption of high fructose corn syrup and obesity percentages. Sucrose is the leading added sweetener in in the manufacture of foods in the Unites States and is the biggest source of fructose. Sucrose and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are metabolized identically and react the same way to insulin, leptin and ghrelin. Sucrose is indifferent from HFCS in causing obesity. Compared to glucose, sucrose is extracted directly from the liver while glucose goes directly to the bloodstream causing larger sugar spikes. HFCS and sucrose have an identical effect on glucose and hormones such as insulin. Sucrose=50% glucose + 50% fructose; HFCS = . 55% fructose + 45% glucose. Excessive amount of fructose intake as added sugar…

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Corn Syrup Research Paper

    • 661 Words
    • 3 Pages

    High fructose corn syrup is a processed food product and far from being considered a naturally occurring substance. Studies have shown that increased consumption of HFCS is linked to liver scarring, not to mention the obesity epidemic in the United States. When tested, rats with access to HFCS gained significantly more weight than the rats that had table sugar. Both samples had the same amount of calorie intake. We can only assume that if humans were tested, the same effects would occur. A newer discovery has been verified through research. It was discovered that fructose has been the main reason for a molecular mechanism that forces uncontrolled growth of the heart muscle. This condition has also been proven to lead to complete heart failure and restricts the amount of oxygen needed in the heart. Other health concerns include type two diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and high triglyceride levels. HFCS is also an empty calorie, leading it to be less hunger satisfying. This causes people to consume more than they should, increasing the harmful effects that will eventually occur. All of these harmful effects can lead to bigger and more severe effects, including death. It is best to stay away from any sugar, but most importantly high fructose corn syrup, to improve your…

    • 661 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Comparative Analysis

    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Americans dietary habitats have been under close criticism, and media coverage has been very prominent in this critique, analyzing the way in which Americans have been eating. Through examples that stretch from nutritionists’ opinions to food labels our perceptions of good dietary habits have been largely skewed. The Food and Drug Administration has not been warning the public sufficiently about the harmful affects of the foods we consume. One of the most prominent, controversial, substances is sugar, which is also known as sucrose and fructose. Sugar is considered to be an under rated food that many consume without even thinking about what they are actually putting into their bodies. Through these two articles the reader is informed that sugar can be both “poisonous” and “deadly”. With the consumption of sugar rising, obesity rates are subsequently rising. In examining the impact of sugar on our health one may read, “The Toxic Truth About Sugar” written by Robert Lusting, Laura Schmidt and Clair Brindis, published in Nature volume 482 in February 2012 and “Is Sugar Toxic” by Gary Taubes, published in the New York Times Magazine on April 17, 2011. These two articles examine why individuals over consume sugar and the way in which individuals over consume sugar. All the while each article seemingly points out different solutions or potential solutions to the way in which the world should go about addressing this issue.…

    • 878 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Suuaaaraaa

    • 597 Words
    • 3 Pages

    -They are making cheap corn products called High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS). Today, HFCS and processed foods are intimidating our health. The food companies are making unhealthy products because of their own profits. It is unbelievable that this happens in today's society.…

    • 597 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Sugar Coated

    • 1277 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Americans consume around 100 pounds of sugar per year. The daily consumption of sugar has increased worldwide by 46% in the last 30 years (“Sugar”). The Netflix film “Sugar Coated” shows what people have been ignoring over the years about sugar. "As obesity, diabetes, and heart disease rates skyrocket and doctors treat the first generation of children suffering from fatty liver disease, the sugar industry is under siege,” (“Sugar”). This means that more diseases are starting to come while the sugar industry is only growing. Also, this problem doesn’t just affect health, it affects everyday life. "This problem affects you at home, this problem affects you at work, this problem affects your business deals, and…

    • 1277 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays