More Reason to Avoid HFCS
Posted on 14 December 2008
I am sure most readers of this blog are aware of the dangers of High Fructose Corn Syrup or HFCS which is in just about every soft drink around the world at the moment, its not only in Soft Drinks but it bombards the shelves in items like cakes, honey, cookies, and basically anything sweet. This stuff become available in the 1970′s as it was cheap to produce;
Until the 1970s most of the sugar we ate came from sucrose derived from sugar beets or sugar cane. Then sugar from corn–corn syrup, fructose, dextrose, dextrine and especially high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)–began to gain popularity as a sweetener because it was much less expensive to produce.
With regards to fruit, the ratio is usually 50 percent glucose and 50 percent fructose, but most commercial fruit juices have HFCS added. Fruit contains fiber which slows down the metabolism of fructose and other sugars, but the fructose in HFCS is absorbed very quickly.
The fact that the stuff is absorbed so quickly is where we run into trouble, our bodies are far from adapted to handle the sudden rush of sugar that HFCS hits us with this not only sends Insulin levels Sky rocketing but pollutes our livers with artificial fructose clogging it up and leaving it useless for processing normal dietary carbohydrates. The liver normally acts as a buffer of sorts storing fructose which is slowly feeds to the brain for energy (this is why fruit which is full of fructose is fine to eat and the best source of carbohydrates)
New research is showing that Fructose Metabolism is even more complicated than we first thought; Our bodies and gene expression are triggered by the ingestion of carbohydrates hence insulin rises upon consuming them and falls at times we fast (overnight or during exercise) the problem comes when fructose not only triggers an insulin response but also sends signals to your body to create a fasted or fed environment:
“In order for fructose to be metabolized, the body has to create both fasted and fed conditions. The liver is really busy when you eat a lot of fructose.”
This cannot be good as it confuses the body and sends your hormones all over the place, and as we know controlling hormones is the key to a healthy weight and more importantly a healthy body.
Take Out Point
Keeping a healthy body is not hard, studies like this are starting to show why people are getting fatter and sicker; Its not due to natural foods like Eggs, Cheese, Butter, Meat and Fruit but rather due to the manufactured carbohydrates that are being touted as healthy.
Keeping your body hormonally balanced is all that is necessary to achieve good health if this means avoiding processed junk and sticking to a good diet of natural unprocessed food then so be it.
- Don’t eat anything that comes out of a box
- Eat Fruit and Vegtables with every meal
- Only eat Carbohydrates that can be grown, or are provided by nature. not made from flour
- Avoid liquid calories and drink water with lemon/lime and herbal tea’s
- Eat plenty of Healthy fats to stabilize blood sugar and nourish the body.
- Take your Cod Liver Oil
- Exercise Briefly but Intensely
- If eating sweet treats like cakes, buy high quality stuff from old fashioned bakers they are likely to be made from good old fashioned ingredients rather than modern junk.
So even though the nations consumption of Sweetened soft drinks is increasing you don’t have to be one of those people, also don’t be fooled into thinking Pepsi RAW is good for you….
Comment by jdearing
14 December 2008
Okay, I’m fairly new to this and wonder why cod liver oil instead of Omega 3 fish oil capsules?
Comment by Bonnie | free biorhythm
14 December 2008
Nice tips Chris!
I’ve noticed a weird phenomenon, if I eat anything with added fructose or added HFCS I get terrible nerve pain in my shoulder and/or arm (usually a pain that follows the line of a nerve running from the shoulder down through the elbow into the centre of the hand).
This is something I’m prone to getting once or twice a year anyway (possibly due to cold weather/damp) but I’ve noticed a definite correlation between the onset of nerve pain after eating something containing HFCS.
Weird. Best to just avoid the stuff!
If I want something sweet I have some honey, or maybe some organic dark chocolate.
Comment by Simon
14 December 2008
Hello Chris
Great blog. I came to it a few weeks ago and am really enjoying your posts.
When you say avoid carbs not made from flour are you saying avoid bread also?
Comment by Tom Parker - Free Fitness Tips
14 December 2008
Wow. Never heard about Pepsi Raw. Looks like a new drink for people to have with their McDonald’s salads
Comment by Kat Eden
15 December 2008
Somewhere in all the midst of the diet confusion we forgot one very important factor – when it comes down to it, anything man-processed simply cannot be as good for us as something that came from the earth and is eaten in its pure state.
Mary Enig wrote a fantastic book called Eat Fat to Lose Fat, which – although it does not specifically dwell on the evils of HFCS – goes a long way to show why eating fat is far more beneficial for weight loss and overall health than what eating processed sugar ever can be.
I made an attempt to cover some of her important research in my article ‘Eat Fat, Lose Fat’
Comment by Son of Grok
15 December 2008
Like we really needed even more reasons not to eat HFCS right? Great post Chris!
The SoG
Comment by DR
15 December 2008
I hadn’t heard of Pepsi RAW…thanks for the heads up
Comment by Andrew R - Go Healthy Go Fit
15 December 2008
I just read the article on Pepsi Raw… what a joke! But, you’ve got to give the devil his due, it’s a smart marketing ploy. I guess the bloggers of the world will have to help educate folks so that they won’t get duped like with every other clever marketing scheme!
Thanks for the post!
All the Best,
Andrew R
Comment by JE Gonzalez
16 December 2008
“If eating sweet treats like cakes, buy high quality stuff from old fashioned bakers they are likely to be made from good old fashioned ingredients rather than modern junk” So very true. One should also do the same with chocolate and opt only for the fancy imported stuff. It is more expensive and you can only have a few bites without wasting it. As for HFCS I love what Methusalah put up………
Comment by Yavor
16 December 2008
I knew HFCS was bad news, but not THAT bad.
Not good..
- Yavor
Comment by Chris
17 December 2008
@ Simon: I would recommend avoiding bread, simply because most the stuff these days is highly processed and contains a load of anti-nutrients. If you are going to eat bread try and get sprouted stuff or just eat more fruits/vegetables in its place. Personally I will only eat bread on occasions when I’m out and its Really really good bread….
Comment by Chris
17 December 2008
@ jdearing: this is due to Cod Liver Oil’s natural Vitamin A and D which are so important to us. I would suggest checking out the Weston A Price website for some more info on the benefits of CLO its pretty amazing stuff…..Cod Liver Oil the Number 1 Superfood
Comment by Bonnie | free biorhythm
17 December 2008
Me again
Chris you’re right about modern bread being highly processed, The only bread I like is the traditional style rye bread, particularly the kind with seeds in.
A good bread alternative is to make flax crackers from ground flax seeds, water & herbs (spread thin on baking sheet & baked at a low heat).
p.s. thanks for the tip last week about organic coffee, I bought some Clipper organic ground coffee, it’s so much nicer & as you said, less “jittery”.
Comment by Justin
18 December 2008
nice post Chris
Very indepth and I think you did a good job of explaining in an easy to understand way!
-Justin