Sugar Wars
When I was a kid, about the worst anyone could say about sugar was that it would give you cavities and ruin your appetite for dinner. How innocent we all were! Now we know that over consumption of refined sugar contributes directly to heart disease and diabetes and indirectly to cancer, osteoporosis, and other illnesses.
Yet we now eat (and drink) more of it than ever. In fact, our national epidemic of obesity has continued unabated despite the introduction of an enormous number of beverages and foods sweetened with sugar substitutes over the past few decades. As the health consequences of our sugar addiction become more and more obvious, many consumers are turning to sweeteners that are supposedly healthier or more “natural.”
Which misses the point. In terms of safety, most sweeteners have looked good when they were introduced only to later prove detrimental to health. Concentrated sweeteners—whether they come from a beehive, a lily plant, a maple tree, or a sugar refinery—should be consumed in very limited quantities. And it is true; all of these sweeteners are fine in moderation. But Americans don’t consume moderate amounts of high-fructose corn syrup.
High-fructose corn syrup: Where to find it
High-fructose corn syrup makes up, on average, about 10% of all of our calories consumed. It is added to sodas, crackers, sweets, bacon, barbeque sauces, breads, and an amazing array of other manufactured foods. One study of eighth graders found that between 14% and 16% of calories eaten in an average day was in the form of fructose. If you are a typical American, only about one-third of the fructose that you get in your diet comes from fruits and vegetables (which are great sources of healthy fiber). Nearly all the rest comes from food and drinks that contain high-fructose corn syrup. Since we’re eating so much of it, high-fructose corn syrup had better be healthy even when we don’t eat it in moderation.
It is ironic that pure corn syrup (not the high-fructose kind) has no fructose at all. Pure corn syrup is made of dextrose, which is 100% glucose. It is about three-quarters as sweet as high-fructose corn syrup. It is not the kind of corn syrup that is used in most processed foods. For our health, I would like to see the corn refining industry change their manufacturing process, to make a no-fructose or reduced-fructose sweetener.
Parents trying to limit the amount of sugar consumed by their little ones may also be interested in recent research showing that if you can teach very young children the benefits of delayed gratification, you’ll reduce the chances of their being overweight as middle-schoolers.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:44 pm
bookmarked!