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  • Writer's pictureThe Slim Habit

The Evil of HFCS - High Fructose Corn Syrup


High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) arrived on the scene in the 1970s. A significantly cheaper alternative to sugar, it was invented in Japan. It wasn’t long before farmers and food manufacturers in the US realised its potential. They turned all that lovely maize into lots and lots of corn starch…and dollars, billions of them.

Coca Cola was one of the first to jump on the bandwagon. They threw out sugar and added HFCS, but because it was a fraction of the price of sugar they didn’t just replace the sweetness level like for like, they increased it dramatically. Soon everybody was replacing sugar with HFCS. As the level of HFCS grew, so did obesity.

There is a fundamental problem with HFCS. Unlike glucose which is metabolised by all your organs, 80% of fructose is metabolised by your liver – as fat. It does much more besides:

  1. It increases each of the phenomena that cause metabolic syndrome

  1. ATP, a vital chemical for conveying energy within the cells is seriously depleted by HFCS. Lack pf ATP can lead to gout and high blood pressure.

  1. Fructose goes straight to fat.

  1. It leads to liver insulin resistance.

  1. Insuin resistance – it can lead to diabetes.

  1. Insulin resistance means that the pancreas produces more insulin. High insulin can accelerate the growth of many cancers. It blocks leptin and your hypothalamus thinks you’re starving causing you over eat.

  1. It can accelerate aging and the risk of dementia.

Of course you need to avoid eating or drinking products that contain HFCS, but remember too that sugar is 50% glucose and 50% fructose. High sugar consumption means high fructose consumption and all the negatives listed above apply.



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