High fructose corn syrup...

bluebird321

I had to eat clean to get HFCS completely out of my diet -- once that happened I was shocked at how quickly I dropped the first 30 lbs.

wolfchild59

I got two things from this thread - as someone whose dad worked in grocery stores for his entire adult life, and myself worked in a specialty foods grocery store for five years, your secret society of turning products around isn't helping anyone, just annoying the clerks that have to fix them everytime they walk by.

And mmmmm...foie gras...*drool*

sleepytexan

so obnoxious. watch out, they want to rename it to corn sugar. that and partially hydrogenated oils are the source of Fat America.

I remember reading somewhere about a movement to make people more aware of these ingredients. It involved turning an item upside down and backward on the shelf when you discover that it contains an offending ingredient.

I'm not sure how effective it is, but every once in a while I see something upside down and backwards and I wonder . . . was that intentional?

I do it myself just because it makes me smile. Maybe we are a secret society, saving each other time in the grocery aisles--ha!

blessings.

You would be turning almost everything upside down and backwards as most all processed foods have either HFCS or trans fats in them.................

I"ve been off this stuff for over 7 years . . . I hardly go into the aisles in a regular grocery store. I buy very few prepared foods anyway, and if I do, mostly from Whole Foods, Jimbo's or similar.

chevy88grl

I got two things from this thread - as someone whose dad worked in grocery stores for his entire adult life, and myself worked in a specialty foods grocery store for five years, your secret society of turning products around isn't helping anyone, just annoying the clerks that have to fix them everytime they walk by.

And mmmmm...foie gras...*drool*

LOL. Agreed. Turning stuff around isn't proving anything to anyone except the people who are required to fix it. We don't care that you found a certain ingredient in it. We are mumbling about how lazy and uncaring you are. Would you like it if we came to your house and turned everything around, on its side or what not? Probably not. Don't do it in the store because SOMEONE has to fix it.

4theking

HFCS is just the next villian. It doesn't magically make you fat anymore than any other food. So eating fruit or drinking juice makes you fat? The problem lies in the fact that people drink liters of soda a day containing the fructose, not in the fact that food contains it. To get enough HFCS to really cause issues you would have to consume a very large quantity.

Kalrez

Its not HFCS, it's "corn sugar" and your body can't tell the difference. Sugar is sugar!

Duh!

The TV commercial funded by the Corn Council, or whatever they are called, told me so! How is that not right? The TV told me!

Those commercials throw me into a blind rage.

Kalrez

To get enough HFCS to really cause issues you would have to consume a very large quantity.

That's the point and problem. Sure, HFCS is fine occasionally. But unless you are actively trying to buy products without out, then you are consuming HFCS in at least 80% of the processed foods you eat.

And yes, HFCS may be chemically identical to other sugars that we consume. The problem comes from the shape of the molecule. Molecular structure plays a huge role in how things are processed.

I mean both graphite pencil lead and diamonds are made of carbon. They're chemically the same, but the structure makes all the difference.

Acg67

To get enough HFCS to really cause issues you would have to consume a very large quantity.

That's the point and problem. Sure, HFCS is fine occasionally. But unless you are actively trying to buy products without out, then you are consuming HFCS in at least 80% of the processed foods you eat.

And yes, HFCS may be chemically identical to other sugars that we consume. The problem comes from the shape of the molecule. Molecular structure plays a huge role in how things are processed.

I mean both graphite pencil lead and diamonds are made of carbon. They're chemically the same, but the structure makes all the difference.

actually the body processes both HFCS and sucrose identically. in and of itself HFCS is not evil, nor does it make one fat. the only thing that makes you fat is a consistent caloric surplus, no one ingredient or macronutrient is responsible

jchester71

The human body doesn't differentiate between sugar forms when it is metabolized. It has become a bogey man, but it doesn't need to be. The real issue is why is everything being sweetened.

Cbecons

[Oh, but you Brits have that horribly wonderful thing called Golden Syrup! I don't think it's an additive unless I am making flapjacks for the kiddos of course!

we do indeed have Golden Syrup which does contain fructose, but it's not used as an additive to sweeten foods, although it is used in baking such special treats as treacle spronge pudding and yes flapjacks, both of which are so calorie dense that you need to do tripple-workouts for at least a week afterwards to compensate :laugh:

Ohhh Treacle Sponge pudding! YUMMM! Need. willpower.NOW! :-)

Zeromilediet

The human body doesn't differentiate between sugar forms when it is metabolized. It has become a bogey man, but it doesn't need to be. The real issue is why is everything being sweetened.

Actually the body does metabolize fructose and sucrose differently. Only the liver can metabolize fructose which it converts to triglycerides. Excessive fructose causes liver damage, obesity, and diabetes--originating from fruit is not as bad because it takes longer to digest because of the fiber. Triglycerides by the way ...
• are building blocks for the bad LDL cholesterol that forms plaques in arteries,
• can be stored in your liver to cause a fatty liver,
• can be stored in your fat cells to make you obese.

lockef

I think it's funny how everyone says sugar is ok in moderation, but HFCS is evil. Do some research people.

Zeromilediet

I think it's funny how everyone says sugar is ok in moderation, but HFCS is evil. Do some research people.

So true, but generally people (including me) will not give up their sugar in some form or another. Sweetening comes in so many products, as an earlier poster said: the question is why everything is sweetened? I've seen corporate paid 'nutritionists' claim moderate sugar is actually healthy for you--okay as long it is used to make their cardboard processed cereal palatable. WTF?

HFCS is evil. But so is refined sugar and a whole list of natural and artificial sweeteners. And alcohol, which is metabolized by the liver so one could say is treated like a sugar by the body. It's up to the individual to read labels and make choices to reduce sweeteners as much as possible.