High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is evil. Lord knows I’ve written enough about this poison over the years. But a disturbing new tactic by the corn growers makes me think we need to have this conversation again.
In case you need a refresher. HFSC is a man-made sweetener that you find in hundreds of packaged foods on grocery store shelves. It’s cheaper to use than sugar, so food manufacturers use this stuff in everything from breakfast cereal and ketchup to children’s vitamins and cough syrup.
HFCS is making us sick and overweight. Why?
• It’s a preservative (it’s not good to eat preservatives, y’all)
• Your liver can more readily convert HFCS to fat than it can straight sugar.
• HFCS blocks leptin, a naturally secreted chemical in your body that is responsible for regulating your appetite. If your leptin isn’t working, your appetite can get out of control very easily.
• HFCS is linked to high cholesterol and diabetes in animals, and for us humans, well, I don’t know about you but I think we should all be avoiding it too.
• In a recent study, a group of animals was fed a high fructose corn syrup diet. Six out of ten animals had liver tumors within six months.
• HFCS contributes to your risk of developing cancer because it causes DNA damage and inflammation and leads to increased production of free radicals within the body.
• HFCS is linked to an increased risk of developing pancreatic cancer.
• 90% of the corn grown in the US is genetically modified and, as a result, so is HFCS.
So, back to the corn growers. There have been ads issued by the corn growers recently, telling the public that corn syrup is natural and not really any different than any other form of sugar. That it’s not really all that bad for you. This is according to “scientific” research, of course.
What these ads aren’t telling you is that the research backing up these claims is supported by a grant from the Corn Refiners Association.
How unbiased do you suppose these claims might be?
We need to seriously stop consuming high fructose corn syrup. So, let’s talk about how to get this insidious ingredient out of our homes.
• Let’s get rid of the soft drinks, flavored beverages, and processed foods. These are the biggest culprits of HFCS and they are completely empty calories. Replace soda with water. Please!
• Read food labels. HFCS will be clearly marked on the ingredient list. The closer to the top of the list of ingredients, the more that’s in there.
• Eat well because I promise you, you will not find HFCS in fresh fruits and vegetables!
Getting rid of HFCS is a quick way to start optimizing your health. Another way to do it is to join us for the Hot Melt 30! We have great food, menus, shopping lists, community…the whole 9 yards, click here for details!