High Fructose Corn syrup - do you care? (ingredients, healthy, pancake)

[arsbadmojo]

My wife and I made applesauce yesterday from a mix of Farmer's Market apples. We were working on it in the kitchen, and I pulled out the applesauce we usually buy, and noticed it had HFCS in the ingredients.

I jokingly asked my wife if we had remembered to put the high fructose corn syrup in ours. She laughed and asked if I had seen the "pro" high fructose corn syrup ad on TV. I couldn't believe that there was such a thing, but sure enough; there's 2.

I'd link it but the rules on that seem vague - YouTube.com, search for high fructose corn syrup.

Personally, I don't think it's the root of all evil; but there are some aspects that really tick me off.

* Go through your pantry and cupboards and see how many items contain HFCS. I'll be shocked if it's less than half.
* Industry lawyers arguing that HFCS can be a component in foods labelled "All natural" and winning (http://www.foodbev.com/ArticleDetail.aspx?contentId=1084 - broken link).

"Cornstarch is first treated with a purified enzyme, alpha-amylase, to produce shorter chains of sugars called polysaccharides. . . . The polysaccharides (short chains of sugar) are then broken down even further by adding a second enzyme called glucoamylase. . . . The addition of glucoamylase to the polysaccharides yields the simple sugar glucose."

Mmmmm. Just like grandma used to make!

I think it will be interesting to see what happens with HFCS over the next 10 years. We no longer have the huge surplus of corn that we did just a few years ago, and the drum beat of ethanol produced by corn gets louder as the price of oil climbs, so maybe we'll see a dropoff in the use and consumption of HFCS. Something to watch.

Anyway; what do you think? Do you even care?

[SuSuSushi]

Nah, I don't care. If others want to eat crap, who am I to stop them? I don't eat much packaged food so it doesn't really affect me one way or the other.

[Ellise]

Yeah, I care. The only product I use regularly with HFCS in it is pancake syrup. I'd buy real maple syrup, but for some reason it makes my head ache.

HFCS may be the root of all evil for all we know. I remember when I was growing up, the word from the medical community was that margarine (trans fat) was better for you than butter. Now trans fat is considered to be quite evil.

Read those labels and avoid processed food as much as possible, that's what I do.

[Ohiogirl81]

The conspiracy theorist in me is amused to see what will happen with this stuff years down the line.

The survivalist in me avoids the stuff like the plague.

[Atlantis]

Yes, I care. I avoid it. HFCS stops insulin & leptin from working properly so you don't feel full and you overeat.

[stan4]

Try Mexican coke - made with cane sugar instead of HFCS. There is a huge difference in the way it tastes.

[southdown]

Some interesting reading on the subject...especially for those with children

The Double Danger of High Fructose Corn Syrup (http://www.westonaprice.org/modernfood/highfructose.html#author - broken link)

[arsbadmojo]

Originally Posted by SuSuSushi

Nah, I don't care. If others want to eat crap, who am I to stop them? I don't eat much packaged food so it doesn't really affect me one way or the other.

I'm a 'live and let live' person myself, but the argument I could raise would be something along the lines of you're already being affected by your tax dollars going to the farm bill to pay corn subsidies so ADM can line it's pockets, and the skyrocketing costs of healthcare that we all pay due to the new phenomenon of childhood "adult onset" diabetes and other obesity related problems...something like that.

Not that I would DO such a thing, mind you.

I'm just sayin'.

Devil's advocate.

[andthentherewere3]

I know, the stuff is awful. It's very hard to buy healthy foods, especially when the kids are wanting something sweet. You really have to be a label-reader, I give in sometimes. A "pick your battle" kind of thing. However, once a year at Thanksgiving I make a mouth-watering pecan pie that is made from nearly a bottle of corn syrup. It's definitely something that should be eaten in moderation.

[pitt_transplant]

I hate it. It makes you eat more than you are actually hungry for and I get mild headaches from it. I hope I never develop a full on corn allergy from them jamming it in everything.