The Devil You Don’t Know: Is High-Fructose Corn Syrup Making You Fat?

It’s cheap to use, it makes you feel full fast, it’s instantly addictive, and it sneaks into many foods that you probably thought were ‘good for you’.

The big offender is High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) and it just could be one of the missing links to your never-ending search for real weight loss. Here are some fast (fat) facts about this nasty substance.

• HFCS is the main ingredient in most soft drinks
• It raises your triglyceride levels (dangerous fats)
• It sends your LDL levels through the roof (that’s the bad cholesterol)
• Your body turns it to fat even quicker than what it turns sugar to fat
• HFCS is generally consumed as a liquid, which is one reason why it can be converted into fat very quickly
• This also means that it raises blood sugar levels extremely rapidly – which is why it is linked to diabetes

Think it’s not affecting you? Don’t drink much soft drink? You might just want to keep reading before the smugness sets in. You see, HFCS consumption rose 135% from 1977 to 2001 and soft drink sure isn’t the only offender. You might be surprised and more than a little jacked off to learn that HFCS is found in the following ‘foods’ – and they’re not all bad. In theory, that is.

• Fruit juices (look for 100% natural to be safe)
• Many processed foods (be sure to check the labels)
• Many breads, breakfast cereals and other grain products (it makes them look browner when baked)
• Low-fat or low-cal packaged snacks (always read labels)
• Muesli bars and breakfast bars (to give them a chewy texture)
• Yoghurts (including every variety of Yoplait)
• Salad dressings (including ‘light’ and ‘low fat’ salad dressings)
• Many breakfast cereals (including Special K)
• Ice-cream and microwaveable desserts (including many of those labeled as healthy)
• Even products with the healthy heart claims

My Aussie readers don’t have quite as much to fear as those in the US. The truth is that sugar is so abundant here, and therefore so cheap, that many manufacturers don’t need to resort to HFCS. Yet. But before you heave a sigh of relief, here’s something to consider – every negative effect of HFCS that I listed at the start of this post is just as true for the effects of sugar. Moral of the story? What you’ve read today might be new information but it just comes back to one simple rule – if it’s packaged or processed or comes in a can, it’s not good for you and it’s definitely going to up your body fat.

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