Say No to Artificial Sweeteners & High Fructose Corn Syrup

Diabetics, pre-diabetics and pretty much all the rest of us should eliminate or severely restrict this substance in our diets. It is an altered substance. It starts from corn but ends up as something totally foreign to our bodies. Read on to find out why we should avoid it. By the way, read the ingredient list on Wheat Thins, Kikoman's Teriyaki Sauce, Heinz Ketchup, Yoplait Yogurt, most soda pops and about 50,000 other food products, and then you'll see why we are all getting too much of this stuff, many times unknowingly.

Go ahead and Google it and you may come to the same conclusion I did - small amounts of plain old cane or beet sugar (organic or raw) is the best way to go. Artificial sweeteners and scientifically altered fructose are foreign to our bodies and may cause us to eat more, crave more sweets, store more fat, and there are theories about these substances being linked to cetain types of cancer.

For more information on this, please see "We're drowning in high fructose corn syrup. Do the risks go beyond our waistline?" by Kim Severson, in the San Francisco Chronicle.

SOME FACTS:

In 2001, each American consumed almost 63 pounds of high fructose corn syrup, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

A low-fat, fruit-flavored yogurt, can have 10 teaspoons of fructose-based sweetener in one serving.

Because high fructose corn syrup mixes easily, extends shelf-life and is as much as 20 percent cheaper than other sources of sugar, large-scale food manufacturers love it. You'll also find it on the labels of many frozen foods. It is used in bread products as well.

Studies by researchers at UC Davis and the University of Michigan have shown that consuming fructose, which is more readily converted to fat by the liver, increases the levels of fat in the bloodstream in the form of triglycerides.

And unlike other types of carbohydrate made up of glucose, fructose does not stimulate the pancreas to produce insulin. Peter Havel, a nutrition researcher at UC Davis who studies the metabolic effects of fructose, has also shown that fructose fails to increase the production of leptin, a hormone produced by the body's fat cells.

Both insulin and leptin act as signals to the brain to turn down the appetite and control body weight. And in another metabolic twist, Havel's research shows that fructose does not appear to suppress the production of ghrelin, a hormone that increases hunger and appetite.

So, I will stick with the common sense advice of moderation and using just a little real sugar once in awhile. If it is altered or created in a lab, I try to keep it out of my system.