The Dangers of High Fructose Corn Syrup 10-11-08

by: Rich Stacel

In case you missed it on TV, recent ads campaigns have tried to convince people that High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is something that’s actually good for you. For me and many others who are into natural health and informed on the dangers of man made chemicals and food additives, a statement like that is not only a lie but an outright shock. What’s even more amazing is that the commercials show one person that seems to know that HFCS is not good but can’t quite remember why, while the other person who is apparently “well informed” convinces the first person that their information is wrong and that HFCS is really good for you because it’s supposedly “natural” because it’s made from corn.

Well here is another question that no one really thinks about. What is SO beneficial about corn? Corn is not a vegetable but a grain. Grains are metabolized into sugars very rapidly in the body and cause a huge spike in blood sugar, thus requiring an outpouring of insulin from the pancreas further straining this already so overworked organ. This is one of the major contributors to the massive increase in type II diabetes were seeing in modern times.

HFCS has been used since the early 70’s as a new cheap sweetener-wow…such a godsend huh. Just what the world needs, another cheap sweetener. Of course it’s a god-send for greedy and selfish food manufacturers who see no difference between food they’re feeding to people and something inanimate like a hammer that you might use around your house. To them it’s simply a product that people buy so they want to make it as cheap as they possibly can to increase their own profits at the expense of public health.

In some studies it has been shown that HFCS contributes to high cholesterol because it actually scars the internal walls of the arteries. This causes the body to then produce cholesterol to heal the walls of the arteries which is one reason that the plaque builds up on the arterial walls. As the walls are continually scarred this slowly shrinks the opening for blood to flow through making the heart work much harder and eventually wearing the heart out. When something works harder, it also creates more heat or "Yang fire" energy too.

Corn based products such as HFCS have also been shown to increase osteoporosis, tooth decay, anemia, osteoarthritis and more. Researchers found that Native American Indians who lived after the arrival of Europeans had far more of these health issues due to the shift in their diets over to a corn based diet as opposed to those who lived prior who previously ate a traditional hunter/gatherer well-balanced diet, rich in seafood including a variety of plants and animals too.

Corn is also an inadequate source of various nutrients and minerals such as protein, is usually deficient in 3 of the 8 essential amino acids that the human body cannot produce, has significant amount of phytate, a chemical that binds to iron and inhibits iron absorption into the body thus making such people prone to iron deficiency anemia and other health issues related to poor iron status. Corn is also a poor source of calcium and niacin (B3 vitamin). Deficiencies in these minerals including tryptophan can result in a condition called Pellagra which is characterized by a deficiency in those nutrients and is common in corn eating communities as well as dermatitis, diarrhea and depression.

Furthermore, HFCS has no real nutritional value to it at all and is more than twice as sweet as regular sugar and since it causes a huge spike in blood sugar when consumed. If that blood sugar is not immediately used up by the muscles via some kind of exercise it is converted into fat and stored in the body as such. This is another way that HFCS and other grain products can contribute to obesity, heart disease and even Alzheimer’s and memory loss. This increase in fat and cholesterol slows the micro circulation of blood through the brain accelerating cell death through lack of oxygen and nutrients. It can also make the body more acidic which causes a host of other health issues. Many health problems in the west are those of an acidic nature or excess fire or yang energy as we would say in Chinese medicine so this is another condition we want to eliminate from the body.

Since HFCS is in virtually everything today that is packaged and processed you really have to become a label reader and check everything you buy. Since it causes such a strong insulin spike in the body and people are often sitting at home or at work when consuming such foods, it’s vital to make sure that you’re cutting this ingredient out of your diet as much as possible.

Always keep in mind that any sugars that are not used up by the muscles will be quickly converted into fat and stored on the body. This is true of HFCS or any other sugars, even organic. This is one reason why it’s always a good idea to get up and move after every meal. Take a brisk walk, do a light workout or something that uses the muscles so that any excess sugar you may have either consumed or that maybe stored as fat in the body will be burned off before it has a chance to do so.

No matter how often big sugar, the corn industry, media or other such agencies try to convince the public that HFCS is benign or even “natural” and therefore good for you, it’s anything but. You can say something is natural all you want but that doesn’t automatically make it healthy. Poisons, minerals, lead, mercury and others substances are also natural, but they too can still kill in relatively low concentrations. HFCS is not naturally occurring in nature so just because it’s made from corn doesn’t mean it’s good for your body or your health. This is definitely one ingredient to cut out of your diet if you want to avoid all the serious health ills that go along with it’s consumption.

Man made ingredients are the answer to only one thing, making great profits for the food manufacturers at the expense if your health and that of your family. Were led to believe that these ingredients have been rigorously tested and found safe, otherwise they surely wouldn't let them be put into our foods, right? Wrong! That's all part of the big lie they want you to believe. They know that these foods are deadly and destructive and simply don't care because they make too much money to care. The government has proven it can't be relied on to protect you and all because they've completely sold out to these companies. So always keep this in mind, read those labels and make sure to avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup at all costs.