High Fructose Corn Syrup Apologist or Shill?
By
Nate Rifkin
Posted April 13, 2015
Back in college, I took a took a nutrition class in a stadium-style room with about 199 other students… who would all quickly come to despise me.
Because I couldn’t keep my mouth shut. Especially when the professor prattled on about how cholesterol and saturated fat are bad for you.
One fond memory of mine was when she compared two major sports drinks and said their nutritional profiles were essentially the same.
I raised my hand. “Not so. One contains sucrose, and the other contains high fructose corn syrup.”
She shrugged her shoulders and replied, “So?”
Good times in higher education. Believe me, she wasn’t genuinely perplexed. The professor knew exactly what I was getting at. Which meant she was either a high fructose corn syrup apologist or a shill. Either way, I’m betting virtually none of her students ever heard about this little-known study on high fructose corn syrup’s effects on insulin resistance:
Healthy, young men were given an extra 1,000 calories per day of either glucose or fructose to eat (fun experiment to volunteer for), and the effects on their bodies were measured after seven days of this new diet.
The glucose eaters did not experience any change in insulin sensitivity.
The fructose eaters, on the other hand, did. Their insulin resistance shot up, which can lead to Type 2 diabetes.
Some scientists believe fructose does this by raising your uric acid levels, which inhibits your muscles from absorbing glucose.
Now here’s the scary part: The human study was published in 1980. Eight years later, a sports drink filled with high fructose corn syrup became one of the official drinks of the Olympics.
I guess it could help you win the race to needing insulin injections every day…
Take-home point: Check your labels. If high fructose corn syrup is listed, toss the drink or food and find a substitute. Ideally, a natural drink or food without any added sugar. But if you simply must partake, at least stick to sucrose, which is only half fructose and half glucose. However, in future issues of Living Well Daily, you’ll discover a sugar alternative that could actually improve your health. Keep an eye on your inbox for that.
Until then,
Nate Rifkin
Underground Health Researcher
Written By Nate Rifkin
Nate Rifkin is an obsessed health and mind-power researcher and author. To hear more from Nate, sign up to receive Living Well Daily for free, here.
View More Free Articles
30-Second Trick FIGHTS Heart Failure
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, About 6.2 million adults in the United States have heart failure. When you visit your mainstream doc’s office, he’ll tell you that heart failure is the result of clogged arteries, high blood pressure, diabetes, being overweight, lung problems, and heart valve problems. It can make you feel like your health...
Mailbag! 10 Tips to Conquer Spinal Arthritis
I have arthritis in my spine. What would you suggest to help manage it? –George from Cedar Rapids, IA George, Believe it or not, many people learn that they have spinal arthritis as they age. It’s very common. There’s a lot you can do to help keep it from advancing or even reverse some of...
Calm Anxiety WITHOUT Drugs (Easy!)
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, There is a plague of anxiety sweeping the nation. And who could blame us? Anyone with half a brain SHOULD feel anxious about the state of the world. But like any other epidemic, just because something is going around doesn’t mean you should accept it. More importantly, having anxiety does...
“Food Reboot” HALTS Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, If you or someone you love suffers from multiple sclerosis (MS), you already know how the disease can turn your life upside down. The stiffness and mobility problems slowly strip away your independence… and leave you in pain. Talk to your mainstream doc and he’ll just shrug their shoulders –...
[Men] Do You Have the Breast Cancer Gene?
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, If you’re a woman, chances are you have heard about the BRCA gene (BReast CAncer gene). Scientists have known for a long time that a mutation in one of two breast cancer genes, BRCA1 or BRCA2, increases the risk of getting breast cancer. But, men, listen up – just because...
Greek Plant Extract SOOTHES Joint Pain
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, Some people might shrug when you tell them you have knee pain… but that’s only if they haven’t experienced firsthand. Chronic pain from osteoarthritis is no joke— it can destroy your life. Joint pain makes moving incredibly difficult and can keep you from doing the things you love. Before you know it,...
Deadly Disease 8 TIMES More Likely for Crohn’s Patients
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, Inflammation is supposed to be a normal response for your body. It’s one of the key defenses protecting you. Inflammation can sometimes be our friend… when it helps fight off infections and clears away debris, that is. The problems start when inflammation blazes out of control or lasts longer than...
Mailbag! 5 Ways to Soothe Your Psoriasis
I have psoriasis, and I was wondering what supplements or natural treatments there are out there. –Bill from Riverside, CA Bill, As you probably know, psoriasis is a chronic autoimmune disease where the body attacks the skin as if it were a foreign invader. Psoriasis affects about two percent of the U.S. population. Normal, healthy...
Coffee Compound LOWERS Cholesterol
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, I’m on a personal mission to rescue coffee from the hands of the nutritional puritans who think that anything fun is not good for you. Despite what the mainstream would have you believe, the news on coffee has improved in recent years. Researchers have pinpointed many powerful plant nutrients, like...
“Citric Element” Whips Your Brain into Shape!
Dear Living Well Daily Reader, Some suggest pretty complicated ways to keep your brain healthy as you age. Going back to college… doing complicated puzzles… taking what feels like 30 bottles of pills a day… It can make you feel like giving up before you’ve even started! But what if there was something MUCH easier...