Monday, August 31, 2009

Heat forms toxic substance in corn syrups

U.S. Department of Agriculture scientists say they've discovered heat forms a potentially harmful substance in high-fructose corn syrup often fed to honey bees.

The study led by Blaise LeBlanc and Gillian Eggleston of the USDA's Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Tucson showed heat can produce a potentially toxic substance, hydroxymethylfurfural, which might kill honeybees and endanger human health.

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Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Heat Forms Potentially Harmful Substance In High-fructose Corn Syrup, Bee Study Finds

If High-Fructose Corn Syrup Kills Honeybees, What Does It Do To You?

Researchers have established the conditions that foster formation of potentially dangerous levels of a toxic substance in the high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) that is often fed to honey bees. Their study, which appears in the current issue of ACS' bi-weekly Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, may also have implications for soft drinks and dozens of other human foods that contain HFCS. The substance, hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF), forms mainly from heating fructose.

In the new study, Blaise LeBlanc and Gillian Eggleston and colleagues note HFCS's ubiquitous usage as a sweetener in beverages and processed foods. Some commercial beekeepers also feed it to bees to increase reproduction and honey production. When exposed to warm temperatures, HFCS can form HMF and kill honeybees. Some researchers believe that HMF may be a factor in Colony Collapse Disorder, a mysterious disease that has killed at least one-third of the honeybee population in the United States.

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USDA Agricultural Research Service: Formation of Hydroxymethylfurfural in Domestic High Fructose Corn Syrup and Its Toxicity to the Honey Bee (Apis mellifera)

Monday, August 24, 2009

Marketers Answer Call to Eliminate High-Fructose Corn Syrup

Corn Refiners Fight Back as Kraft, Pepsi Tout Revamped Products. The Corn Refiners Association does an all-cable TV buy, focusing on female- and family-oriented networks, like Lifetime, Bravo, TLC and the Food Network.

First it was fat, then it was trans fat, and now it's corn syrup.

Consumers are asking manufacturers to remove ingredients they believe are harmful, and high-fructose corn syrup is near the top of many a mother's hit list. Some major manufacturers have responded by removing the offending syrup, and the Corn Refiners Association has staged a full-fledged media assault aimed at what it perceives to be "misinformation" in the media.

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Mercury In 1000s Of Foods Containing High Fructose Corn Syrup

Corn Syrup Association Fights Back

As more manufacturers retool products to eliminate high-fructose corn syrup, the Corn Refiners Associations takes to the airwaves in support of the sweet substance.

The Corn Refiners Association has launched a media attack to counter “misinformation” in the media about high-fructose corn syrup, Advertising Age reports. In the wake of Kraft Foods and PepsiCo reformulating some of their products to eliminate corn syrup, the association has purchased time on cable television in an effort to reach females and families with the news that high-fructose corn syrup is not the enemy.

In recent years, Kraft Foods has removed high-fructose corn syrup from Bulls-Eye barbecue sauce, Capri Sun Juice drinks with 25 percent less sugar, most of its Kraft Salad dressings and Wheat Thins crackers.

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Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Obsessives: Soda Pop - CHOW.com

John Nese is the proprietor of Galcos Soda Pop Stop in LA. His father ran it as a grocery store, and when the time came for John to take charge, he decided to convert it into the ultimate soda-lovers destination. About 500 pops line the shelves, sourced lovingly by John from around the world. John has made it his mission to keep small soda-makers afloat and help them find their consumers. Galcos also acts as a distributor for restaurants and bars along the West Coast, spreading the gospel of soda made with cane sugar (no high-fructose corn syrup if John can avoid it).

Top 10 Incredible Funguses

Aspergillus Niger

Incredible Because: It toppled the Italian lemon industry and is used in the production of high fructose corn syrup

Industrial-scale citric acid production began in 1890 based on the Italian citrus fruit industry. But a mere 27 years later (in 1917,) the American food chemist James Currie discovered that certain strains of the mold Aspergillus niger could be efficient citric acid producers, and Pfizer began industrial-level production using this technique two years later, followed by Citrique Belge in 1929. This caused the toppling of the Italian citrus industry. Aspergillus niger is also used in the production of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). In the United States, HFCS is typically used as a sugar substitute and is ubiquitous in processed foods and beverages, including soft drinks, yogurt, cookies, salad dressing and tomato soup.

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Good buy: Chef Hymie Grande's barbecue sauces


Chef Hymie Grande's barbecue sauces contain neither high-fructose corn syrup nor processed sugars and are vegan friendly.

They also are the first barbecue sauces to bear the American Diabetes Association seal, and a portion of the proceeds is donated to the ADA.

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Thursday, August 6, 2009

Is High Fructose Corn Syrup an “Addiction?”

Working part time in a successful bariatric weight loss clinic as an Educator I was recently given the opportunity to read an interesting medical abstract by Dr. Robert Lustig, (The Bariatrician, 2009, Volume 24, No. 1, pg. 10). Dr. Lustig is a neuroendocrinologist and member of the Endocrine Society Obesity Task Force. He states that HFCS acts metabolically similar to that of ethanol, a central nervous system toxin derivative, after consuming alcohol.

Without even realizing it, (or maybe they know somehow?) the food manufacturers of HFCS have developed a quite “legal” addictive substance adding to our obesity epidemic. The fructose in HFCS apparently has a direct effect on the central nervous system in the hedonic (pleasure producing) pathway of the brain similar to alcohol. It impacts the central nervous system signaling addiction like cravings to the individual consuming HFCS. But instead of intoxication which you may normally experience from alcohol you have over consumption of a food or beverage that contains HFCS. Dr. Lustig states that HFCS should be regarded as “alcohol without the buzz.”

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BACON AS WMD

High-fructose corn syrup is a derivative of corn. There’s massive subsidies for the corn industry. On its own, it couldn’t compete with sugar. But because of the subsidies, it brings down the cost of corn.

From the McDonald’s McGriddle to Wendy’s “Baconator” to “baconnaise” to bacon-infused vodka, bacon has become a ubiquitous ingredient in many diets in this era of extreme food combinations. Arun Gupta of The Indypendent writes, “Behind the proliferation of bacon offerings is a confluence of government policy, factory farming, the boom in fast food and manipulation of consumer taste that has turned bacon into a weapon of mass destruction.”

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Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Sugar vs. Corn Syrup: 50 years of sweet, sweet smackdowns

1957 High-fructose corn syrup invented.

1975 Average American annual consumption: 70 lbs. of sugar, 4 lbs. HFCS.

1985 US Coca-Cola manufacturers replace sugar with HFCS.

2004 Equal sues Splenda over "Made From Sugar So It Tastes Like Sugar" tagline.

2005 A study suggests fructose causes obesity.

November 2006 Makers of Jones Soda switch from HFCS to sugar; receive angry email from Corn Refiners Association (CRA).

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Income, Education Linked to Processed Sugar Intake

Study finds intake higher in racial and ethnic groups with lower income and education
Intake of sugars added during processing, such as high-fructose corn syrup, is higher in men and in groups with low income and education levels, according to a study in the August issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

Frances E. Thompson, Ph.D., from the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Md., and colleagues surveyed 28,948 adults in the United States regarding their food intake and estimated their intake of added sugars (sugars and syrups that are added to foods during processing or preparation) such as white sugar, brown sugar, and high-fructose corn syrup.

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Monday Mission: Upgrade your Condiment Awareness

Start reading condiment labels and choosing the lesser-of-the-evils kind. Ketchup with less or no high fructose corn syrup or artificial colors. Salad dressing with plain sugar instead of HFCS.

Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to “choose your own adventure” in the new and exciting field of condiment awareness. Last week in the mental mission, I encouraged you to begin reading condiment labels and being conscious of how many condiments you use and what quantity.

At our house, we have some very condiment-heavy meals. When we have homemade chicken nuggets and baked French fries, we can easily have a dozen condiment bottles on the table. Don’t believe me? Ketchup, mustard, Dijon mustard, honey, 3 different salad dressings, buffalo wing sauce, regular BBQ, spicy BBQ, Georgia Mustard BBQ, Insanity Sauce. There. That’s 12. Do we use a lot of napkins at that meal? Oh, yeah. Am I aware that that’s excessive condiments? Why do you think I’m trying to teach condiment awareness? The first step toward recovery is acceptance of a problem…

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Obama doesn't care about fat people

Better Food Labeling


The problem I’ve found until recently when looking for decent bread at the grocery store is trying t find bread that doesn’t have junk in it. Too much of it in America is made with High Fructose Corn Syrup and other ugly ingredients. When you’re on to scanning the ingredients panel on your fourth loaf you do wonder how US food got into such a problem that we can’t trust how humble a loaf really is.

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Sunday, August 2, 2009

Cola’s not always cool

The International Journal of Clinical Practice reported recently that an Australian ostrich farmer who used to drink four to 10 litres of cola a day has developed lung paralysis.

The rising temperature may tempt you to pour litres of chilled cold drinks down your parched throat, but have a care. Recent articles in reputed medical journals have reported a hitherto unknown side effect of glugging huge quantities of cola.

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Diets 101: Why are processed foods bad for your health?

High fructose corn syrup has been linked to increasing obesity levels, heart disease and diabetes.

With your busy lifestyle, it is often easier to grab a pre-packaged or frozen meal. While you score on convenience, those pre-packaged and processed foods are not helping you with achieving overall health. Let’s face it, you may lose weight. But the long-term impacts of processed foods may not be worth it. So why is processed food bad for you?

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