Posted on 05/24/2011 11:11:30 AM PDT by decimon
Obesity and diabetes rates continue to rise despite decline in consumption of sweeteners
WASHINGTON – A comprehensive review of research focusing on the debate between High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) and other sweeteners presented today finds there is no evidence of any significant variation in the way the human body metabolizes HFCS as opposed to standard table sugar, or any difference in impact on risk factors for chronic disease.
James M. Rippe, MD, founder and director of the Rippe Lifestyle Institute and professor of biomedical sciences at the University of Central Florida, presented a summary of recent research entitled -- "High Fructose Corn Syrup, Sucrose and Fructose: What Do We Really Know?" – at the American Society of Hypertension (ASH) Annual Meeting in New York City. Dr. Rippe was invited to present his findings on a panel focusing on nutrition and cardiovascular prevention, an issue that ASH recognizes as important on the subject of hypertension and cardiovascular disease.
Based on Dr. Rippe's review of a series of randomized, prospective studies, there is no evidence of adverse impacts from consumption of normal levels of either sucrose or HFCS on weight, ability to lose weight, or increased risk factors for chronic disease, nor were other differences found between the two sugars. Furthermore, a review of current research in this area shows that an individual is no more likely to experience obesity or chronic diseases by consuming HFCS as opposed to other sweeteners such as table sugar.
"While there has been a lot of media attention lately focused on the claims that HFCS is somehow more likely to cause obesity and chronic disease than other sweeteners, the evidence simply does not support those claims," said Dr. Rippe. "Recent research shows that individuals who consumed normal levels fructose have seen no adverse effects on their weight or triglycerides."
Also somewhat surprising, the United States Department of Agriculture has reported that while average daily caloric consumption has risen steadily over the last several decades, along with the rates of obesity and diabetes according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the average daily caloric consumption of sweeteners, including HFCS, has actually decreased over the last decade.
In the mid-1970s, the average American diet contained less than 2,200 calories per day. By 2008, that average increased by approximately 500 calories to nearly 2,700 calories per day – a 22 percent jump. By contrast, since 1999 the average of total sugar-added calories consumed per capita per day actually decreased from over 500 calories per day down to just over 450 – a 10 percent decrease. During that same period, there was a dramatic spike in the calories from added fats and a consistently high calorie intake from flour and cereal products.
"In the case of HFCS, while consumption increased steadily over two decades in the United States beginning in the 1970s, it peaked around 1999 and has been declining ever since. Yet, we see the incidence of obesity and diabetes in the U.S. continues to rise or remain steady during that time" said Dr. Rippe. "Meanwhile, we have seen obesity and diabetes epidemics in regions of the world where little or no HFCS is available."
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For more information on added sugars, please visit www.SweetSurprise.com.
CRA is the national trade association representing the corn refining (wet milling) industry of the United States. CRA and its predecessors have served this important segment of American agribusiness since 1913. Corn refiners manufacture sweeteners, ethanol, starch, bioproducts, corn oil, and feed products from corn components such as starch, oil, protein, and fiber.
Visit us on the Web at www.Corn.org
Many pharmaceuticals have warnings related to organ damage that they can cause. They are supposed to only be prescribed because the benefits outweigh the dangers associated with using them.
Pills prescribed for elderly patients with a combination of diabetes and heart problems are an example of this. Once patients get old enough, the pills are seen as the way to go as it becomes more desireable to avoid surgeries, as long as organ problems don’t shorten life expectency.
The liver does not learn, it just does the best it can - if it can’t manage, that’s called liver disease. How things go depends on how much and which medications are taken and the patient and what else is going on with the patient. Tylenol is an example with well-known issues.
A lot of information which details drug metabolic pathways, risks, etc., is available as put out by the drug companies, and I don’t think they are publishing unmitigated nonsense.
IMHO...
If one needs to take medications, one needs to take them. I’m just not living in a fantasy world where I believe that somehow the FDA has guaranteed that no pharmaceuticals have any side effects. I would think that it’s best for the patient to understand as much as they can so they can do their own common sense healthy living and make as informed decisions as possible.
And there’s nothing so good as some just-picked vegetables grown without chemicals.
That’s my point, 85-90% of all obese/over-weight people are that way due to lack of decent eating habits and obscene food intake.
I like to eat - I grew up on my grand-parent’s farm. We ate heartily! Biscuits, gravy, bacon, ham, eggs, pancakes, fried okra, fresh milk and butter, and orange juice (THAT WAS BREAKFAST)! But, we worked from 5:30AM until the sun went down! So, we were extremely active! I left the farm for my last three years at home (moved to the city), before joining the Corps, and I didn’t change my eating habits, but I definitely did NOT do nearly as much work and physical activity (even with high school sports). I quickly gained about 35 pounds.
About a year ago I realized that my work habits were causing me to have very bad eating habits and very little exercise time. My metabolism is pretty normal, if I am hungry, I eat. I try to exercise about 30-45 minutes a day (usually a short session in the morning and another in the afternoon). I drink LOTS of water. I have lost about 40 pounds in the last year or so. It is a pretty simple thing.
Now, if all you ever eat is sugary, fat filled cake and pies, as long as you work out in proportion to the intake, you can probably maintain your weight, but your body is going to be feeling pretty weak and bad - because you are not getting all the right nutrients and vitamins.
Same thing though, if you eat nothing but wheat-grass and drink water all day and only do “maintenance” work-outs, you will probably never be over-weight, but your body is going to be feeling pretty weak and bad - because you are not getting all the right nutrients and vitamins.
So, proper intake plus proper exercise usually equals normal body weight and healthy living! We each should know our own bodies and what we can eat and can’t eat, what work out works best for us and that which does not work. I don’t think people need to take 20 different pills, starve themselves and give up every single items that contains sugar. None of those things will fix weight issues: normal intake and normal exercise is the BEST way - PERIOD.
These are the same kind of people who worked for the tobacco companies who said that smoking wasn’t bad for you. Don’t believe any “study” from a group that is making hundreds of millions of dollars on the product they are supporting.
I just find the advice frequently and ridiculously contradictory.
It is unstable and unuseable. Everyone has a horse in the race.
Moderation in all things; no matter how perfect your diet you will eventually pass away.
I don’t believe this.
For one thing they taste different.
Second, the enzymes and chemical processes involved are different.
“I’m so damn healthy I’ll never die. My life is so miserable.”
There was a report a short time back that said some of the nations on the top of the list as “the happiest”, according to polls, were also nations on the top of the lists for the number of suicides.
The reporter’s explanation was that while the polls might reflect the majority of the people as happy with their lives, that just made for an even more miserable situation for a minority that could not be successful or happy - as in: why is my life hell when it’s so good for everyone else.
I’m not taking that explanation as gospel, just food for thought.
I had a friend who was always eating and drinking “diet”, “sugar free”, “fat free”, etc., etc., etc - with everything he consumed, to any extent possible.
He also was always complaining about his weight.
After years of watching this, one evening, after a nice bar-b-que, I watched him wolf down a quart of “fat free”, “sugar free” ice cream, and then listened to his explanation that it was O.K. ‘cause it was “fat free” and “sugar free”.
Oh, and he always complained that he was always hungry.
I finally told him what I thought. I believed he actually consumed way more calories than I did and most likely an awful lot more calories as carbohydrates than I did. But, since so much of his intake was composed of foods made from artificial this and artificial that, with so little actual fat or actual sugar, that his body was starving for real food, and converting his over-abundance of carbs into fat.
I told him that I would bet he would be less hungry and wind up consuming less calories and less carbs if he gave his body real food, including butter and sugar instead of all the “diet” stuff.
We are no longer friends so I don’t know if he took my advice or not.
I think the old adage “all things in moderation accepted” still holds a lot of truth.
Other 3000 calories???
The fructose molecule comes in at least two varieties or structures. A left hand and a right hand version which are wound exactly opposite. I'm not an expert but smart enough to know that we've a lot more to learn about how the human digestive process works as well as the affects caused by differences in molecular structures of the foods we consume.
Given the choice between a sweetener occurring naturally or something synthesized by cost conscious folks, I'll stick with natural...
Thanks for the ping.
I’m not worried about the mercury really, it’s the fact that the stuff makes you a big tub of lard.
I prefer actual sugar, thank you.
I know better than to do anything but sit up an listen when you are talking biology/physiology.
Regards,
.
Yeah, what a coincidence that the CRA whose members make money off of the demand for corn finds no problem with HFCS.
Once I started avoiding HFCS, I lost 30 pounds the first year. And it’s in everything so very hard to avoid - have to make some things from scratch. I didn’t do it for weight loss, I did it because of those terrible sinking spells, joint pain etc. Those are gone now too.
People under 40 or maybe it’s 30 by now, who haven’t abused their bodies with HFCS for long enough, or those who don’t have diabetes in their families won’t know what I’m talking about, but the negative effects of HFCS are very real.
I could be wrong because I’ve only seen one of their commercials but I thought I noted that they talked about corn syrup and not HFCS - there is a difference.
Actually my point was that while exercise and sensible eating habits are good, not all people are fat because of overeating and not all overeaters become fat. Exercise may or may not be a factor in either case. There are plenty of skinny people and people who exercise who put on weight, develop type II diabetes or higher cholesterol despite their lack of body fat or their diet or their exercise regimen. There are plenty of fat people who do not develop any of these problems and who live to a ripe old age despite their extra weight. I have quite a few relatives who spent most of their lives overweight but had none of these problems and lived into their late 80s or late 90s. I have also know very trim and fit military people who despite their diet and regular exercise developed all of these problems and some who died from them. Each person has a different metabolism and physiology that reacts differently to food and exercise. Some fat people got fat by eating too much and not staying in shape, some are fat despite all of the exercise and a good diet. The 85-90% figure is way too high; not everyone puts on weight for the same reasons.
I think the bad part of “diet” drinks and “fat free” foods is that they either contain nothing useful to the body at all or they contain carbs in a ratio of carbs to fat and carbs to sugar that is NOT normal. I think many dieters are constantly hungry or at least having “cravings” because their body is starving for normal food; food containing moderate amounts of regular fats and sugars.
I know well-informed diabetics KNOW that it is total carbs as much as sugar that they need to watch out for.
I also know six type-two diabetics in my life. Four of them were perpetual dieters before the onset of their diabetes.
Sorry, I should have said “glucose” instead of “sucrose”. Nonetheless, hfcs is conducive to ill health; better watch this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBnniua6-oM
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