Thanks. Great article.
The money quote, IMHO:
“
When male rats were given water sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup in addition to a standard diet of rat chow, the animals gained much more weight than male rats that received water sweetened with table sugar, or sucrose, along with the standard diet. The concentration of sugar in the sucrose solution was the same as is found in some commercial soft drinks, while the high-fructose corn syrup solution was half as concentrated as most sodas, including the orange soft drink shown here. (Photo: Denise Applewhite)
High-fructose corn syrup and sucrose are both compounds that contain the simple sugars fructose and glucose, but there at least two clear differences between them. First, sucrose is composed of equal amounts of the two simple sugars — it is 50 percent fructose and 50 percent glucose — but the typical high-fructose corn syrup used in this study features a slightly imbalanced ratio, containing 55 percent fructose and 42 percent glucose. Larger sugar molecules called higher saccharides make up the remaining 3 percent of the sweetener. Second, as a result of the manufacturing process for high-fructose corn syrup, the fructose molecules in the sweetener are free and unbound, ready for absorption and utilization. In contrast, every fructose molecule in sucrose that comes from cane sugar or beet sugar is bound to a corresponding glucose molecule and must go through an extra metabolic step before it can be utilized. “
Then I started to notice that I was eating less. Started to feel more full - one PB sandwich for lunch was just fine, whereas with HFCS, two were needed, along with something on the side, and maybe a snack later.
Sez me, there's something to this part, at least. That, and I was amazed at the number of things with HFCS in it... Sweets, sodas, and Peanut Butter? Sure, makes sense. But bread? Ketchup? Salad dressing? Never would have thunk it.
I still subscribe to moderation. If I want a soda once in awhile, I have one. Just one. And so on. But I do feel better after starting to pay attention, versus just stuffing whatever happened to be around in my face.