Posted on 04/21/2010 2:21:20 PM PDT by neverdem
High fructose corn syrup, which is linked to obesity, may also be harmful to the liver, according to Duke University Medical Center research.
“We found that increased consumption of high fructose corn syrup was associated with scarring in the liver, or fibrosis, among patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD),” said Manal Abdelmalek, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology/Hepatology at Duke University Medical Center.
Her team of researchers at Duke, one of eight clinical centers in the Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Clinical Research Network, looked at 427 adults enrolled in the network. They analyzed dietary questionnaires collected within three months of the adults’ liver biopsies to determine their high fructose corn syrup intake and its association with liver scarring.
The researchers found only 19 percent of adults with NAFLD reported no intake of fructose-containing beverages, while 52 percent consumed between one and six servings a week and 29 percent consumed fructose-containing beverages on a daily basis.
An increase in consumption of fructose appeared to be correlated to increased liver fibrosis in patients with NAFLD.
“We have identified an environmental risk factor that may contribute to the metabolic syndrome of insulin resistance and the complications of the metabolic syndrome, including liver injury,” Abdelmalek said.
Research Abdelmalek published in the Journal of Hepatology in 2008 showed that, within a small subset of patients, high fructose corn syrup was associated with NAFLD. Her latest research, published online in Hepatology, goes one step further and links high fructose corn syrup to the progression of liver injury.
“Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is present in 30 percent of adults in the United States,” Abdelmalek said. “Although only a minority of patients progress to cirrhosis, such patients are at increased risk for liver failure, liver cancer, and the need for liver transplant,” she explained.
“Unfortunately, there is no therapy for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease,” she said. “My hope is to see if we can find a factor, such as increased consumption of high fructose corn syrup, which, if modified, can decrease the risk of liver disease.”
The idea is similar to what cardiologists have done for heart patients, Abdelmalek explained. They discovered that high-fat diets are bad for your heart, so they have promoted low-fat diets to decrease the risk of heart disease, she said.
“We haven’t made it that far with liver disease yet,” Abdelmalek said. “We know that alcohol is not good for your liver, and therefore encourage patients to limit alcohol consumption. But what do you do when people have non-alcoholic liver disease?”
“Our findings suggest that we may need to go back to healthier diets that are more holistic,” Abdelmalek said. “High fructose corn syrup, which is predominately in soft-drinks and processed foods, may not be as benign as we previously thought.”
The consumption of fructose has increased exponentially since the early 1970s, and with this rise, an increase in obesity and complications of obesity have been observed, Abdelmalek said.
“There is an increasing amount of data that suggests high fructose corn syrup is fueling the fire of the obesity epidemic, but until now no one has ever suggested that it contributes to liver disease and/or liver injury.” Abdelmalek said the next step is more studies looking at the mechanisms of liver injury.
“We need to do formal studies that evaluate the influence of limiting or completely discontinuing high fructose corn syrup from one’s diet and see if there are health benefits from doing so,” she said.
Other authors on the study include Ayako Suzuki, Cynthia Guy, Anna Mae Diehl, all of Duke; Aynur Unalp-Arida and Ryan Colvin of John Hopkins; and Richard Johnson of the University of Colorado.
Yep. And if they’d run the same study with carrots or coffee or graham crackers or toothpaste they’d have found the same thing.
This is science? It’s obvious from the way they categorized the patient percentages that the study set out to demonize high fructose. In order to get their scary numbers they had to create a category that lumped together data to offset the statistically significant 1 in five who didn’t have any high fructose that still got the disease. So they dump everyone else into the “one to five high fructose beverages a week” category. One A WEEK is nothing, and belongs in its own category. This study is meaningless junk science and intentionally deceptive.
Now that corn is increasingly being used for fuel, HFCS isn't the cheapest sweetener it used to be. Many manufacturers are wising up to the fact that the public is becoming educated on HFCS. I'm starting to see "No HFCS" on many more products these days. I avoid HFCS the best I can, reading labels conscientiously and choosing alternatives sweetened with sugar. They're out there, you just have to read the labels. It's amazing how much stuff HFCS was used in to begin with.
I don't drink much soda but when I do It's Hansen's cane soda. PepsiCo recently released "throwback" Pepsi and Mt. Dew sweetened with sugar for the same price as the regular brands. I've shown my appreciation by purchasing these products. I'd like to see more of this.
I ain't skeered.
How sweet!
People are deluding themselves if they think that eliminating HFCS, and simply eating the equivalent in sugar, is going to magically make them skinny/well/healthy.
Thats what I dont like about these health scares, it steers attention away from the REAL problems with our diet (too much quick carbs, and TOO MUCH in general)...
Why don’t all these people just mind their own f’n business?
Some people will put any substitute in their body if they can save a few cents.
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How could anyone think that severely processed and concentrated sugar is benign?
My computer is too old to download youtube. Thanks anyway. You can find more threads about frustose associated non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, nafld, at that abbreviation for a keyword. It appears dose dependent, BTW.
Are you dead yet?
"An increase in consumption of fructose appeared to be correlated to increased liver fibrosis in patients with NAFLD."
Einstein, did you happen to hear of dose dependent effects? I linked the abstract of the original article in comment# 1, if you're curious. They also fould in bloodwork high triglyerides, high uric acid and low HDL.
I bought a lot of Throwback Pepsi and Mt Dew. Drinking Heritage Dr. Pepper now. I also drink Jones Soda. I buy local soda when I can.
I don’t think Mexicoke is available where I live or anywhere near it. I certainly would purchase it if it was available. I also don’t prefer spending much more for sugar soda than for hfcs soda. A 12 pack cans of typical hfcs soda is $4 or less.
Mexicoke, or “gourmet” soda can be $1 a bottle or more. I understand that sugar might be a little bit more expensive. I’ll pay a little bit more. Not twice as much. I don’t drink hfcs soda anymore.
The Brits did a study years ago about HFCS and determined that it signaled the liver to store fat. The high dose rats in the study got so fat their hearts exploded.
That one got buried by the HFCS industry who is selling 6 million tons of it annually.
I’d prefer to pay $8 - $12 a case. The glass bottle is bonus though. Winchester, VA? Are they good and fresh?
Difference is that if you cut DHMO out of your diet entirely you will die in days. If you cut HFCS out, you probably will live longer.
Sweet stuff is a luxury, just like fatty steaks are a luxury. Unfortunately a lot of us take these for granted and don’t consume in moderation. That is bad news for our bodies and longevity. Our health and it’s maintenance is our own responsibility, so be glad that someone is doing the work so we can know how to best maintain it.
“Where I used to work at before, I would drink 5 or 6 sodas a day for a few months. I got up to over 300lbs. I then stopped drinking sodas for a few months and lost around 30lbs.
HFCS is the problem.”
Calories are calories, with or without corn syrup. If you had been drinking pop with “real sugar,” I’m almost certain the extra 1,000 or so calories you consumed a day might have had some impact on your weight.
Soon all you’ll be able to buy at the supermarket is an empty box.
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