Unless you live in a cave or have banned T.V. from your life you are likely to have seen the latest ads on television brought to you by the Corn Refiners Association suggesting that High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) is "OK in moderation." HMMMMM…….. I wonder why it's banned in Europe?

Anyway, according to Care2 columnist Eric Steinman, "the first commercial is more insidious of the bunch, consisting of two mothers at, what looks like, a child's birthday party. Mom One spots Mom Two pouring out glasses of punch from what looks like a jug of anti-freeze and arrogantly chides "Wow, you don't care what the kids eat, huh?" To which Mom Two politely asks her to substantiate her condemnation of high-fructose corn syrup, and of course, Mom One can't deliver or recall exactly why high-fructose corn syrup is so bad for you, thus rendering her a red-faced dope. Mom Two negates Mom One's befuddlement with the statement that high-fructose corn syrup is "made from corn, doesn't have artificial ingredients and is fine in moderation."

Click Here if you would like to watch the commercial

So, what is high fructose corn syrup?

High-fructose corn syrup is a sweetener and preservative used in many processed foods. It is made by changing the sugar in cornstarch to fructose - sounds simple, right? Check out the definition below.

According to Wikepedia.com, "High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is any of a group of corn syrups which have undergone enzymatic processing in order to increase their fructose content and are then mixed with pure corn syrup (100% glucose) to reach their final form."

Ok, so what do we mean by enzymatic processing?

According to Linda Joyce Forristal, "High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is produced by processing corn starch to yield glucose, and then processing the glucose to produce a high percentage of fructose. It all sounds rather simple--white cornstarch is turned into crystal clear syrup. However, the process is actually very complicated. Three different enzymes are needed to break down cornstarch, which is composed of chains of glucose molecules of almost infinite length, into the simple sugars glucose and fructose.

First, cornstarch is treated with alpha-amylase to produce shorter chains of sugars called polysaccharides. Alpha-amylase is industrially produced by a bacterium, usually Bacillus sp. It is purified and then shipped to HFCS manufacturers.

Next, an enzyme called glucoamylase breaks the sugar chains down even further to yield the simple sugar glucose. Unlike alpha-amylase, glucoamylase is produced by Aspergillus, a fungus, in a fermentation vat where one would likely see little balls of Aspergillus floating on the top.

The third enzyme, glucose-isomerase, is very expensive. It converts glucose to a mixture of about 42 percent fructose and 50-52 percent glucose with some other sugars mixed in. While alpha-amylase and glucoamylase are added directly to the slurry, pricey glucose-isomerase is packed into columns and the sugar mixture is then passed over it. Inexpensive alpha-amylase and glucoamylase are used only once, glucose-isomerase is reused until it loses most of its activity.

There are two more steps involved. First is a liquid chromatography step that takes the mixture to 90 percent fructose. Finally, this is back-blended with the original mixture to yield a final concentration of about 55 percent fructose--what the industry calls high fructose corn syrup."

UMMMM..that doesn't sound 'natural' or 'healthy' to me, but according to the Corn Refiners Association it's perfectly natural and healthy - it's made of corn after all! Well, ok, if you take a piece of corn stomp on it, mash it and alter it's little genetic structure you can probably make just about anything. Come to think of it…….

Here are a few other things made from corn :

• Adhesives (glues, pastes, mucilages, gums, etc.)
• Aluminum
• Antibiotics (penicillin)
• Asbestos insulation
• Aspirin
• Automobiles: cylinder heads, ethanol - fuel & windshield washer fluid, spark plugs, synthetic rubber finishes, tires

It certainly doesn't mean you should add those to your diet!

You see, the Corn Refiners Association, according to their web site, "launched a multi-media advertising and public relations campaign to change the conversation about high fructose corn syrup." It sounds more like they did it to counter the latest studies suggesting that high fructose corn syrup is contributing to the increased rate in diabetes and obesity in our country. It's more like 'big business' propaganda then 'changing the conversation.'

To finish the rest of this article click here

We have an opportunity to live longer healthier lives, but only if we empower ourselves with the right information and ultimately understand that the choice is ours to make… not the major companies marketing products

Stay Well and Healthy,

Michelle