HFCS is ubiquitous in processed foods and beverages, found not only in obvious items like soda and candy but also in bread, condiments, yogurt and many other everyday products.
The body processes the fructose in HFCS almost exclusively in the liver, which, in excess, can promote fat production, increase blood triglycerides and contribute to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
High consumption is associated with insulin resistance (leading to Type 2 diabetes), obesity, gout, hypertension and systemic inflammation, partly because it doesn't trigger satiety signals like other sugars.
While debate continues, public health guidance has shifted toward recommending limits on all added sugars, with HFCS being a major source, due to the documented risks of excessive fructose and empty calories in the diet.
For decades, a silent shift in everyday food ingredients has altered the nutritional landscape of the American diet. High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), a liquid sweetener derived from corn, moved from an industrial novelty to a ubiquitous staple, finding its way into everything from soft drinks to bread. Its prevalence is now at the center of a persistent public health debate concerning metabolic disease, obesity and the very fabric of food processing.
The story of HFCS is inextricably linked to economics and agricultural policy. While syrups from corn have existed for centuries, the development of HFCS as it is known today began in the late 1950s and 1960s with Japanese researchers who perfected enzymatic processes to convert corn glucose into fructose. Its adoption in the United States surged in the 1970s, propelled by high sugar prices, tariffs on imported cane sugar and substantial government subsidies on corn.
"High-fructose corn syrup is a sweetener made by enzymatically converting corn starch into glucose and then further converting much of that glucose into fructose," said BrightU.AI's Enoch...<<<Read More>>>...
