high fructose corn syrup

Some info I found from the Mayo Clinic:

Some research studies have linked consumption of large amounts of any type of added sugar — not just high-fructose corn syrup — to such health problems as weight gain, dental cavities, poor nutrition, and increased triglyceride levels, which can boost your heart attack risk. But there is insufficient evidence to say that high-fructose corn syrup is less healthy than are other types of added sweeteners.

Recommendations from the American Heart Association — not a part of official U.S. dietary guidelines — say that most American women should consume no more than 100 calories a day from added sugar from any source, and that most American men should consume no more than 150 calories a day from added sugar, and that even less is better. That's about 6 teaspoons of added sugar for women and 9 for men.

It's prudent to consume any added sugar only in moderation. Consider these tips to cut back:

• Avoid sugary, nondiet sodas. Drink water or other unsweetened beverages instead.
• Choose breakfast cereals carefully. Although healthy breakfast cereals can contain added sugar to make them more appealing to children, skip the non-nutritious, sugary and frosted cereals.
• Eat fewer processed and packaged foods, such as sweetened grains like cookies and cakes and some microwaveable meals.
• Snack on vegetables, fruit, low-fat cheese, whole-grain crackers, and low-fat, low-calorie yogurt instead of candy, pastries and cookies.

Interesting- Fructose, whether it's high fructose syrup or fructose from fruit causes my son to be sick and loose weight. After years of "it's infections" or "lactose" nope- my son took the breath test and wouldn't ya know- fructose intolerant! It's amazing that what  fructose does to my son. 

So whether you are intolerant or not, limiting fructose will only improve your health! 

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Sorry, no smore's for you.

Good morning! I hope some of the info I have provided has been helpful! This post is more personal.

Last night we had a great campfire with neighbors. So much fun!

And then...the smores.

Poor Nate. 5 kids roasting marshmallows, squishing them between honey graham crackers and hershey bars- and he couldn't have any.

Yes he could eat the hershey bar- made with cane sugar thank goodness, but after two bits he was done. The smell of the marshmallows was bringing him down.

It's times like this that kinda stinks. At 8 there were no tears of course, just a sad little look. Hopefully he will out grow this. Marshmellows are pure fructose, that on top of the honey graham cracker and your'e asking for stomach trouble- which brings on the weigh loss- not worth it.

Next bonfire we'll trade in marshmallow roasting for something else....any suggestions? Fruit is of course out...hotdogs I guess!

Fructose and Berries

Low in Fructose! High in flavor!!

It was so hard for Nathan, my fructose intolerant 8 year old son, to give up fruit. My boy loved an apple a day! After 2 weeks of no fructose it was time to try berries- low in natural fructose.


So far so good! Every other day Nate dives into a bowl of blueberries with a few strawberries thrown in! No he can't have the strawberry yogurt drink his buddies drink (loaded with hfcs) but next week we'll make our own smoothies!

Below is some data on fruit and fructose we received from our dietician.  

Grapes

Red or green grapes contain about 25 grams of fructose per cup. Grapes are also a good source of fiber, and are high in vitamin C. They provide a small amount of iron and vitamin A.

Pears

An average-sized Asian pear has 19 grams of fructose, while a common pear contains 16 grams of fructose. Pears are high in fiber and vitamin C.

Watermelon

One wedge of watermelon contains 18 grams of fructose per serving. Watermelons are not high in fiber, but they are rich in vitamins A and C and provide some iron.

Pineapple

A 1-cup serving of pineapple has about 15 grams of fructose. Pineapple provides almost a day’s worth of vitamin C in each cup, and is also a good source of dietary fiber, while also delivering some calcium and iron.

Bananas and Apples

These common fruits contain between 14 And 16 grams of fructose in an average-sized piece of whole fruit. Bananas are also a good source of fiber, potassium and vitamin C, while apples are also high in vitamin C and supply some iron and vitamin A.

Blackberries, Blueberries, Raspberries and Strawberries

With about 22 grams of fructose per cup, blackberries are the highest in fructose for the berry group. Blueberries have 14 grams per cup. Raspberries have 6 grams fructose, and strawberries 8 grams fructose per cup. With their edible skins and seeds, berries are a rich source of dietary fiber, especially blackberries. Berries are also high in antioxidant vitamins.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/542442-what-fruits-are-high-in-fructose/#ixzz1xtj7hfZ8


Again, great info but what actually matters is how fruit makes 


my son feel. A banana seems okay, only a couple symptoms


come from that- but the blueberries are working out great.


Good luck on your fructose free journey. It's sometimes a 


struggle- apples messed up Nate's belly one day we tried

them but it's trial & error!


 Yay for berries!!!

Popcorn and Fructose

Is Nathan going to eat popcorn at the movies? 

How could he not...we went with 9 other kids today to see the hilarious Madagascar 3- great movie!
I was thinking no- and he was cool with it. My girls and I wouldn't have any of course. But when our buddies walked in with their bags it was hard to resist.

Popcorn is hit or miss with Fructose Intolerance. Air popped popcorn doesn't naturally contain fructose (says our dietician). But a lot of the popcorn we buy may contain hidden hfcs. Of course!! Below is what I found when researching popcorn and fructose:


Foods to be cautious of but not necessary to eliminate:
Corn products: cornchips, corn-flakes (plain), cornmeal (degermed), Dorritos, grits, Homeny, polenta, popcorn, puffed corn cereals, pure corn syrup (not HFCS or corn syrup solids), taco shells, Tortillas 


SO this morning we tried it! Nate had a small bag of popcorn and so far so good! Yay!!! WHen they drank juice boxes Nate and his sisters had water- healthier anyway.


One more thing we can now add to our "yes you can have" list!!

History of high fructose corn syrup

Good morning! While on my hunt for fructose free recipes I found some interesting facts about the history of high fructose corn syrup. Now my son is fructose intolerant- which we all know means ALL FORMS OF FRUCTOSE. I wish it was just hfcs! But still the history of a chemical that is in so many of our foods (like breads, juices, crackers, frosting,ice-cream...) is interesting.


Fructose Consumption Increases

A century ago, the average daily consumption of fructose was around 15 grams, a far cry from the typical 73 gram dose we receive today. More importantly, the small amount eaten by our ancestors was largely from fruit, where the fructose is bound to fiber and isn’t released to the bloodstream as quickly. By contrast, today we consume mostly high fructose corn syrup which has been artificially produced in a laboratory, and exerts a much higher degree ofmetabolic dysfunction in this ultra concentrated form.

1. Creating High Fructose Corn Syrup

   • Until 1957, no one believed corn could be sweet. As for high fructose corn syrup, how could that be? Corn has glucose not fructose. Researchers created an enzyme called glucose isomerase in 1957. It rearranged the composition of glucose in corn syrup and made it into fructose. It turned a mildly sweet corn syrup into the highly sweet high fructose corn syrup. It began being produced on an industrial scale in the 1970s.

   Sugar Prices Rise

   • In 1977, importing sugar became expensive because of new tariffs and sugar quotas. Those manufacturers who used sugar began searching for a cheap alternative sweetener. Even before this happened, sugar was beginning to lose market share to high fructose corn syrup. The quotas and tariffs only made it more attractive since it was cheaper to produce and transport. To make it, powdery corn starch is processed into glucose, which is then processed into the clear syrup fructose. Corn prices were much lower than sugar prices because of government subsidies and overproduction.
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   • High Fructose Corn Syrup Gains Acceptance
   • High fructose corn syrup took a big jump in general acceptance in 1984 when soft drink makers began using it in Coca-Cola and Pepsi, while foreign formulations still used sugar. Production grew from about 3 million short tons in 1980 to about 8 million short tons in 1995.

   High Fructose Corn Syrup Today

   • Nowadays, you can find high fructose corn syrup in ketchup, canned vegetables and jams. In 2005, Americans consumed a per-person average of 28.4 kg of high fructose corn syrup each year. It is now consumed in greater quantities than regular sugar. Some critics say that because high fructose corn syrup is a man-made substance that isn't entirely understood, it is causing the obesity problem in the United States. There are also worries that life-threatening results in animal tests could do the same thing to people.

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Read more: The History of High Fructose Corn Syrup | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/about_5106547_history-high-fructose-corn-syrup.html#ixzz1xaAwp0dv

Tomatoes and Fructose

Fresh Tomatoes

A half cup of fresh, ripe cherry tomatoes contains 2.9 g of carbohydrates, of which 0.9 g is fiber, 0.9 g is glucose and 1.0 g is fructose. A medium whole ripe tomato provides 4.8 g of carbs, with 1.5 g of fiber, 1.5 g of glucose and 1.7 g of fructose. If you have 1 cup of chopped tomato, the carb content corresponds to 7.0 g per serving, with 2.2 g of fiber, 2.3 g of glucose and 2.5 g of fructose. Unripe tomatoes tend to have more fructose, some of which is then converted into glucose as the tomato ripens.

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/445674-fructose-in-tomatoes/#ixzz1xURJGvLF


Great information but to us this doesn't mean much. What 


matters is how Nathan feels when he eats fructose. When he 


eats tomatoes. We still haven't tried them but when our 


garden is ripe with tomatoes I know he'll want them. So a 


slice here and there is what we'll try. If he can tolerate them 


awesome...it's not worth it if he gets sick. 




I've read so many sites about ketchup, tomato sauce...when 


you're fructose intolerant it's trial and error. I do know that our 


dietician said tomatoes and apples contain a high level


of natural fructose. So that's why we've opted to not put them


on our burgers or in our salad. When one of your kids is 


intolerant it's a family intolerance- how unfair would it be if 


Nate had to sit their watching us eat a yummy tomato. Here is 


pic of our garden! 

This year we planted more peppers than 


tomatoes- keeping in mind our fructose free boy :)

A Fructose Free Sleepover

Last day of second grade..whoohoo!! And now it's sleepover time. But arghhh...fructose!


If Nathan cheats he'll have a tummy ache, smell horrific, barely eat and possibly puke or have tummy issues- better not cheat.


SO that means no popcorn during a movie...no syrup on the pancakes...no juice...some of the staples of sleepovers.


But leave it to my wonderful friend to ask me what Nate can have. I dropped off Nathan (& his sister) after dinner. He brought a package of Hershey bars- fructose free baby!


My friend (the other mommy) had kool-aid made with cane sugar on hand and chips without fructose. IN the morning she made pancakes and had pure maple syrup. SUCESS!!


WHat a relief when I drove my son home & he felt great, maybe a little tired, but great!!


No it's not an allergy like my daughter's friend has where peanuts must be hidden and an epi pen is on hand...it's something that is in so many foods it's stressful on friends and family. No it's not like of Nathan cheats he'll go into shock but he wont feel well and in turn loose more weight, something he can't do!!


So a special thanks to this friend and Nathan's best buddies' Dad who asked repeatily what Nate could eat on a play date.(Nate was dropped off with his fructose free hamburger bun when he ate over)


It's been 6 weeks now, still a challenge but we're getting used to it. When Nate has eaten fructose all the symptoms come back and he can barley eat. But good news: he has gained 1.5 pounds!! Fructose free is working!!

Looks like it'll be a summer of sleepovers, playdates & fructose free foods!