Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Angelica_LA — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 18:58:57 GMT

When will the food industry ever learn that human well being and health is more important than money?

A couple of weeks ago I bought and consumed a pint of Hagan Daas sorbet (I know, I know). It left a horrible after taste in my mouth. So, I wrote them an email complaining about this, asking why they used high fructose corn syrup in the sorbet along with sugar. I said that surely sugar is enough to sweeten the sorbet. I received a reply that said they don't use high fructose corn syrup, just plain ole corn syrup - and that most bakery goods manufacturers use corn syrup to attain a certain texture to their products. They sent me several free coupons for their products and some discount coupons as well.

I'm going to start making my own ice cream and sorbets at home in my blender.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Darth Chaos — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 02:30:28 GMT

HFCS, aspartame, and MSG are all linked to obesity and diabetes.

And.....

New Research on Splenda - Scary Stuff

by Michael Lovitch

SPLENDA IS SCARY STUFF

A new study done at Duke University and published in the Journal of Toxicology

and Environmental Health, Part A has some frightening news about Splenda (sucralose).

According to the study, the use of Splenda:

* Reduces the amount of good bacteria in the intestines by 50%. which is where most of your immune system resides!

* Increases the pH level in the intestines.

* Contributes to increases in body weight.

* And affects the P-glycoprotein (P-gp) in the body in such a way that crucial health-related drugs could be rejected.

The study, authored by Drs. Mohamed B. Abou-Donia, Eman M. El-Masry, Ali A. Abdel-Rahman, Roger E. McLendon and Susan S. Schiffman, was conducted using male rats over a period of twelve weeks.

You have probably heard of some downsides to artificial sweetners, especially Nutrasweet. A lot of the complaints had some merit but were not conclusive, but this one seems especially damning and outright scary!

There’s a lot of talk about lack of oversight in banking. Looks like the FDA needs some help big time.

Source: Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A, Volume 71, Issue 21 January 2008 , pages 1415 - 1429.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Wolfster — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 08:14:49 GMT

And then, in the ad, the second woman laughs and says "Well, at least I'm not stupid enough to get my nutritional information from a doctor!!!"

The ad misinforms about the average doctor's (lack of) nutritional knowledge - my specialist didn't even KNOW what a probiotic was - but is quick to imply that every piece of information imparted by a layperson is automatically useless and an old wives' tale (why do you suppose the imparter of information was a hairdresser?), and that people do not have the common sense to factcheck on their own.

As cynical and disgusting as the current election.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Lavos — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:15:54 GMT

Yeah these ads promoting HFCS are sickening. I've noticed several people here and elsewhere mentioning Agave nectar is a better alternative. Personally, I think if anything, Agave is much worse than HFCS because it is much higher in fructose.

The bad effects of HFCS have been attributed to it's high free fructose content, typically 42 or 55 percent, wherein Agave nectar contains a whopping 70-90% fructose. While proponents of Agave claim the fructose is somehow "slow release" and thus doesn't cause the problems of HFCS, I'm highly doubtful. Stay away from processed sugars period!

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

peggysue777 — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:57:57 GMT

Over the last 2 years I have lost 30 pounds just by reading labels and quit using ANYTHING that says it has High Frutose Corn Syrup. Trust me, it's not easy as it's in almost everyting. But my husband and I starting using the old saying "if it wasn't a food a hundred years ago, then it's probably not a food" This really works for weight loss, and a good diet in general. I am pre-diabetic, and I control my blood sugar with the foods I eat and excercise. My Dr. actually thinks I am doing great with the things I am doing. I even taught HER that if you take Alpha Lipoic Acid for Neuropathy, it really works. She should be paying me!!!!!

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Rett — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 00:34:28 GMT

One of my church sisters looked at the bottle of ginger ale and was delighted that it has "only" 90 calories and was fat free. The second ingredient after carbonated water was HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP. No body is getting it. Soybean oil and HFCS is in almost everything processed. I'm sending her this article. :) Hugs.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Kitera — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 20:37:01 GMT

I wanted to comment on the assertion that HFCS is cheep - it is only cheep because of massive subsidies. If there were no subsidies as a result of successful lobbying would the substitution of corn syrup for sugar from sugar beets have taken place? There was always corn sugars but the substitution would not have been that widespread. I doubt the legislators, the lobbyists, or anyone else had any inkling that this substitution would assist in the current Type II diabetics epidemic. Now that the substitution has taken place it has "fed" the pharmaceutical industry the opportunity to create drugs to alleviate the situation - and everyone makes a nice profit.

Kitera

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

Maurine1 — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 08:24:36 GMT

Many commercial yogurts (not Dannon, however) list HFCS as an ingredient. I make my own yogurt a cup at a time on a little 17-watt mug warmer (don't use a 20-watter -- it gets too hot).

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

HereIsSomething — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 07:47:39 GMT

Check out the Slippery Slope Index at HundredYearLie.com

1971 was the year Japanese food scientists made high fructose corn syrup - Lots of other info in the Slippery Slope index timeline as well.

hundredyearlie.com/ssi3.html

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

richardB — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 06:18:36 GMT

Valeri,

Agave and corn syrup couldn't be more different. Agave is mostly fructose while corn syrup is mostly glucose. See en.wikipedia.org/.../Agave_syrup and en.wikipedia.org/.../Corn_syrup. Weather the fructose in Agave is as harmful as that in HFCS, I don't know but I wouldn't consume it in large quantities. Frankly it's best just to say NO to all sweeteners natural or artificial.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

curious7 — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 04:23:10 GMT

Is it made with high fructose cornsyrup, you know what they say, then silence. This should be a big give away that this commercial is on behalf of industry and not the truth. Nothing about diabetes, and obesity. Nothing about the danger to our body as a whole. I hope we are not so dumb as to fall for this ruse. Though the Gardasil lies have been helpful in increasing sales of this deadly drug, so the same will likely be said about High Fructose Cornsyrup.

America live in a fog.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

TiaIsWorried — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:50:00 GMT

Dr. Mercola and all,

Anyone wonder why these insidious HFCS commercials have popped up now?

Money, friends, money.

Corn is being touted as our savior, use if for everything from the cushions in your car seat, to the sweetner in your food, to the "savior" of the green movement.

It is all BS and meant to make a few corporate farmers, and Monsato, even more powerful than they are now.

Crop land is a finite thing. We add 75 million plus mouths to feed in this world every year. If 50% of the available crop land is devoted to corn, that leaves much less to grow anything else, so the prices of all foods shoot through the roof.

Mass starvation is already occuring in this world, the last thing we need is to cause more so that the ultra-rich can get even richer.

Though we will never change the world, thank god we have people like Dr. M that risk it all to help those of us that will listen to change our personal lives.

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

ciaodog — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 03:28:22 GMT

Your comments on stevia may be a bit dated - check out Truvia and Purevia

Coke products available now in NYC, and Pepsi products soon available in the US (in South America now)

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

ShellyNPismoBeachCA — Wed, 24 Sep 2008 00:35:13 GMT

Hey Kas

As far as I know the answer is NO, it is NOT the same thing. Corn syrup sold on the retail market is just that, corn syrup. The HFCS is made and sold commercially for the food/beverage industry. As far as using a little bit around the holidays, I wouldn't worry about it. That little bit and you are making it as a TREAT not part of your regular mealtime ingredients, right?

On another note, I heard Dr OZ on Oprah say that what's really bad about HFCS is that it turns OFF the "leptin" in our brains. Apparently, this chemical is what tells us we're full so we keep eating. WOW, that combined with the uber calories in this stuff, it's no wonder our nation is overweight! I read all my labels now and put it back if it has HFCS. Also, if I see it in a product I like (like I just saw it in Yoplait yogurt..bummer) I write to the company and complain. Good luck & Good health to all...

re: Dramatic Example of How the Food Industry Lies to You About Corn

DizzyIzzy1 — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 23:36:09 GMT

I have to point out another one Unilever have started in the UK along similar lines.

"Did you know butter is bad for you but margarine is good?" etc etc. It's a cartoon of happy little sunflowers in a golden sun-bathed town full of happy people with 'happy hearts' because they eat various brands of margarine/table spread. All owned by unilever, of course. It points you to a website, htt://www.satfatnav.com

It's got some brilliantly misleading quotes on there - so much so that I'm drafting a complaint to send to the advertising regulators!!

"Saturated and trans fats (as found in butter, whole fat dairy products, fatty meats and processed meats, cakes, pastries, pies, biscuits, chocolates, savoury snacks and deep-fried fast foods) are 'bad' fats" [trans fats as found in butter?]

"Fat Fact: Most margarines contain only trace amounts of trans fats (bad ones!), whereas butter typically contains 3% trans fats "

.....it's a horrible, scary website. Sort of like one of those really pretty, safe-looking dogs you go to pat and they bite your hand off.