Sugar Sham

Many foodmakers are replacing high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) with cane sugar in soft drinks and many other products, and claiming no HFCS on their labels (Log Cabin syrup and Hunt’s Ketchup, for example). To fight back, the Corn Refiners Association has renamed HFCS “corn sugar”, which makes the highly processed product sound, well, pure and natural. Without an official OK form the Food and Drug Administration, it launched an ad campaign and a website, CornSugar.com. But that little switcheroo is misleading. HFCS is not corn sugar. It’s not naturally occurring; it’s made from extracting starch from corn and chemically changing it into glucose, which is then processed into fructose. It may look like something from nature, but it was made through an industrial process. Also, the jury is still out on its health effects; we thank that more research is needed. So the next time you pick up a product that says “natural”, don’t’ be fooled! Read the ingredients label.