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to confuse the issue by citing studies carried out with individuals known or levulose; the fructose in HFCS is a different
to be less sensitive to fructose. Conspicuously absent in their review were isomer, D-fructose. Small amounts of D-fructose
the Teff, Bantle and Rabin studies cited by Bray. do occur in fruit, but the D-fructose in HFCS
The report dismisses both the epidemiological correlation and the has the reversed isomerization and polarity of a
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large amount of research showing that HFCS is metabolized differently refined fructose molecule. As explained by Russ
from sucrose. It also dismisses the fact that U.S. fructose consumption has Bianchi, Managing Director and CEO of Adept
increased over 30 percent since 1970, claiming instead that the fructose: Solutions, Inc., a globally recognized food and
glucose ratio (F:G) in the U.S. food supply has not appreciably changed beverage development company, the fructose in
since the introduction of HFCS in the 1960s—an amazing claim given the HFCS is therefore not recognized in the human
fact that the HFCS in sodas has a F:G ratio of 55:45, and the HFCS used Krebs cycle for primary conversion to blood
in diet foods has a F:G ratio of 90:10. glucose in any significant quantity, and therefore
While admitting that “studies analyzing the differences between cannot be used for energy utilization. Instead,
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HFCS and sucrose consumption and their contributions to weight gain do these refined fructose sweeteners are primarily
not exist,” the authors do not join Bray in calling for such a study. Instead, converted into triglycerides and adipose tis-
they conclude that HFCS “does not appear to contribute to overweight and sue (body fat). In fact, a new study, published
obesity any differently than do other energy sources.” in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and
Metabolism, found that obese people who drank
THE BIG DIRTY SECRET ABOUT HFCS a fructose-sweetened beverage with a meal had
Many researchers have pointed out that the fructose in HFCS is free, triglyceride levels almost 200 percent higher than
unbound fructose, which is not the same as the fructose in fruit, which is obese people who drank a glucose-sweetened
bound to other sugars, and is part of a complex that includes fiber, fatty beverage with a meal. 14
acids, vitamins and minerals. Chronic high triglycerides translate into
Leaving this obvious difference aside, the industry would have the increased insulin resistance, inflammation and
public believe that the fructose in fruit and in HFCS are chemically iden- heart disease. Thus, according to Bianchi, HFCS
tical. However, most of the fructose in fruit is in the form of L-fructose is a recipe for obesity, lack of energy and meta-

MERCURY IN HFCS

Almost half of tested samples of commercial high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) contained mercury, which was also
found in nearly a third of 55 popular brand-name food and beverage products where HFCS is the first- or second-highest
labeled ingredient, according to two new U.S. studies.
“Mercury is toxic in all its forms. Given how much high-fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a
significant additional source of mercury never before considered. We are calling for immediate changes by industry and the
[U.S. Food and Drug Administration] to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply,” the Institute
for Agriculture and Trade Policy’s Dr. David Wallinga, a co-author of both studies, said in a prepared statement.
In the first study, published in Environmental Health, researchers found detectable levels of mercury in nine of 20
samples of commercial HFCS. And in the second study, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), a non-profit
watchdog group, found that nearly one in three of 55 brand-name foods contained mercury. The chemical was found
most commonly in HFCS-containing dairy products, dressings and condiments.
The most likely source of the mercury is mercury-containing caustic soda, used in the production of HFCS. “This
study appears to be based on outdated information of dubious significance,” said Audrae Erickson, president of the Corn
Refiners Association, in a statement. “Our industry has used mercury-free versions of the two re-agents mentioned in the
study, hydrochloric acid and caustic soda, for several years.”
However, the IATP told the Minneapolis Star Tribune that four plants in Georgia, Tennessee, Ohio and West Virginia
still use “mercury-cell” technology that can lead to contamination.
“The bad news is that nobody knows whether or not their soda or snack food contains HFCS made from ingredients
like caustic soda contaminated with mercury. The good news is that mercury-free HFCS ingredients exist. Food companies
just need a good push to only use those ingredients,” Wallinga said in his prepared statement (Washington Post, January
28, 2009).
The industry response: “The article’s authors and IATP engage in unfounded claims and speculations based on scant
data of questionable quality. High fructose corn syrup is safe for use in foods and beverages. To imply that there is a safety
concern based on this incomplete and flawed report is irresponsible” (www.sweetsurprise.com).

SPRING 2009 Wise Traditions 47