No Real Difference Between HFCS and Sugar: Article

A new article published recently in Advances in Nutrition reported findings of no significant metabolic difference between people consuming high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or sucrose (table sugar). The article also noted that current research shows no unique relationship between consuming HFCS and the rise of U.S. obesity rates.

In an extensive review of available sucrose, fructose and HFCS research, the article concluded there was overwhelming evidence showing that HFCS is nutritionally equivalent to sugar and that the human body metabolizes both equally -- an opinion in line with the American Medical Association and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, both of which concluded that HFCS isn’t a unique cause of obesity. In fact, the article points out that U.S. HFCS consumption rates have fallen 14 percent since 1999, while obesity rates have continued to increase.

Additionally, according to the article, some recent randomized clinical trials have suggested no negative impact on total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol or HDL cholesterol when caloric sweeteners containing fructose, such as HFCS and table sugar, are consumed in moderation.

“These findings suggest that we must be very cautious when attributing adverse health effects of fructose, HFCS or sucrose at normal, moderate consumption levels,” said Harvard-trained cardiologist James M. Rippe, founder and director of the Rippe Lifestyle Institute in Celebration, Fla.; professor of biomedical sciences at the University of Central Florida in Orlando; and one of the article’s authors, along with Theodore J. Angelopoulos, MPH professor and director of the Laboratory of Applied Physiology in the Department of Health Professions at the same university. “More research needs to be done, but what we do know is that consuming all foods in moderation, combined with regular physical activity, is key to maintaining a healthy body.”

Rippe presented his findings at last year’s American Society for Nutrition experimental biology annual meeting in San Diego. The symposium, “Fructose, Sucrose and High Fructose Corn Syrup: Relevant Scientific Findings and Health Implications,” also included presentations by various experts on nutrition, metabolism and obesity, among others.