515456 Sat May 03 08:28:14 -0700 2008 11 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 3652868 Hello! 1st time poster. I'm trying to limit my consumption of HFCS (and sugar in general). Can someone tell me - if I see just 'corn syrup' on the ingredient list - is that the same as HFCS? I'm having trouble finding a definitive answer to this. Thanks, Jen Sat May 03 08:28:16 -0700 2008 189166 librarianjen 1 3652920 I am aware that Wikipedia is considered by many not to be accurate, but this is their explanation. Quote, The more general term glucose syrup is often used synonymously with corn syrup, since the former is most commonly made from corn starch. Technically, though, glucose syrup is any liquid starch hydrolysate of mono, di, and higher saccharides and can be made from from any sources of starch; wheat, rice and potatoes are the most common sources. A=B but B=/=A High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a variant in which other enzymes are used to convert some of the glucose into fructose. The resulting syrup is sweeter and more soluble. unquote. I am sure that this thread will reach tangents that you never considered, as this topic can be quite controversial, as well as my use of Wikipedia as a source. Sat May 03 08:54:35 -0700 2008 3652868 22220 Kelli2006 2 3652965 Thanks! That's pretty much what I was finding elsewhere, and I forgot to check wikipedia. I tell students that come into the library that it's a great place to start to look for more info, that can be verified elsewhere, but to not use it as an official source. Thanks Kelli! Sat May 03 09:18:20 -0700 2008 3652920 189166 librarianjen 1 3653019 Do you have a clear idea of why you are trying to limit the HFCS? In another long HFCS thread it became apparent that for many the reasons had to do with its corn source, its production by big companies, and more a general fear of 'industrial' or 'chemical' products. As noted by Kelli, the key difference between corn syrup and HFCornSyrup is that some of the glucose is converted to another type of sugar, fructose. It can be as high as 90% fructose, though the version used in soft drinks has a nearly 50-50 ratio, so it has about the same sweetness as sugar. Keep in mind that sugar also consists of glucose and fructose, only that those molecules are bound together to form sucrose molecules. Various processes break sucrose molecules into the two components - such as acid solutions, and normal digestion. The other reason that people give for avoiding HFCS is the suspicion that it is unhealthy. Some claim that it causes obesity, though it is difficult to prove that it is any worse than sugar or low fructose CS in that regard. A diet high in soda pop is going to be fattening regardless of the sweetener. Some raise the issue of the glycemic index. This is a measure of how quickly a sugar is absorbed. In that index the simplest sugar, glucose, has a value of 100. Fructose and most complex sugars have lower indexes. If you are watching the glycemic index of what you eat, then LF corn syrup would be one of the worst choices. I would argue that from a nutritional standpoint, LF corn syrup is just as bad for you as HFCS. Limiting your overall sugar intake is a good target. It is less clear whether there is much point in putting extra effort into limiting these corn (or other starch) derived sugars. paulj Sat May 03 09:34:57 -0700 2008 3652868 12139 paulj 2 3657345 An aside to all of the HFCS info...many years ago I worked at a large bakery in their lab where they tested every product that was used. They had a very high quality control presentation and used butter and unbleached flour etc... and Honey. The reason I mention honey because they specifically tested honey for the presence of HFCS, because chemically the two are almost identical...the only difference being a ratio of C13 to C14 atoms. Mon May 05 08:13:43 -0700 2008 3653019 168212 PaulaT 3 3658538 Quoting from wiki on honey: "With respect to carbohydrates, honey is mainly fructose (about 38.5%) and glucose (about 31.0%)[3], making it similar to the synthetically produced inverted sugar syrup which is approximately 48% fructose, 47% glucose and 5% sucrose. Honey's remaining carbohydrates include maltose, sucrose, and other complex carbohydrates." There are different HFCS formulations, depending on the intended application. Ones intended for baking have a lower fructose proportion (42%?), ones intended as sugar substitutes are something like 55% fructose. paulj Mon May 05 12:54:06 -0700 2008 3657345 12139 paulj 1 3653031 If you're wondering about the legal definitions of "high fructose corn syrup" and "corn syrup" as far as labeling is concerned, take a look at the FDA website. Or maybe you shouldn't -- it's enough to make your head spin, and as far as I can tell from the documents I found there, there are no clear guidelines about what can be called simply "corn syrup" as opposed to HFCS. But I did a *very* quick look-around. If you're trying to reduce added sugars, plain old corn syrup certainly qualifies, though it has a higher proportion of starch than other sweeteners. (I just took a look at the Karo syrup website and was surprised to find that although it has about the same grams of carb per volume as other sweeteners, less than half of that is sugar.) The other place to look is the nutrition facts label, which tells you the number of grams of sugar per "serving" (which is also defined on the label). This number includes both naturally-occuring sugars and added sugars lumped together, so it helps to have a general knowledge of where sugars occur naturally in various foods -- for example, 8 ounces of unsweetened yogurt contains 12-16g sugar in the form of naturally occuring lactose (less for Greek-style yogurts -- I think they're usually around 5-8g lactose in the same volume). Edited to remove some unneccessary commas. :-) Sat May 03 09:41:29 -0700 2008 3652868 138816 jlafler 2 3653085 That total grams of sugar is a good number to watch. Many 'natural' products end up replacing sugar and HFCS with a plethora of alternative sugars: evaporated cane juice invert cane juice honey malt extract molasses rice syrup natural brown rice syrup concentrated fruit juices Sat May 03 10:03:40 -0700 2008 3653031 12139 paulj 3 3653157 Yeah, you have to look at the ingredients *and* the nutrition facts label. That's why I generally stick to foods with a very, very short list of ingredients -- too lazy! Sat May 03 10:38:44 -0700 2008 3653085 138816 jlafler 3 3657200 Excellent listing, paulj. So many people assume that because these are considered "healthy" sweeteners, that somehow they don't behave like refined sugars in your body, when nothing could be further from the truth. Mon May 05 07:28:06 -0700 2008 3653085 16216 k_d 3 3659662 Well said. However, in addition, isn't it also true that all carbohydrates, eg pasta, rice, etc., have about the same caloric content per unit weight as sugar, which is also a carb? That's why, for example, the calories per serving (of a given weight) of a sugared cereal are not much different from an unsweetened cereal. Maybe the latter is "better for you" (or maybe not), but about the same calories either way. BTW, AFAIK "evaporated cane juice" isn't an alternative--it's just plain old sugar--all cane sugar is I think evaporated cane juice. IE, complete misleading labeling to appear politically correct to the organic set. Mon May 05 17:56:09 -0700 2008 3653085 10668 johnb 4 3660037 Yes, as far as calories go, a carb is a carb is a carb is a carb. Starch or sugar, it's all 4 calories per gram. But that's per gram of sugar or starch, which is not the same thing as per gram of food -- most foods contain fiber and water, which contribute to the weight and volume. So, for example, a medium-sized apple (say, 4 ounces) has about the same amount of carb as 3-4 tsp of sugar, but weighs considerably more and is a lot more filling and nutritious. Mon May 05 20:19:22 -0700 2008 3659662 138816 jlafler