Date:   11/11/2013 2:02:43 PM ( 11 y ago)
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Recently, Audrae Erickson, president of the Corn Refiners Association, the organization with the most vested interest in continued sales of high fructose corn syrup, published a letter to the editor in my local hometown paper. Her piece, entitled “High Fructose Corn Syrup Isn’t All That Bad,” was an attempt to convince readers that high corn syrup is safe and perfectly acceptable as a food additive. To support her claim, she wrote:



“The American Medical Association in June 2008 helped put to rest misunderstandings about this sweetener and obesity, stating that ‘high fructose syrup does not appear to contribute to obesity more than other caloric sweeteners.’”



In concluding her letter, she added:



“In 1983, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration formally listed high fructose corn syrup as safe for use in food and reaffirmed that decision in 1996.



"Consumers can see the latest research and learn more about high fructose corn syrup at www.HFCSfacts.com and www.SweetSurprise.com.”



I found Erickson’s letter to be a blatant attempt to mislead consumers and wrote the following response:



I’m writing in response to Audrae Erickson’s outrageous assertions in her letter to the editor that “high fructose corn syrup isn’t all bad.” As president of the Corn Refiners Association, Erickson has a vested interest in doing all she can to protect the CRA’s marketplace, which is fine. But she does not have the right to glibly mislead the public with her assertions. For example, she states: “High fructose corn syrup, Sugar and several fruit juices are all nutritionally the same.” This is patently untrue. Sugars that occur in nature are not at all the same as manmade high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), nor is the body able to metabolize synthetic substances such as HFCS in the same way that it is able to deal with natural substances.



Unfortunately, we cannot depend on the American Medical Association statements about fructose corn syrup, either. The AMA, after all, for decades resisted telling the American public that there was a link between diet and many types of cancer. Nor can we rely on the FDA, which for many years has shown a preference for supporting Big Industry over the health interests of we the people.



Proof of the FDA’s negligence with regard to HFCS came to light in a recently released study by the Institute for Agriculture and Trace Policy (IATP), which found not only that 30 percent of all HCFS contains mercury, a potentially fatal toxin. (Another study recently published puts the percentage closer to 50 percent). Equally alarming is the fact that the IATP press release that accompanied this study revealed that the FDA has known of this fact since 2005, but has done nothing “toinform consumers, help change industry practice or conduct additional testing.”



Here is what Dr. David Wallinga, M.D., co-author of the IATP study says about this fact. “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 FDA to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply.”



I look forward to how Ms. Erickson tries to spin that! [end of letter]



The bottom line is that high fructose corn syrup is—pure and simple—crap. It doesn’t belong in your body in and of itself, and that such a large percentage of HFCS products also contain mercury, a very dangerous toxin, is all the more reason why you should avoid it.



In addition to most processed and packaged foods, HFCS is found in various foods and beverages, as well, such as many commercial juices, jellies, and yogurt, as well the usual food culprits such as candy and soda. Here are some of the food brands that were included in the IATP’s study: Hershey's, Quaker, Hunt's, Manwich, Smucker's, Kraft, Nutri-Grain, and Yoplait.



The IATP study can be found at: http://www.iatp.org.



Needless to say, I DON’T recommend the websites that Erickson touts that I included above. Not unless you like reading propaganda.





http://www.1healthyworld.com:80/ezine/vol7no3.cfm



The Health Plus Letter, January 29, 2009, Vol. 7, No. 3. Copyright © 2009 by Larry Trivieri, Jr. All rights reserved.

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