HFCS may actually be worse for you than sugar

Even worse than sugar

You’ve got to wonder about a substance that needs its own PR campaign. You know the commercials I’m talking about. The ones that try to convince you that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is fine because it’s “the same as sugar.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement. At least, not if you know anything about sugar. But desperate times call for desperate measures. And with HFCS in everything from soda to spaghetti sauce, food manufacturers can’t afford to have it fall out of the public’s good graces.

But there’s new evidence that HFCS may actually be worse for you than sugar. This study was published in a recent issue of the journal Metabolism.

Researchers tested the effects of sugar vs. HFCS by having volunteers drink beverages sweetened with one or the other.

The result: The HFCS caused higher blood pressure readings and higher levels of uric acid. Too much uric acid can cause kidney damage. The researchers say this shows that the body processes HFCS slightly differently than sugar. They also say more research is needed to figure out exactly what’s going on.

I say, what difference does it make? They’ll both make you fat. They’ll both give you diabetes. And, eventually, they’ll both kill you.

There’s no winner in this face-off. Only you-if you steer clear of both of them.