"Corn Sugar"

Something that recently caught my attention was a commercial for the website – http://www.cornsugar.com. The reason this caught my attention is because in class we had a debate about the change in words – high fructose corn syrup vs. corn sugar. In all honesty, there is no real difference between the words, the only real difference is that it seems as though they are “dumbing down” this word for us into corn sugar so as to make it more “recognizable” on labels. High fructose corn syrup and corn sugar are the exact same things, so why change the name? Is it because HFCS sounds too much like a chemical? Is it because we know what corn is and we know what sugar is, so why not just call it corn sugar?

According to CornSugar.com, “Relabeling high fructose corn syrup as “corn sugar” clears up confusion and enables consumers to easily identify added sugars in the diet” (CornSugar).  But why? Well, “Consumers need to know what is in their foods and where their foods come from. Corn sugar succinctly and simply describes what this ingredient is and where it comes from: corn” (CornSugar).

I’m sorry, but the ingredients of high fructose corn syrup, or corn sugar, are not exactly that simple. I understand what the website is trying to say, but I think we’re all smarter than to think that it is just corn and sugar, so why change the name now? It’s as processed as it’s always going to be, they’re not petitioning to change the ingredients, just the name.

Concerning high fructose corn syrup itself, there are many for it and many against it.

CornSugar.com quotes Phil Lempert, The supermarket guru,

“In addition to providing sweetness, HFCS acts to preserve and protect food from water activity, improves texture and reduces freezer burn. It imparts browning to breads, cakes and cookies and provides a soft, moist texture in the production of items like snack bars. And liquid HFCS blends easily with other ingredients.” (Lempert).

Although HFCS does all of these things, many disagree with the use of HFCS. According to research on rats at Princeton University,

“In addition to causing significant weight gain in lab animals, long-term consumption of high-fructose corn syrup also led to abnormal increases in body fat, especially in the abdomen, and a rise in circulating blood fats called triglycerides. The researchers say the work sheds light on the factors contributing to obesity trends in the United States” (Princeton University). 

This information is disheartening, but sugar is sugar and should be eaten in moderation for a healthy lifestyle. There are going to be different opinions for “corn sugar” because different research will be done regarding HFCS. I don’t think High Fructose Corn Syrup will be going anywhere because it’s such a huge part of our food system today, but in the end, it’s your choice if you want to eat it or not.

Take care,

Julia