The Sweet Truth About Crystalline Fructose
Chemical Supplier Florida , Chemical Supplier Orlando Ask a chemist the difference between high fructose corn syrup and crystalline fructose and the answer will be quite different than if a biologist is asked the same question. The reason is based on the chemical makeup of the two versus how they react within the body. Chemically, crystalline fructose is simply high fructose corn syrup processed until the amount of fructose jumps from the high fructose corn syrup amount of 55% (with 45% glucose) to nearly 100% fructose contained within crystalline fructose. To learn the sweet facts behind crystalline fructose, read the information that chemical distributor in Florida , Bell Chem, has gathered concerning this sweetener. Fructose is five percent sweeter than glucose. For this reason, a smaller amount of crystalline fructose has the same effect per volume as high fructose corn syrup. Keeping in mind the amount of calories per tablespoon, this equates to fewer calories for the same taste. Crystalline fructoses smaller volume and solid form make crystalline fructose a much better option than high fructose corn syrup. Because it is more solid in form, it improves the fluffiness of baked goods, mixes well with other sweeteners, and is able to remain unoxidized for extended periods of time. Individuals who suffer from diabetes watch their insulin levels, which are tightly intertwined with glucose. Since it is at least 98% fructose and contains no glucose, crystalline fructose is an ideal sweetening agent for diabetic patients and actually acts to lower blood glucose levels. For this reason, crystalline fructose is known as a diabetic-friendly carbohydrate. The advantages of crystalline fructose make it a more appealing choice for many consumers. Learn more about crystalline fr Continue reading >>
Sugar Defined: Diabetes Forecast
There are so many ways to say sugar, it's easy to get confused. Refer to this glossary when scanning ingredients labels. Sucrose: White sugar is made up of sucrose, which naturally occurs in sugarcane or sugar beets. Sucrose contains equal parts glucose and fructose. Fructose: A naturally occurring sugar found in fruits and vegetables that produces a lower post-meal rise in blood glucose than sucrose. Glucose: The body obtains this naturally occurring sugar from carbohydrates, which are composed of chains of glucose. Maltodextrin: A carbohydrate derived from starch that's often used as filler in processed foods. Corn syrup: A syrup made from cornstarch that's composed primarily of glucose. Crystalline fructose: A cornstarch-derived, crystallized sweetener that contains close to 100 percent fructose and is found in sweetened foods and drinks. High fructose corn syrup: A cornstarch-derived syrup that's made up of a combination of fructose and glucose. It is typically used as a sweetener and preservative in processed foods. See below for more information. Think most of the sugar youre eating is cane sugar? Scan the ingredients list on your packaged productssweets, colas, bread, ketchup, and countless others. Chances are theyre sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup. The liquid sweetener, which is cheaper than sugar (thanks to government corn subsidies and tariffs on imported sugar) and can extend a products shelf life, counts for nearly half of all the caloric sweeteners Americans consume. Since 2004, when a landmark study linked high-fructose corn syrup to the escalating obesity epidemic, the sweetener has become highly controversial. Adding to the controversy is a current Corn Refiners Association ad campaign defending the product. High-fructose corn syrup is a thick, Continue reading >>
Nutrition 101: What Is Crystalline Fructose?
Nutrition 101: What Is Crystalline Fructose? By TanyaJolliffe , SparkPeople Blogger 5/25/2009 Recently, some of you asked about crystalline fructose, a sweetener that is used in plenty of drinks , even some that call themselves "health drinks." We decided to do some research into this corn-based sweetener to help you better understand what you're sipping. Fructose is a naturally occurring simple sugar found in fruits and vegetables. Many of us consume it regularly as part of our healthy diet. We also know that fructose is 55% of high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) with glucose making up the other 45%. What about the crystalline form of fructose that is being used in carbonated beverages, enhanced or flavored waters, sports and energy drinks, and nutrition bars as well as baked goods, frozen foods, cereal, dairy products, reduced-calorie foods, canned fruits, and drink mixes? Crystalline fructose is derived from corn just like high fructose corn syrup. Extra processing steps result in the crystalline product that is close to 100% pure fructose. Federal standards define crystalline fructose be at least 98% fructose with the remaining 2% as water and minerals. This nearly pure fructose sweetener is 20% sweeter than sucrose (also known as table sugar) and high fructose corn syrup and has been around for about 20 years. Crystalline fructose offers several unique benefits that make it more advantageous to use compared to high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners. These are also some of the reasons we are seeing it so widely used today. Sweetness - Because crystalline fructose is sweeter than table sugar and HFCS, it is a valuable sweetener for low calorie, sugar-free foods and beverages since less can be used to achieve the same sweetness. This saves money and carbohydrate c Continue reading >>
What Is Crystalline Fructose?
If you have visited Fearless Fat Loss before, you may have noticed that I have written a few articles regarding high fructose corn syrup, or HFCS, as it is more commonly known. Not only have I been writing about it, but I have also been talking about it. In one of my college courses (Note the date of this article is 2007), I was spreading the word about the dangers of HFCS and how it creates a fatty liver , and even cirrhosis of the liver. My professor showed me the ingredients of his bottled drink (a type of health drink, I dont recall the brand) and asked me if crystalline fructose was the same as high fructose corn syrup. This was the first I had heard of this ingredient so I was very intrigued and set out to do some research on it. What I have learned is that crystalline fructose is produced by allowing the fructose to crystallize from a fructose-enriched corn syrup. This information is from the sugar producers themselves, at sugar.org . This explanation is very straightforward: it is made from corn syrup, and not only corn syrup, but fructose enriched corn syrup. Would another name for that perhaps be high fructose corn syrup? HFCS can be manufactured to either contain equal amounts of fructose and glucose, or up to 80 percent fructose and 20 percent glucose. Fructose and glucose are metabolized differently in the body. Glucose is metabolized in every cell in the body, however all fructose must be metabolized in the liver. I have learned that Crystalline Fructose contains 99.5% minimum of fructose assay, which is an even higher percentage of fructose than what makes up HFCS. Another ingredient of crystalline fructose is arsenic. I dont know about you, but I dont care what the amount is (in this case the chemical specs state 1 mg/kg maximum), I dont want to be inge Continue reading >>
Is Crystalline Fructose A Better Choice Of Sweetener?
Is crystalline fructose a better choice of sweetener? Although its extra sweetness does add up to fewer calories, more research is needed on its effects on obesity, diabetes and other conditions. Diligent readers of food and beverage labels may have noticed an increasingly common ingredient in some health and energy drinks: crystalline fructose. To some, the ingredient is a reassuring sign that the product hasn't been sweetened with high fructose corn syrup, a sweetener that's been falling out of consumer favor over concerns of a disputed link to obesity and diabetes. Others, however, may have found themselves wondering what, exactly, is crystalline fructose? And is it really any different from high fructose corn syrup? "Technically, yes, but physiologically, no," says Roger Clemens, a professor at the USC School of Pharmacy whose research has focused on functional foods, food processing and nutrition. The two ingredients are chemically distinct, Clemens says, but their nutritional ramifications vary only slightly. High fructose corn syrup and crystalline fructose are made from the same starting material: corn. In the U.S., this is an abundant and cheap source of fructose, the plant-sugar responsible for making many fruits so naturally sweet. But though high fructose corn syrup often contains about 55% fructose (the rest is glucose), crystalline fructose is the result of several extra processing steps which yield a product that is close to 100% fructose. (According to federal standards, crystalline fructose is, by definition, at least 98% fructose; the remaining fraction is water and minerals.) From a food-manufacturing perspective, a nearly pure-fructose sweetener is advantageous because it's up to 20% sweeter than sucrose, or table sugar, says Craig Ruffolo, vice pre Continue reading >>
Is Fructose Bad For You?
One of many controversies mixing up the field of nutrition is whether the use of high-fructose corn syrup in soft drinks and other foods is causing the paired epidemics of obesity and diabetes that are sweeping the United States and the world. I’ve ignored this debate because it never made sense to me—high-fructose corn syrup is virtually identical to the refined sugar it replaces. A presentation I heard yesterday warns that the real villain may be fructose—a form of sugar found in fruits, vegetables, and honey. It may not matter whether it’s in high-fructose corn syrup, refined sugar, or any other sweetener. Sounding the alarm is Dr. Robert H. Lustig, a professor of pediatrics and an obesity specialist at the University of California, San Francisco. He is a key figure in a recent New York Times article called “Is Sugar Toxic?” Here’s some background and the gist of the presentation Lustig gave as part of a weekly seminar sponsored by Harvard School of Public Health’s Department of Nutrition. (You can watch Lustig’s entire talk or a view a similar version on YouTube.) When fructose is joined to glucose, it makes sucrose. Sucrose is abundant in sugar cane, sugar beets, corn, and other plants. When extracted and refined, sucrose makes table sugar. In the 1800s and early 1900s, the average American took in about 15 grams of fructose (about half an ounce), mostly from eating fruits and vegetables. Today we average 55 grams per day (73 grams for adolescents). The increase in fructose intake is worrisome, says Lustig, because it suspiciously parallels increases in obesity, diabetes, and a new condition called nonalcoholic fatty liver disease that now affects up to one-third of Americans. (You can read more about nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in a Harvard Continue reading >>
Diabetics Most At Risk From The Effects Of Dietary Fructose
Study finds fructose can be especially dangerous to diabetics A new study has just revealed the most damning evidence to date on the dangers of fructose. And those in the greatest jeopardy are the people who were once told this sweetener was a dream come true for themdiabetics. Harvard scientists have discovered how the sweetener can open the floodgates allowing diabetics to absorb it almost immediately where it goes straight to the liver and turns into fat. The researchers also said that this study puts another brick in the wall about what might be causing the gigantic rise of diabetes in the U.S. It wasnt all that long ago when those with diabetes were told that fructose was perfectly fine for them to use. And even now, you may hear about studies claiming that fructose is not only okay, but that its somehow beneficial to diabetics. With all the facts we currently know, giving fructose a clean bill of health is about as logical as insisting the world is flat! Just last week I told you how fatty liver disease, a potentially deadly condition thats reaching epidemic proportions, can be triggered by foods and beverages high in fructose. And over the years Ive told you how high fructose corn syrup has been linked to everything from diabetes to heart attacks to liver disease to cancer. But this research is helping to put all those puzzle pieces together. The Harvard scientists found that diabetic mice have a protein that can activate the deadly effects of fructose immediately. Its almost like flipping on a light switch. Within minutes of the sweetener hitting the stomach, the mice absorbed the fructose and it went directly to their livers. There it was converted to fat. And that was the case in both short and long-term feeding experiments. Harvard professor Richard Lee, the Continue reading >>
Metabolic Effects Of Fructose Supplementation In Diabetic Individuals.
Metabolic effects of fructose supplementation in diabetic individuals. Anderson JW(1), Story LJ, Zettwoch NC, Gustafson NJ, Jefferson BS. (1)Metabolic Research Group, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Lexington, Kentucky. With new diabetes diet guidelines recommending high carbohydrate intake,questions arise regarding acceptable intake of simple sugars. Whereas severalshort-term studies report flattened glycemic and insulin response to fructoseconsumption, some also report increased serum triglyceride levels. Few studiesexamine the effects of long-term fructose consumption. We evaluated the long-termsafety of fructose consumption in 14 middle-aged men with diabetes. Subjectsfollowed an ambulatory high-fiber high-carbohydrate control diet at home for 8wk, entered the hospital for 5 days on this diet, and spent the next 7 days on a similar diet supplemented with 50-60 g fructose. They continued the fructose dietat home for 23 wk, then resumed a postcontrol diet for an additional 16 wk. Inthe hospital, glycemic control improved significantly on thefructose-supplemented diet compared with the hospital control diet. In theambulatory setting, no significant differences in plasma glucose,glycohemoglobin, serum cholesterol, triglycerides, lactate, or urate occurredbetween precontrol, fructose, or postcontrol periods. Fasting serum lactate washigher by 0.5 meq/L during the ambulatory fructose period than during theprecontrol period. Body weight also increased during the ambulatory fructoseperiod due to higher calorie intake. Adherence to fructose consumption wasexcellent and improved adherence to carbohydrate and fat recommendations. Iftotal calorie intake is controlled to promote desirable body weight, crystalline fructose used with a high-carbohydrate high-fiber low-fat Continue reading >>
Sugar May Be Bad But This Sweetener Is Far More Deadly
04/19/2010 05:12 am ETUpdatedNov 17, 2011 Sugar May Be Bad But This Sweetener Is Far More Deadly Study after study are taking their place in a growing lineup of scientific research demonstrating that consuming high-fructose corn syrup is the fastest way to trash your health. It is now known without a doubt that sugar in your food, in all it's myriad of forms, is taking a devastating toll. And fructose in any form -- including high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and crystalline fructose -- is the worst of the worst! Cardiovascular disease, liver disease, cancer, arthritis and even gout Glucose is the form of energy you were designed to run on. Every cell in your body, every bacterium -- and in fact, every living thing on the Earth--uses glucose for energy. If you received your fructose only from vegetables and fruits (where it originates) as most people did a century ago, you'd consume about 15 grams per day -- a far cry from the 73 grams per day the typical adolescent gets from sweetened drinks. In vegetables and fruits, it's mixed in with fiber, vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and beneficial phytonutrients, all which moderate any negative metabolic effects. It isn't that fructose itself is bad -- it is the MASSIVE DOSES you're exposed to that make it dangerous. There are two reasons fructose is so damaging: 1.Your body metabolizes fructose in a much different way than glucose. The entire burden of metabolizing fructose falls on your liver. 2.People are consuming fructose in enormous quantities, which has made the negative effects much more profound. Today, 55 percent of sweeteners used in food and beverage manufacturing are made from corn, and the number one source of calories in America is soda , in the form of HFCS. Food and beverage manufacturers began switching their swe Continue reading >>
Crystalline Fructose Vs. High-fructose Corn Syrup
Crystalline Fructose Vs. High-Fructose Corn Syrup Sandi Busch received a Bachelor of Arts in psychology, then pursued training in nursing and nutrition. She taught families to plan and prepare special diets, worked as a therapeutic support specialist, and now writes about her favorite topics nutrition, food, families and parenting for hospitals and trade magazines. Natural corn starch is used to make HFCS and crystalline fructose.Photo Credit: Purestock/Purestock/Getty Images High-fructose corn syrup doesnt contain any more fructose than youll get from table sugar, but since it has more fructose than its source -- corn starch -- its called high-fructose. On the other hand, crystalline fructose truly is high in fructose. Both HFCS and crystalline fructose are used commercially to sweeten foods. Theyre also both sources of empty calories, so the American Heart Association recommends limiting the amount you consume. High-fructose corn syrup is made from corn starch, which consists entirely of glucose. After the starch is extracted, it goes through processing with enzymes that converts some of the glucose into fructose. As a result, the final product contains both sugars. Destined to be used as a sweetener, HFCS contains either 42 percent fructose or 55 percent fructose. Manufacturers can also produce HFCS that has 90 percent fructose. When it has that much fructose, it can be put through additional processing to crystallize the syrup. After the crystals are dried, the resulting product -- crystalline fructose -- is 100 percent pure fructose. HFCS with 42 percent fructose doesnt interfere with natural flavors, so its primarily used in baked goods, cereals, yogurt, ice cream and processed foods such as soups, condiments and canned fruits. HFCS-55 is used to sweeten soft dri Continue reading >>
Fructose And Diabetes
As part of the overall diabetes discussion, there lurks the misconception that somehow fructose does not contribute to diabetes. This is a major misunderstanding. Fructose is directly associated with diabetes, especially high-fructose corn syrup. When one is cellularly addicted to glucose, sucrose, and/or fructose, they become stuck in sugar metabolism for making energy. For years, limited and conventional “wisdom” has held that fructose does not affect your blood sugar. This is accurate on a superficial level but unscientific in its assumption that because fructose does not raise blood sugar, it does not affect insulin resistance and cause many metabolic disease problems from the metabolic abnormalities associated with metabolizing an excess amount of fructose. It is therefore falsely deemed a safer sugar than glucose. None of this has been proven to be true. A primary difference is that fructose is metabolized differently than glucose. Fructose is metabolized much more rapidly than any other sugar into fat via the liver. It is also primarily metabolized in the liver. Because of this it has also been associated with a high level of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and a rapid accumulation of a particular kind of fat (triglycerides) that is stored in both the liver and general fat tissue. This is related not only to NAFLD but also to heart disease and hypertension. Glucose, when combined with fructose (as in sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup), accelerates fructose absorption. These metabolic differences are further enhanced in light of recent research reported in the March 2011 Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism, which found that cortical areas around hypothalamus in the brain responded differently to fructose than to glucose. They found that in brain scans Continue reading >>
Fructose: Burying The Boogeyman
tl;dr: Eating fruit, even up to 4-5 servings per day is not going to contribute to obesity or increase blood lipids. It also appears that moderate consumption of fructose as an added sweetener doesnt convey much risk. Mainlining Mountain Dew or consuming more than 150 grams of fructose or HFCS per day does seem to be a bad thing. Fructose gets hammered by the blogosphere as an evil sweetener. It has been blamed as a major cause of obesity, diabetes, and inflammation related diseases. The hyperbole surrounding it can get nauseating at times, especially when there is an obscene amount of literature. Articles like this ( Evils of Fructose ) are incrediblyprevalent on the internet. Things like this make me salty. It also ensures that I will have plenty to write about over the next 70 years of my life. Now part of my job as an educator is to try and shed light on big topics and get to the truth in a way that brings the learner (in this case the reader) along on the journey. Instead of just stating something like, fructose is fine, I would rather walk through the evidence and show you my thought process and conclusions and then you can decide whether you accept or reject my conclusion. This post goes a little deeper and a tad nerdier than normal, but it is important that we get into the weeds with this one. You have to understand the facts about fructose metabolism in humans and why dosing and study design really, really matter when drawing conclusions. With thoseideas percolating in your cortex we can begin. The idea that fructose, especially high fructose corn-syrup, is evil and obesegenic arises from a lot of epidemiological data and animal data. For example, several papers have shown an association with fructose/high fructose corn syrup intake with BMI, obesity, and type Continue reading >>
Sugar May Be Bad, But This Sweetener Called Fructose Is Far More Deadly
By Dr. Mercola A 2009 study from University of California, Davis takes its place in a growing lineup of scientific studies demonstrating that consuming high-fructose corn syrup is the fastest way to trash your health. It is now known without a doubt that sugar in your food, in all its myriad of forms, is taking a devastating toll. And fructose in any form -- including high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and crystalline fructose -- is the worst of the worst! Fructose, a cheap sweetener usually derived from corn, is used in thousands of food products and soft drinks. Excessive fructose consumption can cause metabolic damage and triggers the early stages of diabetes and heart disease, which is what the Davis study showed. Dr. Richard Johnson also does a fabulous job of comprehensively reviewing this important topic in his new book The Fat Switch. In the study, over the course of 10 weeks, 16 volunteers on a controlled diet including high levels of fructose produced new fat cells around their heart, liver, and other digestive organs. They also showed signs of food-processing abnormalities linked to diabetes and heart disease. Another group of volunteers on the same diet, but with glucose sugar replacing fructose, did not have these problems. Fructose is a major contributor to: Elevated triglycerides and elevated LDL Depletion of vitamins and minerals Cardiovascular disease, liver disease, cancer, arthritis, and even gout A Calorie Is Not a Calorie Glucose is the form of energy you were designed to run on. Every cell in your body, every bacterium -- and in fact, every living thing on Earth -- uses glucose for energy. If you received your fructose only from vegetables and fruits (where it originates) as most people did a century ago, you'd consume about 15 grams per day -- a far Continue reading >>
Dont Believe The Hype Fructose Truly Is Much Worse Than Glucose
Smear Campaign Aimed Against Anti-Aging Proponents New research shows that there are big differences in how the sugars fructose and glucose are metabolized by your body. Overweight study participants showed more evidence of insulin resistance and other risk factors for heart disease and diabetes when 25 percent of their calories came from fructose-sweetened beverages instead of glucose-sweetened beverages. A study looked at 32 overweight or obese men and women. Over a 10-week period, they drank either glucose or fructose sweetened beverages totaling 25 percent of their daily calorie intake. Both the groups gained weight during the trial, but imaging studies revealed that the fructose-consuming group gained more of the dangerous belly fat that has been linked to a higher risk for heart attack and stroke. The fructose group also had higher total cholesterol and LDL ("bad") cholesterol, and greater insulin resistance. This is not the first study showing that fructose harms your body in ways glucose does not. Two years ago, another study concluded that drinking high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) -- the main ingredient in most soft drinks throughout the world -- increases your triglyceride levels and your LDL (bad) cholesterol. And, just like this latest study, these harmful effects only occurred in the participants who drank fructose -- not glucose. Today, 55 percent of sweeteners used in food and beverage manufacturing are made from corn, and the number one source of calories in America is soda , in the form of high fructose corn syrup. Food and beverage manufacturers began switching their sweeteners from sucrose (table sugar) to corn syrup in the 1970s when they discovered that HFCS was not only far cheaper to make, its also about 20 percent sweeter than table sugar. HFCS i Continue reading >>
Dietary Fructose And Metabolic Syndrome And Diabetes1–3
Go to: Introduction When ingested by humans, fructose is absorbed by an active transport system but at a slower rate than is glucose (1). Coingestion of glucose increases intestinal absorptive capacity for fructose. In the absence of glucose, human intestinal capacity to absorb fructose appears to be quite variable with some people unable to completely absorb 30- to 40-g quantities (1). Those individuals unable to completely absorb ingested fructose are at risk for diarrhea and other gastrointestinal side effects. The first several steps in fructose and glucose metabolism differ significantly. Fructose stimulates only modest insulin secretion and does not require the presence of insulin to enter cells (2). Avidly taken up by hepatic cells, fructose is rapidly converted to fructose-1-phosphate and bypasses the early, rate-limiting steps of glucose metabolism. Fructose-1-phosphate is mainly converted to lactate, glucose, and glycogen (3). Gluconeogenesis from fructose is increased by starvation and poorly controlled diabetes. Fructose may also form acetyl-CoA, which is used in fatty acid synthesis. Enhanced activity of lipogenic enzymes with chronic fructose feeding may promote hepatic triglyceride production and output of VLDL particles. If energy intake is excessive, the potential for fructose to stimulate lipogenesis is presumably increased substantially. Fructose is the sweetest-tasting naturally occurring carbohydrate. Advances in technology in the 1960s made possible the production of inexpensive high-fructose syrups from corn starch (4). The taste and sweetness of 55% high-fructose corn syrup are equivalent to those of sucrose. Because of sweetness and low cost, high-fructose syrups found commercial application. In the mid-1980s, 55% high-fructose syrup was adopted Continue reading >>
- Diet Soda Intake and Risk of Incident Metabolic Syndrome and Type 2 Diabetes in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA)*
- Ultraviolet Radiation Suppresses Obesity and Symptoms of Metabolic Syndrome Independently of Vitamin D in Mice Fed a High-Fat Diet
- The prevention and control the type-2 diabetes by changing lifestyle and dietary pattern
