Makers of high-fructose corn syrup have claimed that high-fructose corn syrup is no different than other sweeteners but as a research team from Princeton University has demonstrated, all sweeteners are not equal.
The researchers found that rats with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained significantly more weight than those with access to table sugar, even when their overall caloric intake was the same.
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. Even when rats were fed a high-fat diet, they did not gain extra weight.
A study observed the effects of high-fructose corn syrup consumption. Rats on a diet rich in high-fructose corn syrup showed characteristic signs of a dangerous condition known in humans as the metabolic syndrome, including abnormal weight gain, significant increases in circulating triglycerides and augmented fat deposition, especially visceral fat around the belly. Male rats in particular ballooned in size: Animals with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained 48 percent more weight than those eating a normal diet.
[via Science Daily]
Chapter: Health,Sugar :: 10 June 2010