Can anyone explain to me what all the hoopla is about high fructose corn syrup?

in regards to what? cake? icing? calories?

There have been a number of TV ads implying it's OK to use it. And I've noticed on some products "No Fructose Corn Syrup." ??????

Never mind - I just googled the subject and find it's just marketing ploys and politics! Nothing wrong with HFCS - aka High Fructose corn syrup. Safe to use according to FDA.

The whole thing about HFCS is that it is not in its natural form, so it is harder for the body to process it. Therefore it is unhealthier. As is most of everything else people eat

People are fat because they consume more calories than they use, and think giant portions are better. Not because of one product. A calorie is a calorie is a calorie. If you eat 5000 cals every day, and only use 2000 cals every day.....well you will be gaining weight.

That's another topic though.....

The issue is that it's a cheap source of sweetening, so food manufacturers have switched over to using it instead of straight white sugar. Because its cheap, it's easy to slip it into things that really don't need it, so it's become a staple in foods that never had it before, like tomato sauces. It's a hidden source of calories, and it's everywhere.

Sugar is sugar, a calorie of HFCS is the same as a calorie of white sugar. Your body doesn't know the difference. The problem is that we're eating more sweeteners because they're using HFCS more than ever. More calories= more fat, like Mike said.

If you want to read an interesting book about food, get The Omnivore's Dilemma. The first section is about corn and how the U.S. food supply is pretty much hogtied to corn at this point (even if you eat low carb! )

Hm. Seems to me I read in Omnivore's Dilemma (just saw Pollan speak here in KC btw - awesome) that the issue with HFCS is that it doesn't trigger the satiety chemical in your brain so that as you're consuming it your body doesn't take notice of all the calories you've consumed and you don't start to feel full. Which means that you are likely to consume more. Which means that no, it is not the same as sugar at all.

Perhaps that wasn't in OD...could've been in the South Beach books perhaps? Anyone else know what I'm talking about?

Pollan's next book - In Defense of Food - is also a very good read. And a much quicker read that Omnivore's Dilemma, in case you're interested.

http://www.womentowomen.com/healthyweight/highfructosecornsyrup.aspx

Here's an interesting article on the subject. There are conflicting studies, of course, but it's always smart to look at who funded what study.

I don't remember that (about feeling satiated), but it could be true. I just heard some doctor talking about foods that don't trigger the fuullness response, and the example he used were potato chips. That's why you can eat a whole bag of chips and you don't feel full (well, maybe not the WHOLE bag), but you can eat one orange and not need to eat ten more oranges. There are some foods that don't trigger the feeling of being full, so maybe corn syrup does act like that.