What is Crystalline Fructose?
If you have visited my blog before, you may have noticed that I have written a few posts 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 (I am finishing up my undergrad as an adult student, B.S. in IT with a minor in music), 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 don’t 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?
To quote one of my previous posts:
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 don’t know about you, but I don’t care what the amount is (in this case the chemical specs state 1 mg/kg maximum), I don’t want to be ingesting arsenic.
Additional chemical compounds that make up crystalline fructose are heavy metals, lead, and chloride. I obtained this information from admworld.com in their PDF document that I used to research this post.
Even if you do not drill down into the chemical composition of crystalline fructose, the bullet points of the document clearly show that this sweetener provides the same outcome and is used in the same way as HFCS is:
- It is an ingredient in the same processed foods that HFCS is: sodas, other beverages (sadly, it is used in “health drinks” like the one my college professor had), breads, low-calorie dressings (read the labels of low-fat salad dressings), cereals, frozen foods, protein bars (supposed to be healthy!), and basically all processed foods.
- It extends the shelf life of food.
- It provides intense sweetness so only a small amount needs to be used (economical).
- It is made from corn (again, economical).
- It prevents baked goods and “nutrition” bars from drying out.
Of course, the health dangers of crystalline fructose are not outlined, and they will be the same as high fructose corny syrup since this is simply another form of fructose corn syrup, however crystalline fructose includes an even higher percentage of fructose than HFCS does. Remember that fructose must be processed completely in the liver, and when a diet includes a large amount of it (if you eat mainly processed foods), then it creates a fatty liver, and even cirrhosis.
I firmly believe in public education on these topics. Even if you have heard of these ingredients, you may be surprised to know how wide spread their use is, especially since these corn syrups are used in breads. How many ready-made sandwich shops are using bread made with crystalline fructose or high fructose corn syrup? I do not know these figures currently, however I would bet that most of these breads do contain fructose corn syrups, since most of the breads that you can buy in the grocery store contain them.
In my humble opinion, it sounds like the food industry has come up with a new name for high fructose corn syrup, while increasing the level of fructose in it. It is unlikely that these corn syrups will disappear any time soon, however as long as you are knowledgeable about what you are eating, the more conscious you will become in your decisions concerning what you put into your body. We all deserve to live with the highest level of health possible, and clearly fructose corn syrup sweeteners will not be found along the path to outstanding health.
If you found this information helpful, you may also be interested in 23 “Health” Drinks that Contain Crystalline Fructose, or this post on high fructose corn syrup.
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Hi JoLynn,
Great article. Very well researched. Looking forward to many, many more great posts. Thanks a lot for this! Let’s trade links. We’re on the same team.
Peace,
Cindy
wisdomofhealing.com
Thanks for the eye opening information. I am currently working on improving our household’s nutrition and this is useful indeed.
Lexi
Hi Cindy,
Thank you very much! I do love to research and pass the info along to you, as well as passing along what I’ve learned through experience. This article was an eye-opener for me because I had never heard of crystalline fructose… quite interesting, hmm?
JoLynn
Hi Lexi,
No problem!
That is inspiring, to hear that you are consciously working to improve your household’s level of nutrition, way to go!
JoLynn
Thank you so much! I was trying to find out more about crystalline fructose and whether or not it was bad for you. I went to sugar.org and read their information but it left me flat. I am so glad I came across this blog! Once again a thousand thank yous!
Hi Jill,
Sure, no problem! I love to research and learn more about processed and fast food ingredients and spread the word on what I find. I’m glad to help!
All the best,
JoLynn
I was just eating some Mountain High Classic Lowfat All Natural Yoghurt when I saw “Crystalline Fructose” on the ingrediants with a **note. It says “Crystalline fructose is a natural low glycemic sweetener. Because it is metabolized more slowly than sugar, it is better for your body.” This doesn’t seem like truthful information.
Raquel
Loveland, CO
Hi Raquel,
Thank you for pointing out that crystalline fructose is also in yogurt; I thought it was mainly in “health” drinks!
I am thinking that the way that the “note” got on that packaging is because fructose probably does metabolize more slowly than sugar, because it has to be processed in the liver! Instead of being processed/metabolized like normal food is, it all gets pushed or “shunted” to the liver, and likely it does take longer to metabolize it.
It’s like the term, “natural flavor”, something that I never questioned until recently. It sounds so innocent when in actuality, it’s not.
All the best,
JoLynn
Thanks for posting this valuable info. My friends and I tried the new Vitamin Water which is hot on the market. I’m trying to avoid corn syrup…so I thought I’d just look into the crystalline fructose story since it is the new sweetener in all the health drinks suddenly appearing (I started checking the labels in the health food case at the grocery). I was shocked to discover it was just basically another name for HFCS. I tell everyone I see who it drinking it - because the sad thing is they are actually trying to be healthy by avoiding sodas and HFCS. Turns out, the market has just found a sneaky way to give it to them anyway. I wrote the company and asked them how they could market a new health drink which was in fact…not healthy. I never received a response. I don’t think of myself as a health food nut - I just want to eat better - and as consumers we are actually being tricked. It is websites like yours that will help consumers change the market. Keep spreading the word! Thank you! Go music!
Hi Mae,
Wow, how inspiring you are, writing the manufacturer, Go Mae!!
I agree with you and sure hope that altogether, you, others like you, and sites like mine can get the word out bit by bit. It’s all about information, knowledge, and reading labels. Unfortunately, many are like how I used to be…as long as it tastes good, then great!
You can no longer say “ignorance is bliss” once you start reading your labels, and then investigating what all of those odd sounding ingredients are!
Thanks so much for your comments Mae.
All the best,
JoLynn
Yeah that’s just what I thought. I was hoping that maybe it was a less toxic form of HFCS but thinking it could be worse. They are trying their best to fool us while killing us. I noticed this on the fortified flavored drink that was left at my house. You don’t need added ingredients in your water. It is hard enough to get clean water let alone have them put more poisons in it. If you want vitamins take a pill….I hope they don’t put this #%^$% in vitamins.
We have to stop drinking sodas….!!!!!!! and tell them why!!! We have to stand up and be counted. We can make our own ice tea. Put juices in it and real sugar. We can make our own lemonade and put real sugar in it. We need to raise the comsumption of sugar, only then will these dogs go back to using sugar. We just have to stop them. I have made up my mind to never drink another soda. Spend the $200. and get a good juicer. It has to be a good juicer because low cost juicers don’t extract enough content from the food so it takes more food. The real problem is trying to find a bread with out this poison in it. It is a bit harder to make your own bread.
Never eat anything artificial. I know that is next to impossible. But read labels. There are many items on the shelves that have little artificial ingredients. Do not ever think any of the higher ups are protecting us. Remember it’s all about money with them. When you see three inches of ingredients….put it back on the shelf. Americans are being maimed and killed because we want it fast, easy, and low calorie and because we trust our government. We are the fools. We can do something about all this but we don’t. Boycott products and tell the manufacturer why. We made a difference in Trans Fats.
Hi Sandy,
Thank you for both of your comments!
I agree with you on how important it is to read labels. As far as not eating anything artificial, I’d say that 90% of what I eat is non-processed food.
I do eat no salt added (nsa) rice cakes, nsa canned tomatoes and green beans, plain frozen vegetables, canned no sugar added pineapple, and plain rice noodles, all of which are considered to be processed even though they may only have one ingredient. I do have some non-sugar flavorings that I use, also, however I do not eat anything with corn syrups of any kind. It probably would be tough to exclude everything that is processed in any way, although there are people who do it.
I found information on a bread online that is not supposed to have hfcs, however I have never bought it or seen it so I don’t have a personal recommendation for it: Rudi’s Organic Bakery. Hope that helps!
All the best,
JoLynn
In your research, have you determined the overall concentration of crystalline fructose within a standard serving size compared to those drink brands that use HFCS? Although I agree that large consumption of HFCS (and even crystalline fructose) are detrimental to human health, I’m curious if manufacturers purportedly spinning their produects as “healthier” alternatives may have some stance because the overall concentration of the sweetner is less if they use crystalline fructose over HFCS. Thanks.
Hi John,
Thank you for your comment and question, it’s really a good one.
No, I have not compared the amounts of either per serving size, however after learning more about the FDA guidelines and food labeling, it could be possible that crystalline fructose could be creatively marketed as a healthier alternative.
Now, I did find in my research “Crystalline Fructose contains 99.5% minimum of fructose assay, which is an even higher percentage of fructose than what makes up HFCS”, and that fructose is the part that gets shunted to the liver. So, even if you can use less CF to get the same sweet taste as HFCS, it could stand to reason that you are still getting the same or higher level of fructose per serving. Again though, I have not researched this specific comparison.
I can put this on my list of articles to research and write about. It’s a good idea, thank you!
hi there,
What if an ingredient label reads “crystalline fructose (real fruit fructose)”?
Thanks for any input!!
-Margo
I googled the term “crystalline fructose” and this wonderful article came up! The reason I looked it up was because it was the SECOND ingredient in my SoBe “Better for You Essential Energy” Drink. Bull. I try to eat as healthy as possible due to health problems and I feel stupid for having “fallen” for this gimmick. Thank goodness I looked at the label- the only reason was because it tasted like a liquid lollipop… And thank you for the article. Keep up the good work on informing us about significant health knowledge.
Hi Lenay,
Thank you so much for your compliments!
Don’t feel stupid, I only recently learned what crystalline fructose is…I bet there are many people who don’t know what it is, either.
I will keep those articles coming, along with a few others, it’s no problem.
Hi Margo,
Excellent question, one I hadn’t heard of before. I don’t understand how the food manufacturer can have “crystalline fructose (real fruit fructose)†on the label though, because crystalline fructose is made from corn, not fruit.
I’ve been researching this since you left your comment just to make sure I didn’t miss something, and I couldn’t find any information on crystalline fructose being made from fruit.
I suspect (but I don’t have this in writing) that this is another example of “creative” food labeling, similar to what I wrote about in the article on “sugar free food labeling”.
I hope this helps!
Lead? Arsenic? If thats true, than wouldn’t someone be all over this? Enviga stated that it burned more calories than it contained and the FDA went ape and halted shipping of it until proof was put forth. I appreciate the information, but its really not a scientific point of view. I’d love to know about the amounts of each CF and HFCS required to sweeten a 12oz beverage. If it is considerably less with CF, its only half a lie.
Though fresh tea, and water is great… the best actually. This CF may be a good alternative for 2liter chugging mountain dew fans. Thanks. Take care.
Hi Damion, thank you for your comments!
Yes, according to the PDF (link is in article) I referenced, crystalline fructose does contain both lead and arsenic. There have been other products and ingredients that have gained FDA approval in the past, which were then pulled from the shelf. My opinion is that you must use your own best judgment for your own health, based on the knowledge gained through your research. Companies that are making billions of dollars a year aren’t going to be looking out for you, but you still have to decide yourself.
Sugar is a billion dollar industry, even though it is a health hazard, an addictive drug, and gives you no nutritional value; but, it is everywhere. Again, it all comes down to money, and each of us has to make our own choices.
Re: “its really not a scientific point of view”…no, I wouldn’t claim that my writing is scientific at all since I’m not a scientist, doctor, pharmacist, nothing like that, nor have I ever stated such.
John also asked (comment above), a similar question re: levels of these sweeteners in comparison. I don’t have the stats on this currently, and if I can find information on this through research I will be happy to post it. I do have quite a list of post ideas that I am working through, but it’s on the list.
Hope this helps!
Thank you so much for your post and for your research. I’ve been drinking one of the “health” drinks with crystalline fructose. I’ve been drinking it because I have severe reactions to aspartame and “sugar free” drinks (I was almost diagnosed with a neurological disorder before discovering the root cause!). I thought the drink was a nice alternative to those aspartame filled powders.
It occurred to me the other day to look at the label to see if it had HFCS and noticed the crystalline fructose ingredient. Your blog was the first that I came along and was thrilled that someone else had done the leg work! I will be disposing of the rest of what I have at home - a small price to pay. I think I will be going back to my own natural flavored water drinks (fresh mint and lemon) and trying to create my own variety of drink flavors with other natural ingredients!
Thank you!
Hi Becky,
No problem, glad I could help!
That’s very interesting, your reaction to aspartame. I wrote an article about phenylalanine and in that research I found other info about aspartame that was similar to your experience.
I also go the natural route: I drink a lot of water (I use a reverse osmosis water processor at home), and sometimes I’ll put lemon in it. I do also like my (plain) tea.
The fresh mint sounds like a great idea!
Thank you for doing my homework for me! I bought black currant juice from a large grocer here in OH and thought “oh good…no corn syrup” but then my boyfriend just asked…so what is crystalline fructose? So I jumped online and to my dismay here is your article. I’m taking the juice back today! Thank you!!!
Hi Jennifer,
No problem, glad I could help you and your boyfriend with the info!
This is wrong. Crystalline fructose is pure 100% fructose, just in crystal form. First off, this is better than high fructose corn syrup. second, the connection between obesity and any type of fructose is doubtful. Fructose is the type of sugar that occurs in natural fruits like apples.
and uummm…we need sugar….everything that is put into our bodies is broken down into a sugar. However, ingesting large amounts of simple sugars like glucose can have an adverse effect on the metabolism.
These enhanced waters like Vitamin Water, or Life Water are probably more beneficial while working out. The reason why crystalline fructose is in many of these drinks is to maintain energy while working out, or to decrease the amount of sugars needed for rejuvenation (like in muscles) after a workout. The liver is the organ absorbing and breaking down all these sugars. During exercise the body needs simple sugars to keep going. Since fructose is broken down slowly, the body can maintain a pace without crashing. This is what helps make these particular drinks effective.
You also don’t need a lot of crystalline fructose to get a lot of sweetening. Notice that it takes 13g of it to sweeten a bottle of Vitamin Water, if you’re exercising and not relying on the drink to lose weight for you, this is not much at all.
additionally, this stuff is probably not as ‘bad’ for you as regular table sugar.
Hi Alex,
Thank you for your comments! You’ve given me ideas for up to 3 articles.
Briefly (on each point
), neither the human nor animal body needs refined sugar. Refined sugar contains zero vitamins or minerals, hence it contains zero nutrients. In fact, in order for the body to digest it, sugar pulls/robs vital vitamins and minerals from the body since refined sugar does not provide its own. The quickest way to get sick is to eat too much sugar, I’ve experienced this many times myself.
Whether sugar is refined or “made from” cane, beets, potatoes, fruit, or corn (HFCS, crystalline fructose, corn syrup, etc.), these are all man-made sugars. There is no nutritional value for the body in these substances.
Re: working out, it is very important to eat both prior to the work out and afterwards. The best pre-workout meal consists of a combination of protein, whole carbohydrate (2 examples: oatmeal, sweet potatoes), and natural fruit (2 examples: berries, apples). Post workout can be a meal of your protein, whole carb, and vegetables, or protein and natural fruit. For portion sizes it depends on whether or not you striving for weight loss or not. There is no reason at all to be ingesting refined sugar for the purpose of a workout. Additionally, I wouldn’t recommend sugar water for weight loss since it will increase your cravings for more sugar.
Re: digestion of all food, there is a huge difference between whole foods being broken down into “sugar” vs. ingesting refined sugar. When you eat whole foods they include their own vitamins and minerals, which are used in the process of digestion. Again, refined sugar provides nothing of value. It sure does taste good though, and it’s a great moneymaker because it keeps you coming back for more.
I can attest to that 100%, I’ve bought enough of it in my lifetime!
Re: fructose metabolizing during exercise and the content of CF … crystalline fructose does not contain fructose (sugar made from fruit); crystalline fructose is made from corn (see PDF doc in my article above). I don’t know why the term “fructose” is even used, since this product is not made from fruit. It certainly can create a lot of confusion.
As to which is better, CF or any other refined sugar, I wouldn’t recommend either. I would recommend eating whole, unprocessed fruits, or chewing on a piece of whole, unprocessed sugar cane (something I haven’t done but would like to try!). Neither or these sweet options will harm you like man-made, refined sugar will.
You are correct that it takes much less crystalline fructose to sweeten a food or beverage. This is also true for high fructose corn syrup. Both of these ingredients are much sweeter than “table sugar”, and much cheaper to produce. They also have the “great” qualities of creating cravings for more and more sugar, and they do make food taste great. If you don’t have a problem with food cravings, sugar addiction, overeating, binging, or intestinal cramping from this additive, then maybe you won’t have a problem with it. It is of course, your choice.
I strongly recommend reading Sugar Blues
by William Dufty.
life SoBe water contains crystalline fructose!
lol just felt like shouting that out.. hehe
but this being said can’t natural sugar be just as ‘harmful’ to the body. Just because sugar cane is natural doesn’t mean that it can’t cause the same negative effects on the body. sugar is sugar and humans are best to limit the amount of intake of it. in this case, since the body is best to consume more complex carbohydrates, natural sugar doesn’t offer anything to the body anyways and can still cause overeating, intestinal cramps if overused. So, there is no more harm by ingesting controlled amounts of CF - or no more harm than natural sugar.
besides, who doesn’t like intestinal cramping. Even the name makes a bad day turn for good. it’s the highest of high comedy.
btw, it’s probably called “fructose” because it probably has 6 carbon molecules, 12 hydrogen molecules, and 6 oxygen molecules. CF can’t be created out of nothing; to be a sugar it has to have the elements of sugar.
Hi Alex,
Actually there is a very large difference between a piece of the sugar cane plant and the refined sugar that is made from it. There is natural sugar in that piece of sugar cane as well as in carrots, strawberries, blueberries, and other fruits. When you eat those whole foods, the sugar is brought in with the vitamins and minerals that the food is providing, unlike when you ingest processed sugar (more details in my comment #1412 above
).
It is suggested to eat fruits with a protein instead of by themselves though, if you want to keep your metabolism up. For myself, I’ve noticed that this satisfies me more than just eating fruit alone, anyway.
I haven’t looked up the molecular make-up of sugar, you could be onto something there. You’re correct that crystalline fructose isn’t created out of nothing, it’s a sugar made from corn.
While I think your doing a good thing here, make sure all of your readers know that not just these sweeteners get put through your liver, Everything you put in and on your body goes through your liver, gallbladder, pancreas and appendix as these are the filters of our bodies, if you want to be healthy cleanse your bodies twice a year whether you think you need it or not. There are some excellent products out there (www.herbdoc.com) and take a really good bioavailable vitamin(alot of them are not)(www.deaddoctors.com)I don’t care how healthy you eat there are not enough nutrients(we need 90 essential)in any type of food to sustain you at maximum health. And where have you heard that to absorb your vitimins you should take essential fatty acids? I live in the country and we raise our own meat,eggs,vegetables,and milk a cow to make butter,cheese,yogurt,and ice cream. I realize that it is impossible for everyone to do so, but you can find better alternatives to what is being mass produced to poison us all. It’s out there you just have to be willing to look for it and access it.
Hi KC,
Thanks for your comments! Yes, I agree that all of that processed food contains so much gunk, and it doesn’t help your organs, your digestive system, much less your health in general…not to mention your weight.
It just doesn’t make sense to be ingesting so many chemicals and additives. You are correct that there are healthy alternatives, that’s my experience, also!
That’s wonderful that you are “living off the land”.
I grew up eating fresh food out of my parents’ garden, but I don’t have my own garden now. It’s funny though to have this come up, because I’ve been thinking about doing some planting of my own.
I also take supplements, which is another topic I have on my list to write about. Even when eating whole foods, unless you grow them yourself they do lose nutrients during transportation, and time.
Darn, and I just starting drinking this Vitamin water cause I thought it would be healthy but I guess it really isn’t with all the crystalline fructose in it, thanks for the information.
Hi Chad, no problem!
I know, it stinks that you found something you thought was good for you, but at least you know now.
I’m glad you took the time to look this up. I think I am in the same boat as Chad. We had something called vita-water or some such drink from Costco. I tried one the other day and was really surprised. I just got the idea to go look and see what was really in the bottle and was immediately suspicious of the word “fructose” in any form. I didn’t even read the next ingredient.
Thanks again.
Hi Kjelstad,
No problem, I’m glad that you and so many others are finding this information useful!
Wow, great research, I’d been looking for drinks without HFCS in them, and I just assumed crystalline fructose would be fine considering what kind of drinks it’s in.
Thanks for putting this information out there.
Hi Ryan,
Sure, no problem! I’m glad that there are so many people out there like you who are investigating the ingredients of their food and drink instead of just thinking “if it’s on the shelf it must be good for my health”.
Yeah, switched from Gatorade to Vitamin water because I found out Gatorade had HFCS and read the label on Vitamin water and didn’t see HFCS. Soon thereafter, I found out that Crystalline Fructose was a derivative of HFCS. I felt very deceived and now don’t drink Vitamin Water either. Next person to design an electrolyte drink without either of these ingredients is going to rock the market.
Hi Zachary,
I know what you mean about feeling deceived…and what an idea! That’s so funny because earlier today I was just thinking about the electrolyte drinks, and just why they need to have sweeteners or sugar in them. It will be interesting to see what the next one on the market will contain.
I can’t believe I bought a snapple red tea. I always read labels before buying. One of the ingredients in the snapple red tea that I had bought is “crystalline fructose (sugar from fruit)” I had assumed that if the ingredient states “fructose from fruit” that it was an alright buy. Then I came across this site and I’m glad I had. I have always wondered why these fructose drinks taste kind of off, almost poisonous. How are these fructose using corporations allowed to sell this swindle?
Hi Luc,
I’m glad that my article was helpful for you. I know what you mean about how the drinks sweetened with hfcs or crystalline fructose taste funny. I’ve gotten stomachaches from these types of drinks before.
Unfortunately it’s legal for the food manufacturers to use these ingredients. It’s really up to each individual to look out for him or herself and learn just what is in the processed food and drink that they are ingesting…the processed food market with it’s many sundry ingredients (including the corn sweeteners) is too big to be disappearing any time soon.
Hey im doing a research project on Gatorade vs. Vitamin Water. And I need to know the price difference between the two of them! Plz help!!
I have an unanswered question. If the label states Crystalline fructose (Sugar from fruit) is the “sugar from fruit” misleading? Which fruit, if any, is used?
@Bob, I don’t buy Gatorade or Vitamin Water so I’m not much help on any price comparisons. When I did my research on their ingredients I went to the store with my notebook but didn’t pay any attention to the prices since I only noted the ingredients.
@Luc, that’s a question that others have had and I can see why it would be confusing.
Crystalline fructose is made from corn, not from fruit. I haven’t found any factual evidence when I’ve researched why the food manufacturers are allowed to label CF like this, but I think they must have another creative labeling guideline like I wrote about in a couple of other articles (re: trans fat and sugar-free labeling).
I bet that they can say “sugar from fruit” because they place this next to the word “fructose”, even though CF is made from corn. That is only my assumption, but if I ever find written guidelines (FDA rules) on this I’ll write a post about it.
Great article on crystalline fructose!! But can you tell me the difference b/t cf and sucrose (in laymens terms please). Also Xanthan (xanthum) gum, what is this? thank you
Hi Suzanne,
Thanks!
You asked 2 very good questions. I wrote a post today about xanthan gum, you can read it here.
Re: the difference between crystalline fructose and sucrose…CF is manufactured from corn in a chemical process that gives you a product (CF) that includes other chemicals (see the PDF doc I referenced in my article above), and sucrose is table sugar, obtained from sugar cane or beets. I personally don’t recommend either, because they are both sugars. If you want to read more about how unhealthy (and addictive) sugar is, I suggest reading Sugar Blues by William Dufty.
I hope that helps. Thanks again for your questions, you helped me learn all about xanthan gum today through the research I did for my article.
I am just so glad there is someone out there who gets it and can help to spread the word. We just need to educate ourselves. As you can tell by reading this post, tons of you “assumed” it was healthy because the company markets it that way. We have to take it upon ourselves to do the research so we are not mislead.
Since I’ve been informed about HFCS I don’t consume any drinks with HFCS in it. Now, I no longer have this painfully queasy and bloated stomach feeling, purely liquid diarrhea, gas, and etc.
Hi Luc,
Thank you for sharing your experience. I’ve had the exact same experience as you, and hopefully when others read what you wrote it will help them to get off of the HFCS (and crystalline fructose!) drinks, too.
Your article seems incredibly misinformed. You seem to have completley misinterpreted information about a relatively benign substance.
Let’s look at the name first: Crystalline Fructose. What does it all mean? Well, as any first-year chemistry student can tell you a crystal is merely a structure whose atoms, ions, or molecules are arranged in a REGULAR REPEATING PATTERN. Salt and table sugar are both crystals, and they aren’t harmful to your health, so obviously it isn’t the crystalline part that makes crystalline fructose hazardous (supposedly). So what about fructose? Fructose is a naturally occuring monosaccharide (simple sugar) found in FRUITS AND VEGETABLES!!!! The horror… Oh wait, those are healthy for you. So, yours claims are beginnign to have a whiff of bullshit about them.
Next, you attempt to back your claims by detailing how crystalline fructose is produced. In short, it is distilled from fructose enriched corn syrup (HFCS). Does that make it in any way similar to HFCS? No. In fact, the process that renders crystalline fructose from HFCS is much the same as that which renders sucrose from molasses, or salt from sea water. They allow the fructose concentration in the HFCS to get increasingly higher (by letting the glucose escape) until the solution becomes so saturated with fructose that the fructose crystalizes out of solution. Whats left is crystalline fructose and traces of anything else that was in the HFCS that didn’t evaporate with the glucose - but only in TRACE amounts.
To sum up, crystalline fructose is merely a name applied to very pure fructose rendered by some form of distillation, which is a very common practice for rendering valuable substances from solutions. And fructose itself, being naturally occuring and of lower glycemic index value than sucrose (table sugar). So chillax.
James,
Right, the name crystalline fructose is what confuses many people. Crystalline fructose is made from corn (documents are linked in my article above). It is a corn sugar. The word fructose actually means “sugar from fruit”, however again, cf is made from corn.
Table sugar (refined white sugar) and salt actually are harmful to the human body. Refined sugar contains zero nutrients and leeches vital nutrients from the body in order to be metabolized. It helps the body break down and age, is addictive, and creates the same chemical reaction in the brain as opiates do. To learn more you can read Sugar Blues or my category on Sugar.
Re: Salt - more and more studies are coming out on the health detriment of added sodium in the diet. Processed food is loaded with sodium and that excess sodium is not necessary or an aid to optimum health. There is also information available on the addictive qualities of salt in the diet.
In my article above I did not write that crystalline fructose is distilled from high fructose corn syrup. I did however, write “Would another name for that perhaps be high fructose corn syrup?”. I included the word “perhaps†to signify that this is my thought, as well as stated that as a question. When you also research high fructose corn syrup as I have done, you will find the similarities between crystalline fructose and hfcs.
Corn sugar (i.e.: crystalline fructose, high fructose corn syrup, corn syrup solids, to name a few) is just another form of sugar. Sugar has absolutely no nutrients. It gives no nutritional value to the body. The further hazard of crystalline fructose (as well as hfcs) is that it must be metabolized in the liver. Additionally corn sugar contributes to bloating and stomach upset, at least that has been my experience, as well as other readers of The Fit Shack who have commented on that topic.
Re: your last comment: “And fructose itself, being naturally occurring and of lower glycemic index value than sucrose (table sugar)”…yes, fructose that naturally occurs in fruit, such as strawberries, blueberries, bananas, etc., that fructose does occur naturally and is naturally metabolized by the body rather than solely in the liver. It also comes in to the body with other vitamins and nutrients available to metabolize it. However, that naturally occurring fructose has nothing to do with my article above, since crystalline fructose is made from corn.
You are welcome to ingest crystalline fructose as well as high fructose corn syrup if that is what you want to do. After all, everyone has to make their own decisions about how to care for their own health, so the choice is always up to you.
you said: “Sugar is a billion dollar industry, even though it is a health hazard, an addictive drug, and gives you no nutritional value; but, it is everywhere. Again, it all comes down to money, and each of us has to make our own choices.”
Its obviously about something more than money if the FDA has done investigations on it and have apparently found nothing. Using logic, one would assume that the FDA would have some sort of protocol in thier investigations to check for such poisons as arsenic and lead. we must assume they are either incompetent, or something far worse. and here is where it becomes a human rights issue, and by all rights we should be fighting to end the FDAs ability to allow poisons in our food. if one could prove this, and chose to stand up for the health of the world, they could try to sue the FDA(if one has the money and means to do so…). So fructose is the sugar from fruits and vegetables, but crystalline fructose is actually from corn? another blatant lie! and they have the nerve to try to cover up thier lie with “from fruit”. Gotta love how the FDA REGULATES science, and dominates what is deemed “healthy and natural”. This whole thing makes me sick!
secondly, i couldnt help but think of 100% raw cane sugar. Ive been searching the net to see if studies have been done to show the health comparisons to eating raw cane vs refined. I found out that refined sugar strips the cane juice of ALL of its inherit nutritional value, including the natural enzymes which help digest it. why dont more companies use raw sugar or just plain fructose! It baffles me! Is it cost? Lack of investigation by the companies? Education? Arg…we really need to get rid of the FDA. You should write on article on raw sugar!
On that note, Presidential candidate Ron Paul supports the discontinuation of the FDA. You all should research him!
My ultimate sense in this is that education combined with political action will put an end to these issues. Stand up for your health and your rights, because you cant always rely on others to do so!
Thanks a lot for this enlightening research article!…and thank you further for all of the links and useful information you provided!
Now its time to see if any actual scientific studies have been done to fortify your exposed information on crystalline fructose.
and further, have you ever heard of stevia before? its a natural sweetener with no known side effects, but the FDA will not let it be sold through any other method than supplements. INSANE! They give us poison, yet limit us from being able to get the good stuff.
thanks again! glad i discovered this site!
Hi Aaron, thanks for you comments!
I see what you’re saying, but I still believe the main motivation is money. Tasty, “keep ‘em coming back for more” processed foods make their manufacturers billions of dollars a year. I also wouldn’t put all of my trust in the FDA, especially after what I learned today in researching an upcoming article on, you guessed it, Stevia.
I completely feel your passion for standing up against the FDA, and finding out why they allow such additives to be put in our food, and at the same time, that would take a full-time effort. I hope that by writing about these topics, that I can help spread the word bit by bit. I really feel that what we each have to do is take responsibility for ourselves, educate ourselves, and not expect big brother to watch out for us. After all, most of the crappy food that tastes so great and is so popular is really not good fuel for the body…..and it’s on the shelf legally. Look at how popular Vitamin Water is…and it contains crystalline fructose!
I’m not saying that anyone is intentionally trying to harm the population’s health, but then again, if you’re a believer in conspiracy theories, that’s a totally different story altogether.
I didn’t know that Ron Paul supports the discontinuation of the FDA, thanks for telling me that. I will do some research on that, sounds very very interesting.
That’s a good idea re: an article on raw sugar, I’ll put that on my list. The thing is, I don’t know if it’s actually processed and refined, but I’ll find out. Now if you’re addicted to sugar, I’d still stay away from it because it will just keep you craving more and more sugar.
Thanks again for your comments Aaron, I’ll save the rest of my thoughts for future posts.
I’ve been noticing lately printed on juice, soda, soft drinks, and numerous other labels, “No High Fructose Corn Syrup.” The other day at Walgreens, I bought this soda that has printed on its label, “No High Fructose Corn Syrup.” It’s actually quite good and it didn’t have that usual poisonous taste that high fructose corn syrup” leaves on the pallet. Is there something about high fructose corn syrup that is finally catching on and that food manufacturers are aware of its effects?
Hi Luc,
I don’t know, I’ve only seen that label on a loaf of bread. Maybe the manufacturers are paying attention to the bad rap that high fructose corn syrup is getting. Dr Oz is on Oprah quite a bit, and his book YOU On A Diet is where I first learned about how hfcs interferes with your brain getting the signal that you’re full, therefore you overeat. It was because I was talking about hfcs in class that I ended up writing this article about crystalline fructose.
What’s the brand of the soda you bought? I want to check it out and see what the ingredients are. Thanks a lot for letting me know about it!
JoLynn, thankyou so much for your research and input! The hidden dangers in falsely advertised food and beverage products is getting out of hand. I’m trying to locate an organization that will be putting pressure on these companies to provide some integrity. If anyone knows, please email me at trozmyr |at| gmail.com thanks!
Hi Tim,
Sure, no problem!
That’s awesome that you want to get involved with putting some integrity into the processed food industry. This makes me think of John F. Banzhaf III (law professor from George Washington University) who was instrumental in the fight against the tobacco industry and who was also involved in a lawsuit against the fast food industry (specifically McDonald’s)….he was interviewed in Super Size Me
, an excellent documentary.
Hi -
Like many of your commenters, I was looking for info on crystalline fructose. I actually read the sugar industries definition before I read your blog. I already knew about the dangers of corn derived sugars because of my eldest daughter - she was diagnosed with food allergies and/or intolerances when she was 4 - corn topped the list. Luckily I like to cook, because corn is in everything!
I just wanted to add a couple of points in regards to “James’” post.
First, most 5th graders can tell you what a crystal is (I know because I was helping my 5th grader 2 days ago with her science and that was one of the questions). But, what any 1st year chem student CAN tell you, there are plenty of naturally (or even unnaturally) occuring substances out there that are perfectly fine to injest but if you rearrange those same molecules just the slightest bit - you get poison. Cocaine is actually a great example of this. In it’s natural form, the leaves have been chewed for centruies, with no real problems, by native people. Then humans learned to refine it and the powder was created - then we took it a step further and crack was “invented”. We went from a basically harmless form with medicinal properties to one of the most addictive drugs in human history. Ironic that the history of sugar closely parallels cocaine, isn’t it?
What does infurate me is his implication that just because something is naturally occuring it means it is safe. Lead, arsinic, mercury, botulism and ecoli are “naturally” occuring in foods and I wouldn’t want to eat those either.
And I think he missed a main point of this blog - it’s about making an informed decision. I, for one, am tired of needing a bs in chemistry to decode an ingredient list.
Hi Lively,
Thanks for your comments! Your point, “Ironic that the history of sugar closely parallels cocaine, isn’t it?”….you couldn’t be more on target with that! I definitely agree with you.
You’re also right that there are many things in this world that occur naturally but aren’t healthy for human consumption. Also, we are on the same wavelength re: we all have to educate ourselves about what we are putting into our body and then make the decision on what we will eat.
That’s also great that you enjoy cooking…that way you are in control of what you are feeding your family. Keep up the great work!
What I found particularly odd is that when i went to the now foods website to look for fructose powder, I discovered their fructose is also taken from corn. Ive been using now foods products for roughly 2 years now and am very happy with the quality and prices.
” * 100% Pure Crystalline
Fructose is commonly called “fruit sugar” because it is the main sugar in many fruits. However, fructose is now produced from corn syrup, which is derived from corn. Fructose is almost 50% sweeter than sucrose and requires about 2/3 the amount to get the same sweetness. This means fructose provides nearly 33% fewer calories per serving.”
http://www.nowfoods.com/index.php?action=itemdetail&item_id=92417
Now their crystalline fructose is listed as 100%, and maybe that makes it slightly better than others, but i would assume that the fact that its from corn still makes it an unwise choice.
I wonder what the good choices for a natural fruit sourced fructose are. Raisin juice perhaps? Im thinking about trying out something like that along with stevia for sweeteners.
Hi Aaron,
I really like Now Foods too, I buy supplements from them.
That’s correct and it’s very confusing to a lot of people….fructose is supposed to be fruit sugar, but crystalline fructose is made from corn. I wouldn’t recommend buying crystalline fructose, even if from Now Foods, and that’s nothing to do with their company because I’ve only had positive experiences with them. It’s just the product itself that is unhealthy for you.
If you want to use some natural sweeteners I’d recommend Stevia first (well, this is processed because it’s the extract of the Stevia leaf), and you could also try using juice from fresh fruits, or grate some raisins or dates and add to your food. In fact dates are the #1 ingredient of Lärabars, which don’t contain any added sugar, and believe me, they are quite sweet!
I made the mistake of drinking some eggnog for the holidays. I ended up feeling the usual sickness I get when I drink anything with HFCS in it. I asked my aunt if I could see the bottle or carton of eggnog. Sure enough, HFCS is one of the ingredients. There I was with one of my usual HFCS headaches and sick to my stomach with a warm flushed tired feel.
Hi Luc,
I’m sorry to hear that you got into the eggnog with the HFCS in it, I hope you had a happy holiday season, though!
You are an excellent example of someone who really pays attention to how the corn sweeteners affect your body negatively and you’re doing a great job of listening to your body….our body will always tell us what is healthy for us and what isn’t if we just listen, and most processed food (not to mention any of the corn sugar ingredients like crystalline fructose and HFCS!) just isn’t healthy for the human body!
Thanks for the valuable information! My wife and I are on a low glycemic diet, and are currently doing a fast with our church right now. We got this GLACEU vitamin water to help us have something to drink and keep a few vitamins going into our bodies. When my wife was looking for information on the crystaline fructose ingredient we found your post here. It is valuable information. Thanks!
Hi Dan,
Sure, I’m glad that I could help!
I’d stick with plain water instead of the vitamin water myself. You could take vitamin supplements and save the $$ on the “health drink” vitamin water, and you’d be keeping the corn sugar (crystalline fructose) and other additives out of your system.
All the best to you and your wife with your fast (with your church)!
Is this site a joke or what?
http://www.fructose.org/facts.asp
It states crystalline fructose and HFCS are not the same. It also goes on about how they are safe and are not the cause of obesity and diabetes or any other ill effects on health. Would anyone consider this safe, Arsenic ≥ 1 mg/kg?
All I know is that when I used to drink anything with HFCS in it, I always ended up with a bad case of gastroenteritis. And, crystalline fructose tastes enough like to poison to me.
Hi Luc,
Yeah, I know what you mean. They are trying to put a positive spin on it (on that site), but like your stomach tells you, it’s just not healthy!
Thanks for your comment on that.
I didn’t read ALL of the comments so apologies if someone else already posted this, but I actually wrote to Glaceau about my concern about crystalline fructose, and this was their reply:
“thank you for taking the time to contact us.
we are committed to using natural ingredients; therefore we don’t incorporate any artificial sweeteners into our products. crystalline fructose is the natural sweetener we use in vitaminwater® and fruitwater® and vitaminenergy®.
crystalline fructose is a very pure, high-quality sweetener that is the same as found in most fruit. It is almost 70% sweeter than other sugars, so we can use less to get the same sweetness. crystalline fructose has a lower glycemic index than other sugars such as high fructose corn syrup, thus, blood sugar levels will remain more stable.
additionally, smartwater® our vapor distilled, electrolyte enhanced water does not contain any sugar.
if you have any questions or if I can be of further assistance, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
thank you again, and remember vitaminwater - it works! nutrients are the new energy!
sincerely,
elly
consumer relations representative
http://www.glaceau.com
1-877-glaceau”
you have to appreciate their wordplay with “the same as found in most fruit”. So, does that mean it IS THE SAME found in most fruit, or SIMILAR to what is found in most fruit, but not necessarily FROM fruit? You tell me
Hi Jamie,
Crystalline fructose is made from corn, it is not made from fruit, and I don’t know of any fruit that contains corn, do you? (LOL)
Crystalline fructose is a corn sugar, it is sugar, it causes sugar cravings and also intestinal difficulties in both my own personal experience and those of other people who have commented about this here at The Fit Shack (comments above and in a couple of my other articles).
The company you wrote to has a product to sell, and they are just doing what they will to put a positive spin on it. CF is not at all the same as the natural sugar that is found in fruit because CF is made from corn. Crystalline fructose is just another sugar….most of the sugars in food today are made from corn (like HFCS and CF), but it can also be made from cane and beets, there are so many different names for sugar.
Check out the documents that I linked to in my article above and also the book Sugar Shock!
, pg.290.
Hope that helps, I’d stay away from the bottled sugar waters….why spend the money on that when it’s going to give you sugar cravings and cause overeating, besides cause other health issues that the corn sugars are causing for people?
Great article!
Everyone should be warned of the amount of sugar they’re eating, no matter what form it takes, in processed foods. Sugar, whether glucose, fructose, sucrose or lactose, is still sugar. Large amounts of sugar are plain bad for you. Processed food high in sugar are the reason so many people are overweight and younger people are getting type II diabetes like it’s an epidemic. I like this article because it warns about the damage to your liver before all that glucose ever gets to mess with your pancreas and make you insulin-resistant.
But let’s get a little chemistry straight about the trace metals found in HFCS, crystalline fructose and any other food you consume.
Arsenic, lead, cadmium, etc., are found in very low concentrations in all soil. They are usually found in very small amounts in nearly everything you eat. 1 mg/kg is 1 part per million. The reason you see these metals being reported now that weren’t reported in the past is our analytical instruments can easily measure metals in the parts per billion and parts per trillion range, so parts per million is getting to be somewhat big in the analytical trace analysis world.
I would be a lot more worried about the affects of sugar consumption than the trace metals. Our bodies need many metals in trace amounts to be healthy, but not arsenic, lead or cadmium. Still, they come into our bodies piggybacked on other sources of nutrients our bodies do need.
Sugar consumption and the increase in weight and type II diabetes are a far larger health threat than trace metals. I’ve never heard of anyone dying of 1 ppm arsenic poisoning. Thousands die daily from the complications of type II diabetes.
Solution: avoid processed foods and eat food as close to the source as you can get it; fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains, make your own bread (bread machines are inexpensive), and if you eat dairy, meat, fish or poultry, buy organic if you can get it. Butter is better for you than margarine because it’s minimally processed. Margarine is highly processed vegetable oil. Eating vegetable oil is better for you than margarine, even if it has no trans fats (the result of more processing).
And drink unsweetened tea you make yourself. Tea has many benefits that we are only beginning to learn about. Asians live to be old for a reason!
Look at the diets of those cultures who are healthiest and you will see no processed foods, a variety of teas, coffees and only natural sugar sources in small amounts.
Hi Sherri, thank you very much for your comments!
That’s exactly right, crystalline fructose is sugar, that’s why I suggest staying away from it (as well as all other corn sugars, and the myriad of other sugars under numerous names) if you are addicted to refined sugar like I am, or are sugar sensitive. I do believe that sugar is addictive to the human body since it does cause a chemical reaction in the brain, however I go into that in other articles here at The Fit Shack.
You’re also right that you can pick up heavy metals in other ways, however the concern that I would have with crystalline fructose is that in the products I’ve seen it listed in, it’s almost always in the top 4 ingredients (the top 4 are the main ingredients of a food product), and usually it’s the second ingredient, which means it’s making up the bulk of that product.
According to the PDF doc I linked to in my article above, cf can contain up to 1kg arsenic, and up to 5kg heavy metals. So, if you’re living on processed foods and many contain cf (corn sugars are used more often than any other sugar in the U.S., you have to check labels to see if it’s crystalline fructose), all of those additives, chemicals, and heavy metals add up. People don’t go around eating dirt on purpose, but they do buy and ingest processed foods that contain these ingredients.
When you have all of those unhealthy ingredients coming into your body, unless you do regular detoxes to get them out, they’re just hanging around. How many people detox regularly?
Those are my thoughts on it, but everyone has to choose for themselves. For myself, I don’t eat/drink anything that has crystalline fructose, hfcs, or other corn sugars in it, but I also have to stay away from refined sugar (and flour) in general because these ingredients trigger me to compulsively overeat and then crave more and more and more, add infinitum.
I completely agree with you on getting off the processed foods and onto a healthy lifestyle filled with whole foods. When I’m eating clean (like I am now) and not into my sugar addiction, I feel just awesome. You’re right that other cultures who don’t rely on processed foods are much healthier.
Thank you so much for the informative article! You answered all my questions completely. I too had the same question your professor and and happy you could help. I am going right now to pour my Glaceau Vitamin energy down the drain where it belongs!!!
Hi Lynnette,
No problem, I’m glad that I researched this and wrote it here…..well, I’m glad my professor asked me about it!
Hi JoLynn,
You seem to be quite ambitious with this site. I think the public has a right to know what is being fed to them. By and large, I think you’re doing some good work.
However, after reading several of the comments and retorts, it seems to me that there is a disconnect between scientific nomenclature and public/common perception.
Fructose is sugar. There’s a chemical composition for the carbohydrate, complete with carbons and hydrogens and oxygens and a way to put them together. Nothing will ever change that. Unless the fructose is synthesized from petroleum products (way too expensive), it can be called ‘natural’ regardless of source. Fructose from corn is natural. Further, I believe corn is *scientifically* a fruit (the riped ovaries of a seed plant). USDA/FDA precedence has been used to term it a vegetable in our everyday language. This is very similar to the old tomato (fruit or vegetable?) argument. Therefore, ’sugar from fruit’ is completely right, as per the Vitamin Water label. Or, it is possible, to develop a crystalline fructose process from another fruit. Whether that fructose comes from apples or honey or corn, it doesn’t matter. Well, from honey wouldn’t be from fruit. But, all sources are all-natural. So, i would conclude that your opening of comment #2659 is somewhat bogus. Well intentioned, and I get what you’re saying, but bogus.
But that’s science. And although I’m a scientist, it means absolutely nothing. Natural means nothing. There are plenty of things in nature that will kill you (already pointed out by Lively). There are even fruits that will kill you (holly berries for one, if I recall properly). Some biological things use arsenic. Some use cadmium. Some use lead. Humans don’t, at least not in very high amounts - and that’s all that matters. The biology of humans. Fructose, in moderation, is OK. Just like sodium. Our body would not function without any sodium. We need some of those sodium ions to maintain charge balances, turgor pressure, and the active sites of many of our enzymes. But, moderation is the couple of grams of fructose that one gets from eating a daily serving of fruits and vegetables. Moderation probably isn’t drinking a 20oz soda at about 50 grams of sugar. It probably also isn’t drinking Gatorades or Life Waters or Vitamin waters or shooting cheap pancake syrup by the shot-glass.
So, in this respect, I get what you’re saying. Over consumption of things is bad. Whether it is tens of grams of fructose a day or 10 mg of arsenic. I just hope that I will have elucidated some of the misconceptions about what we are dealing with. Hopefully you’ll be less dismissive (albeit in a very nice and cordial way) of my comments than those that have come before mine. Some of what they (James, Alex, others) were saying is applicable - it’s just a matter of definition and degree.
In all, I would agree that refined fructose (and any refined sugar or starch) is probably not very good for you. And certainly not as healthy as a whole food diet. After all, we didn’t evolve drinking Mountain Dew and eating Pringles. Although if we had…..
Hi Chris, thanks for your comments and your feedback.
Right, it’s a very common misconception that fructose is fruit sugar. Like all of the other information in my article (except my opinions that I included at the end, of course) I didn’t just make this up.
You can refer to the PDF doc in my article and I also recommend the book Sugar Shock!
, (pg.290 for specifics).
Re: corn being a fruit - I haven’t heard that before and the problem is we are talking about the general public who are going shopping for this stuff at the grocery store - like me for instance….when I think fruit I think apple, orange, banana, peach - fruit. That’s not what crystalline fructose is made from, it’s made from corn. It’s a stretch to say corn is a fruit and it’s false advertising to say to the general public (who make up the majority) that crystalline fructose is natural and is made from fruit, because again, most think of fruit like I do. Natural sugar is found in the raw apple or orange that you could eat today; it’s not found in a bottle of water containing CF, or any other refined sugar for that matter. Now you could squeeze that orange into a glass of clean water, and that would be natural.
Re: my comments being dismissive, I’m sorry you feel that way, that’s not at all my intention. I’m not going to change my stance though, just because someone disagrees with me, especially since I didn’t pull this information out of thin air and have backed it up with references in my article and over and over in these comments (I think I should have a forum for everyone to talk about their views on crystalline fructose, maybe that would be good!) If this were one of my other articles about something like how to avoid self-sabotage then that’s different, but again, I didn’t make up that CF is made from corn.
Everyone has free will to do what they want and I cannot change anyone, only myself. It’s simply that for me I now know that corn sugars are extremely unhealthy, especially when taking into account how prevalent they are in processed and fast foods, therefore large amounts of this sugar are being consumed - corn sugar is everywhere.
And, since I passionately believe that a very large part of the obesity crisis is the fact that so many are living on processed and fast foods, I will continue to pass along information like this. If even one person can be helped to live a healthier lifestyle (because they themselves want to), then I think that is wonderful. I’d rather be able to help everyone live a healthy lifestyle full of live, whole foods instead of dead processed foods, but not everyone wants to do that. There was a time that I didn’t want to do that myself.
Like I write about in my other articles here at The Fit Shack, I’m always talking about the benefits of getting off of processed food and all of the sugar and other junk they contain, and onto whole foods - not just to lose weight but to feel awesome. Crystalline fructose is sugar, sugar is addictive, food addiction is real, and crystalline fructose is another sugar that is made from corn. It won’t help you lose weight, it creates sugar cravings, and I opt for foods that don’t contain it (and I drink plain, clean water).
That’s what I do but again, I don’t expect the world to change because of the information I provide and my personal experiences that I share.
Thanks everyone for reading this, I could have just made a post out of it! And thanks again for your comments Chris!
Right, so I don’t really disagree with any of your fundamental conclusions about crystalline fructose. Or that darn close to 100% of the production of CF is from corn. Fructose based sweeteners have taken over our societies food supply. My position is that whether CF is made from corn, sugar beets, a derivative of sugar cane, or honey, it’s not that great for you. Some sources may be better than others, but if you’re eating a refined product you’re not going to be doing yourself justice.
CF should not be singled out. Why? Sucrose is a disaccharide (read: double sugar) that contains one glucose tethered to one fructose. The first thing your body does is chop them apart. So now you have one glucose going through your blood stream, and one fructose which is headed to the liver for further processing. Doesn’t sound a whole lot different to me than HFCS. And thats not an argument that HFCS is good. It’s an argument that table sugar (sucrose) is bad. BTW, table sugar in the US is mostly from the sugar beet. An all-natural vegetable.
I suppose my problems arise from this idea that deciding what to buy at the supermarket should be an easy job. And that’s just not going to be the case. People seem to want a rubber stamp that approves a food as “All Natural” or “Organic”. We want those stamps to mean something. Well, right now, they don’t. And the answer is not a government agency.
The fact of the matter is that crystalline fructose is “All Natural”. Why? Because CF is sourced from a natural plant (read: not genetically modified by direct DNA manipulation). The process for converting the polysaccharides (starch) into monosaccharides (glucose and fructose) is also a natural process. The sugars are transformed using an amylase enzyme, which I believe are the same enzymes which perform this function during germination. Mix together some mashed corn, water, amylase, and add a little heat - and there you go, all-natural fructose. I agree that this is not a ‘natural’ food for humans, but that’s not what all-natural means. I don’t think it should be consumed, but then again I don’t act like a sheep whenever packaging includes the catch-phrases of “All-natural,” “Organic,” or “From Fruit.”
Think of it this way - if crystalline fructose was derived from apples, but underwent heavy refining to make it into a 99.5% pure fructose solid, would you eat it? It certainly could be done. It would just be very expensive because apples are expensive compared to corn. I guarantee that you’ll find it absolutely identical to the CF made from corn in every major way (maybe you’ll find some more traces of a different heavy metal). Would you eat this product? It’s from apples. One of the ‘classic’ fruits. I hope that you’d choose, &