During the 19th century American farmers were producing too much corn which was the first ingredient in alcohol. Over the time, farmers found new uses for this crop. The most common use was the creation of HFCS (High Fructose Corn Syrup), which is a sweetener made by changing the sugar in corn to fructose. The final result is a combination of glucose and fructose. Because it is cheaper than sugar, easy to transport and keeps food in good condition for a longer period of time, HFCS has become a popular ingredient in Sodas, ketchup, jams, jellies, juices, snacks, bread, cereal, fast food, and almost all processed food that we consume. As a result of this, HFCS seems to be impossible to avoid. Moreover, the use of this sweetener instead of sugar has created criticism among researchers about the effects of this ingredient. Some allege that HFCS is healthier than sucrose; while others claim that the low cost of HFCS encourages overconsumption of sugar, making it the bigger cause of Obesity and Diabetes in America.
Obesity has being considered as an epidemic, because is the biggest health problem we face. According to Michael Pollan, the author of “The Consumer: A Republic of Fat”, “Obesity cost the health care system and estimated $90 billion a year. Three of five Americans are overweight; one of every five is obese.” obesity occurs when people eat more calories than the calories that they burn; having a diet high in fat and sugar contribute to this disease, as well as the lack of exercise, and the lack of money to buy whole foods, which are healthier. As a result of this, people will buy cheaper food which contains HFCS and will eat more fat and sugar. In 1980, when HFCS was developed in American’s diet, the obesity rate was 15% and now it has increased tremendously to a 33%. While Diabetes, a disease first known in adults, has been renamed Type II diabetes since it now occurs in children.
Type II diabetes occurs when the body does not make enough insulin which helps the carbohydrates in foods to be used as energy. The body don’t recognize the sources of these carbohydrates, however, even though HFCS could not be the main cause of diabetes, the overconsumption have a significant role in this disease as well as in obesity. According to a 2004 study reported in the American journal of Clinical Nutrition, the rise of Type II diabetes since 1980 is paralleled to the increased use of Corn Syrup. HFSC does not reduce the hunger; therefore there is no feeling of satiety. Likewise, Michael Pollan states in chapter six “the Consumer: A Republic of fat” of the book “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” that, “since 1985, the consumption of HFCS has gone from forty-five pounds to sixty six pounds. During the same period our consumption of refined sugar actually went up by five pounds”. This makes us infers that we are getting HFCS on top of the sugars we were already consuming. People diagnosed with Diabetes are eating less sugar than before, but they could be ingesting more corn sweeteners.
In conclusion, the overproduction of corn since 19th century has made this crop the number one ingredient in American’s diet, since is the most important and cheaper source of calories in the supermarkets. Leading people to over consume it and therefore be one of the biggest causes of obesity and diabetes. To avoid this, it’s important to read the food labels of the food we eat. It has been proven that when people are better informed about a subject, they have more power to make better decisions.
Michael Pollan. “The Consumer: A Republic of Fat”. The Omnivore’s Dilemma; The Secrets Behind What You Eat. New York: Dial, 2009. 100-108.
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. www.ajcn.org
No comments:
Post a Comment