Alternatives to High Fructose Corn Syrup

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Alternatives to High Fructose Corn Syrup

Abstract

High fructose corn syrup has been used as a cheap alternative to classic sugars, like sucrose, since the late 1970s. It is produced from corn, which is government subsidized so that it is cheaper than standard table sugar. Unfortunately for the American public, high fructose corn syrup has many potential health risks. Fortunately, there are prospective alternatives to this poisonous sweetener, even among the most common ones, like Splenda, NutraSweet, and Sweet’N Low.

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Even before birth, we are programmed to enjoy the sweetness in foods. Humans are designed such that even before we learn to walk, we choose sweeter, less nutritious foods over more nutritious foods (National Academy of Sciences (U.S.) 13). In today’s world, substances like table sugar (sucrose) or high fructose corn syrup sweeten these foods. Sucrose is nature’s sweetener, extracted and purified from sugar cane or sugar beet. In the United States, high fructose corn syrup is an artificial sweetener that is used because it is cheaper than plain sugar. Unfortunately, there are several health risks associated with high fructose corn syrup, so it is important to evaluate alternative sweeteners such as Splenda (sucralose), NutraSweet (aspartame), and Sweet’N Low (saccharin).

Many aspects of sweeteners are used when comparing different sweeteners. The most important of these are taste, color, state of matter, chemical stability, physical stability, and the

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temperature at which melting occurs. In general, taste is compared to sucrose on a basis of sweetness and presence of an aftertaste. Color is important because people are used to ce...

... middle of paper ...

...igh fructose corn syrup in all baked/bread products because it has a similar effect upon yeast, and helps browning the same way that sucrose does. Because alternative sweeteners can replace high fructose corn syrup in each of its uses, there is no reason to use it as a sweetener, and the corn could go to better use feeding needy people around the world.

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Works Cited

Ettlinger, Steve. Twinkie, Deconstructed. 375 Hudson Street, New York: Penguin Group,

Inc., 2007.

Inglett, George E. Symposium: Sweeteners. Westport, Connecticut: The Avi Publishing Company, Inc., 1974.

Marie, S., and J.R. Piggott. Handbook of Sweeteners. Glasgow: Blackie and Son Ltd, 1991

Nabors, Lyn O’Brien. Alternative Sweeteners. New York: Marcel Dekker, Inc., 2001.

National Academy of Sciences (U.S.). Sweeteners: Issues and Uncertainties. Washington, D.C.: National Academy of Sciences, 1975.

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