Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you. Well, don't eat yourself to be too sweet.

Yes, readers, we all love the taste of a sweet treat. In fact, the candy bars, soft drinks, energy drinks, chips, snacks, fruit juice, peanut butter, soups, ice cream, jams, jellies, yogurt, and many breads we eat often contain added sugars.

The key term is "added." For example, some lowfat ice cream has sugar in it, while some lowfat ice cream sandwiches use high fructose corn syrup.

My organic fat free yogurt uses milled organic sugar. One of the energy drinks I wrote about last week adds high fructose corn syrup, while another contains sucrose and glucose.

Let's get to the basics.

Sugar alters the flavor and properties (preservation and texture) of beverages and food.

Table sugar comes from sugar cane or from the sugar beet. Manufactured and processed sugar, including palm sugar and fructose, generally come from corn or fruit.

High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is manufactured from corn starch into a thick liquid that contains two basic sugar building blocks, fructose and glucose, in roughly equal amounts.

Three enzymes are used to make HFCS (two are genetically-modified).

Sucrose, commonly known as table sugar, is a larger sugar molecule that breaks down into fructose and glucose in the intestine during metabolism. Fructose and glucose are in both.

Same thing, right? Not to the manufacturers.

Not to nutritionists either. Lo and behold, there's a food battle going between sugar and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS).

Here's more info. When carbohydrates (i.e. starch) are broken down, you get mono- and disaccharides, most of which is glucose.

Upon further bodily processes (through glycolysis and the citric acid cycle), glucose is oxidized to eventually form CO2 and water, which are prime energy sources for the body and the brain.

Simply put, I eat carbs/starch, I get some kind of energy and if I eat too much or don't burn it off, guess what? It could lead to obesity.

A mention of high fructose corn syrup in my last column caught the attention of the President of the Corn Refiners Association.

Last week, I wrote "Let's look at some of the ingredients (of energy drinks). Topping the list is high fructose corn syrup, taurine, guarana, ginseng and the big favorite, caffeine. High fructose corn syrup (equal amounts of fructose and glucose) is made from corn and is absorbed by the body very quickly.

"Studies show fructose is metabolized in the liver and the livers of test animals fed large amounts of fructose develop fatty deposits and cirrhosis, similar to problems that develop in the livers of alcoholics."

Audrae Erickson, President of the Corn Refiners Association, wrote in an email, "Peer reviewed research has shown that high fructose corn syrup and sugar are handled similarly by the body and have similar metabolic effects. The American Medical Association stated that, Because the composition of high fructose corn syrup and sucrose are so similar, particularly on absorption by the body, it appears unlikely that high fructose corn syrup contributes more to obesity or other conditions than sucrose' (Report 3 of the Council on Science and Public Health a-08, June 2008.)

"High fructose corn syrup, sugar, and several fruit juices are all nutritionally the same. High fructose corn syrup is simply a kind of corn sugar. To read the latest research and learn more about high fructose corn syrup, please visit"

According to that Web site, the "Corn Refiners Association (CRA) is the national trade association representing the corn refining (wet milling) industry of the United States.

A high fructose corn syrup lobby?

In the interest of balanced journalism, I invite you, readers, to also visit, a Web site of the Sugar Association, an organization that "advocates the health effects of sugar."

Here's some straight talk. In 2003, four United Nations agencies (including the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization) commissioned a report compiled by a panel of 30 international experts.

The panel stated that the total of free sugars (all monosaccharides and disaccharides added to foods by manufacturers, cooks or consumers, plus sugars naturally present in honey, syrups and fruit juices) should not account for more than 10 percent of the energy intake of a healthy diet, while carbohydrates in total should represent between 55 and 75 percent of the energy intake.

Face it, Americans. We know we are getting fatter.

Enough said. Watch your diet and sneakers on!

nDid you know? Nutrition advice, information and research can often be confusing. Remember the "eggs are high in cholesterol" and some time later "eggs are a great source of protein" phenomenon. When you hear of a study, do some research (i.e. look who commissioned/paid for it). Eat a varied, moderate menu and enjoy it.
