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Many condiments contain high fructose corn syrup

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I've always been interested in nutrition and conscious of the food I was putting into my body, but it wasn’t until I had children that I started to dissect and understand each ingredient. My personal motto is “count chemicals, not calories,” and it’s changed the way we eat.

One night a couple years ago, my husband requested barbecue chicken sandwiches for dinner so I quickly got to work. I seasoned chicken breasts and threw them in the slow cooker, but just before I added in the barbecue sauce I flipped over the bottle to read the ingredients. I was surprised that high fructose corn syrup was the number one component. This started my quest to research and realize what was in some of the condiments that we frequently use.

First let’s understand what high fructose corn syrup is and why it should be avoided. HFCS is corn syrup that has undergone enzymatic processing to convert some of its glucose into fructose, in an effort to make products sweeter. The normal bond between the glucose and fructose is lost, so the fructose is absorbed into your blood stream, going right to the liver. HFCS may lead to obesity, diabetes and cancer, and it’s in thousands of processed foods. Go into your kitchen and check your bread, peanut butter, cereal, yogurt, tomato sauce, apple sauce and ice cream. If you purchase conventional brands, I bet you will find HFCS hiding in the ingredient list.

The corn industry is spending millions of dollars on campaigns directly targeting consumers to convince us that HFCS is safe. They are selling tons of it because it is a lot cheaper for companies to use as opposed to cane sugar. Also keep in mind that since almost 100 percent of the corn crop in the U.S. is genetically modified, it’s likely that the HFCS is made from GMO corn. In simple terms, HFCS is synthetically made, is sweeter than any other sugar and is a taste you wouldn’t find in nature. Because of this, our children’s tastebuds are likely to adjust to sweeter and sweeter products, causing the potential for real, natural foods to taste bland.

After the shock of learning that high fructose corn syrup was the number one ingredient in my BBQ sauce, I got to work on understanding the makeup of the other condiments in our fridge.

I was truly surprised to see that soybean oil was the primary ingredient in all of my salad dressings and mayo. Soybean oil also is likely derived from GMO soy since almost 100 percent of the soy crop in the U.S. is now GMO. Additionally, pay attention when soybean oil is partially hydrogenated because it contains a ton of trans fats.

Also watch out for MSG, a flavor enhancer linked to a multitude of serious adverse effects, hidden under another name. If you see flavorings, seasonings, soy protein, stocks and broths, malt extract, carrageenan, and corn starch you should be concerned about possible MSG.

The list of harmful ingredients and additives got longer as I continued to investigate each condiment. We now make our own or purchase Spectrum Organics, Annie’s Naturals and Whole Foods or Wegmans store brand.

Samantha Adams lives in Jackson, with her husband, Greg, and her two sons, Gavin and Jackson. She works full time in medical sales and is working passionately to help to educate our community as it relates to our health and wellness. Visit her on Facebook on “If You Seek Nutrition.”

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