Added Sweeteners

A couple weeks back on my uStream show, I sorta hinted at having a topic and then backed off of it. Here's a little more about it.

The larger part of what made me think about this is the debate over high fructose corn syrup. I have no problem with the stuff specifically. My big issue is with added sweeteners in general, and since high fructose corn syrup is the most common one, it's the one we talk about.

What I don't like is that it's in quite a lot of the processed foods we eat, at least here in the US. So, it's cheap, and maybe not particularly bad for us, as food additives go. It still bothers me that it's in so much of what we eat. The volume, the prevalence can't be a good thing.

Make no mistake, of course, that I'd have this problem with cane sugar or sucralose, or stevia, or any other added sweetener if it was used to the extent that corn syrup is. Too much of just about anything and everything is bad for a person. I know this first hand, as I would hope we all do.

I just want to suggest that we maybe try to move away from the high fructose corn syrup. Sure, other sweeteners may be more expensive, at least in the short term, but it might actually be worth it. The price is likely to go down on products with cane sugar, for example, if producers see that we'd rather have that instead.

And maybe it would be healthier to move away from things with added sweeteners in general. Again, it's likely to be more expensive, and perhaps a little less convenient, but I think it'll be worth it in the end, for quite a large portion of the population.

Keep in mind, of course, that I'm saying this as a resident of a state where corn farming is a major industry. While it might be bad for the economy of my home state, at least for a little while, it might be worth it for the general health and welfare of my fellow Americans.

Let's consider trying things without the added sweeteners, or with alternates to corn syrup, shall we? I'm finding that things with cane sugar are actually a little better.