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  1. TopTop #1
    debbus
     

    FYI mercury in corn syrup

    This is from Democracy Now. Sheesh- remember when sugar was "white death"? China has very little over us in the unsafe food department .Wondering about Autism and mercury???

    Quote Meanwhile, another story involving food safety has just come to light. A pair of new studies has revealed traces of toxic mercury can be found in many popular foods containing high-fructose corn syrup. The sweetener has become a widely used substitute for sugar in processed foods, including many items marketed to children. Items found to contain mercury include Hershey’s chocolate syrup, Smucker’s strawberry jelly, Hunt’s tomato ketchup, Coca-Cola Classic, Quaker Oatmeal to Go, Nutri-Grain strawberry cereal bars. Mercury is considered toxic in all forms, particularly dangerous for children.
    We’re joined now by two guests. Patty Lovera joins us from Washington. Assistant director of Food & Water Watch, she’s been closely monitoring the peanut butter recall. Dr. David Wallinga has joined us from Minneapolis. He’s the director of food and health of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Dr. Wallinga is co-author of the new studies on mercury levels in high-fructose corn syrup food products.
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  2. TopTop #2
    Sylph's Avatar
    Sylph
     

    Re: FYI mercury in corn syrup

    Thanks for posting. Interesting about the corn syrup. This stuff is in nearly all processed food. In a quick survey of my kitchen I found it in Nakano seasoned rice vinegar, Special K and Gatoraide. It's good to avoid corn syrup even if it didn't have mercury. From what I can figure out, the current way it's manufactured doesn't use mercury...but who wants it with it's empty calories?
    Fish is the most common source of mercury in our diets, even though fish is still a good addition to a balanced diet.

    Mercury in blue fin tuna and other fish. FDA lax on testing under Bush administration. Wealthy New Yorkers, who eat lots of fish, have high mercury levels.
    www.thedoctorweighsin.com - Current posts - Mercury in our*food.

    Food Standards Agency advises expectant mothers to avoid shark, swordfish and marlin and to limit their consumption of tuna, because these are the fish with the highest levels of mercury.
    There are other sources of mercury than fish. On average, three times more mercury is falling from the sky today than before the Industrial Revolution as a result of the increasing use of mercury and industrial emissions.
    World on alert over toxic mercury in food chain - Telegraph
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  3. TopTop #3
    MsTerry
     

    Re: FYI mercury in high fructose corn syrup

    You should change your heading.
    There is a big difference between high fructose corn syrup and the more natural corn syrup

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by debbus: View Post
    This is from Democracy Now. Sheesh- remember when sugar was "white death"? China has very little over us in the unsafe food department .Wondering about Autism and mercury???
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  4. TopTop #4
    Sylph's Avatar
    Sylph
     

    Re: FYI mercury in high fructose corn syrup

    Quote Posted in reply to the post by MsTerry: View Post
    You should change your heading.
    There is a big difference between high fructose corn syrup and the more natural corn syrup
    True:
    What is Corn Syrup?
    There is no such thing as a natural corn syrup pressed directly from corn kernels. Instead, the pulpy middle layer called cornstarch is first separated from the outer husk and the inner germ layers. The cornstarch is then stored in giant vats, where natural enzymes are added to break it down into glucose. It is these sugars which are heated and turned into what we call corn syrup.
    The most controversial form of corn syrup, however, is rarely sold directly to consumers, although it can be found in a majority of processed foods sold in grocery stores. Welcome to the world of high fructose corn syrup.
    High fructose corn syrup is subjected to additional processes as compared to regular corn syrup. First, three types of enzymes (alpha-amylase, glucoamylase, and glucose-isomerase) are successively added to change the starch to glucose and then fructose. Pure glucose is then added to the mixture to create some ratio of fructose to glucose which comprises the final product — high fructose corn syrup. There are various fructose-glucose ratios in high fructose corn syrup, including 90-10, 42-43, and 55-45. Since the United States Department of Agriculture subsidizes corn production but taxes imported sugar, high fructose corn syrup has become the default sweetener in many consumer food products.
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  5. TopTop #5
    debbus
     

    Re: FYI mercury in corn syrup

    Thanks for all the information. Another source of mercury exposure to children are those "light up" sneakers. I'm just interested in the rise in autism and looking for some answers. Mercury is pervasive!
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  6. TopTop #6
    debbus
     

    Re: FYI mercury in corn syrup

    Also- it's almost impossible to find food without corn syrup. - Even the "green" companies like Ben and Jerry's ice cream. You really have to read the labels carefully-even at Whole Foods.
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  7. TopTop #7
    Braggi's Avatar
    Braggi
     

    Re: FYI mercury in corn syrup

    The greatest source of mercury in our environment is coal fired power plants. Mercury compounds come out of the smoke stacks and fall on the surrounding countryside and wind up in the water supply. Grow corn nearby and it will have mercury in it. The best thing to do to reduce mercury in our environment is fight the new oxymoron of the power industry: "clean coal." if it's coal, it's not clean.

    Renewable energy is clean(er). Solar, wind, tide and geothermal.

    Nuclear is not. Nuclear contributes to global heating and consumes vast amounts of oil and coal in construction and maintenance.

    Oops, going way off topic here. Sorry.

    -Jeff
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  8. TopTop #8
    d-cat
    Guest

    Re: FYI mercury in corn syrup

    High-fructose Corn Syrup Linked To Diabetes
    Researchers have found new evidence that soft drinks sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) may contribute to the development of diabetes, particularly in children. In a laboratory study of commonly consumed carbonated beverages, the scientists found that drinks containing the syrup had high levels of reactive compounds that have been shown by others to have the potential to trigger cell and tissue damage that could cause the disease, which is at epidemic levels...
    Soda Warning? High-fructose Corn Syrup Linked To Diabetes, New Study Suggests


    Study Blames Corn Syrup for Rise of Diabetes in US
    Defeat Diabetes: Study Blames Corn Syrup for Rise of Diabetes in US


    The Dangers of High Fructose Corn Syrup
    ...fructose does not stimulate insulin secretion or require insulin to be transported into cells, as do other carbohydrates. As a person with diabetes, you know how important it is to control your blood glucose and insulin levels to avoid complications. So, it would seem that a lack of glucose and insulin secretion from fructose consumption would be a good thing. However, insulin also controls another hormone, leptin, so its release is necessary. fructose does not stimulate insulin secretion or require insulin to be transported into cells, as do other carbohydrates.

    What It Means to You and Your Diabetes
    As a person with diabetes, you know how important it is to control your blood glucose and insulin levels to avoid complications. So, it would seem that a lack of glucose and insulin secretion from fructose consumption would be a good thing. However, insulin also controls another hormone, leptin, so its release is necessary.

    Leptin tells your body to stop eating when it’s full by signaling the brain to stop sending hunger signals. Since fructose doesn’t stimulate glucose levels and insulin release, there’s no increase in leptin levels or feeling of satiety. This can leave you ripe for unhealthy weight gain.Leptin tells your body to stop eating when it’s full by signaling the brain to stop sending hunger signals. Since fructose doesn’t stimulate glucose levels and insulin release, there’s no increase in leptin levels or feeling of satiety. This can leave you ripe for unhealthy weight gain.

    Fructose requires a different metabolic pathway than other carbohydrates because it basically skips glycolysis (normal carbohydrate metabolism). Because of this, fructose is an unregulated source of “acetyl CoA,” or the starting material for fatty acid synthesis. This, coupled with unstimulated leptin levels, is like opening the flood gates of fat deposition...
    The Dangers of High Fructose Corn Syrup - Diabetes Health


    High-fructose corn syrup fueling obesity epidemic, doctors say
    The Seattle Times: Health: High-fructose corn syrup fueling obesity epidemic, doctors say


    SF Chronicle: We're drowning in high fructose corn syrup
    the latest case against high fructose corn syrup began in earnest a few years ago. Dr. George Bray, principal investigator of the Diabetes Prevention Program at Louisiana State University Medical Center told the International Congress on Obesity that in 1980, just after high fructose corn syrup was introduced in mass quantities, relatively stable obesity rates began to climb. By 2000, they had doubled.

    Further, the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2002 published research that showed that teenagers' milk consumption between 1965 and 1996 decreased by 36 percent, while soda consumption increased by more than 200 percent. Bray argues that without calcium, which nutritionists agree can help the body regulate weight, kids got fatter. He says that he could find no other single combination of environmental or food changes that were as significant to the rise in obesity...

    Peter Havel, a nutrition researcher at UC Davis who studies the metabolic effects of fructose, has also shown that fructose fails to increase the production of leptin, a hormone produced by the body's fat cells.
    Both insulin and leptin act as signals to the brain to turn down the appetite and control body weight. And in another metabolic twist, Havel's research shows that fructose does not appear to suppress the production of ghrelin, a hormone that increases hunger and appetite...
    Sugar coated / We're drowning in high fructose corn syrup. Do the risks go beyond our waistline?


    Monsanto to Public: Ignore the Rats and Eat the GMO Corn
    According to the London based Independent which broke the story, "…secret research carried out by Monsanto shows that rats fed the modified corn had smaller kidneys and variations in the composition of their blood."
    "This news couldn't have come at worse time for Monsanto which is already facing consumer mistrust of their products due to concerns over how GMO's impact the immune system, interfere with non-GMO crops and affect long term human health," says Ronnie Cummins, Executive Director of the Organic Consumer's Association. "European labeling laws require GMO ingredients to be listed making it easy to avoid them, but Americans and consumers are sitting ducks since no such labeling is required...
    Monsanto to Public: Ignore the Rats and Eat the GMO Corn

    No need for condoms – GE corn can do the job
    No need for condoms – GE corn can do the job


    -------------------------------------------


    response from The Corn Refiners Association:



    Mercury study seriously flawed and outdated
    HFCS Mercury Study Seriously Flawed and Outdated; Fails to Meet Standards for Scientific Research


    High-Fructose Corn Syrup Ad 1



    High-Fructose Corn Syrup Ad 2
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