Corn sugar: A new name for the same old crap

High fructose corn syrup, no more!  Please welcome the new belle of the ball: Corn Sugar.

This is rich.  The corn industry noticed that high fructose corn syrup gained a reputation as an unhealthy food.  So what do you do?  Re-name it corn sugar.  And release a fancy new website you must visit at www.CornSugar.com (damn, why I didn't I buy that domain).  Now, before you get your hemp undies in a bunch about evil corporations coming up with Orwellian names to market garbage to us, realize that this is actually a brazen act of reverse-Orwellian naming.  Yes, high fructose corn syrup actually is a bunch of sugar (with more fructose than glucose).  Not a whole lot different than honey, table sugar, or agave nectar.

Corn sugar is trying to borrow some of the positive attitudes toward natural sugar.  But hopefully the disease will go in the other direction -- and everyone will start to realize that sugar is the real problem, no matter whether it's natural or synthetic.  Don't get me started on "organic sugar" -- possibly the most idiotic "healthier" food in all of human history.  That deserves its own post. 

Let's continue this fun name game.

  • Better carbo-load before that race by eating a lot of pasta wheat sugar!
  • Yes, I'd love a bowl of rice rice sugar
  • Every morning I love to eat a bagel bagel sugar
  • I am addicted to carbohydrate sugar

Okay, there's more in grains than just carbohydrate.  But sugar -- that's what carbohydrate looks like to your body, no matter how complex it is.

I need to go buy www.bagelsugar.com.   Slate article here.  Thanks to Sam for the timely pointer.

Comments

 I think the real issue here

Submitted by Loretta on Fri, 11/05/2010 - 12:57.

 I think the real issue here is not to bicker over the name of the stuff.  That's the diversion technique they use to keep us off the real topic:  WHY is this stuff in practically EVERYTHING available to eat in America?  Why is there so much of this crap in everything - ha - even DIET foods?  And so many people DON'T WANT IT!  Why is all this cheap sugar being thrust upon us whether we like it or not?  Geez!  Help the farmers and corporations get in on healthier crops and non-food uses for all that HFCS.  The corn industry is just making a bunch of  "pushers" out of American farmers and companies.-Lorettahttp://www.taichigala.com

The reason corn syrup is in

Submitted by Bill Ades on Fri, 11/05/2010 - 13:22.

The reason corn syrup is in almost every processed food is due to government subsidies.  Corn is the most subsidized food in the country, so what happens is the farmers have an overabundance of corn, with which they don't know what to do.  They feed it to the cows, whiich since it is not a healthy choice for the animals, they are given anti-biotics.  Just to get rid of the rest of their corn, corn syrup is manufactured and used for snacks, such as popcorn.  Notice when you buy popcorn in the movie theater, the corn itself costs less than the container.  This is also why you have supersized sodas in the theaters with a free refill.  People feel they need to have their refill just to get their money's worth despite the fact that soda is one of the most poisonous things you can put into your system.  And of course, it is added into cerials and all different kinds of processed foods as an unhealthy sweetener.  This is a big problem in the country which the government, instead of eliminating, is actually exacerbating. 

Over a year ago, I had an

Submitted by FreshGreenKim on Mon, 09/27/2010 - 08:31.

Over a year ago, I had an email exchange with the president of the Corn Refiners Association over an article I had written. At that time, I asked pointedly why I wasn't able to use the food substance formerly known as HFCS in my own home cooking. Our email exchange ceased. I never got a reply. So, a year and one name change later, I am issuing a challenge. I would love if you could promote this challenge to your readers. I want the manufacturers (sad that we aren't calling them FARMERS!) of CORN SUGAR to send me a sample and recipe for me to test this "wonderful same as sugar product" in my own kitchen.(is that the sound of crickets? rather silent so far) http://ourdailygreenlife.blogspot.com/2010/09/smackdown-green.html

This post had me cracking

Submitted by Bill Ades on Mon, 09/20/2010 - 14:00.

This post had me cracking up.  Another attempt at politicizing the food industry which is way too politicized already.  Don't call them prunes - call them dried plums to get more youngsters to eat prunes.  Make ketchup more appealing to kids by coloring it green (ewww gross!) like the Saturday Night Live commercial about see-thru gravy.I'm actually not sure what sounds worse - corn syrup or corn sugar? Sometimes when people trying to be health conscious see "sugar" the sirens in their minds go off.  "GASP! Sugar! This can't be any good.  Let's go with maple syrup" - which is actually much healthier than the refined sugars.  There's actually a lot of healthy sugar alternatives - date sugar, rice sugar.  I don't know what the food industry is aiming at by renaming corn syrup.   People are generally not educated enough to know that sugar in general generally contains healthy nutrients untll it is refined.  Then the industries that are attempting to promote sugar as a healthy item are marketing refined sugars including "corn sugar" lacking in nutrients designed to send people through the ceiling only to come down fatigued complete with ADD.Not helping is the fact that corn is by far the most subsidized farm crop in the country to the point that the farmers have so much that they don't know what to do with it.  Make extra pop corn, which these days is worth less than the super-size container you buy in the movie theaters.  Market more soda - get your supersized soda with a free refill! "Gasp! I'm not getting my money's worth unless I take advantage of my free refill - forget about what it's doing to my body and health!" It would be far better if they market it as a cheaper alternative to Draino!  Still an excess amount of corn? Feed it to our cows and inject them with anti-biotics.  That way we don't have to worry about grass feeding them and our population being overall healtier as a result. Or of course, rename it "corn sugar"!  Presto! healthy sugar. I say if it looks like a duck and walks like a duck...

 Actually "sugar is sugar"

Submitted by MaggieL on Sun, 09/19/2010 - 13:42.

 Actually "sugar is sugar" misses the mark. Fructose is not metabolized the same way as glucose. (And yes, I know sucrose is 50/50 glucose and fructose.) Watch http://www.uctv.tv/search-details.aspx?showID=16717 

Thanks for the link!

Submitted by John on Mon, 09/20/2010 - 22:05.

Thanks for the link!

Once they find out that

Submitted by ScottMGS on Thu, 09/16/2010 - 03:00.

Once they find out that "sugar" is bad they'll rename it again. Better get a lock on "CornHoney.com" 'cuz, ya know, honey is natural.

Just another thing to add to

Submitted by Tom | New Evolution on Wed, 09/15/2010 - 22:07.

Just another thing to add to the loooooooong list of how big business easily controls our population. But what can you do? Yup... nothing.

I'll be buying

Submitted by Levi on Wed, 09/15/2010 - 18:09.

I'll be buying www.ricesugar.com so hands off! ;)

 I saw a commercial on TV

Submitted by Andy on Wed, 09/15/2010 - 17:59.

 I saw a commercial on TV last week for www.cornsugar.com.  There was this mother who was "concerned" about all the talk around HFCS so she did some research and found out that to the body sugar is sugar so "Hurray!" for corn sugar. Here is the same commercial, but with the dad. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fyj2N-AspqUIt is sad

That is depressing and

Submitted by Alishahndra on Thu, 09/16/2010 - 13:13.

That is depressing and disgusting.